How we'll work
You don't have to decide how you'd like to work in advance. Exploring what will be most helpful for you will be part of our work together.
You may prefer to talk, or you may want to explore other ways of accessing what's going on inside of you, such as experiencing the effects of sound and journeying to access elements of your unconscious that aren't so readily known.
These methods are safe - and it's you who gets to decide on the pace of the work.
All - or some - of the elements can be incorporated into your sessions. Our work will be a collaboration to explore what will be most beneficial for you.
You may have a preference for one of the methods I use, or you may prefer to combine them according to where we are in the work and what you'd like to get from your sessions.
Here's a brief explanation of the different aspects of what I offer:
Psychotherapy
A talking therapy - using words and body language to raise awareness of and better understand who you are and why you do what you do, feel what you feel and think what you think. Together, we can help you access the reasons behind your choices and patterns so as to be able to make informed, updated decisions for your future.
Counselling
Another type of talking therapy - less focused on the root of an issue, and more focused on changes for your healthier future. This can be very solution-focused with regard to specific issues and can help you manage particular emotions and situations.
Journeying
Just as dreams help us process our lives by means of the creativity of the unconscious, relaxing into a Shamanic Journey can offer access to solutions that our fully alert brain does not have access to, or actively blocks, out of awareness. My gentle drumming will guide you to finding your answers, sometimes from parts of your self that have long been silenced.
Sound healing
Music and sound have long been known to evoke emotions which may be cut off in everyday life. Sitting or lying back and experiencing soothing and invigorating tones of gong, bowls, drum and chimes can evoke images, memories and insights which can then helpfully be talked about in session. Or, you can experience sound to soothe - to regulate your nervous system. Or to motivate you, pushing through low mood.
Nicola Parkes, MSc, CTA(P), LLB, Dip. Integral Sound Healing
I am an experienced psychotherapist, with an MSc in Transactional Analysis.
My approach is compassion-focused and I enjoy working alongside my clients to develop a happier and healthier relationship with themself.
Such a great start for helping relationships flourish with others.
I am interested in neurodivergence (such as ASC - autism - and ADHD), whether diagnosed or not, and see every person I work with as a unique individual.
I enjoy working with people to overcome the areas where they get stuck, and to help them move forward in the direction they would love to travel but perhaps don't believe they can, or don't dare.
I welcome not knowing.
Psychotherapy and Counselling
talking
words
body language
what's said - what's not said
stories - debilitating outdated ones -> helpful new ones
personal rules - historical ones given to us -> helpful ones of our own choosing
beliefs - restrictive outdated ones -> current, updated truths
self states - identification of which of our many Parts of self is in the driving seat, and which part might more helpfully be enrolled to do the driving
Journeying and Sound
symbols
images
felt sense
intuition
relaxed physical and mental state
somatic and emotional healing
learnings beyond the verbal
creative understanding
guidance from your unconscious
