What is counselling?

Counselling aims to help you deal with and overcome issues that are causing pain or making you feel uncomfortable. It provides a safe and regular space for you to talk and explore difficult feelings. The counsellor is there to support you and respect your views. They will not usually give advice, but will help you to find your own insight and understanding of your problems.

Counselling can help you to:

• cope with a bereavement or relationship breakdown
• cope with redundancy or work-related stress
• overcome addictive behaviours
• deal with issues that are preventing you from achieving your ambitions
• deal with feelings of depression or sadness, and have a more positive outlook on life
• understand yourself and your problems better
• feel more confident
• develop a better understanding of other people's points of view

Counselling can often involve talking about difficult or painful feelings and, as you begin to face them, you may feel worse in some ways. However, with the help and support of your therapist, you should gradually start to feel better.

In most cases, it takes a number of sessions before the counselling starts to make a difference, and a regular commitment is required to make the best use of the therapy.

ASD/High Functioning Autism Counselling

My specialism in the treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) means that I have an awareness of the unique challenges individuals with ASD and their families are experiencing.

I would seek to work with your hopes for counselling; whether that is to improve couple communication, create a stronger family support system or to work with the individual with ASD to gain a fuller understanding of their world and their potential. ASD often brings with it other issues such as social skills frustrations or avoidance, social anxiety, general anxiety, depression and social communication challenges, these can all be explored and improved with time, energy and understanding.

I regularly work with the following areas:

• The implications of the diagnosis for themselves and their family.
• Feelings of being over-whelmed, anxious, misunderstood or depressed.
• Questions about coping with day-to-day challenges, whether any change is possible or realistic to expect and coping mechanisms.
• Relationship difficulties experienced with friends, family members, colleagues or how to make new friends.
• Adjusting to changes in daily life and expectations.

I trained under Barrie Thompson, author of Asperger Counselling for Couples, Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2008 and upon his retirement from counseling in December 2015 took over his clinical practice.

Spiritual Abuse

Spiritual abuse affects those within religious/spiritual communities, it hurts those in leadership and those who attend. It is pervasive and traumatic for those affected. Some aspects of SA commonly experienced:

• Coercion & control of an individual or group in a spiritual context
• Manipulation/exploitation
• Enforced accountability
• Censorship of decision making
• Changing perception of reality
• Required obedience to the perpetrator
• Secrecy and silencing of victims
• Conformity through increased commitment
• Public disapproval if you don't conform

I offer therapeutic support for those who have experienced or are suffering from Spiritual Abuse. The impact of this abuse can be felt for many years, it has divided families, friendships and communities often silencing victims using fear and intimidation.

Sexual Addiction Specialism

Sex addiction, also known as sexual compulsion and sexual dependency describes any sexual activity that feels "out of control".

A sex addict feels compelled to seek out and engage in sexual behaviour, in spite of the problems it may cause to his/her personal, social and work lives. It may encompass any single or multiple types of sexual behaviour.

I am a qualified member of ATSAC, the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Addiction and Compulsivity www.atsac.co.uk.

I offer individual therapy for those struggling with these behaviours as well as therapeutic support for partners affected by this. I also offer couple counselling, therapeutic disclosure services and family counselling.

What to expect from counselling

During your counselling sessions, you will be encouraged to express your feelings and emotions freely. By discussing your concerns with you, the counsellor can help you to gain a better understanding of your feelings and thought processes, as well as identifying ways of finding your own solutions to problems.

The counsellor may encourage you to identify issues and, if appropriate, take personal responsibility for them. They will be able to help you recognise the effects of other people and their actions, and explore alternative ways of coping with them.

It can be a great relief to share your worries and fears with someone who acknowledges your feelings and is able to help you reach a positive solution.

Therapy offers a space in which a person can make sense of and work on ways of coping with all sorts of difficulties or issues in a safe and confidential setting. By attending an initial consultation you can discuss your issues and decide if counselling is for you without making a commitment to other sessions.

About Justin Marsh

• MBACP, MA in Relationship Therapy, Advanced Certificates in Sex Addiction and CBT Therapy
• I am a fully qualified Counsellor and Relationship Psychotherapist, working with individuals, couples and families.
• I have previously worked for Relate and was the Operational Lead for a third sector therapy service.
• I now run my own private practice.
• I also work internationally online using zoom.us

E-mail Justin