Heart and Mind - Tōtara Park

Why work with Me?

By calling myself a Heart and Mind coach, I am saying that my goal is to bring more love and more consciousness into my own and other peoples’ lives!  I have been watching myself work over the last couple of years and I want to give you an accurate idea of what it’s like to work with me.  

By nature, I am a roll-my-sleeves-up-and-get-stuck-in kind of woman. From the first session I always try and give something concrete to take away and practice or think about. Sessions are an active process for me where I expect to give as much as my clients. I share ideas, techniques and beliefs, and it is your choice what you take away and what you discard. I will probably question, challenge and clarify with you the perceptions and understandings you have about your life and life in general. If you want to discover more about yourself and why you act and feel in a certain way let’s unite our efforts and focus our intention! We could, for example, manage to find the real cause (root) for an issue (often in the past). This is one of the ways to start to conquer worry, improve relationships and feel more confident about performance at work and in life. Put another way I could say the goal is to be more present. HERE - having our life’s energy more available to use in positive, rewarding, fun or enriching ways rather than preoccupied in automatic (and unconscious) thoughts and actions.

RELATIONSHIPS AND INDIVIDUALS

I work with people from all walks of life, from students to executives, pensioners to plumbers, business owners to full-time Mums. People come to me for a variety of reasons: because they are sad or stressed or have reached a crisis in their relationship. I see many couples from those who are basically doing OK but want to refresh their communication skills to those who are about to break up and want to tick the “We’ve tried everything box”! And I really love working with young people (15-20).

Whatever the reason I will assume a client wants change. [I actually believe we are changing all the time, whether we notice or not, whether on purpose or not]. The more clients think about what we discuss in sessions, or try out new ways of behaving, the more they will get out of our time together.

 So here are some of the reasons you might want to come and see me and that I am used to being able to help people with.

• You are feeling really upset or distressed about someone or something that has happened
• You may suffer from lots of worry that irrationally preoccupies your mind. Maybe you want to understand why you in particular, are like this?  
• You may be unhappy with how your relationship is going, with your partner, parents, work associates or children.
• Maybe you are being bullied or harassed.
• You may feel stuck.
• Maybe you have an addiction; you could have a habit of using weed* or other drugs as a crutch.
• You might be aware of a past event or pain holding you back.
• You may not be in a crisis but simply feel like something is missing, maybe life lacks overall purpose.

[*If you are using weed more than socially, sessions will only help if you stop for the duration of us working together.]

People don't always come to me because they are in crisis. Let me use an analogy: think of me as a book. A resource. For instance, parents contact me to ask if I can help their young people (children) with life. The subject of concern might be bullying, it could be anxiety, it could be a medical event.

As an outsider I can say things that friends or family might be afraid to say for fear of hurting a loved one. I can offer ideas and perspectives that might never have been thought about before. I put them out as ideas that can be taken or left with no strings attached. But I am better than a book because I have an automatically self-adapting user interface! I will naturally adjust to those I'm sitting with to try and offer the most relevant approach! There :) The most modern and up-to-date technology available: a real human with heart and humour.

Going to a counsellor or coach doesn't have to mean you've got a big problem. It can be like picking up a book to get some ideas and feel stimulated, even excited, about doing things better. You will be able to balance your feelings, health and purpose.