Elizabeth Whyte MBACP (Sen.Accred.) Counselling and Psychotherapy in Twyford, near Winchester

Welcome to my website

I have been working as a Counsellor and Psychotherapist for more than thirty years and was based in South East London for most of this time. I worked for some years in the NHS and I have also been in Private Practice, working for Insurance Companies and on Employee Assistance Programmes.

Very recently I relocated and now am beginning to establish a Consulting Room in Twyford near Winchester in Hampshire.  Basingstoke, Eastleigh, Salisbury and Southampton are also nearby.  I am continuing to offer online and phone sessions and many of the people I saw who live in Lee, Blackheath, Lewisham, Greenwich and other areas in South East London are continuing in this way.

Over the years and in the different settings I have had opportunity to work with a varied and increasingly extensive number of issues. The rich breadth of experience I have gained during this time has enabled me develop insights and find effective ways of responding most effectively for each unique individual or couple who is seeking Counselling.

My hope and aim in practicing  Counselling and Psychotherapy is to make it possible for each individual or couple gain greater insights into the roots of their current difficulties. The increased perception accompanying this empowers a person to make the changes they want so they are able to move towards realising their potential and enriching their lives.

I see it as therapeutic to offer a way of working which is respectful of the unique nature of each person and which is also has a gentleness.   At their best Counselling and Psychotherapy are creative processes which enable a person to gain insights and perceptions about themselves in ways which can liberate and enrich their lives. My aspiration as a therapist is to work with individuals and couples towards this outcome.

During recent years I was based in South East London. Before then my Practice was in Kingston upon Thames in Surrey. My Consulting Room will now be in Twyford, Hampshire within fairly easy reach of Winchester, Salisbury, Andover and Southampton. Currently, and until I get my Consulting Room built and ready, I am offering online sessions.  Increasingly I have been discovering that people are choosing to make use of technology for their sessions because it makes therapy more accessible. It is especially helpful for those who live and/or work in different places.

The national and international events of recent years may have meant that we have needed to find different ways to live. Perhaps our priorities have been challenged and maybe are continuing to be challenged.  We may have found ourselves struggling with increased emotional stress as a result of the pandemic, or maybe particular mental health issues have surfaced. Sometimes changes throw new light on particular aspects of life. The war in Ukraine has also brought different challenges, especially around safety and uncertainty. My practice as Counsellor and Psychotherapist takes account of the continually shifting situations in which we live. I seek to explore and address relevant current issues which might be affecting people who consult me.

I accept GP and self-referrals. Since I started working as a Counsellor and Psychotherapist about thirty years ago most of my time in this field has been spent in the National Health Service and in Private Practice.

I also take referrals from Employee Assistance Programmes, Insurance Companies and I offer supervision both to Counsellors and to others working in different areas of the caring professions.

My registration is with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy. I am a Senior Accredited Counsellor/Psychotherapist with this professional body.

After working as a Counsellor for a few years I decided in 1997 also to train as a Psychotherapist. I have found it helpful and enriching to have both trainings and be able to use both Counselling and Psychotherapy skills and experience. In 2004 I studied for a Certificate in Life Coaching which has me given additional skills and insights, especially in enabling people to work out what they want their priorities to be.

I endeavour to understand with a person the unique factors which have brought them to this particular point in their lives so that together we are able to find ways forward which can be beneficial, liberating and creative and which will work most helpfully for them.

"The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change." - Carl Rogers

Issues I have and/or are working with include:  

• Relationship issues
• Family difficulties
• Family estrangement
• Bereavement
• Loss
• Serious illness
• Serious illness in the family and in other close relationships
• Being a carer
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Stress
• Confidence and lack of confidence
• Post traumatic stress
• Life changes and transition
• Later life
• Work issues and redundancy
• Change
• Self-esteem
• Fertility and infertility

I also have particular interest in working with:

• Creative people
• Those working in the caring professions
• Understanding and reflecting on dreams
• Spirituality
• Faith and trust issues
• Military veterans

When might it be helpful to seek Counselling or Psychotherapy

At times in life a person may be aware that all is not well. Perhaps it feels as though emotions are all over the place and life is out of control. Maybe there is a feeling of being overwhelmed and needing to make changes but with no idea of what changes might either be possible or helpful. Sometimes, though by no means always, a recognition that all is not well is triggered by events such as a loss, a breakdown in a friendship or a relationship and a sense that everything has got to feel too much.

Talking through what is happening in a confidential setting with a Counsellor or Psychotherapist who is trained to listen carefully and help to make sense of life's events can make all the difference. It can make it possible to develop fresh insights about what has been happening. These insights can lead towards new ways of coping.

It often takes a lot of courage to engage in the process of therapy, and sometimes it can happen that a person feels worse before they start to feel better. But as situations and memories get talked through and reflected on a sense of relief can come as things become clearer and unhelpful patterns of behaviour are unlocked.

Psychotherapy and Counselling can also be profoundly beneficial and creative in situations where someone is asking themselves the big questions about hopes, aspirations and disappointments in life. Possibly they feel stuck and unable to see any ways forward. Perhaps they feel sad and lost after changes which have occurred. Maybe there is a disappointment that their life has not turned out as they had hoped and their aspirations have not been fulfilled. The opportunity to reflect on such questions with a Counsellor or Psychotherapist can enable these important and profound issues to be addressed and taken seriously.

"Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes" Carl Jung

My aim as a Psychotherapist and Counsellor is to use my knowledge about how a person's current experiences relates to events and experiences in the past and to use this knowledge with respect for the uniqueness of the individual and their own rich and dynamic way of being.  For someone to have the opportunity of working through the impacts of the past can be both a healing and empowering experience.

The uncertainties of recent years

The current uncertain times following from COVID and the war in Ukraine have left many people with adjustments to make. At times like this it might be that emotions come to the surface as they are triggered off by current world news.

It can be valuable at such times to have an opportunity to process what is happening. This can be especially relevant if the crisis is bringing up and possibly heightening a person’s past feelings, fears and anxieties.

For others the current situations have brought with them such different ways of life that questions and reflections flood in about the meaning of one’s life. This brings opportunity for reflection, possibly drawing a person towards seeking a space in which to talk through and process changing aspirations and hopes.