A compassionate space to explore life’s challenges
Psychotherapy and counselling for adults experiencing grief and bereavement, serious or chronic illness, caregiving responsibilities, and significant life transitions. I also support a range of emotional and relational difficulties, including trauma, anxiety, low mood, and relationship challenges.
In-person sessions available in Chichester and Portsmouth, with online therapy available across the UK.A space to talk and be heard
Photo by Ashley Batz on Unsplash
Life can sometimes feel overwhelming, uncertain, or difficult to face alone. Therapy offers a confidential and supportive space where you can pause, reflect, and talk openly about what may be troubling you.
We can gently explore your experiences, thoughts, and feelings together. Talking things through can help you make sense of what you are going through and consider what might help you move forward.
People come to therapy for many different reasons, including anxiety, life transitions, relationship difficulties, loss, or simply a sense of feeling stuck or uncertain.
About me
Hello, I’m Kate.
I’m a psychotherapist offering a warm, compassionate, and supportive space for people navigating difficult experiences. In practice, this means working together to make sense of what you are going through, reflect on what matters most to you, and consider how you want to move forward. This often includes learning how to live alongside uncertainty and anxiety, which are natural parts of being human.
When life becomes difficult, deeper questions can begin to emerge. Experiences such as loss, relationship challenges, uncertainty, or significant life changes can lead us to reflect on who we are, what matters to us, and how we want to live.
Following my own experiences of caregiving and bereavement, and a period of reflecting on what felt most important to me, I found a strong sense of meaning in being able to support others through their own experiences.
I have specialist experience in supporting people through grief and loss, including caregiving, terminal illness, and bereavement, and the life transitions that often unfold alongside these. I also work with people experiencing trauma, anxiety, low mood, and relationship challenges.
My work is grounded in an existential approach and also draws on psychodynamic therapy, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), and compassion-focused approaches. This means therapy can be shaped around your individual needs rather than following a fixed way of working.
As Søren Kierkegaard wrote, “Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.” Therapy can offer a space to pause and reflect, making sense of how past experiences may shape the present, while considering the choices and possibilities ahead.
Alongside my private practice, I work within hospice bereavement services, supporting individuals through experiences of loss. I am also completing my doctoral training in counselling psychology.
Creating a therapeutic space that is compassionate, respectful, and welcoming of difference is important to me. Each person brings their own experiences, identities, values, and perspectives, and these form an important part of the conversation in therapy.
If you are considering therapy, you are welcome to arrange an initial conversation to see whether working together feels right for you. You do not need to have everything figured out before reaching out. Sometimes the first step is simply having a conversation.
Common questions about therapy
What is the difference between counselling and psychotherapy?
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Counselling and psychotherapy are often used interchangeably. Both involve talking with a trained professional about difficulties you may be experiencing. Counselling is often described as a supportive space where a therapist listens carefully and helps you reflect on challenges you may be facing. Psychotherapy may involve a more active exploration of patterns, experiences, and deeper questions about meaning, identity, relationships, and the choices we make in our lives.
In practice, many therapists draw on both approaches to support each person in the way that feels most helpful.
What is existential psychotherapy?
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Existential psychotherapy explores some of the deeper questions that can arise in life about what it means to exist and to be human. At different times we may find ourselves reflecting on things such as meaning, identity, relationships, loss, uncertainty, and the choices we face about how we want to live.
Rather than focusing only on symptoms or problems, existential therapy encourages a deeper exploration of your experience and how you relate to yourself, to others, and to the world around you. Often this means slowing down and paying attention to thoughts and feelings that can become hidden in the pace of everyday life.
In therapy we explore these questions together, with your own experiences, values, and perspectives guiding the conversation.
One way to think about this approach is to compare it with how we treat physical health. If you visit a doctor with a specific problem, the focus is usually on treating or fixing that symptom. Existential therapy takes a broader view, looking at the whole person rather than just the problem.
This might include exploring what is important to you, how past experiences have shaped you, the relationships and responsibilities in your life, and the choices that feel meaningful moving forward.
The aim is not to provide ready-made answers, but to help you develop a clearer understanding of yourself and find ways of living that feel more authentic and meaningful for you.
What happens in the first session?
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The first session is an opportunity for us to talk about what has brought you to therapy and what you hope to gain from support.
We will also go through the counselling agreement, which explains things such as confidentiality, how sessions work, and the professional framework that supports our work together. This helps ensure that the space feels safe and clear from the outset.
It is also a chance for you to ask any questions and get a sense of how I work, and whether working together feels right for you.
How often do sessions take place?
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Sessions usually last 50 minutes and take place weekly or fortnightly.
Some people prefer a regular time each week, while others arrange sessions more flexibly around work or changing schedules. We can discuss what might work best for you during the initial conversation.
Regular sessions help provide continuity and flow in the therapeutic work. I usually recommend starting with weekly sessions, particularly at the beginning of therapy, although fortnightly or occasional monthly sessions may become more appropriate as therapy progresses.
Good therapy benefits from being structured and consistent while also remaining flexible enough to support what works best for you.
Qualifications and Professional Memberships
Qualifications
BSc (Hons) Counselling Psychology
University of ChichesterPGDip in Existential Psychology and Psychotherapy
(exit award from the DCPsych programme)Professional Doctorate in Counselling Psychology and Psychotherapy (DCPsych)
New School of Psychotherapy and Counselling / Middlesex University, currently in training (2023–present)
Professional Memberships
I work in accordance with the ethical guidelines of the following professional bodies and receive regular clinical supervision.
Accredited Registrant, National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society (NCPS) - Membership No. NCPS5137
Graduate Member, British Psychological Society (BPS)
Trainee Member, UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP)
Trainee Member, Universities Psychotherapy and Counselling Association (UPCA)
Registered Data Controller, Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) – Registration reference: ZC105974
