Being in Psychotherapy/Psychoanalysis
Referrals
Initial contact may be made either in person or through your GP, I am happy to receive either a phone call or email.
Making an appointment
It is helpful to begin with a telephone conversation at a time when you have a private environment to talk freely. This gives us a chance to make initial contact. I will need to get a sense of whether I can be helpful, and you may have some initial questions you may want to ask.
If we both decide to go ahead, we would then arrange an initial assessment session, or a couple of assessment sessions, which is an opportunity to talk about things in more detail. At these meetings we can discuss your concerns as well as the practical aspects of beginning to work together, such as breaks, fees, billing and cancellation policy etc.
Being in Psychotherapy/ Psychoanalysis
We will both commit to a process of working together even when things may feel difficult. (It is well known that things can feel worse before they feel better in Psychotherapy). Where appropriate, the therapy may be of short duration, but more usually Psychotherapy/Psychoanalysis is best approached as a long term process involving considerable commitment for both parties. Dealing with issues that often build up over many years, it is perhaps unrealistic to think that they can be dealt with in a very short period of time. You are of course always free to end our arrangement although ending is best negotiated in a face to face discussion so that we can arrange a suitable period for drawing therapy to a close.