Lorna Grounsell

I offer appointments on Fridays.

With 16 years experience of working with children and adults, couples and families, I run a professional therapy practice providing skilled help with all kinds of personal and emotional issues.  I have a special interest in working with shame and anxiety disorders.

I am a BACP accredited counsellor/psychotherapist, and qualified counselling supervisor abiding by the British Association of Counsellors & Psychotherapists' Ethical Framework for Good Practice and Professional Conduct Procedures.

I offer conversational and creative therapy using an integrative approach and draw on a range of techniques to the suit the individual needs of the client. Where appropriate, I make use of the creative arts in therapy.

In counselling couples, I offer brief therapy (usually 6 - 8 sessions) with the specific aim of interrupting and redirecting unhelpful patterns of communication in couple relationships.

As a therapist I am interested in patterns that emerge in our relationships - with our family, friends, colleagues, and with ourselves - and believe they inform who we are and how we feel.  This includes the relationship within therapy, especially as we discuss very deep issues and feelings.

My practice is informed by mindful and Gestalt approaches.  This means I will support you:

• To become increasingly aware of yourself, and aware of all your senses.
• To gradually assume ownership of your own experience.
• To take responsibility for what you think, feel and do.
• To take responsibility for the consequence of your actions.
• To seek to acquire values and develop skills to live as full a life as possible, without violating the rights of others.
• To give help, and receive help from other people.

As a therapist, I listen to you as your bring the issues you want to raise.  I offer non-judgement, acceptance, warmth and understanding within a safe, containing relationship.  I use psychoeducation within my practice and help you to develop skills to support you outside of the therapy room and build a life worth living.

A first appointment provides an opportunity to see if there is a 'good fit' between client and therapist; it also includes an assessment in which you can expect your therapist to ask about the history of the difficulties or issues you are experiencing.

There will be some conversation around how the service will be offered. This usually includes:

• The number and frequency of sessions.
• How fees will be paid.
• What happens if you miss a session.
• How your confidential information and privacy will be protected.
• Any situation in which there may be a need to disclose information about you.
• Use of notes or records.

You will also have the opportunity to ask anything about the therapist's qualifications and experience. 

I offer appointments on Fridays.

A spirit of enquiry is at the heart of the supervision offered within a clear and accessible model.

I offer supervision using the Cyclical Model. This framework provides a clear and accessible structure including establishing a contract, focusing on issues to be explored, and creating a space in which reflection, exploration, recognition, insight and understanding can all occur. Ideas, musings and possibilities thus discerned are then integrated and sensitively applied during the bridge before reviewing the process to ensure the quality of the supervisory relationship and effectiveness of the work done in supervision.

The three-fold purpose of supervision to manage, educate and support, in an appropriate blend, is offered through a containing, helping relationship rooted in Rogers’ (1961) core conditions of respect, empathy and congruence.

The management function monitors supervisees’ compliance with professional and ethical standards offering protection to clients’ well-being.

The educative function nurtures supervisees’ understanding and development as counsellors through reflection upon the therapeutic process, client-counsellor relationship, and the efficacy of interventions. Where appropriate, I suggest reading material or training courses to support developmental needs.

The supportive function enables supervisees to acknowledge strains, issues or concerns arising from client work through a supportive relationship where empathy and a non-judgemental stance are present. Restorative measures are offered specifically by affirming the worth and value of the work the counsellor is doing.

I integrate creative approaches into my supervisory model using metaphor, images and other expressive media. This engages both right and left brain hemispheres balancing verbal and non-verbal intelligence and offering a rich resource to the work of supervision.

An initial session is offered to assess good supervisory fit between supervisor and supervisee.  Discussion will explore needs, wants, expectations and practical arrangements.  

There are options for method of delivery including online or telephone supervision.