Mark Greenaway-Robbins

Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. 

Whatever you are going through, you don’t have to go through it alone. 

Choosing a therapist who is a good fit for you takes time and courage. Here you can discover what I can offer you and how we might work together.

If you’re curious about what you read, I invite you to get in touch with me so we can explore your options for next steps towards your wellbeing, whether that is working with me, or another professional. 

I am a registered counsellor and psychotherapist with the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) practicing in Cardiff city-centre who works with adults.

A decade of my adult life I have lived in Vancouver - British Columbia, Jerusalem, and Paris. Through these experiences I enjoy being attentive to cultural diversity, heritage, and identity, exploring its impact in our lives.

I am an LGBTQIA+ ally.

I am experienced and interested in working with people with life-limiting conditions, those in palliative care, and ways of living through bereavement.

I am interested in spirituality - how we find and make meaning in our lives. I have a wide-ranging experience with people of diverse faith traditions, and of none, including the spiritually curious. It is significant that I work with many clients for whom spirituality isn’t important and is not part of our work together in therapy. My concern is to focus on the needs of the client.

For over twenty years I have been engaged in pastoral care and leadership roles in faith communities as an Anglican Priest - this has included working as a trainer, group facilitator, mentor, and supervisor.

I have first-hand experience of the transformative power of therapy in my own life and bring to my work as a therapist a confidence, hope, and joy in the therapeutic process. 

For more information please take a look at  www.markgr.co.uk 

I am trained as a ‘relational integrative’ therapist. ‘Relational’ means that I recognise the power in therapy resides in the relationship co-created between the client and therapist. ‘Integrative’ means that I work with several theoretical approaches (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy - CBT, Psychodynamic and Humanistic) so between us we can find a way of working together which meets your needs and aims.

I work with clients with a range of life experiences.

It is helpful to understand that therapy is not advice giving. The therapist may be likened to a mirror who reflects back to the client themselves in their life. Through this the client gains new awareness and is equipped with a range of perspectives and choices in their life. A therapist can make ‘invitations’ to a client who is free to ignore them, or act on them.

A session is one hour of your life in a week which comprises 167 other hours. It will be important for you to discover how you reflect on each session, this may include journaling, jotting notes (digital, or hard copy), or making visual representations which may include drawing. Creating intentional reflection time during your day and week can enhance the impact of your sessions.

Paying attention to your ‘take-away’ from each session, and how to sit with it during your week, is a habit to cultivate. This may involve putting into practice things you have discovered, or rehearsed, during your session.

Preparation for a session will look different for different clients depending on their place in the therapeutic process. To help you get the most out of your sessions, pay attention to what it is you want to get from your sessions. Some clients find it helpful to name this in terms of their aims, or goals. For others, they cannot name what they need from counselling, but they know they need help. 

You are welcome to call me for a free brief telephone conversation to ask questions and to get a sense of me as a person. Some clients prefer to do this by email exchange.

Your first paid session will be an assessment session to help us determine if we can work together. Please be aware that sometimes it can take a few sessions to discover this given your reasons for seeking therapy.

In advance of your first session, I will email you a welcome pack. This includes a working agreement, contact form, and sources of help outside your counselling sessions. This provides you with an opportunity to prepare for your first session, and to be fully informed in advance of our first meeting together.

At your first session I will go through the working agreement to clarify you understand and agree to the terms, and the contact form which assists our work together. I will invite you to discuss with me what has brought you to therapy. Towards the end of the session, you will be invited to name what you want to get from your sessions. However, this may not be clear to you for several sessions.

Finally, booking the next session will be discussed, if you feel ready to commit to the process. You can of course take some time to think about this before you are ready to book.

From my own experience I recognise the importance, and the challenge, of finding a therapist. Most therapists understand this and will offer a free initial phone call. It may become clear in the first session, or it may take a few sessions, to discover if a therapist is a fit for you. Give yourself permission to find someone you can work with – you will know when you’ve found that therapist.