About Me
Counsellor in Basingstoke
Welcome
My name is Denise Sherrington. I am a qualified counsellor and a registered member of the BACP. I work with adults and young people aged 16 and over who want space to think, feel, and find their way through life’s challenges.
You may be used to coping, managing and keeping going, while knowing that someting is costing you more than it should. Counselling can offer a steady place to pause, understand what is happening and begin to find a different way through.
Therapy with me can be short-term or longer-term, depending on what you need. Some people come for a few sessions to work through something specific, while others choose to stay longer and explore in more depth. Either way, it takes time and care to work through what troubles you, and I offer a steady place for that process.
My Counselling Approach
I work in an integrative and relational way. This means I do not use a fixed formuala or expect every client to fit into one model of therapy. You do not need to arrive with the right label for what you are experiencing. Many difficulties overlap: anxiety, low mood, loss, work stress, relationship difficulties, family ssues, past experiences or a sense of feeling stuck or disconnected from the work and people in your life. We can begin with what feels difficult now and make sense of it together.
Alongside private practice, I have several years experience working students and staff in a college counselling service. This has given me experience of working with a wide range of concerns, often where clients are unsure exactly what kind of help they need.
I draw on attachment theory, psychodynamic thinking, person-centred therapy, transactional analysis and internal family systems. In practice, this means we can pay attention to what is happening in your life now, how earlier experinces may still be affecting you and what patterns may be repeating in your relationships, work and sense of self.
How Counselling Helps
Life brings many challenges and people often come to counselling when something has become difficult to keep carrying alone. You may know exactly what has brought you here, or you may simple know that life feels harder than it should.
Counselling gives you time and space to slow things down, speak more freely, and begin to understand what may be happening underneath. This might involve looking at anxiety, low mood, grief, work pressure, relationship patterns, old hurts, or experiences that still feel present even if they happened in the past.
My role is not to give quick answers or tell you what to do. It is to work alongside you as we make sense of what is happening and consider what may need to change.
Counselling can help by:
Speaking Freely and Confidentially
Counselling offers a private, confidential space wher you can speak more freely than you may be able to elsewhere. You do not need to have everything all worked out before you come. We can begin with what feels difficult, unclear or hard to say
Seeing Patterns More Clearly
Sometimes the same difficulties keep repeating in different forms. Counselling can help you notice what may be happening underneath, how old patterns may still be shaping the present and where there may be more choice than it currently feels.
Making Changes That Last
Insight can bring relief, but it can also open the door to new decisions. Counselling supports you to take steps, small or significant, that feel sustainable and right for you.
Get in touch
Feel free to contact me if you have any questions about how counselling works, or to arrange an initial assessment appointment. This enables us to discuss the reasons you are thinking of coming to counselling, whether it could be helpful for you and whether I am the right therapist to help. You can also call me on 07933730718 if you would prefer to leave a message or speak to me first. I am happy to discuss any queries or questions you may have prior to arranging an initial appointment.
I will respond to your enquiry within 2 working days.
Privacy Policy
My location
I work from my comfortable counselling room in Basingstoke which is easily accessible from Hook, Fleet, Alton, Thatcham, Winchester, and Alresford. I also offer online sessions via Zoom or Teams.
Fees & availability
Counselling sessions last 50 minutes and usually take place once a week. As the work develops, some clients choose to move to fortnightly sessions, or arrange three weeks on and one week off. We can discuss what feels right for you.
My standard fee is £55 per session. If cost feels like a barrier, please let me know when you make contact.
Frequently asked questions
*Note: These are from the layout you choose. I would suggest keeping the section by writing your own FAQs
What's the difference between counselling and therapy?
Counselling is usually a good way to help with a current problem; something that can be discussed and - hopefully - resolved within a limited number of sessions. Over a certain number of weeks the understanding of the problem improves and away forward becomes clear. Therapy often describes work that goes a bit deeper, towards more substantial life issues and problems having a deeper effect on the client’s life. Therapy often requires a long-term approach, so the number of sessions can be open-ended.
Which option is most suitable depends on the client and the difficulties they are facing. In some cases counselling works well as an ongoing, longer-term option - or therapy can manage to resolve an issue in just a few sessions.
How long will I need to have counselling?
How long a period of counselling lasts will vary from person to person and depend on the depth of the issues they are facing. For some people a couple of sessions helps to bring their problems into focus, and they feel ready to move forward; other problems may require more of an open-ended approach.
Before we begin any work we will agree on the number of sessions we’ll undertake and, at the end of that number, review our progress. As long as we both agree further therapy will be of benefit to you, sessions can continue.
How long will I have to wait for an appointment?
The initial session is agreed between you and I will be whenever we are both free. Then we would arrange a set number of counselling sessions to take place at the same time every week, that is convenient for you and where I have availability. How quickly these sessions can begin will depend on the availability of that free ‘slot’.
Will everything I say be kept confidential?
Everything that is said within the counselling room is private - this is one of the main ways counselling and therapy differ from talking to a friend or relative. Once you are comfortable with the format of weekly sessions and the safe space they provide, you will find the freedom to speak in confidence is of great value.
Note that there are some situations where you may be a risk to yourself or others, and there the law requires that I notify an authority; in these cases I may not be able to keep total confidentiality. Breaking confidentiality is very rare though, and only happens after the person concerned has been informed.
Can I bring a friend or relative with me?
Usually I am asked this question by people who are nervous about entering into counselling, or when they are looking for support in coming to see a therapist. This anxiety is understandable, but a key aspect of therapy is that you should feel free to talk about any issues you feel are important to you. Having someone else with you who can be connected to those issues makes this opening-up more difficult, so for this reason I do not see clients accompanied by friends or family.
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