Alan Wildsmith

UKCP Accredited Psychotherapist Level 7 Dip (Dist) UKCP accredited course - adult specialism
UKCP Accredited Psychotherapeutic Counsellor Level 6 DIP (Merit) BACP accredited course - adult specialism

I offer in-person and online counselling and psychotherapy sessions.
In a confidential, comfortable, professional environment, I listen and draw from a collection of methods to help you find what you are searching for - even if that is simply an empathic, non-judgemental ear to listen.

I have been in practice since 2010 and I honed my skills and knowledge at the highest level available in psychotherapy training. This was at Northern Guild Psychotherapy in the North East of England, UK.
I adapt to each person, rather than using one model to suit all. My specialisations are transactional analysis, psychodynamics, dream reentry and dream analysis, guided affective imagery and integration of different states of consciousness.

I use a variety of approaches tailored to suit each person or couple*.

To book a session, or to discuss how I can help you, please get in touch

*Couple's Therapy

I only work with couples in which each individual is consciously committed to looking within themselves to move through the issues they see in the relationship.

I realise that this is quite rare but this is a prerequisite for couple's therapy with me.

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My Experience

Amongst other things, I have worked with people who wanted to focus on:

Anxiety &/or Depression – Relational Issues (every day and intimate) – Grief & Loss – Existential Issues – Trauma – Ill Health – Death & Dying – Sexual Identity – Isolation – Reoccurring Patterns – More Creativity – LGBTQ+ – Joy – Divorce & Separation – Anger – Unemployment – Retirement – Empty Nest Syndrome – Integration of Different States of Consciousness – New Careers – Feeling More – Feeling Less - Building Resilience – Polyamory – Childhood Issues – Perceived Judgment from Others - Issues Connected to Eating - Exam Stress – Managing Change – Loneliness – Ageing – Insomnia – Dream Reentry – Dream Analysis

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'The privilege of a lifetime is to become who you truly are'

Carl Jung

Approach to Therapy

I have an extensive knowledge of transactional analysis (TA), which explores deep links back to childhood, what's happening in the here and now, and transgenerational history.

TA encompasses almost every area of therapy including psychodynamics, trauma, personality, psychoanalysis, CBT and relationships.
Drawing on this knowledge I help people to be who they want to be in relationships – at home and/or at work etc. For example, many people take on too much and are overwhelmed; I give them the skills and ways of seeing things in order to interact differently and not fall back into the same patterns, and we look at the history of where a behaviour has come from and how it has built up, in order to reimagine the behaviour. I use a psychodynamic approach to identify and raise awareness of the issues then equip the person with skills for different ways of interaction, giving them confidence and a new perspective. TA can also help in grief work, to identify blocks to feeling for example, or blocks to reaching out to others.

I have a special interest and knowledge of dreams and guided affective imagery (GAI), and the unconscious. We all live in the unconscious a lot of the time, replaying ways of being that were once necessary for our situation but now may be out-dated. I help people live a more conscious lifestyle. Working with dreams, psychodynamics and GAI can change and enhance people's lives dramatically.

I continuously learn and improve my knowledge of psychotherapy. Boundaries are a very important part of my practice and I'm ethics driven. I adapt to the person rather than using one model. Above all, I listen and am intuitive to what each person needs – everyone is unique.

Supervision

I'm an experienced supervisor (adult specialism) - I qualified as a supervisor in 2014 at Northern Guild Psychotherapy.

My style of supervision is creative, integrative and psychodynamic.

When working creatively we might use images, drawings and the imaginal realm to notice the issues present in your work from a new perspective.

Using a psychodynamic approach, we might focus on what's happening in our supervisory relationship, that mirrors what's happening in your client work.

Integrating many things into one is a big part of how I operate, and since every person and every relationship is unique, having this more open way of working as a foundation, allows us to move in and out of any frameworks we might experience.