When your mind won't switch off and your body won't stand down
Racing thoughts, a tight chest, sleep that won't come, a constant sense of bracing for what's next. Anxiety is exhausting — and it makes sense. Together we can help your nervous system learn that it's safe to rest.
It's safe to set the worry down here.
Anxiety is your nervous system trying to protect you
A pounding heart, a churning stomach, the urge to plan for every worst case — these aren't signs that something is wrong with you. They are your body's alarm system doing its job, just a little too well, for a little too long.
When we understand anxiety as protection rather than malfunction, something softens. We stop fighting the feelings and start listening to what they are trying to tell us.
How counselling can help
We work gently with both the thoughts and the body. I draw on somatic (body-based) awareness and a polyvagal-informed understanding of the nervous system, so you can begin to recognise your own signals and find your way back to calm.
There is no pressure to 'fix' yourself quickly. We go at your pace, building a sense of safety first — and from that safety, the anxiety tends to have less and less to do.
For the capable ones who look fine on the outside
Many of the people I work with hold down demanding lives while quietly white-knuckling their way through. If you are functioning, achieving and caring for others while privately wound tight, you don't have to wait until you are in crisis to ask for support.
Where and how we'd work
Sessions are 50 minutes and cost £55, with concessions sometimes available. We can meet in person in a peaceful farm setting near Ash in East Kent (between Canterbury and Sandwich, easy to reach from Deal, Dover and Thanet), at Lighthouse43 in Folkestone, or online, wherever you are. It always starts with a free, no-pressure 20-minute call.