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Individual Counselling
Our human journey is a life-long process of learning, development and self-discovery. It is a journey we navigate between ‘nature’ and ‘nurture’, between our sense of ourselves and our experience of the world around us. Our lives are often complex, and sometimes contradictory, so it is not surprising that we can get to a place where we wonder:
  • Who am I?
  • What is my life about?
  • How did I get where I am?
  • How do I cope?
  • How do I get where I want to go?
People come to counselling because they feel depressed, over-whelmed, or stuck. They are having trouble with relationships: finding, keeping or ending them. They are unhappy with work. They are facing illness or grief. They have lost their sense of direction, meaning and purpose.

In the counselling process, I work with my clients to help them:
  • Deepen their understanding of themselves, appreciate their own strengths and challenges, and find resources to grow in the direction they choose
  • Become more aware of the complex dynamics of their relationships and how they can act differently to change them
  • Confront problem behaviours such as substance abuse or violence
  • Work to create a life they find satisfying and fulfilling in a world full of pressures, demands and choices


How to Get the Most out of Counselling

Identify your goals: How do you want counseling to help you? How do your want your life to be different? This will help you know the direction in which to head, and recognize when you get there!

Pay attention: The most important work takes place in the ‘lab’ of your day-to-day life. It will be important to notice what is going on when you get caught in old patterns of behaviour, or when you succeed with new ones. How are you feeling? What are you thinking? How are you acting? Are you tired, pre-occupied, over-whelmed? Learning to catch yourself before you react in the same old way, and choosing to respond in a new way is the first big step toward changing your life.

Be realistic: Though many of us may aspire to ‘happily ever after,’ we live in an imperfect world, and we are all imperfect – even when we are doing the best we can! 

Take care of yourself: Counselling is not an easy process: you may be challenged, hurt, frightened; you may experience a lot of uncertainty. Make sure you are getting adequate support, taking care of your health and maintaining those things in your life that  bring you comfort and calm. 

Take responsibility: Be willing to acknowledge the contribution you are making to the current problem. Be conscious of the choices you are making and their consequences for others and for yourself

Be patient: Problems take a long while to develop and be identified; they seldom disappear overnight. 

Counselling works best when it is a combination of your intention and effort, and my expertise and experience 
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