Susan Shaw

Personal Profile

Prior to counselling I held a variety of public sector roles over the years that put me in direct contact with individuals on a one to one basis which helped me understand the conflicts and pressures modern life and work imposes on us and our relationships. Those interactions combined with my own varied and relevant life experiences led me to seek to find a way to help others and my journey started with an undertaking to study a BACP accredited Diploma in Person Centred Counselling.

I work with a diverse range of issues within a recognized code of ethics (BACP) including but not limited to stress, anxiety, depression, relationship breakdown, grief, bereavement, conflict, bullying, self esteem, abuse and drug and alcohol dependency. I operate from discreet city centre premises accessible to private individuals and couples within the Chester, Cheshire, Wirral and North Wales catchment areas. I am able to offer flexible daytime and evening appointments within a warm, empathic, safe and confidential environment.

I also works as an affiliate counsellor for Employment Assistance Programmes (EAP's) and welcome all enquiries including referrals from other insurance organizations, charities and health care providers.

Free parking is available for up to 1 hour (at clients risk) directly outside the premises and both the main market car park (providing free parking after 3pm) and Chester City bus station are a short 3 minute walk away.

Experience and background

In addition to my private practice I have 3 years NHS experience providing work based Staff Support assessments, counselling and therapy providing both short and long term therapy to employees. I also helped pilot and maintain this same facility to the younger often vulnerable apprentice groups within their college setting and in an attempt to normalize the concept of counselling.

I also work for a local Mental Health charity providing access to psychological therapies via referral for Primary Care.

I worked for 2+ years in a voluntary capacity providing counselling to a vulnerable and often marginalized male client group in a homeless hostel presenting with a range of mental health concerns often linked to drug and alcohol misuse and life following incarceration. I also have NHS (hospital based) experience counselling female clients grappling with a wide range of emotional issues from neonatal deaths, infertility and the aftermath of a decision to terminate a pregnancy.

Qualifications and Training

Graduate Diploma in Person Centred Counselling - accredited with the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP)
Training in Person Centred Couples Counselling
Certificate in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
Training in Solution Focused Brief Therapy
(Ongoing) MSc Psychological Trauma.
M.A Elective Module Counselling Young People.
M.A Elective Module Brief/Short Term Therapy
I am committed to ongoing professional development and hold a range of additional certificates from counselling related workshops.

 

Work Approach

Life can be challenging and to the extent it is often difficult to see a way forward, perhaps you feel that something is not working in your world, or that you 'should' be happy, but cannot quite work out why you are not. Or maybe you find yourself repeating the same old behaviours and wondering how you managed to get to this point again.

Counselling can be a very powerful experience in helping you to identify, come to terms with, change or heal a situation. It can offer a way to gain perspective on emotions, behaviour and relationships; serve as a means to address pain and loss and help alleviate anxiety, depression and anger in their many forms. It can also help develop communication skills for dealing with conflict and frustration.

Finding the right counsellor whom you feel able to work with is essential part of the process but I understand that approaching someone unknown to you to talk about what may be very personal, difficult and often complex concerns can feel daunting. Given this I strive to maintain an empathic, safe relationship within a professional and confidential environment from where you might feel able to explore your struggles and gain more control over your life. I am not here to judge nor to influence but to help you clarify how to navigate your way through your difficulties without losing sight of those things that are really important to you.

I understand that everyone is a unique individual and that what works for one person may not work for another. As a therapist I try to understand the issues underpinning a particular difficulty rather than simply managing its symptoms in practical ways and work from a core Person-Centred framework, which respects an individuals' ability to find their own solutions to the difficulties they experience. I also incorporate elements of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Solution Focused Therapy where appropriate. This flexible approach means I aim to meet you as an individual or couple and will tailor your needs accordingly.

Should the idea of face to face counselling be something you feel you would struggle to accommodate, then dependant on your needs, you may be a candidate for telephone counselling which we can discuss on point of contact. I do not offer 'anonymous' telephone counselling but you may expect the same service in terms of confidentiality as any other face-to-face client and may switch between the two at any time.

If you feel counselling might be for you and wish to find out more about me, my service or if you have a more general enquiry about counselling please feel free to make contact.