Everything you say in your counselling sessions remains confidential to Compass. The only exception to this may be in the rare circumstance when we are extremely concerned about you or a child in your care. Any personal information about you is kept anonymously under lock and key. We comply will all relevant data protection legislation.
Your counselling will last until you choose to end the arrangement. This might be after a few weeks, months or even years – the choice is yours, and you can discuss how it’s going with your counsellor as you go along.
A supportive friend or relative can bring you to Compass for your initial consultation, but they will have to wait for you outside the consultation room unless there is a medical reason for them to accompany you. This is because the counselling is your confidential space.
Let your counsellor know straight away if anything about your counselling is bothering you. There is no one right way to ‘do’ counselling and we are happy to do what we can to help you. Sometimes, if we agree that counselling at Compass is not the best way forward for you, we will help you to research and find another form of help.
Counselling is not always an easy option. Some counselling sessions can expose feelings that haven’t come up to the surface before. This can be hard, and it’s important that you take care of yourself, such as taking some time after each sessions to walk, listen to some music, make some notes, speak to a friend, anything that calms you and helps you get back to your day. In the long run though, exploring these feelings helps you to understand yourself and the things that have been holding you back and making you unhappy. Understanding and releasing these can help open up a path forward in your life.
We offer:
Our main approach at Compass is psychodynamic. Psychodynamic counselling is an in-depth talking therapy which works towards understanding the person you have come to be, by looking at influences from your past, including on an unconscious level.
We also offer other approaches, including CBT and Person-Centred counselling. Our counsellors come from different training and professional backgrounds. We value this variety as it enables us to
choose a counsellor suited to your individual needs. You’re welcome to ask us more about this when
you have your Initial Consultation.
At present, we are unable to offer group, couple, or family counselling.