I appreciate that taking the first step to seek therapy can be daunting, and it is not uncommon to feel hesitant or unsure about seeking therapeutic help.
You are most welcome to call me for a preliminary discussion or, if you prefer, you can send me an e-mail and we can communicate online to begin with.
To make an appointment with me, please telephone 07931 868972 or e-mail me at sampsongill@hotmail.com. If you reach my voicemail, please do leave a message with your name and contact details and any convenient times for me to return your call. I will always endeavour to return your call promptly. I assure complete discretion and confidentiality and will not leave a message on your answerphone unless you have requested this.
Once you have made contact with me, by phone or e-mail, we can agree on a time for an initial session to discuss the possibility of working together. This can usually be arranged within a week, depending on my availability to see you. There is no commitment to ongoing work at this stage. To maintain discretion, I will only then give you my exact address and send you a map with my location details.
The Initial Assessment Session
This first appointment is called an an "initial assessment" and lasts for an hour. It is an opportunity for you to meet me face-to-face and decide if we both feel happy working together.
You will be invited to talk about your reasons for seeking therapy and to ask any questions you may have about the therapeutic process. It will provide a chance for you to talk about the relevant issues and your personal background with regard to family relationships, work and any significant life events. You can also share with me what you hope to achieve through therapy and begin to get a sense of how I work.
I can then assess whether therapy may be helpful to you and we can discuss the possibility of working together, if this is appropriate. There will be plenty of opportunity for any questions you may have during this session.
If we agree to begin working together, we can then establish the terms of your arrangements. These are negotiated on an individual basis, according to your needs and my availability to see you. There are also some practical details to talk through, such as appointment times and confidentiality.
If we decide not to proceed, I will endeavour to assist you in finding more appropriate help. However, whatever the outcome of the assessment session, many people find it a valuable experience in itself - a useful opportunity to pause and reflect on their situation in a way they have not done so before.
Although individual arrangements may vary, it is important for us to have a sense of continuity and regularity in order to build a strong working relationship together. I will normally set aside a regular weekly appointment for you on the same time and day of the week. I do appreciate that for the self-employed particularly, this may be problematic. I endeavour to offer some flexibility for such clients. However, any commitments, such as holidays, work schedules etc that might interfere with a regular weekly slot should be discussed at the intitial assessment.
We will review the progress of the therapy regularly and there will be an initial review after the first six sessions. I always welcome your views about how you are finding therapy and you are free to discuss this at any time.
I offer both shorter-term and ongoing psychotherapy. Shorter-term work (2 to 6 months) may sometimes be appropriate, for instance, to help you resolve a more immediate crisis or work on a particular issue. If you specifically wish to work within a limited time frame, please mention this at your first session.
