Dr Esther Walker
Gestalt counsellorAbout Me
I'm a Gestalt counsellor providing a therapeutic service to people in their own homes or workplaces as well as from consulting rooms in central Edinburgh.
I know from my own experience that we can all lose heart at times, feel disillusioned and powerless to influence anything. Telling someone how you truly feel takes great courage and is the important first step in turning things around. Counselling helps you find out what’s going on and (re)discover your interest and enjoyment of life and relationships.
The benefit of home visits...
Usually, it's the client who travels to the counsellor's base, but this makes accessing support difficult or impractical for some people (e.g. due to caring responsibilities, time constraints, mobility problems, anxiety or illness). If you can identify with that, then I can offer you that support in your own home or work space. You benefit from ease of access, convenience, discretion and comfort.
Gestalt counselling...
Gestalt offers a practical approach to exploring and resolving difficult feelings and situations. We'll pay attention to the relationship we create together, to your physical experience (as well as what you think and say) and to helping you learn through experimentation and practice. In this way, you'll benefit from:
- greater self-awareness
- new understanding of how relationships work and of your own experience of relationships
- greater flexibility in how you approach and respond to the world
- greater access to feelings of satisfaction, hope, contentment, excitement, warmth and love.
At the outset we'll agree what outcomes you're looking for so we have a way of judging progress.
I welcome any and all questions - just get in touch.
Locations
64 Albion Road
Midlothian
Edinburgh
EH7 5QZ
Issues often worked with
Therapy offered
Client groups
Fees
For individuals:
Sessions vary in length (50 or 90 mins) and frequency (weekly or fortnightly) and can be arranged during the day or evening.
The standard fees are: £50-60 (for 50 min) and £75-90 (for 90 min) depending on location.
I also offer places at the reduced fee of £35 (for 50 mins) where possible.
For organisations:
Option 1: a package of 4 weekly sessions for one person (on-site or home visit) (60 mins each) £240.
Option 2: a package of 5 individual sessions on one day (on-site) (50 mins each) £290.
Training and qualifications
Training as a therapist:
I've eight years experience working as a therapist and qualified in 2009 after four years training at the Edinburgh Gestalt Institute. This training involved ongoing personal therapy as well as practice and supervision. Post-qualifying training has extended my interest and knowledge of body/mind connection, mindfulness and family dynamics.
My skills and experience include, but are not limited to, working with bereavement, anxiety, trauma, post-natal depression, family and relationship issues, identity and change.
I’m a member of BACP and abide by their ethical framework. I’m insured to practice and support my professional development with regular supervision alongside personal therapy and further training.
My background:
I'm a sociologist by background and have always been interested in how groups behave and how we as individuals are shaped by the groups we belong to (within families, at work or socially). I completed my doctorate at University of York, with a focus on workplace conflict resolution (between unions/management).
I've twenty years experience working as a consultant helping organisations improve the quality of work relationships and communication. I've particular experience and understanding of health and social care environments (residential, hospital and community), supporting service improvement, involvement and participation (multi-professionals, individuals and families).
My expertise is in using stories (told through live drama, film, photographs, text) to show the impact of people's attitudes and behaviour on mental health and on the environment created at work and home.
In 2016, I set up a social enterprise – Storyworlds Life – that designs story-based tools to help individuals, families and organisations improve relationships, build understanding and identify solutions to shared problems.
I run this social enterprise alongside my work as a therapist/counsellor.
Esther Walker