Services

Why counselling?

People come for counselling for many different reasons. But perhaps you could say that everyone who decides on counselling wants to reflect on their life and possibly make changes in some way.

Quite often, people come for counselling because they are in crisis: e.g. bereavement, relationship breakdown, or are finding that their usual coping mechanisms are not enough. Sometimes we know something is wrong in life and can’t find a way to put it right. At times a doctor may advise us to go for counselling, e.g. due to depression or anxiety.

Whatever the reason for choosing counselling, it is our belief that there is no shame in needing some support - there can be times in our lives when we need to look outside our friends and family for the support we need. At Face to Face we believe everyone to be a unique individual person, with the capacity for self understanding and personal growth.

What is counselling?

Counselling offers you the opportunity to talk and explore things confidentially with someone who will endeavour not to judge. Your counsellor will try to understand what you say and how you feel, and what it is like to “be you” in “your world”.

Face to Face has adopted the Person-Centred approach to counselling, otherwise called Humanistic or Rogerian. Person-Centred counselling was developed by Carl Rogers. It is a non-directive approach which means that you will not be told what to do to change things; you will not be advised or directed. Instead, your counsellor will be there to offer support while you discover for yourself how to move forward and develop a better understanding of yourself. We believe that everyone has the potential and ability to grow, change and develop. Counselling can be a way to release that potential.

How many sessions can I have?

During the course of your counselling interaction, you and your counsellor will review progress on a regular basis to ensure that sessions remain therapeutically beneficial. The number of sessions provided is also based on the organisation’s capacity and resources, to ensure we remain accessible and can support as many clients as possible.

What counselling isn't

Our counselling service is not a befriending service. Clients needing weekly check-ins and general contact are advised to contact other appropriate services. See our WHO CAN HELP LIST Dec 2023 for information on a range of organisations that offer different types of support.