Stephen Weaver Counselling and Psychotherapy, Putney, London

Counselling and psychotherapy can be of great help to people who are willing to look at themselves, who consider the possibility that they are partly responsible for the problems in their lives and who are motivated to put into practice insights they receive about the need for change.

Counselling is not about giving advice, but about listening non-judgmentally and helping people to find a better way of dealing with their problems. Counselling is usually short-term with a specific goal. Psychotherapy explores issues in greater depth and requires a commitment to longer-term work. I work with both short-term counselling (6 - 12 sessions) and longer term psychotherapy.

I offer a CBT approach to Counselling, which looks at the connections between thoughts, beliefs, moods and behaviours. At its heart is the opportunity to challenge and change the thoughts that tend to lead to problems such as panic attacks, sexual compulsion, eating disorders, substance abuse and relationship problems. The goal is to help the client develop more positive thought processes and better ways of coping.

We contract initially for 6 sessions. Firstly, your problem is assessed and a strategy is agreed between us, with a manageable goal in view. We can extend to 12 sessions if we agree that further work is potentially beneficial.

I offer Integrative approaches to Psychotherapy, which seek to understand both the roots of psychological problems in the past, as well as their purpose, in forming the person we are still becoming in the present. The overall goal is a greater tolerance of life’s experiences, personal and spiritual maturity and an increase of creativity and connection with life. I use a range of techniques, including dreamwork, artwork, bodywork, literature and guided meditation.

The typical session is like a conversation, in which you are free to speak about whatever you wish, in complete confidence. I may prompt you to reflect on what you have said. Sometimes the conversation will flow; sometimes it may move into silence. Occasionally I may suggest working in a non-verbal way, with pens and paper, for example, or by focusing attention on what you are feeling in your body.

It is difficult to be more specific than that, because so much depends on the issues you bring, the goals we set for our work together and the ways in which our personalities interact.