Claire McCluskey has comprehensive training and experience in a number of different counselling approaches

My Approach

My practice has developed from a extensive and comprehensive training and experience. I consider myself to be integrative in my approach, drawing on psychodynamic ideas through systemic (family) to solution focussed and cognitive behavioural therapy strategies. There is no "one size fits all" way of working and can be tailored to suit individual client needs.

Foundational to my practice are the Person Centered conditions:

• empathy
• open / positive
• genuineness

My practice is informed by:

Psychodynamic Work

This is based on the idea that past experiences have a bearing on experiences and feelings in the present, and those important relationships, perhaps from early childhood, may be replayed with other people later in life.

Motivational Interviewing

Motivational Interviewing is useful for helping to work with ambivalence to make changes and achieve goals. It involves building motivation, strengthening commitment and maximising strengths.

Solution Focussed Counselling

Short term work with short and long term goals to achieve change.

Family / Systemic Counselling

Focuses on the networks of significant relationships within which people live their lives, to explore the meaning and interactions they have. The client group tends to be family members.

Cognitive Behavioural

The objective is to change self-defeating or irrational beliefs and behaviours by altering negative ways of thinking aims to remove the obstacles that people place in their own way, and also to achieve a healthy balance between short-term and long-term goals.

I dip in and out of these approaches depending on the needs and preferences of the client.