Claire West

Sessions available on Thursdays

I believe that you are the expert on yourself. My role isn't to tell you what to do or how you should feel, but to be curious about your experience and help you untangle what is happening for you.

I work in an integrative and client-led way, which means I draw on different therapeutic approaches depending on you and what you bring to our sessions. At the heart of my work is the relationship we build together. I want therapy to feel like a space where you can be yourself, without judgement or pressure to have the right words or answers.

We might explore patterns in your life, how past experiences are affecting you now, or the different parts of you that seem to respond in particular situations. Sometimes simply understanding why we react as we do can begin to create space for something to change. Once we have built trust, I may gently challenge some of the ways you see yourself, particularly when those beliefs no longer seem to be helping you.

Talking isn't always the easiest way to express what is going on, so if it feels useful, I can also offer creative ways of working using art materials or clay. You don't need to be artistic or have any experience of using them. Sometimes having something to do with your hands takes the pressure away from talking; at other times, something unexpected emerges that gives us a different way into a conversation. Equally, you may choose never to work creatively at all.

I work with adults and young people aged 13+, supporting people with a wide range of experiences including anxiety, grief and loss, low self-esteem, life changes, relationship difficulties and feeling overwhelmed or stuck. I also particularly enjoy working with people experiencing burnout and with students navigating the pressures of university and postgraduate study.

However you choose to work, therapy is your space. We go at your pace and you remain in control of what we explore.

People come to counselling for many different reasons. You might be struggling with something specific, such as a bereavement, relationship difficulty, anxiety or a significant change in your life. Or perhaps nothing is obviously "wrong", but you feel overwhelmed, stuck, exhausted or simply not quite yourself.

You don't need to arrive knowing exactly what you want to talk about. Part of our work can be making sense of what is happening and beginning to untangle things together.

Before becoming a counsellor, I was a teacher for over 20 years, so I understand some of the pressures that can come with working in education and the gradual process of burnout. I particularly welcome teachers and others who are questioning whether the way they are currently living or working is sustainable.

Being based in Cambridge, I also work with university students and postgraduates. I have experience of supporting PhD students through the particular pressures of completing a doctorate, including uncertainty, isolation, expectations, perfectionism and the question of what comes next.

Alongside talking therapy, I am qualified in Clay Therapy and Creative Arts Counselling. This means that, if you would like to, we can work creatively as part of your counselling. Sometimes it can be difficult to put an experience into words, and using clay, drawing or other creative materials can offer another way to explore it. There is absolutely no requirement to be artistic and no expectation that you work creatively at all.

My practice is inclusive and I welcome clients with different ways of experiencing and communicating with the world. If there is something that would make coming to counselling easier for you, we can talk about that before your first session.

Sessions are by appointment and take place in central Cambridge. My aim is to offer you a space where you can bring whatever is happening for you, without needing to pretend that everything is fine.

I believe that you are the expert on yourself. My role isn't to tell you what to do or who you should be, but to be curious about your experience and help you untangle what is happening for you.

You might come to counselling because something specific has happened - a bereavement, relationship ending, change in circumstances or anxiety. You might feel overwhelmed, exhausted from holding everything together, or find yourself repeating patterns you don't quite understand. Sometimes people come simply knowing something doesn't feel right, without being able to explain exactly what that is.

I work in an integrative and client-led way, drawing on different therapeutic approaches depending on you and what you bring. At the heart of my work is the relationship we build together. You don't need to arrive knowing exactly what you want to talk about or having the right words. We can work that out together.

As we begin to understand your experiences and patterns, we might explore the different parts of you that respond in particular situations. Once we have built trust, I may gently challenge some of the ways you see yourself, particularly when those beliefs no longer seem to be helping you.

Talking isn't the only option. Sometimes having something to do with your hands takes the pressure away from talking, while something created in clay can give us a different way into a conversation. You don't need to be artistic and creative work is always an invitation, never an expectation.

Before becoming a counsellor I spent over 20 years working in education. This gives me a particular understanding of young people, teachers and those experiencing work-related stress and burnout.

I work with adults and young people aged 13+, including neurodivergent and LGBTQ+ clients. My aim is to understand your world rather than expect you to fit into mine.

My St Ives practice is a welcoming, accessible space where I work with adults and young people aged 13+.

There isn't one particular type of person who comes to see me. I work with people experiencing anxiety, grief and loss, low self-esteem, relationship difficulties, neurodivergence, burnout and work-related stress, as well as those navigating changes in their lives. You may simply feel stuck, overwhelmed or unlike yourself and want somewhere to begin making sense of what is happening.

You don't need to arrive with a neatly defined problem. We start with whatever is happening for you.

Alongside talking therapy, I offer Clay Therapy and Creative Arts Counselling. Clay is an important part of my practice because it offers another way to explore things that can be difficult to put into words. Some clients use clay to explore something specific; others find that having clay in their hands while we talk helps them feel calmer and more grounded.

There is no right or wrong way to use it and no requirement to work creatively. Some of my clients never touch the clay at all.

I particularly welcome people who haven't always felt understood or who experience the world differently. If you are neurodivergent, anxious about coming to counselling or there is something practical that would make attending easier, we can talk about this before your first appointment.

My St Ives practice is also where I run therapeutic clay groups for adults and young people alongside my individual counselling work.

Sessions are by appointment. Whether we talk, work creatively or do a little of both, this is your therapy. We go at your pace and you remain in control of what we explore.

Our first session is a full counselling session, charged at my usual rate. It gives us an opportunity to meet, talk about what has brought you to counselling and begin to get a sense of whether we will work well together.

I won't expect you to arrive knowing exactly what you want from counselling or with a list of goals. We can start with whatever feels most important to you. I will ask some questions to help me understand a little about you, what is happening in your life and what you might need from our work together. There will also be plenty of space for you to ask me questions.

Finding the right counsellor is important, so this first meeting is also a chance for you to get a feel for me and the way I work. There is no obligation to book further sessions if it doesn't feel like the right fit.

If you decide you would like to continue, we will usually meet weekly initially, although we can discuss what works best for you. You don't need to decide at the beginning how many sessions you will need; we can review this together as our work develops.

Most importantly, you don't need to prepare for your first session. Just come as you are and we will start from there.