If you’ve decided to start therapy, then I don’t want you sitting there filling in forms for the next three days, and I don’t want you waiting a week to hear back from me either, so I’ve made this as quick as I possibly can, because the hardest part is deciding to reach out in the first place, and you’ve already done that. I’m Joelle, I’m the counsellor here at High Tide Counselling, and this page tells you exactly what happens between you reading this sentence and you sitting down in your first session with me.
Once that’s done, you’re in, and I’ll see you at the time you’ve picked.
If this is your first time coming to me, or your first time in therapy at all, I’d genuinely recommend booking the free 20-minute consultation before you book a full session. It’s not a sales call, and it’s not an assessment; it’s just a chance for us to say hello, for you to ask me anything you want to ask, and for both of us to get a feel for whether I’m the right fit for you. It means that when you do come to your first full session, we’re not spending half of it on introductions; we’re straight into the work.
Once you've completed your joining form and counselling agreement, book straight through Calendly and pick the slot that suits you. There's no waiting for me to get back to you and no back-and-forth over email. Regardless of the above, I would still highly recommend booking a free consultation before booking a session so we can check that we are a good fit for one another.
Yes, both have to be completed before a session can go ahead, this isn't a formality I can skip for anyone, it's there to protect you as much as it protects me.
There is a cancellation/reschedule link within the emails you will receive from Calendly. However (as stipulated in the counselling agreement), if you cancel the session with less than 48 hours' notice, the full cost of the session is due. If you give over 48 hours notice, no fee will be charged.
Yes. I work within the BACP's ethical framework, and what you bring to sessions stays between us, with the usual legal exceptions around the risk of serious harm that any registered counsellor works within.
Payment is taken upfront through Calendly at the point of booking, so it's all sorted before you arrive and there's nothing to deal with in the session itself.
If it's your first time working with me, book the free consultation first. It costs you nothing; it means we're not using paid session time to cover the basics, and it leaves the whole of your entire first full session free for the actual work.
Please contact me before you book anything if you are currently residing outside of the UK. Although expat counselling is one of my specialisms, the law can change from country to country. So, I will need to check first whether I'm able to offer you sessions at all, and I'm not currently able to see clients based in the USA under any circumstances.
