Elizabeth Gallagher

I see clients from 9am till 6pm on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

I offer integrative therapy which is based on the vital importance of relationships in all aspects of human life. We all need to have boundaries - to decide what is ok for us and what is not ok for us - and to have those boundaries respected by others. Sometimes we carry wounds and negative feelings about ourselves because of things that have happened in the past. This will affect how we react to people and events in the present.

I believe that it is really helpful to talk through how you feel and your thoughts about your situation with a therapist who will really listen and help you to explore and process these thoughts and feelings, to repair old wounds and to help to clarify the choices you have going forward.

I have a Level 5 Diploma in Therapeutic Counselling and I am an accredited member of the British Association of Counsellors and Psychotherapists . I adhere to the BACP ethical framework for good practice and also the ACTO Guidelines for Online Counselling and Psychotherapy.

I am a trained EMDR Therapist (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprogramming). I find this can be really helpful when working with past trauma and addressing and reframing unhelpful core beliefs about ones-self.

I also have extensive training in helping clients work through grief and loss; I am a qualified Grief Educator.

I have lived and worked in 6 different countries on 3 different continents and have experienced being “other”; I am open to and respectful of difference. I celebrate the fact that I live in a multi-cultural, diverse society and I seek to serve that society. I have a spiritual belief and I am interested in the different ways that people seek to make sense of the world.

I work one to one with adults and children in private practice. I see clients face-to-face in Egham Surrey and online in the UK via Zoom or telephone.

If you choose to come and see me face to face, my office is bright and comfortable and is wheelchair accessible. Some people find it really important to be in the same room as their counsellor and feel that this makes it easier for them to build relationship and to be truly themselves.

Other people prefer to meet on-line, either for practical reasons (distance to Egham, transport issues, time constraints) or because it feels less stressful for them. If you prefer to meet online, I will make every effort to provide a safe and secure environment for your online therapy with encryption software to protect your confidentiality.

I see clients both for short term work or for longer, ongoing therapy. We will regularly review our work together and this allows us to celebrate growth and change, it informs our work going forward, or may show us that our work is complete for the moment.

I am a qualified EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitistaion and Reprogramming) practitioner. This can be really helpful when working with memories of past trauma which are affecting your ability to live freely in the present. EMDR can also help you to replace unhelpful core beliefs about yourself with more positive affirmations about who you are now.

I have extensive experience and training in loss and grief work. I know how helpful it can be to talk to someone about your grief journey - to have your pain witnessed, to express your feelings, to clean old wounds and to find a way to integrate the pain and the loss into your everyday life.

On entering my counselling room for your first session, you will find a quiet calm space, 3 comfortable chairs and a variety of objects and art materials. If we are meeting on-line, I will make sure that you are in a confidential space and that you are comfortable with the technology we are using.

I will use an assessment form to outline the nature of the counselling process and together we will set the boundaries of our therapeutic relationship.

I will then ask you “How come you are here?” or “What brings you to counselling now?” I will listen carefully to what you say and summarise what I have heard in order to check that I have truly understood what you are saying and how you are feeling. We will then work together to set the goals that you want to work towards in therapy.

At the end of this first session, it is for you to decide if I feel like the right counsellor for you- the relationship between counsellor and therapist is of vital importance.