Brighton and Hove Psychotherapy

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A desire to change

One of my favourite papers is by Dr Sebastian Kraemer, called ‘Something Happens: Elements of Therapeutic Change’.  This blog helps break down what therapists and clients set out to do, as they sit together in a therapy room both hoping that change can be immobilised from a stuck situation.

This is first of eight short blogs exploring the eight elements of change identified as:

1. A desire to change

2. A primary task

3. A theory of mind and a method of treatment

4. Courage and honesty

5. A specific narrative

6. Neutrality and reflectiveness

7. A tradition

8. Something happens

A desire to change: As the client and therapist sit face to face in their first session progress has already begun  – the desire to change has been acknowledged and acted on.  The request for help to a therapist has been made and the therapist has accepted this. 

However long a therapist has been practicing – having collected skills, theories and techniques along the way – each new client brings a unique story and request for help.  They bring their stories of strength, courage and endurance alongside their stories of distress, confusion and pain.  Just turning up to the appointment is an act of bravery, it is our role as therapists to acknowledge and respect the clients vulnerability; walking alongside them as they take action to change.

On first meeting, many clients report that they have noticed shifts in their thinking, changes in behaviour and an increased sense of hopefulness that things can be different – this is before the first session.  This could possibly be a placebo effect or could be understood further in the context of the research around models of change.

In the early 1980’s Proschaska and DiClemete set out five stages of change. Upon arriving at their first session clients are already in transit between Stage Three and Stage Four 3 of this theory – monumental shifts in awareness and readiness have already taken place:

Stage One. Pre-contemplation – the ‘I’m not ready’ stage

I am unaware or under-aware of a problem and have not got plan to change – leave me alone.

Stage Two. Contemplation – the ‘I’m getting ready’ stage

I am aware I have a problem to address but do not have the motivation or commitment to change my behaviour as yet. – leave me alone but watch this space.

Stage Three. Preparation – the ‘I am ready’ stage  

I have researched and planned a way to change.and my initial goals are clear – no time to talk I’m busy!

Preparation is considered the most important stage of the model – relapse is considered to be 50 per more probable if the preparation stage is not undertaken

– ON YOUR FIRST SESSION YOU ARE HERE –

Stage Four. Action – the ‘I am implementing my plan’  

I am making changes to my behaviour, my environment and my choices. I have sought help in this process and am being encouraged to feel more hopeful about the future

Stage Five. Maintenance – ‘I have changed and I want to keep it that way’ stage.

Work and effort is still required to maintain positive changes and prevent relapse.

A desire for change is important to begin the work however sometimes it becomes clear change may bring difficulties and risks that had not been contemplated originally.  Resistance to the change may then come into play and the work takes a different turn as goals are reviewed.

 

Sharon Spindler is an experienced Systemic Family Therapist with twelve years experience within the NHS and private practice.  Sharon is available at the Brighton & Hove Practice.

 

Further reading by Sharon Spindler –

Covid 19 – Talking with children in uncertain times

Family Therapy for Beginners

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The Therapy Room

Brighton and Hove Psychotherapy started after Mark and I decided it was time to get our own premises. Finding the right work environment wasn’t easy. We spent years practicing from other clinics, never quite satisfied with the therapy rooms we used. Although, arguably, good therapy work can take place almost anywhere. A warm and welcoming therapist certainly contributes a great deal towards making her/his client feel comfortable. After all, therapy is a meeting of hearts and minds, and this matters more than the walls it takes place in, right?

There is no right or wrong answer to this, except that the environment I work in matters a great deal to me. It is to do with my wellbeing and that of my clients. If I feel stressed, distracted or uncomfortable it will invariably impact on how present I can be with my clients.

Of course there is no perfect place to work in. There will always be a certain degree of intrusive noise, which sometimes can be used for some interesting and positive therapeutic explorations. However, there are certain vital qualities that I need from my environment in order to get into the frame of mind that I wish to be in to work well.

In order for me to enjoy my work and do it well I need to be open, present, attuned and ideally relaxed. To get myself in this receptive frame of mind I make sure I engage in a self-care routine which involves attending carefully to my physical and emotional wellbeing. I see the space I work in as a reflection of how well I care for myself and for others. A significant amount of my time is spent in the therapy room, thus it needs to have the sacred qualities of a welcoming home: light, air, comfort, beauty and silence. And finally, our space is gladly shared with other therapists who value themselves, their work and the space they work in as much as we do. In my opinion, it shows we care for ourselves and the people we see.

Sam Jahara

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The Role of the Therapy Room in the Clinical Frame

Counsellors, psychotherapists and psychoanalysts often refer to the frame in therapy and any training worth its salt will drum into the budding therapist the importance of ‘the clinical frame’.

