Welcome to Heather Sterry Counselling
A confidential space to explore the thoughts, feelings and challenges in your life
Counselling and therapy for individuals in a safe, comfortable and private setting
Welcome, and thank you for visiting my website.
I have spent many years supporting adults, children and young people through a wide range of challenges, including anxiety, depression, trauma, and low self esteem.
I've worked within several charities counselling adults, alongside schools as a counsellor, working with people of all ages and backgrounds, giving me a broad understanding of the different issues people face at every stage of life.
Professional Values
My own life journey has shaped the way I work, with honesty, compassion, strength and a belief in the potential for change and healing.
I believe the most important thing is the therapeutic relationship, and I use person centred skills of empathy, congruence and unconditional positive regard, along with my natural people skills to help quickly establish the relationship and allow the work to begin.
Approach to Counselling
I am an integrative counsellor and use a combination of different counselling models to suit each clients individual needs.
Between us we will identify the changes you would like to make and from there I will intuitively select the interventions that will be most helpful to you.
I use a variety of different methods which may include psychodynamic, CBT or attachment theory dependent on client needs. Sometimes we may use a blend of these methods to suit the client.
Locations & Methods
I offer sessions at 2 different locations, Harley Street and Bromley, as well as virtual sessions via Zoom.
What issues can counselling help with?
People come to me for help a wide range of issues. Here are a few of the more common difficulties that can be supported through counselling:
Feelings of stress or anxiety
Panic attacks
Relationship problems
Grief, loss or bereavement
Problems with addiction
Trauma and post-traumatic stress
Depression
Problems with confidence or self-esteem
Anger management
Issues relating to sexuality
Difficulties at work or in retirement
Problems with family or school life
Sessions & Fees
Harley St practice sessions
£100 per session
Bromley practice session
£60 per session
Online Sessions (Zoom)
£55 per session
Please note an initial 15 minute telephone assessment is required before beginning sessions, this is free of charge and enables us to discuss client needs.
Get in touch
Feel free to contact me if you have any questions about how counselling works, or to arrange an initial assessment appointment. This enables us to discuss the reasons you are thinking of coming to counselling, whether it could be helpful for you and whether I am the right therapist to help.
You can also call me on +44 7943185453 if you would prefer to leave a message or speak to me first. I am happy to discuss any queries or questions you may have prior to arranging an initial appointment.
All enquires are usually answered within 24 hours, and all contact is strictly confidential and uses secure phone and email services.
Some frequently asked questions
Counselling is usually a good way to help with a current problem; something that can be discussed and - hopefully - resolved within a limited number of sessions. Over a certain number of weeks the understanding of the problem improves and away forward becomes clear. Therapy often describes work that goes a bit deeper, towards more substantial life issues and problems having a deeper effect on the client’s life. Therapy often requires a long-term approach, so the number of sessions can be open-ended.
Which option is most suitable depends on the client and the difficulties they are facing. In some cases counselling works well as an ongoing, longer-term option - or therapy can manage to resolve an issue in just a few sessions.
Everything that is said within the counselling room is private - this is one of the main ways counselling and therapy differ from talking to a friend or relative. Once you are comfortable with the format of weekly sessions and the safe space they provide, you will find the freedom to speak in confidence is of great value.
Note that there are some situations where you may be a risk to yourself or others, and there the law requires that I notify an authority; in these cases I may not be able to keep total confidentiality. Breaking confidentiality is very rare though, and only happens after the person concerned has been informed.
Usually I am asked this question by people who are nervous about entering into counselling, or when they are looking for support in coming to see a therapist. This anxiety is understandable, but a key aspect of therapy is that you should feel free to talk about any issues you feel are important to you. Having someone else with you who can be connected those issues makes this opening-up more difficult, so for this reason I do not see clients accompanied by friends or family.
How long a period of counselling lasts will vary from person to person and depend on the depth of the issues they are facing. For some people a couple of sessions helps to bring their problems into focus, and they feel ready to move forward; other problems may require more of an open-ended approach.
Before we begin any work we will agree on the number of sessions we’ll undertake, and at the end of that number review our progress. As long as we both agree further therapy will be of benefit to you, sessions can continue.
My aim is to offer a first appointment - known as an initial assessment - within 1-2 weeks. Then we would arrange a set number of counselling sessions to take place at the same time every week, that is convenient for you and where I have availabity. How quickly these sessions can begin will depend on the availabity of that free ‘slot’.
“Heather has helped turn my life around after a series of events that had happened, that left me feeling stuck and depressed, we worked with underlying issues that were holding me back.
I feel eternally grateful for our sessions.”
“I was very happy with the support I received from Heather in helping me recover from anxiety.”
“I had therapy sessions with Heather this year and I'm very grateful for the experience,
Heather is extremely empathic and a wonderful listener, who created a supportive safe space to talk openly, she was always professional and allowed me to take things at my own pace.
I would highly recommend Heather.”
“Excellent therapy, helping me develop more self-awareness and make meaningful changes in my life.”