You Don’t Always Need Therapy. Sometimes, You Just Need Coaching, for the Crossroads Moments in Life.

For many of my clients, weekly psychological therapy is appropriate, clinically justified and very much wanted by them.

However, some clients, don't need therapy, but they do need some psychologically-informed support with here-and-now problem solving. Or perhaps some clients would like to learn about psychological models, to better support themselves, as challenges crop up in their day-to-day life.

For these clients I offer a therapeutic coaching model. 

Coaching is most often appropriate for clients who have an acute challenge in their lives, without any past traumas, and without any patterns of relationship or work-related difficulties, that might indicate underlying unprocessed emotions, or deeper past psychological wounds that may need tending to.

Where coaching is indicated there is likely to be little or no need for an exploration of the client's past or childhood, and instead we focus on the practical steps related to how a client can move forward, within an acutely challenging current experience.

The format of therapy vs. coaching:

Coaching tends to be short-term work, focussed on a one-off challenge, which tends to be a challenging happening in the here-and-now.

The type of therapy that I offer - which is most often and most effectively a deep, trauma-informed exploration of past emotional wounds and attachment difficulties - should be offered on a weekly schedule - this allows for clients to be best supported through this vulnerable process, and allows enough momentum for the processing so that clients get the best value outcomes for their investment in the therapy.

On the other hand, a therapeutic coaching model can be offered with a more flexible strcuture - perhaps with fortnightly or even monthly sessions.

What do you need? Therapy or coaching?

I offer a certain number of slots in my diary for both therapy, and therapeutic coaching, to ensure I am able to offer both models to clients, depending on client needs, and slot availability in my diary.

When we meet, I offer a one-off initial appointment in the first instance - This is for us to explore if we feel like a good fit, and to explore whether therapy or coaching is the most appropriate model of support you at that time. You certainly don't need to know this, on your own, at the outset - I can help you work out what you need.

The focus of psychological coaching tends to be on:

• Clarifying the short-term aims & outcomes the client wants to focus on, to navigate through their current challenge

• Providing education of psychological concepts that might assist the client in achieving their short-term aims, and

• Identifying & tackling obstacles that are getting in the way of the client achieving their aims on their own. 

The coaching model is often associated with career-goals, but it can be equally applicable to parenting goals, relationship goals, and self-care goals. 

Making sure your coaching experience feels safe:

Coaching can also be a person's entry point into deeper therapeutic work. For this reason, I would always recommend that you access coaching from a trained mental health professional, like myself.

At the outset of a coaching relationship, it is not always consciously obvious (to either yourself as the client, or the coach or therapist) whether there are deeper, darker, more painful aspects of your history that are impacting on the here-and-now.

The process of being in a close, empathic, supportive relationship with a coach can bring these previously hidden aspects of a client's emotional health to the foreground, and that can feel very destabilising, and at times vulnerable, or even scary, especially when no one expected that to occur. 

Importantly, there is no legislation in the UK to regulate the use of the term 'coach - This means that anyone can call themselves a coach, and therefore a lot of coaches do not have extensive (if any) mental health or human development training.

It is therefore a common experience of coaching clients, who are within a coaching relationship, to come across an internal obstacle in them, which is related to past trauma, or childhood experiences, or extremely painful previously hidden emotions - only to be told by their coach: "I'm not really qualified to explore that with you".

Conversely, their coach may attempt to go beyond their training and try to offer this support.

Both common scenarios are often jarring & unhelpful for the client at best, and at worts both scenarios can be dangerous for the client's mental health. 

This is why I offer 'therapeutic coaching':

With my extensive education & experience in the world of psychology, I offer more than 'just coaching' - I tie in my therapeutic expertise with a coaching model to provide safe, containing 'therapeutic coaching'.

When you access therapeutic coaching from me, you can rest assured that if and when we uncover any deeper emotional obstacles related to past traumas or your mental health - I can absolutely support you with that.

We can then discuss transitioning from coaching into therapy, and/or we can be very conscious and deliberate about the boundaries that we draw around your coaching work, to keep you feeling safe & in control in that process, if you decide therapy is not the right option for you at that time. 

If you believe that my expertise in parenting, mind-body work, self-care, relationships, or perimenopause may be useful to you in a coaching capacity, please do not hesitate to get in touch, and please do let me know that coaching is what you are seeking in the first instance.

I very much look forward to hearing from you, and working with you. 

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I'm Dr. Jenny Turner, clinical psychologist, mum and founder of Mind Body Soul Psychology - a specialist, trauma-informed, private psychology service for mothers in midlife - I can help you finally begin to relate to your own anxieties, shame, guilt, rage and overwhelm in a way that enriches your life & relationships.

I offer online appointments to women based all over the UK, and I offer in-person appointments in Ripon, North Yorkshire - click here to find out more: www.mindbodysoulpsychology.co.uk

You might also like to follow me on Instagram, @drjennypsychologist , or sign up to my Substack newsletter for regular moments of solidarity in the challenges of this midlife mothering journey, as well as compassion & inspirations for guilt-free self-care, at this time of life.