New Year, New Location, New You
With Christmas and New Year festivities firmly behind us, a new year and a new decade is well under-way. This is the first week that Active Listening Therapies has operated in two locations, with Louise managing the clinic in Newark and Duncan developing the Nottingham sites.
The launch of the first Nottingham clinic is a part of Active Listening Therapies expansion program to make the counselling and well being services available to a wider community. The first Nottingham clinic is located just outside of the city on Radcliffe Road in West Bridgford, the second Nottingham clinic, located on the west of the city, is due to be opened later in the spring.
The Newark clinic opened the doors in April 2017, since then hundreds of clients have benefited from the confidential personal service. Almost three years on, the time is right to expand the services to a wider network. Duncan comments, “We were getting a number of regular enquiries from the Nottingham city region and Newark was just a little too far for some clients to travel. The clinic location will be familiar as it is next door to the traditional bike shop in West Bridgford which is a bit of a landmark locally, so it is very easy to find. The second Nottingham clinic opens up access to a brand new new region to west and north of the city. We’ll be moving in to an newly developed building which was once home to the local GP surgery, so again this will be a recognised and familiar locally.”
Does the stress of Christmas cause relationship damage?
With the new year just a week in, the stress of the festive period is becoming evident. This time of year we are experiencing a surge in inquiries for relationship counselling. Sadly fragile relationships are put under so much pressure that maintaining a positive outlook can be very hard. There are two elements to relationship counselling; the first being couples who are willing to try to resolve their issues, the second being individual intervention whereby the relationship is past the point of resolve and counselling is required to overcome what has happened, with a view to rebuilding a positive outlook.
Couple counselling can be quite tricky for the counsellor who can often be viewed as a ‘referee’ in the room. The backbone of counselling is remaining impartial as some people can play games to change the balance of focus. What ever is brought in to the room it is important that the counsellor maintains balance, otherwise one-side of the party is going to loose trust and confidence in you pretty quickly.
Active Listening Therapies are professional and compassionate
When a client visits a counsellor for the first time to make sense of what has happened, particular if they have been put in a situation which was completely unexpected, it can be a very emotional experience. At Active Listening Therapies we pride ourselves on how we work and react in these situations. We know we are doing it right, because our client feedback tells us so. Louise comments, “At that moment the client may be poring their heart out to you and you may be the only safe person they have. You can still remain professional and compassionate. It’s having the ability to make the client feel safe and able to work through their most personal feelings.”
Part of a relationship break up which is often over-looked until it is too late is how children may be feeling. Adults get so consumed with their own thoughts and plans that children can get forgotten about. With the safety of secure home in question, children can quickly feel like their world is falling apart. Children too need a safe space to talk and express their feelings and emotions and counselling may be the first time they have been put in an impartial environment since their parents relationship became fragile. Whilst it is hard for adults to mend and move forward, it can be much more complex for younger people.
At Active Listening Therapies we also work with children. Whilst the attention, compassion and unconditional positive regard remain the same, the therapeutic route is very different. Children can be very distrusting – at that isn’t a bad thing. It takes time to develop the trust of an adult, let alone a child. They don’t respond to questioning as often they don’t know how to verbalise an answer. We work through play, colouring and story telling. We need to be able to unpick what are their real feelings and wants, whilst filtering out notions which may have been instilled by an adult.
We can help with a speedy appointment
The break down of a relationship is hard at any time of year, but the dark days and cold weather makes people feel more susceptible to negative emotion or dark thought. If you are struggling with a relationship issue for you, or your children, or are feeling the negativity of winter, Active Listening Therapies is here for you. With clinics in Newark and Nottingham you can be sure of a speedy appointment. Session costs are £40.00 per session or three sessions for £100.00, we also offer a free 30 minute consultation at the start of the first session at either location.
