Stanislava Try

My name is Stani and I am no stranger to anxiety. My late diagnosis of ADHD explained a lot of my struggles as a child and also as an adult. I am also a mum of two young boys. I have a neurodivergent family (Autism, PDA & ADHD), so I know how challenging parenting can be. This has inspired me greatly to help other parents navigate through parenting challenges in a better way. I am a SEND champion, practising in a neuroaffirmative way and am an advocate for a greater awareness and understanding of neurodivergent children and adults.

I practice what I preach daily and am the best advocate that the techniques I teach work. It is not easy though, and there is no fix as such but riding the waves in the best way I can. We have a choice of how we react when life throws us curveballs. Instead of listening to the self-critic I turn to self-compassion, giving myself the space to go through tough times, and honouring my needs.

I believe we all have the resources within us to get through anything life throws at us but sometimes we need help accessing them. Often, we are stuck in the stories we tell ourselves and can’t find a way out. My role will be to find out the root emotion so we are dealing with the main issue and help you find solutions and facilitate change. Therapy requires strength and courage, and commitment. It takes a lot of guts to look inside ourselves and figure out what’s going on, and even more to let someone else share that journey with us. Usually, the first step is the hardest.

Things I can help with are anxiety, stress, low mood, SEND (Autism, ADHD, PDA), school avoidance, anger & agression, low confidence, challenging behaviour, OCD, parents support & coaching.

All my sessions are client-led where you or your child are an active partner in the therapy process. During the first few sessions I will find out what brings you to therapy and what you are hoping to get out of it. When working with children I don’t tend to ask direct questions during the first two sessions and use non-directive approach so they feel comfortable and safe with me.

The child therapy sessions include counselling through therapeutic and creative play, the Ollie and his Superpowers model and mindfulness based CBT techniques, child-led and tailored to the child’s individual needs. I use sand therapy, art and creative materials, soft toys, Lego, play-doh, clay and more to help the child communicate their story, express their feelings and make sense of the things that are going on for them. My main goal is to help the child become more aware of themselves and their existence in the world.

I also offer parent coaching sessions where I provide in-depth feedback on how your child is getting on as well as coping tips and strategies and how to best manage difficult behaviour.

When working with adults, I will encourage you to explore your thoughts, feelings, actions and circumstances so you can gain greater understanding and self-awareness, and acceptance towards what you are experiencing.

The therapeutic process doesn’t always progress regularly and can be described as a rollercoaster experience, with peaks, troughs, loops and spirals. It can get worse before it gets better. Therapy doesn’t provide a fix and sometimes it can be challenging to accept that. My job is to be your companion on all parts of the journey, whatever it brings, and to foster greater self-awareness and compassion.