Paul Alexander

My day of practice is Monday. With space for in-person meetings during the mid part of the day in a beautiful rural location. Sincere apologies in advance as I am usually unable to provide other days due to teaching commitment.

Current status- taking on new clients.

Hi there. Thanks for viewing my profile, I understand searching for someone to help you with a personal difficulty can be daunting so I'll try to give you a clear sense of who I am and how I might be of help. I am trained as an Integrative Therapist, which means I try to tailor my approach to suit your needs rather than push a particular  'single' theory. My understanding is that all people are unique, complex and don't respond to the same things, but rather need to be seen through their unique perspective on life.

I appreciate the value of nature and its impact on our health (my allotment, and long dog walks certainly help me!) and I offer the potential of outdoors  'walk and talk' therapy in a beautiful location if that is helpful. I always try to focus my work on helping people to find value in themselves and unlock their own, inner resources and I try to bring to bear my 20+ years of therapeutic experience in a safe and informed way that will help people create changes that they are seeking. 

I have a good understanding of trauma and its effects and always work mindfully of this to maximise safe and effective therapy. My background is in working with brain injury and I have a keen interest in how the brain and  body functions, but also how we make sense of our experiences in life and also 'about' life including individual spirituality, choice,  and meaning making. 

My work is split between therapy/supervision and training people to become counsellors (that last one occupying the bulk of my time). Therapy can be a difficult task at times but I am told I have a good sense of humour and I think that this can be just as important as a box of tissues and tears in our work.

We'll talk but sometimes might walk and/or work creatively too. As I said above, I am informed by many approaches but these are only ever used appropriately, never forced and I will always be fully open with you as to how I am working. The work is always  a collaboration between the two of us. 

I am a BACP accredited Counsellor/Psychotherapist, and also a supervisor and trainer and I have been a practitioner since 1998. For 18 years I was a primary school counsellor and understand the importance of our early experiences on our adult selves.

 I am informed by a large number of theories which I seek to tailor relevantly to individuals through a relational approach based on trust and mutual respect. I have worked with many life issues and can say I have a breadth and depth of experience that I will always try and make good use of with a good dollop of humility. I have found my way of working assists clients to get to the heart of the matter fairly quickly which means we can spend time focusing in on what is most important.

I work face to face in a beautiful rural location but can potentially offer to work remotely via doxy.me if that suits after establishing contact face to face initially.

Usually I'll try to send some details and questions from my end before we meet and during a first session after taking a few brief details from you we would spend some time talking about the things which are of most concern to you. I can offer a 30minute free online initial meeting or you can come to me face to face. Often when coming for therapy these things may have been around for quite some time and the pressure to explore them/change has been building up, or something difficult may have just happened. Either way I'll provide a space for you to be able to discuss and explore what is of most concern for you. This usually helps us to decide and assess what might be most productive to work on in future. The first session is always a place for questions too and I'll encourage you to ask anything that feels important for you to know about the work or myself. 

Most people find some relief from having spoken after the first session about the things they have been holding on to. Sometimes we might create insights into the problems from this brief discussion. I will always spend the last part of the time discussing how it has been visiting me and if we both think it is worth carrying on to explore the things further that brought you. 

At that point if we think it could be of benefit we'll make a plan to continue, and an agreement (there is only a charge if you decide to carry on), usually for another 5 sessions when we would review your progress and see if you want to continue longer than that. Most therapeutic work typically is of between 6 sessions and 6 months but we might decide to continue for longer if the work is helpful as we review it together.  Its ultimately up to you.

My practice day is usually limited to Mondays as I am committed elsewhere for the rest of the week, apologies in advance for this restriction.

I have been working as a supervisor for many years now and have a Diploma awarded with Distinction from a training endorsed by the BACP. My approach is supportive and collaborative and I always seek to be aiding supervisee's to grow in confidence, feel 're-fuelled' and generally resourced in the work.

I am also a trainer of 18+years and teach people to become counselling practitioners through the bulk of my week, so I feel I am aware of the requirements of trainees as well as experienced practitioners and can be a good support to new therapists/those still undertaking training.

I am integrative in approach and like to consider the work holistically. I am informed by different supervisory tools but find Brigid Proctors model most practical to help us frame and balance our work together. I'm told I have a good sense of humour and I hope you will find me warm and a person of humility to work with at depth.

A collaborative supervisory space will be created where we'll avoid the worst of 'expert'/'novice' splits and try to work together with humility and openness. You are the therapist and I will always seek to build your resources and confidence and never seek to dominate or dis-empower you.