I offer sessions both online (e.g. WhatsApp, FaceTime, etc. or on the phone) and in person, currently on Monday afternoons and evenings, in Peckham. You can choose to have an initial session one way and then decide to try the other, if you prefer - it's entirely up to you.

Typically 50 minutes or what is sometimes referred to as 'The Therapy Hour'. If you feel this is not long enough, it may be possible to have longer sessions, but this would be something for us to talk about first, as 50 minutes of therapy can be emotionally draining enough as it is.

There is no way of answering this without first understanding your difficulties, and even then, psychotherapy is not a science. It depends on what you want to get out of the sessions and how big the changes you want to make are.

None. You are free to see me for as long as you like, but I do not ask you to book in a set number of sessions in advance. I ask that you attend every week and let me know in advance if you can't make a session, but if you wish to end the therapy, you are free to do so at any point. From a therapeutic point of view, I would always suggest not doing this suddenly, as it is important to spend a few sessions working therapeutically on the end of a therapy, especially if it has been of any significant length. However, the decision whether to do this or not would still be yours.

Please see my fees page at https://www.steveyoungtherapy.co.uk/fees for details.

Yes do. While I need to work to both a minimum, and an overall average fee across all my clients, I believe strongly in making therapy available to all, based on income. Please let me know if this is something you would like me to consider when you make contact, or if you would like to discuss your circumstances on the phone, or in our initial session, and I will do my best to see what we can work out. For an overview of my fee structure and ethos, please see my fees page at https://www.steveyoungtherapy.co.uk/fees.

Typically, no, I don't, and there are reasons for that, which I will explain here. However, as Yalom says, “The therapist must strive to create a new therapy for each client.” To that end, fortnightly sessions are not impossible, so please read on... The reasons I don't typically offer fortnightly sessions are partly therapeutic and partly practical: Requests for fortnightly sessions are rare, which means in order to run my business efficiently I need two fortnightly clients concurrently, so as not to waste a therapy slot every other week. One person's therapy can't be dependent on another's, so linking clients like this has to be my responsibility. 50 minutes, once a week, is actually not a lot. While therapy can be an intense experience, it is also, in the greater scheme of things, a small part of a week. The implications for fortnightly sessions then, are twofold. If you miss a session in fortnightly therapy, the gap between sessions is not two weeks, but four. That's a month out of the therapeutic process. And because of the need to fill that alternate week, it may not be possible to offer a replacement session (although I always try, e.g. if I have a cancellation on another day). That needs to be considered. If you start off on fortnightly sessions but then decide that you want or need weekly sessions, another client filling the other fortnightly slot might make that impossible until the other client ends therapy. So, that means it's not possible? No. As I say, it's unusual and there are good reasons not to do it, for both therapist and client, but in the spirit of Yalom's wisdom, I can offer fortnightly sessions on one of the tow following premises: Premise A You pay 1.5x the fee and I absorb the other half, so your therapy can be open ended. This way you pay more for each session, but I take responsibility for filling the alternate weeks, so we split the impact, and your therapy is guaranteed for as long as you need it. We contract to you giving me a minimum of four weeks' notice if you decide you want to end the therapy. You agree to pay for all sessions, including those you cancel, regardless of any notice given (but allowing you to end the therapy with sufficient notice, as per point 2). This is common practice for many (particularly psychodynamic) psychotherapists); it guarantees income and protects the therapeutic space. While it is not how I typically operate, it makes fortnightly sessions viable. Premise B We agree to a fixed term piece of work, typically 10 sessions, where I match that to another client who is interested in the same duration of fortnightly sessions. As we approach the end of the 10 sessions, we check in as to whether it's both possible (for me) and desirable (for you) to agree another fixed set of sessions, and, if so, proceed again in the same fashion. You agree to pay for all sessions, including those you cancel, regardless of any notice given. This is common practice for many (particularly psychodynamic) psychotherapists); it guarantees income and protects the therapeutic space. While it is not how I typically operate, it makes fortnightly sessions viable So, the bottom line is: yes it's possible, if you're happy with one of the above approaches. Feel free to tell me if it's your preference when you first make contact and we can probably work something out.

