Counselling is a form of 'talk therapy'. It is a process where an individual, couple or family meet with a trained professional counsellor to talk about their issues and problems that they are facing in their lives. Professional counselling is confidential and non-judgmental.

The perfect time for students to seek Career Counselling is during the ages 13-17 years (8th standard to 12th standard). This is a time of many changes taking place in their life, both physical and emotional, such as transitioning from school to college, and trying to “fit in” with peers. It is also a time when career decisions are made.

A professional counsellor is a person who uses some counselling skills as part of their role. A professional counsellor is a highly trained individual who is able to use a different range of counselling approaches with their clients.

You book an appointment by either calling our reception team or completing the online booking form.

To book an appointment, follow the steps:
Go to the ‘Book an appointment’ page:
Step 1 – Click on the booking page and pay advance.
Step 2 – Select a preferred time slot from the available time slots.
Step 3 – Confirm personal details.
Step 4 – Meet the counsellor and pay the remaining fee.
Step 5 – Decide next appointment directly with your counsellor and payment for future sessions can be given directly to your counsellor.
It is important to note that your details during the booking process will remain strictly confidential.

Everyone goes through challenging situations in life. If something has been troubling you that affects your well-being, seeking out extra support is beneficial. By seeking counselling, you are making a commitment to reflect and find a way to move forward. Counselling provides you support and tools to overcome the challenges you face.

In our experience, after counselling, people have shared that they “feel lighter”, “gain clarity”, “learn more about themselves and others”, “feel less stuck or overwhelmed”, “feel energized”, “feel good, positive and hopeful”, “take decisions and actions”, “see positive changes”, “improve relationships” and so on. This is often possible because the counsellor is neutral and objective while working with you.

We do not provide a home visit counselling service, however some of our counsellors work via phone and an online platform. It can be a helpful and powerful way of accessing therapy if you’re not able to travel to the centre. Our team will be able to refer you to a therapist who offers telephone or online therapy.

This depends entirely on the availability of our counsellors. We always aim to reply to your initial contact within 48 hours and to see clients within 2 weeks of the initial contact.

Generally, this isn't something we have the capacity to provide. If you're unable to visit your nearest Relate Centre, we recommend you try Telephone Counselling, Video Counselling or Live Chat.

Yes. Counselling is a very effective way of negotiating a separation or a divorce. It can help you to process any emotions that you might be struggling to deal with, or bring the relationship to a conclusion with as little pain or misunderstanding as possible.

Whatever you bring to the counselling room is always strictly confidential. The only possible exception to complete confidentiality is if your counsellor believes either your safety or the safety of another person is at serious risk. In such rare circumstances, we would always discuss our concerns with you during the session, but are bound by a duty of care to inform your GP or other statutory services.

This depends on individual circumstances and the concerns presented, the counsellor my get an idea how many sessions are required during the assessment session and can discuss this during your first session.

The first step is to find a therapist you can work with. If you’d like to make a start, check out our team of therapists to see which one appeals to you, and has the experience and expertise for the issues you’re bringing to therapy.

The work we do together is totally confidential. If we are working face to face, there will be no one listening to you – it will be just you and I in the room. If our work is done over the phone or online, I will be working in my counselling room and the same situation will apply. There may be some occasions when I will need to tell someone else about what we have talked about, these are legal requirements or if I am worried about your safety. I will talk about this more as part of our contract of working together.

• Counselling : A short-term therapy that will typically last between 6-15 sessions. Counselling helps you identify coping strategies for an issue in your life, and ways to work through it.
• Psychotherapy : Longer-term, open-ended therapy that allows you the time and space to delve deeper into the issues affecting your life. It can help you identify unhelpful patterns and behaviours that often have roots in childhood, and help you work towards healing your deepest wounds.
• Psychology : The science of the mind and behaviour. A clinical psychologist will diagnose and treat psychological and mental health problems. Counselling psychologists will also integrate the emotional and therapeutic aspects of psychology.

The amount of sessions you need will vary depending on you, the difficulties you would like to work on and your goals for therapy. You can discuss the likely length of time or number of sessions this will take with your therapist in the first session, and work out a treatment plan together.

Our services are completely confidential. We will not give your name or any information about you to anyone outside Relate, unless someone's personal safety is at risk.

Several benefits can come out of counselling. Some of the benefits can include:
1. Attaining a better understanding of yourself, your goals and values.
2. Learning new ways to cope with stress and anxiety.
3. Better management of emotions such as anger, grief and depression.
4. Tracking down new ways to solve problems in your family or marriage.
5. Building on your self-esteem and boosting self-confidence.

Seeking out counselling is a personal choice. People choose to have counselling if something causes depression, anxiety, or stress. Sometimes it could be issues from the past that is having an impact on your day to day life. Counselling can help address many issues including conflict, grief, stress management, and transitions in life. If you’re still not sure, the best way for things to become clearer is to book an initial session with a counsellor.