Your Therapeutic Journey:
step by step guide
Beginning therapy can feel like a big step, especially if you've never worked with a therapist before.
This page will walk you through exactly what to expect—from booking your first session to what happens afterwards—so that there are no unnecessary surprises.
Step 1 – Book Your Session
You can book your session directly through my online calendar using Acuity Scheduling.
Simply choose a date and time that works best for you.
Sessions are available in two formats:
60-minute session – suitable for most people and a great place to begin.
90-minute session – if your situation feels particularly complex or you would simply like more time during your first meeting, you're very welcome to choose the longer session.
Step 2 – Before Your First Session
Before we meet, I'd like you to spend a little time thinking about the facts of your story.
You don't need to write an essay, and you certainly don't need to explain every painful memory.
Instead, think about the key facts, for example:
Who raised you?
What significant relationships have shaped your life?
How would you describe your current relationships?
How do you usually look after yourself?
What areas of your life feel difficult at the moment?
Are there any recurring patterns you'd like to understand or change?
This isn't a test, and there are no right or wrong answers.
It's simply a way of helping us begin our work together with a clearer picture of where you are today.
Step 3 – Confirmation & Practical Information
Once your booking and payment have been received, I'll send you an email containing:
your Zoom link,
practical information about your session,
guidance on how to prepare, and
everything you need to know before we meet.
I believe that knowing what to expect helps your nervous system settle before therapy even begins.
Confidentiality
Everything we discuss during our sessions is confidential and held within a professional ethical framework.
I work in accordance with recognised therapeutic ethics and confidentiality standards.
If you'd like to learn more, you can read the BACP Ethical Framework here.
Step 4 – Your First Session
Our first session is about getting to know you.
You'll tell me about what's been happening in your life, what has brought you to therapy, and what you'd like to change.
Many people become emotional during their very first session.
That's completely normal.
If you feel overwhelmed, I won't ask you to suppress your emotions or "pull yourself together."
Instead, I'll help you learn how to stay with yourself while your nervous system is activated.
For many clients, this becomes their very first experience of feeling emotionally supported without having to disconnect from themselves.
Step 5 – Making Sense of What's Happening
As I listen to your story, I'll begin identifying both your natural strengths and the patterns that may be keeping you stuck.
Sometimes these patterns are already obvious to you.
Sometimes they're not.
Together we'll begin making sense of what's happening beneath the surface, always with compassion rather than judgement.
Step 6 – Creating Your Action Plan
By the end of the session, we'll agree on a personalised action plan.
Unlike many action plans, this usually isn't about adding lots of tasks to your to-do list.
Instead, we'll focus on understanding your emotional states, your nervous system, and the habitual thinking patterns that influence your behaviour.
As those internal patterns begin to change, different actions often follow naturally.
Step 7 – After Your Session
After each session, I'll send you a follow-up email summarising our work together.
This includes:
the key insights from the session,
the neuroscience behind what we've discussed,
your personalised action plan, and
the main points you'd like to remember moving forward.
Many clients tell me they return to these emails during difficult moments because they help them reconnect with what we've explored together and remind them that their progress is grounded in both compassion and neuroscience.
Step 8 – Your Next Session
Once you've had some time to reflect and begin implementing what we've discussed, you can book your next session.
Some clients choose to return after two weeks, others after three or four weeks.
The pace is entirely individual.
Therapy isn't about rushing.
It's about creating meaningful, lasting change at a pace your nervous system can genuinely integrate.