May I be able to help?

Hello! I’m Laura, and I help people to (i) get unstuck from problems in life and (ii) learn ways not to get stuck again. So what do I mean by stuck?

You’ll know if you are stuck, it means struggling with a part of life so much that you’ve stopped moving forward. You are doing a lot less of the things you want to do and (often) not really enjoying life.

Being stuck can be associated with lots of different issues: depression or low mood, anxiety or panic, lifestyle concerns (diet, exercise, weight, sleep), after effects of trauma, burnout and fatigue, stress and overwhelm … You want it to be different, but are all tangled in a knot.

It can also mean you end up doing things you don’t really want to do, and putting off or avoiding doing stuff that you know is good for you. When you are stuck, there are often things you want to do and ways you would like to be, but no matter how much you try, you just can’t seem to make them happen!

Staying in. Procrastinating. Not talking to friends. Being super-busy. Over-eating. Under-eating. Worrying. Ruminating. Drinking too much. Streaming too much. Numbing out. Poor sleep. Not exercising. Exercising too much. Controlling. Not taking control. Exercising too little. Running away. Hiding. ….

Any of this sound familiar? Don’t panic, we all do it to an extent – and I won’t claim I don’t. The trouble is, sometimes we do it so much that we get stuck. Or, we are stuck and can’t work out how to change it.

How come I can help? So, I’m a psychologist. Psychologists are interested in what people do, and how we are affected by stuff that happens to us. Especially the type of psychologist I am, because we have extra training to apply that research to help people understand, cope with or change their life. That’s a Clinical Psychologist.

Sorry if that sounds a bit scary, like we might put you in a Petri dish and assess you. That is not really it. I find it much clearer to think about it like we put your concern, the problem you are having, in a dish and we figure it out together. It’s not so much me analyzing you, but the two of us looking at the issue and seeing if we can find a way forward.

That sound okay? Like it might be helpful to team up with someone who has spent all of their adult life studying what humans do. Between my knowledge of the theory and therapy techniques, and your expertise in your own life, we can start to untangle some of those knots.

Still with me? Okay. You may be wondering about how we meet. I’m guessing you are here following a post online and thinking there is no point because my office is probably miles away! Well. It’s not. My office is here. Right in front of you. It’s the screen you are looking at right now.

You see, I provide psychology appointments online. And not just because it is convenient. There are lots of advantages to accessing therapy online. One of these is that a videocall means we open a conversation at a convenient time and date. In doing that, we create a space that only exists in the connection! And we can put your concern into that space, and take a good look at it, together. You from your side, and me on mine. We create a space for you!

It could be that you are stuck with something, and want help to get unstuck. Or maybe you are not actually that stuck, but want to learn ways to stay that way! Like doing physical exercise when you are well, so that you are stronger and more flexible.

When we end the call, we close the space. It’s gone. You can turn off your laptop and make yourself a nice cup of tea. You will take what you want to from the space. When you are ready, you can make changes in what you do, and then life can change.