What to look for in a therapist

Finding the right therapist is a personal and important decision. One of the most crucial things to look for is whether your therapist is properly trained and registered with a recognised professional body. In the UK, this includes organisations like the BACP (British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy), the UKCP (UK Council for Psychotherapy), and the NCS (National Counselling Society).

These professional bodies ensure that therapists:

  • Meet high standards of training and ethical practice

  • Commit to ongoing professional development

  • Are accountable through formal codes of ethics and complaints procedures

Working with a registered therapist gives you reassurance that you're in safe hands — and that your wellbeing is being held with care, professionalism, and respect.

It’s also important to feel comfortable with your therapist. Trust your instincts — a good therapist will help you feel seen, heard, and supported, without judgment.

Types of therapy: what do they mean?

Therapy can feel overwhelming when you're not sure what the different terms mean. Here's a simple guide to some of the most common approaches you might come across, and how they relate to the way I work.

Person-Centred / Humanistic Therapy

This approach is based on the idea that you are the expert on your own life. In person-centred therapy, you're offered a non-judgemental, warm, and respectful space to explore your thoughts and feelings at your own pace. The focus is on the present moment, your emotional experience, and helping you reconnect with your true self.

It’s called humanistic because it’s grounded in a deep belief in your capacity to grow, heal, and find meaning , even in the face of challenge. This is the heart of how I work.

Psychodynamic Therapy

This approach explores how your early relationships and past experiences, especially those formed in childhood, may be shaping your current patterns, emotions, and relationships. It often brings the unconscious into awareness.

While I don’t work from a purely psychodynamic model, I do integrate some of its insights to help clients understand how the past might still be echoing in the present.

Existential Therapy

Existential therapy helps you explore big questions: Who am I? What matters to me? How do I live authentically, knowing life involves uncertainty, loss, and change?

This approach doesn’t offer easy answers, but instead helps you face life’s challenges with honesty, courage, and meaning. For many expats and people going through life transitions, existential themes naturally arise in our work together.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

CBT focuses on the connection between your thoughts, feelings, and behaviours. It helps you identify unhelpful thinking patterns and replace them with more balanced and realistic ones. It’s often used for anxiety, depression, and specific issues like phobias.

While I don't practice CBT, some of its techniques can be helpful, and we can explore them if useful for your goals.

Integrative Therapy

Integrative therapists combine techniques from different approaches based on what works best for each client. This is how I work, blending person-centred values with insights from other models, depending on what feels right for you.

⚠️ Be wary of unqualified practitioners

In the UK (and in many other countries), the title "therapist" isn't legally protected, which means that anyone can technically call themselves a therapist or coach , even without proper training or accreditation.

While there are many well-meaning people out there, it’s important to make sure your therapist has completed a rigorous, professional training, typically lasting 3 to 4 years, and includes:

  • A recognised qualification in counselling or psychotherapy

  • At least 100 hours of clinically supervised practice

  • Registration with a professional body (like BACP, UKCP, or NCS)

These standards exist to protect you, ensuring your therapist is skilled, ethical, and working in a way that truly supports your mental and emotional health.

💬 Choosing the right therapy for you

While there are many different approaches to therapy, research shows that the most important factor in whether therapy helps isn’t the method, it’s the relationship between you and your therapist.

That sense of feeling safe, heard, and truly respected is what creates the conditions for real, lasting change.

Take time to read the descriptions above and see what resonates. Don’t worry about choosing the "right" model, we’re all different, and what works for one person may not feel right for another. As long as the therapist you choose is registered with a recognised professional body (like the BACP, UKCP, or NCS in the UK), the rest often comes down to instinct:

✨ Who do I feel drawn to?
 ✨ Who feels like someone I could open up to?

That inner sense of connection is powerful and it's worth listening to. Therapy is a deeply personal journey, and your comfort and trust in the process matter more than any label or method.