Christopher Matcham

I currently have limited availability for in-person or online sessions: Please contact me to discuss arranging time to speak.

Our work together will allow us to think about your life and the ways that you have learnt how to behave and react to your reality, to see what can change, as well as reinforce the abilities you already have.

Through listening to you and experiencing everything that you bring to our sessions, I hope to be able to reflect back a different viewpoint on your own experiences, allowing a broader perspective on the difficulties you are living with. In this way, we can find easier ways of being, driven and enacted by you at your own pace, that may lead you away from those difficulties. 

I'm an experienced, BACP-accredited therapist, with a history of working in the NHS, the charity sector, higher education and now currently in private practice

I work Integratively; using methods and theories from various schools of thought (primarily existential philosophy, psychodynamic and person-centred thinking) to find a way of working which can show you how to find a unique path away from the bad feelings you may be experiencing.

Therapy can help with problems including, but not limited to depression, anxiety, work stress, relationship problems, addictions, childhood trauma/abuse.

I have particular experience and interest in the following areas: Chronic illness & disability, Anxiety, Depression, Bereavement & the effects of loss, 

I work independently, but within a broad network of therapists who support each other with knowledge and ideas to confidentially prioritise our clients' well-being.  

My practice, whether in-person or online, can be a place where you feel safe to explore anything that you feel is negatively affecting the way you live your life.  Regular sessions over a period of time can allow us to think about your feelings; familiarising ourselves with the ways that you are interacting with the world and finding ways to move forward with a greater sense of calm and confidence.

Therapy is for everyone, and I hope to be able to connect or empathise with the experiences of adults from all communities, who feel that they need to be heard and want to express something about themselves, in order to feel better.

Accessibility

My current premises are not wheelchair-accessible, but I offer online sessions, using Zoom.

COVID/Infection protection

- I am fully vaccinated against Covid and test regularly to minimise any risk of transmission.

- All chairs in the therapy room are sanitised between sessions

- Hand sanitiser is available in the room. 

Our first session together will involve some questions about you and your personal and family history, the answers to which will give me better context around the rest of what you tell me going further into therapy.

I want you to be able to tell me what you want to, so I will endeavour to give you the space you need to express yourself.  If this "assessment" period goes on for longer than 1 session, then that is what is needed: It is better to start slowly and make sure that therapy is right for you, than to rush the process.

You may be new to therapy, so getting used to a new way of interacting with someone you don't know might feel awkward, uncomfortable, or simply unfamiliar, but I will work hard to build a rapport between us which allows you to feel confident in sharing your feelings with me.