It is important to attend regularly for the therapy to be effective. However, I appreciate that life sometimes means needing to cancel a session. If you cancel 48 hours of more before a session then I will not charge you for the session. However, if you cancel with less than 48 hours notice or do not attend, then I will charge you the full session fee. You can cancel by email, text, WhatsApp or phone.

I offer both specific approaches and hybrid approaches (technically termed "integrative" as it involves integrating more than one therapeutic approach into a single therapy). I usually work integratively, with a psychodynamic foundation. However if you have a preference for a particular approach, e.g. CBT for OCD, or existential exploratory work around where you feel you are in life, then please just let me know. I am particularly experienced in working psychodynamically and with Cognitive Analytic Therapy (CAT). Equally, there are specific therapies which I do not offer, e.g. EMDR or DBT.

Good question! Ask 10 different therapists (or counsellors or psychotherpists) and you'll likely get 10 different answers. There's no formal or official distinction, but the definitions I find helpful are: ​ Counselling - Help talking through and making sense of a difficult life event, such as illness, bereavement, the end of a relationship or the loss of a job. These are just examples - if something has happened and you're struggling to cope with it, then counselling is somebody helping you find a way through that experience. ​ Psychotherapy - Help understanding longstanding problems in your sense of yourself and your experience of the world, which make life difficult. This kind of work can be hard, but also deeply rewarding and life changing. All of us develop a sense of ourselves, our self-worth (or lack thereof), and a set of beliefs about how others see us, and how the world 'is'. As these are typically developed early in life, we often assume that they are set in stone and just how things are. Psychotherapy is the process of understanding why things are the way they are for you, personally, and seeing if there might be a healthier, happier or kinder way of understanding yourself and others. ​ Therapy - Simply a shorthand for any kind of talking therapy, be it counselling or psychotherapy. ​ What all these terms have in common is that they all represent a supportive and safe space, and a supportive and safe relationship, focussed on helping you as a unique individual.

Another good question, but about which there is a little more consensus - at least in parts: ​ Counsellor, psychotherapist and therapist are titles not legally protected by law. This means anybody can set themselves up as one of these, which is why you should always look for a registration with one of the main, respected professional bodies. In the UK these are: BACP (I am registered with this professional body), UKCP and BPC. Most counsellors and psychotherapists will have completed a training approved by one of these organisations, and will be working within that organisations professional guidelines. All these titles are specifically about providing some of form of talking therapy; some will train exclusively in one approach, e.g. psychodynamic or Gestalt, and some will train in multiple approaches (integrative or pluralistic). Psychologists - this depends on the type, as the British Psychological Society defines several varieties. The two most significant for someone seeking talking therapy are Clinical Psychologists and Counselling Psychologists. These professional titles are protected by law, so only somebody who has completed the mandated training can practice under these titles. As I am still finishing my research thesis I am obliged to practice under my trainee title, of "Counselling Psychologist in Training" (although it's notable that during the pandemic the BPS allowed those of us who had completed our clinical training to use the qualified title of Counselling Psychologist - similar to the final year medical students being allowed to practice slightly early). Psychiatrist - A psychiatrist is a medical doctor who has completed additional training in mental health disorders. As such, it is reasonable to expect psychiatrists to view psychological distress in terms of illnesses and disorders. However, this is not necessairly the case, as some psychiatrists go on to complete psychotherapy training as well. As medical doctors, psychiatrists can prescribe mediation - unlike virtually all the other professions described here.

In terms of my therapeutic practice: ​​​​​ PsychD Professional Doctorate in Counselling & Psychotherapeutic Psychology (University of Surrey) MSc Psychology (Distinction; University of East London) Certificate in Counselling Skills (Gestalt Centre, London) ​ And in case you're wondering how I managed to get a masters degree without a bachelors degree... I didn't (and I also have a degree in computer science, which is probably even less relevant, but there you go): BA (Hons) Drama (University of Manchester) MSc Computer Science (University of Bristol)