Helen Clarke

People describe me as warm, empathic and nurturing. I believe that genuine connection is at the heart of counselling. 

If you are suffering feelings of isolation, abandonment or a sense of deep longing, feelings of panic or heightened anxiety, insomnia or disturbed sleep patterns, recurring dreams, frequent anger, mood swings, unexplained aches or chronic pain then it is possible counselling will help.

Many people who contact me have suffered past loss. Loss encompasses bereavement; loss of freedom; traumatic loss; anticipating your own death or the death of a loved one; losing the future you expected or hoped for; loss of a relationship and many, many more examples. The list of losses in life is endless. Painful events in life result in feelings such as grief, anxiety, shame, guilt, anger, fear and sadness, which can feel overwhelming at times.

I regularly work with sufferers of chronic pain conditions such as fibromyalgia and arthritis. We look at how pain manifests itself in your experience and use various exercises that can help you to live in greater harmony with your body.

In addition, I have a special interest in neonatal & postnatal loss and working with parents and grandparents who have suffered the trauma of child death.

I'm currently working via Zoom video conferencing and telephone. This means I can work with clients throughout the UK. Some clients book a set number of sessions and others want open ended counselling. You may not know how many sessions you want from the outset and we can work this out together. 

My belief is that our relationship is a vital component in our work together, built on mutual trust, valuing what we both bring to our collaboration and being genuine with each other. This is a space where you can speak openly and be accepted without judgment.

When social distancing ends I will resume face-to-face work and outdoor walk-and-talk therapy. 

Before your first session we will have the opportunity to talk, free of charge, on the phone for 20-30 minutes. You do not have to commit at this time, the purpose of our conversation is to assess whether we can work together. It is important you get a sense that I am the therapist for you because our relationship is important to our work together. I need to know that I can offer the unique skill set you need. If I can't, I will signpost you to someone I think may better suit your needs.

If we decide to go ahead we will make an appointment for a formal assessment. This aims to establish what your needs are & how you will know when you have what you need.  Assessment Session: £25 for 50 minutes.