I provide psychotherapeutic counselling for women, men & couples seeking personal or professional change.
An in-person or online offer providing practical, non-judgemental & confidential support for long term growth.
I went to counselling as a way to address my personal developmental needs and, experiencing the desired change, chose to study it.
I have a Foundation Degree in Humanistic Counselling from Middlesex University, specialising in transactional analysis psychotherapy; am a Registered Member of the BACP (no. 408315), abiding by their code of ethics, and am fully insured.
I have come to appreciate that it’s never too late or too soon to reflect on how we live life if it isn’t satisfying us the way we think it could, and acknowledge that we all have the capacity to engage in a process of and effect enduring change.
I work with individuals and couples (18+) from an office in Christchurch serving Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, and the New Forest.
Online sessions are via doxy.me.
One-to-one sessions are £55 for 50 minutes, couples £70.
About me
- Anxiety
- ASD / ADHD
- Challenges at college, home, university or work
- Confidence and self-esteem
- Depression
- Grief, loss and bereavement
- Life changes
- Neglect and abuse
- Panic attacks
- Problems with addiction
- Professional development
- Relationship problems
- Sexuality and sexual identity
What I can help with
Counselling is an opportunity to examine our interpersonal relationships in order to help us make sense of how we feel about ourselves and others in everyday situations, within groups large and small, within organisations, and with family, friends, partners and colleagues. It can be applied to the examination of our private and work lives, and offers a frame of thought through which we can claim and own the agency of them.
My approach is to share with you some fundamental principles of self reflection and their application to challenges so that together we can find a route to a happier you.
Working with me will help you understand why you feel the way you do, and what to do to bring about the change you seek.
How I can help
“We cannot recommend Paul enough. The tools & knowledge provided to us have really turned our relationship around. Our communication skills & understanding of one another have improved hugely & we finished our therapy as a more grounded couple.”
“Paul was an invaluable help for me after I lost my father to cancer early last year. We had weekly sessions for about 9 months & he took me through a journey that involved disentangling my grief, helping me identify my emotions, & uncovering feelings that were being masked. He conducted every session with the highest level of professionalism, but this did not prevent him from being friendly & approachable. He always gave me unconditional positive regard & I was often impressed by his attention to detail & memory of things I had mentioned in sessions long past. He listens with a calm but deliberate concentration & offers his insights very clearly. I would recommend Paul to anyone seeking help.”
“Paul Allen is a very attentive listener: equipped with genuine empathy, he is very astute in appraising one’s perceptions and assumptions. By working with him, I feel that I have gained new insights to develop my life towards constructive & positive goals. My interaction with Paul has been immensely beneficial, cultivating a practice that helps me to reflect on particular areas of my life with more objectivity, & with more kindness towards myself. “
What others have said
Some things to consider when working with me
I am a work in progress.
If I had life sorted, I don’t think I’d have ever engaged in a process of self reflection & experienced its capacity to bring about growth. That growth has involved the occasional step back, step sideways & stumble. To be candid, I’ll go on making mistakes but today I can own them & see them for the opportunities to learn that they are.
There might be homework.
Occasionally, there’ll be something that you’ll need to think about &/or do between sessions. Self reflection is about evaluating our internal & interpersonal lives & that has to happen outside of our time together as well as during it in order for you to find it effective.
Accepting uncertainty.
Over years of practice and reflection, I’ve come to appreciate the value of the intangible & the indescribable, & occasionally there’s something we can’t quite clearly identify, especially when we get into the realm of intuition & the role it plays in our lives. Learning to trust ourselves is an important part of the process.