Olivia Kay | Counselling and Psychotherapy London EC1

WELCOME

You may have spent years holding things together.

From the outside, your life may look successful. You manage work, relationships and responsibilities, yet underneath there is a persistent feeling that life is harder than it should be.

You may experience an underlying sense of emptiness, self-criticism or dissatisfaction that doesn’t seem to disappear, even when circumstances improve. Perhaps you have had therapy before and found it helpful, but never quite reached the deeper understanding you were looking for.

Psychodynamic psychotherapy offers something different.

Rather than focusing only on managing symptoms, it creates space to understand the emotional patterns that have shaped your life, often outside conscious awareness. This work can lead to lasting change, not simply temporary relief.

WHY NOW?

Sometimes what brings people to therapy isn’t a crisis, but a sense that something needs attention. Perhaps a relationship pattern that keeps repeating, a period of change, becoming a parent or children leaving home, an ageing parent, or simply the feeling of having managed for a long time without really being met. You could be ready for this kind of depth work.

HOW I WORK

I offer once and twice weekly, long term psychotherapy for people who want to understand themselves at a deeper level, not just manage.

Meeting at the same time each week allows something different to happen than in short term work. Over time, patterns that felt entrenched begin to make sense often in relation to the therapy itself, as much as to what’s happening in your outside life. For many people, it’s the first time they’ve had the space to really think, rather than just cope.

Each therapy is unique to the individual. My approach is collaborative. I work alongside my clients to help them understand themselves, their feelings and their circumstances more fully. Rather than offering advice, I aim to build a relationship in which you feel heard and understood, and gradually more able to take charge of the parts of your life that have felt out of your control.

Alongside my clinical experience, my personal therapy has helped me to understand what it can feel like to be on the other side of the room, and this continues to inform how I work.

I have been working in private practice, the NHS, and clinical and charitable organisations since 1998.

FEES

INITIAL CONSULTATION AND FEES

The best way to get started is to email or call, and we can arrange an initial consultation. If it seems useful, this may take place over two sessions.

The initial consultation lasts 50 minutes and is a chance for us both to think about whether this way of working is right for you, before committing to ongoing therapy.

Sessions are £100.

QUALIFICATIONS

I am a registered member of the United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP) and the Foundation for Psychotherapy and Counselling (FPC). I abide by the UKCP code of ethics.