The clinical frame, broadly, refers to the environment and relationship that enables a client to feel safe and open up to their therapist.  It is therefore an essential aspect of any talking therapy.

The counsellor, psychotherapist or psychoanalyst is responsible for creating and holding the frame with clients and this applies as much to the physical environment in which the therapy takes place, as it does to the disposition and character of the clinician themselves.

Sam Jahara and myself, like many therapists in Brighton and Hove, rented therapy rooms by the hour for many years and from a range of institutions.  One of the most frustrating aspects of room rental was how often the frame would become disturbed or disrupted by circumstances beyond our control.  For example, at times clinicians using rooms would have a lax attitude to timekeeping, meaning they left the room late and we would then be pushed for time to get our session started; rooms were often left untidy; other clinicians would hold loud conversations in public areas; rooms could at times be double booked.  The list goes on.

All of this made creating and holding the frame difficult and contributed to our stress levels meaning we could not be as present for our clients as we felt we should be.  This led us to eventually deciding to find our own clinical space – Brighton and Hove Psychotherapy – so we could take direct responsibility for creating the sort of environment conducive to good therapeutic work.  It is a space we enjoy sharing with like minded therapists.

We offer quiet, clean and well-appointed clinical rooms, suitable for a wide range of clinical work;

Our rooms are located on the top floor of a beautiful period building in central Hove, meaning that footfall is minimal and noise well contained;

Hourly room rental (50 minutes) starts from as little as £7 per hour;

Sam and I both run our private practices from the premises, meaning we are able to directly contribute to creating the sort of environment and atmosphere conducive to boundaried therapy;

We offer a kitchen for the exclusive use of clinicians, with plenty of water jugs for use with clients;

We like to personally get to know clinician’s renting from us and with time, we offer the opportunity to become an Associate of our practice, leading to cross-referrals and the opportunity to actively contribute your opinion to what would help improve the practice;

And, from 6 March 2015, we are pleased to announce that we are now offering WiFi to all our practitioners free of charge.

If you would like further information, please visit our Therapy Room Rental Page, drop us an email or call us on 01273 921355.

Mark Vahrmeyer

Image credit: Heather Hook

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Counselling & Psychotherapy Consulting Rooms

Brighton and Hove Psychotherapy is a well-established counselling and psychotherapy practice run by Mark Vahrmeyer and Sam Jahara. In addition to the therapy services offered through our practice by ourselves and our highly skilled associates, we also welcome therapists wishing to work alongside us, running their practices from our premises.

 

The original motivation behind establishing our practice was borne out of our frustration of being able to find high quality and consistently boundaried premises from which to practice. Whilst there are a wide range of therapy rooms available across Brighton and Hove, few offer the location, quality of fittings and most importantly, boundaried environment from which to practice. With the recent announcement that the YMCA Dialogue Centre is closing its doors to clinicians renting their therapy rooms from the end of this year, finding appropriate rooms from which to run a private practice is becoming more difficult.

We have three stylish and peaceful therapy rooms suitable to every type of therapy, ranging from individual, couples, family and group therapy. The rooms are furnished to a high standard and ideally suited for the talking therapies. Brighton and Hove Psychotherapy comprises the whole of the top floor of a recently renovated period building, centrally located on The Drive, a few steps away from the beach, cafes and shops. In addition to all the great features described above, we rent our rooms for very reasonable hourly and day rates, starting at £7 per hour.

We have first hand experience of how difficult it can be for therapists to find ideal premises to practice from that offer an environment conducive to the nature of the work we do. Our aim is to offer our clients the support they need in an inviting, peaceful and ‘holding’ environment.

We would highly recommend viewing, so please get in touch with Mark or Sam to book a visit either by phone or email.

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Counselling and Psychotherapy Services in Brighton & Hove

A Good Year for Brighton and Hove Psychotherapy

As we approach the end of another busy year it is time to look back at both the achievements and challenges of 2013. This has been our practice’s first year and a fruitful one so far. I attribute this to a close partnership of dedicated therapists who have a vision of providing high quality counselling and psychotherapy services to clients in the Brighton & Hove area.

We were also pleased to welcome very skilled practitioners who joined our practice as associates. Our valued associates work from our lovely premises on The Drive in Hove and offer individual, couples and group therapy.

I would like to most of all thank our clients who teach us so much each and every day. We hope this year has been a fruitful one for you too, on a personal, professional and spiritual level.

Wishing you a good holiday break and looking forward to seeing you in the New Year.

Sam Jahara and Mark Vahrmeyer

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New Consulting Rooms

We are very excited to be moving to our new practice on The Drive in Hove. Both the building and location are superb and the rooms have been newly renovated to a high standard. We would like to welcome both clients and practitioners to our new consulting rooms. I hope you will love it as much as we do!

 

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