A bit of background ...
... to give you a sense of who I am and what my credentials are. I hope this brief personal information will help you get a gut feeling about whether I'm the right kind of counsellor for you.
My backstory is not wildly unusual. The way I see it, becoming a therapist had a lot to do with becoming a parent. Originally from Brighton, I lived in London in the 1970s and ’80s, and worked mostly in graphic design and print production before moving to Trumpington in south Cambridge in 1991 and starting a family — which is when I unexpectedly embraced the role of ‘househusband’. Then the challenge was to find a way to build a new career while my child was growing up. After several years working for local counselling charities in various part-time roles (both paid and voluntary), I made the commitment in 2000 to train professionally as a counsellor and I took on a placement in the NHS. In 2004 I gained the necessary qualifications, registered with BACP, and set up my independent full-time practice in Trumpington.
I've been busy ever since, providing generic counselling and brief therapy for hundreds of individuals, and specialising in anger management for men. For many years I also ran men's development groups. Since 2009 I’ve been a professional supervisor and consultant for numerous practitioners in the Cambridge area working in the voluntary sector, public health, schools, higher education, and private practice.
HEALTHY SCEPTICISM
What started my enduring interest in psychotherapy is a long (and private) story. Let me just say that — like many people who train to become therapists — from very early in my life I had significantly adverse personal experiences that taught me (eventually!) not to take anyone's mental health for granted, not least my own. I took the plunge and joined a Gestalt therapy group in my mid-30s and got a huge amount out of it — though to this day, after several years of eclectic study and extensive exploration in the field, I am positively sceptical about all forms of psychotherapy.
IT TAKES TWO NOT TO TANGO
The key thing for me as a counsellor is to do my best to initiate intelligent and nourishing therapeutic dialogue with my clients — people from all walks of life who are prepared to pay me to build a meaningful, restorative and developmental relationship with them. The best one-to-one therapy is a collaborative and creative encounter. It requires real honesty and courage from both of us. It often works very well, and sometimes works wonders.
I counsel adults over 25 or so. I'm known for doing a lot of therapy with men but I see women too of course! People from minority groups are very welcome. Most of my clients refer themselves independently, sometimes finding me through professional directories — e.g. BACP, Counselling Directory, and Pink Therapy — and very often by personal recommendation from a friend or colleague. In addition, I’ve received referrals from GPs, Cambridge City Council, Cambridgeshire Police Authority, and local non-statutory employers.
IIP Advanced Counselling Certificate 2002
IIP Diploma Adlerian Counselling 2004
BACP Accredited Counsellor 2006
IIP Certificate Adlerian Supervision 2007
Diploma Integrative Supervision 2009
BACP Senior Accredited Counsellor and Supervisor 2012
Certificate Relational Coaching 2016
As a Senior Accredited and Registered Member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, I work with the BACP's Ethical Framework for the Counselling Professions.
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Duncan E Stafford :: www.therapyplace.org
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