Counselling Approaches

Emotion-Focused Individual Therapy

Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT) is an innovative and highly respected approach that helps people tap into the power of their emotions for healing and change. EFT focuses on the idea that emotions are not just feelings—they are a source of vital information that guides our thoughts and actions.

In this approach, emotions are seen as a compass. When we get stuck in emotional patterns like anxiety, shame, or anger, it's often because we're not listening to what our deeper feelings are trying to tell us. This model helps individuals identify "stuck" emotions and transform them by accessing more adaptive ones. For example, a person struggling with self-criticism might use EFT techniques to access feelings of self-compassion to counteract their inner critic. This process, often involving tools like "empty chair" work, is a compassionate and effective way to resolve inner conflict and foster genuine emotional growth, leading to lasting change and a more balanced sense of self.

Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy

Embarking on the journey of couples therapy can feel daunting, but Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) offers a warm and insightful approach. Think of it not as a way to blame or fix, but rather as a map to navigate the sometimes-stormy seas of your relationship. EFT helps you and your partner understand the emotional dance you've been doing—the moments of withdrawal, the cycles of conflict, and the feeling of being stuck in a negative pattern.

Instead of focusing on what's "wrong," EFT helps you uncover the deeper, often-unspoken longings and fears that lie beneath the surface. It's about recognizing that your partner's anger might be a cry for closeness, or their silence a fear of being hurt. This therapy provides a safe space to express these vulnerable emotions and to truly hear one another.

Through this process, you learn to step out of those painful cycles and into a new, more loving rhythm. It’s about building a secure bond, one where you both feel seen, heard, and emotionally safe. EFT helps you rediscover the connection you once had, strengthening your friendship and rekindling a sense of team and partnership. Ultimately, it’s a journey toward creating a more compassionate, resilient, and deeply connected relationship.

Emotionally Focused Family Therapy

In families, just like in other relationships, things can get stuck in a negative cycle. Emotionally Focused Family Therapy (EFFT) is a warm and practical approach designed to help families break free from these frustrating patterns and build stronger, more secure bonds.

Think of it this way: behind every family argument, there are often deeper, unspoken feelings and needs. A teen’s defiance might be a hidden cry for more independence, and a parent's frustration might stem from a fear of losing connection. EFFT helps families slow down and tune into these underlying emotions.

A therapist using EFFT helps the family create a safe space to talk about what's really going on. It’s not about finding someone to blame; it’s about understanding the emotional "dance" that everyone is a part of. By helping family members express their vulnerable feelings and truly hear one another, EFFT empowers them to respond with compassion and empathy instead of defensiveness. This process helps to heal old wounds, repair broken trust, and create a family environment where everyone feels seen, heard, and deeply connected.

Somatic Practices

Somatic Experiencing

Developed by Dr. Peter Levine, Somatic Experiencing (SE) is a gentle yet powerful approach to healing trauma that focuses on the wisdom of the body. The core idea is that when we experience a traumatic or overwhelming event, our body's natural "fight, flight, or freeze" response can get stuck in a state of high alert. This trapped survival energy can lead to a host of physical and emotional symptoms, from chronic pain and anxiety to feelings of being disconnected from oneself.

Somatic Experiencing doesn't require you to endlessly relive the traumatic event. Instead, it uses a "bottom-up" approach, starting with a mindful awareness of your physical sensations. A practitioner helps you gently track what's happening in your body—a tingle, a warmth, a change in breath—without judgment. This process, called "titration," involves working with very small amounts of the traumatic material at a time, allowing your nervous system to gradually release the stored energy in a safe and controlled way. This helps your body complete the self-protective actions that were interrupted during the event. By helping your nervous system find its way back to a state of balance, SE empowers you to release the past and reclaim a sense of aliveness, resilience, and presence in your life.

Focusing

Focusing is a powerful and gentle therapeutic technique that helps you connect with your inner wisdom, developed by psychologist Eugene Gendlin. In a counselling session, Focusing isn't about analyzing your problems from a distance; it's about listening to your body's subtle, non-verbal signals. Think of it as a way to access your "felt sense"—that vague, yet very real, physical sensation you get when you think about a particular issue, whether it's a tight knot in your stomach when you think of a difficult conversation or a heavy feeling in your shoulders when you feel stressed.

A counsellor using Focusing acts as a compassionate guide, helping you tune into these bodily sensations without judgment. The process is often slow and mindful, with the therapist asking questions like, "What does that feeling feel like?" or "Where in your body do you notice that?" By staying with this felt sense, you allow its meaning to unfold naturally. Often, a new insight, a forgotten memory, or a sense of release will emerge. This approach is based on the idea that our bodies hold a deeper, more integrated understanding of our problems than our minds alone can grasp. It’s a profound way to bypass intellectual analysis and tap directly into a powerful source of healing and personal growth.

EMDR

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, or EMDR, is a type of psychotherapy designed to help people recover from the emotional distress caused by past traumatic experiences. It was developed by psychologist Francine Shapiro in the late 1980s. The core idea behind EMDR is that traumatic memories can become "stuck" or improperly stored in the brain, leading to ongoing symptoms like flashbacks, anxiety, and a feeling of being frozen in time.

EMDR therapy works by using bilateral stimulation, which is a rhythmic, side-to-side pattern that can be achieved through eye movements, hand taps, or sounds. While focusing on a disturbing memory, a person follows these bilateral motions. The process is thought to help the brain reprocess the memory, essentially allowing it to be "digested" and stored in a way that no longer causes intense distress.

Think of it like sorting through a disorganized file cabinet. EMDR doesn't erase the memory, but it helps you file it away properly so it's no longer a source of overwhelming emotional pain. Many people who undergo EMDR find that they can recall the event without the same emotional charge, and as a result, they experience a significant reduction in their symptoms, reclaiming a sense of safety and calm in their lives.