Rachel Bates

I draw from a range of modalities such as Existential Practice, Psychodynamic Practice and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), to tailor my interventions to suit my clients’ individual needs and learning style, rather than being protocol driven. I have worked successfully, with a wide range of mental illness such as Depression, Anxiety, Eating Disorder, Addictions, Trauma, Bereavement, Sexual Abuse, Divorce, Post-traumatic Stress, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Suicidal Ideation, Schizophrenia, General Anxiety Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder, Panic Disorder, Rape, Tourette, Self harm, Low Self- Esteem, Anger, Shame & Guilt. I have now been in private practice for over 10 years, apart from having worked within the primary care sector, educational sector and also at various organisations in a voluntary capacity, SOME FAQs: What is counselling and how is it different from psychotherapy? Both Counselling and Psychotherapy are umbrella terms that cover a range of talking therapies. While Counselling helps address and resolve specific problems, making decisions, coping with crises and to work through relational conflicts, psychotherapy aims to help gain an insight into difficulties or distress, establish a greater understanding of motivation, to use appropriate ways of coping, with an aim to bring about changes in thinking and behaviour. Psychotherapy involves exploring feelings, beliefs, thoughts and relevant events, sometimes from childhood and personal history, safely, in a structured way. What do I mean by specialist skills? Bereavement: You have experienced several losses and as a result suffered from compounded grief that you have not really addressed and are left with anger and/or emotional pain that you do not quite know how to resolve Complex Mental Il-health : You are struggling with mental health needs that are complex, and hold the opinion that recovery is not possible. (Example : addicted to substances but this may be rooted in a childhood abuse) Stillbirth/Miscarriage/Neonatal death: You are a mother, father, sibling, grandparent, uncle or aunt, of a baby born still or miscarried or died subsequent to birth and believe you have come to terms with the loss but cannot comprehend why you are depressed or anxious. Child Sexual Abuse : You have survived sexual abuse but are struggling to deal with the shame, the anger, the grief of the loss, the emotional pain and/or mental illness this has caused. Complicated Trauma : You have experienced trauma but was never aware of the complexity of it simply because of the nature of the trauma and are not sure how to resolve the shame and/or guilt. Post Traumatic Stress: Research suggests that 75% of people who suffer severe trauma do not develop PTSD. You are one of the 25% experiencing anxiety or panic as a consequence of one or several traumatic events and would like to process the shock and the terror associated with the traumatic event. Suicidal Ideation: You do not really want to end your life but feel your life is not worth living because of reasons beyond your comprehension. I offer: One-to-One individual Therapy (Face-to-face or via Skype/telephone) Couples Therapy for any relational challenges Couples Therapy for parents of stillborn babies How I work: Firstly, I ensure I foster a sense of presence, providing a space for awareness of the present and a wakeful consciousness in order to pay attention to what is happening in the present moment. I listen actively to your account of your early years, key relationships, significant life events etc., in order to understand patterns of thought, schemas, feelings and behaviour. I may gently encourage you to go back to your early life experiences to bring the non-conscious into the conscious to bring about an awareness of how this may be affecting your current problem or issues. If appropriate, I would encourage you to maintain a journal in order that you could develop and/or sharpen the ability to reflect while you self-monitor your therapeutic journey, working towards change, development and growth. I also offer work you could do at home, to help stay focused on your goals. I help you understand ‘cognitive re-structuring’ to empower you to change automatic negative thinking patterns, dysfunctional assumptions and core beliefs. While I help you describe the givens of your life, I invite you to explore your choices in order that you could value your freedom of making your own choices as this can motivate you to take responsibility. Ultimately, what I aim for, is not merely to solve a problem or change a behaviour but to open new horizons, help discover new dimensions of your personhood and your life to find direction to achieve the meaning and purpose of your life.