Laura Hills

Beautiful therapy rooms in Crystal Palace, South London. 

Please enquire about availability or online sessions. 

Congratulations on making the big step to seek out counselling. It can be daunting and overwhelming to find help, even when you know help is out there.

I’m Laura, a psychotherapeutic counsellor, writer, yoga teacher and fellow human being.

Are you looking for a therapist who sees you as a whole person, with all the inconsistencies and adaptations that make you human? Someone who recognises that trauma has made life harder, while also honouring the many ways you have already adapted, coped, and survived. Labels can be helpful to some, to validate, and give rise to common experiences within diagnoses. However, therapy goes further to explore you as a whole human, with your experiences shaping who you are, and helping you find direction, peace and clarity for the future.

I work with an understanding of trauma that acknowledges its very real impact, including experiences such as:

• Blocking it out

• Feeling numb

• Shame

• The sense of being disconnected from your own body

• A constant state of hypervigilance, fear and anxiety

• Panic attacks

• Flashbacks and intrusive thoughts

• Feeling constantly overwhelmed and exhausted

• Difficulty in relationships

• Mood swings, anger or irritability

• Difficulty sleeping or nightmares

• Low self-esteem

• Hopelessness, sadness or loneliness

• Low sense of self-worth

—even when these feelings are difficult to name. Together, we gently explore what has been happening beneath the surface.

I will help you reconnect with your own sources of creativity, clarity, and calm. This may include creativity, or rest — such as music, dance, art, crafts, writing, sport, swimming, yoga, meditation, or reading.

You already have tools in your toolbox. Perhaps they’ve become harder to access, or life has pulled you away from the things you once loved or dreamed of. Therapy can be a space to reconnect with your creative nature, to come back into your body, and to develop a felt sense of what you need to rest, recover, and gently process all you’ve been through.

I have specialist experience in the impacts of trauma and supporting survivors of all forms of abuse. All survivors deserve to have their voice heard. I am passionate about helping people find the tools to navigate life, not as a product of their abuse, but as strong, resilient survivors.

I can also help with issues such as anxiety, grief, loss, stress, burnout and chronic illnesses. These issues may or may not be related to any trauma that you have experienced, but nevertheless contribute to life's difficulties. 

What to expect from counselling with me 

I am an integrative psychotherapeutic counsellor, and I bring my experience and passion for body-mind connection and the benefits of finding your inner creativity to your healing. 

• Body-mind connection – your body keeps the score, finding ways to listen to what your body is telling you.

• Creativity – I am a trained SandStory Therapist™ which is a creative way to get in touch with your unconscious and make your own meaning from stories in the sand.

• Yoga and breathwork - I am a qualified yoga teacher and have practiced yoga for over 20 years. Sometimes my yoga experience shows up in my therapeutic practice through breathwork exercises, slowing down and finding peace in the present moment. 

• Person-centred – puts you in the driving seat, trusting you know yourself best.

• Relational – using the therapeutic relationship to build trust and forge insights into how you relate to others.

• Psychodynamic – finds patterns in past behaviours and attachment styles from childhood,

• CBT – finding deeply rooted core beliefs, challenging them and changing your mindset.

Please contact me to arrange a FREE 20 minute introductory call to discover if working together is the right fit for you. 

www.suryatherapy.co.uk 

laurahills@suryatherapy.co.uk 

IG #suryatherapyuk