Prior to retraining as a therapist, I was a professional footballer for 10 years. After being forced to retire through injury at the age of 31, I went through some difficult and challenging times experiencing anger, depression, anxiety, loss of identity and low self-esteem related to the premature ending of my career. With the help of skilled therapists and counsellors, I was eventually able to see a way out of my own personal darkness and recover my equilibrium. After attending night school classes at my local college and volunteering on the telephone lines with the Samaritans, I decided to commit full-time to following my dream to become a mental health professional. Three years later, and after a lot of hard work, I was proud to gain a First-Class honours degree from the University of Salford. Those negative experiences I went through helped shaped the person and counsellor I have become, and today my passion is to offer help and guidance to others.
I also run the Liverpool branch of AndysManClub - a men's mental health support & suicide prevention group. (www.andysmanclub.co.uk)
5QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE: 1st Class BSc (Hons) Counselling & Psychotherapy from the University of Salford.
For the last 5+ years I have seen many hundreds of clients through AJM Counselling.
Alongside and previous to this I have held the following paid & voluntary roles: 2022-2023: Counsellor/Psychotherapist with Better Help. 2020-2022: Affiliate Psychotherapist at Cognacity, London. 2018-2021: Volunteer counsellor at Yewdale Counselling, Skelmersdale. 2019-2021: Volunteer counsellor at Macmillan Cancer Support, Southport. 2018-2019: Volunteer counsellor at Infinity Initiatives, Manchester. 2015-2018: Volunteer with Samaritans, Cheshire. I am committed to consistently improving my ability as a counsellor by attending continuous professional development, including the British Isles DBT training course, Liverpool CAMHS's Anxiety and Depression training and CRUSE's Bereavement Counselling training.
THERAPY: At AJM Counselling I provide an empathic, non-judgemental safe space where you will be respected, supported, truly heard and encouraged to talk openly about your feelings and emotions. My patient, nurturing and supportive approach will allow you to explore whatever is troubling or concerning you, at your own pace. I collaborate with my clients in formulating the best therapeutic action plan for themselves. Together we’ll discuss goals and objectives. I may ask some questions to understand your situation better, reflect back my understanding and provide feedback for you.
Through our sessions, I aim to help you gain new insights and a clearer understanding of your thoughts, feelings, emotions and thought processes. My mantra is to empower you become the best version of yourself. And, to that end, I usually won’t offer advice or tell you what to do, as I believe the expert in our relationship is you! I mainly work in a Person-Centred way and the counselling I provide reflects this. I can also offer Solution Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT), Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT).
Please ask for more details if you need any information on any or all of the above therapeutical methods.
Some of the issues I help clients with include: Anxiety * Depression * Relationships * Guilt * Shame * Addiction * Confidence * Male issues * Stress * Borderline Personality Disorder * Anger * Loneliness * Bullying * Workplace Problems * Bereavement * Grief * Trauma * Low Self-Esteem