LGBTQ+ and allied counsellors and therapists

Our mission is to create a centre for therapeutic excellence and safe spaces for the LGBTQ+ community

Our counsellors and therapists

We’ve brought together of a team of highly trained and experienced therapists, counsellors, psychologists and mindfulness practitioners with lived experience or strong links to the LGBTQ+ Community.

The team was carefully chosen to reflect a diverse range of training and approaches in order to offer a holistic approach to helping our clients.

We also have the unique capacity to provide a team-based approach to healing if our clients want to take a holistic and multi-pronged approach to their journey.

We actively engage in professional development and training and many of our therapists have published or are actively involved in ongoing therapeutic research.

We believe that therapy should be accessible to all and invite any clients who may be struggling for financial reasons to contact us as we have several discounted places available.

All our therapists abide by the BACP Ethical Framework, the therapeutic benchmark for excellence in ethical practice and training standards.

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Our counsellors and therapists

Our team has been carefully recruited to reflect all letters, ages and demographics across the LGBTQ+ umbrella

Donna @ Talk to the Rainbow

Donna

Counsellor and Mindfulness Therapy

MBACP

An experienced counsellor, I am also a fully qualified Mindfulness therapist and I am Director and founder of the Mindful Parenting & Community Project

As a mother of an LGBTQ daughter I am aware of some of the challenges that are faced when discovering our true selves. It can be hard to understand some of the feelings, thoughts and sensations that arise on this journey of discovery and confusion may be strengthened by negative external influences. My priority is to support individual human beings find peace and deep connection to a sense of a ‘true self’ beyond any labels or beliefs that are socially constructed.

If life feels like it’s falling apart and you feel lost, I can help you find your way back home reconnecting you to your mind, body and soul. I will hold you on this journey of exploration through a combination of talking, sensing and working with the body using approaches such as counselling, mindfulness and somatic bodywork to help you towards wholeness. Honesty and vulnerability are important to me. I offer strong boundaries and space that is fully accepting to support the best possible healing. The healing you desire comes from within you and the answers you seek are waiting in the wisdom of your body.

I have worked with black and minority ethnic groups in central Bristol for over 15 years. Specifically, in recent years I have been privileged to work with refugees and immigrants.

I welcome people with mobility issues. My location has level wheelchair access but no accessible toilet. I am working on this.

I have offered counselling to clients experiencing anxiety, depression PTSD and Trauma for 2 years at Wellbeing Therapies.

As Director, founder and volunteer at the Mindful Parenting & Community Project I work hard to bring free Mindfulness courses to groups of vulnerable and disadvantaged families, children and young people.

Together we start from the stance that your experience in all its uniqueness is the point of exploration. Exploration of the present moment experience gives us all we need to begin feeling whole again.

I am a Member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy and abide by its ethical framework and their practice and its training standards.

Rose @ Talk to the Rainbow

Rose

Art Therapist

Art Therapist - HCPC Member

Art Therapist - HCPC Member

Hello, I’m Rose. I am an art therapist, parent, gardener, and member of the LGBTQIA+ community. I’m based in Easton, Bristol where I see adults and young people for therapy face-to-face, online, or outside.  

Art therapy (also known as art psychotherapy) is a form of therapy where alongside talking, art-making is used to express and explore yourself and the issues you are facing. Sometimes words are hard to find and this is where the art-making becomes so useful.  

No art skills are needed to access this kind of therapy and clients are often surprised as to how much the creative element adds depth and a greater understanding of what is going on.  

Each session and each client’s needs are different so I closely follow your lead on how you’d like us to work together.  I will guide and support you through this process as much or as little as you need.

My areas of interest include working with LGBTQIA+ clients and relationship diversity,  pregnancy and beyond, sexual trauma, and mental health. I am sex-positive and BDSM and Kink aware. I am a polyamory/non-monogamy affirmative therapist.  

I am also part of a group of therapists who practice Environmental Arts Therapy. We work outside, making art in the land and exploring ourselves in relation to the environment and the seasons. I work with clients in this way too. Connecting with our natural environment opens up new ways to explore oneself. It may also feel the safest way for some people to have face-to-face therapy while we navigate the pandemic.  

The therapy is personalised and there is space to be flexible in how we approach the sessions. I’m happy to talk to anyone who would like to know more about how we could work together.


Rose


Ky @ Talk to the Rainbow

Ky

UKCP Registered Trainee Psychotherapist

UKCP Registered Trainee Psychotherapist

Hi, I'm Ky. I'm a trainee psychotherapist in private practice, and I've been providing lower-cost therapy to adults in Bristol and Bath for 3 years.

I work with clients from many backgrounds and bring to my practice my own lived experience of queerness, chronic illness, and neurodivergence. I feel a strong connection to these communities and push to serve them as best I can. Often our identities intersect (gender, sexual orientation, race, culture, financial) and I invite working with all aspects of the self. Outside of my practice, I have worked with university students during my time as a volunteer youth counselor. 

My aim is to create a space where you feel safe enough to share the parts of yourself and your life that you find difficult, without judgment. This doesn't mean there won't be challenges to the way you see yourself and the world, but this comes from genuine, compassionate inquiry. It's important for me that the experience is a human one, not cold or clinical. The value I place on this grounding in human experience and connection is why I chose to train in Humanistic and Integrative psychotherapy. I value people's uniqueness and draw on a variety of approaches because there is no one-size-fits-all way to help someone.

I am in my final year of training towards an MA in Humanistic and Integrative Psychotherapy and I'm registered with UKCP, working in accordance with their ethical framework.

Andi @ Talk to the Rainbow

Andi

Chartered Psychologist

Thank you for considering how my services as a chartered psychologist and person-centred counsellor (in-training) could help unravel the questions, challenges and needs you are facing right now.

I am registered as: a qualified chartered psychologist with The British PsychologicalSociety (BPS); a person-centred counsellor (in-training) and, thus, I am a student member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy; and I am anaccredited member of The Foundation for Pregnancy and Infant Loss.
I work with LGBTQ+ clients who are experiencing challenges relating to their sexuality and/or gender identity as well as more broader challenges related to: mental ill-health, heteronormativity, stigma, discrimination and/or prejudice.

I have developed, co-facilitated and/or facilitated one-to-one sessions and groupworkshops on LGBTQ+: anxiety awareness, depression, binge eating, emotional eating, working through the winter blues, eating well, cutting back on alcohol, improving interview skills, CV writing, positive body language, building confidence and self-esteem, suicide awareness and meeting the needs of LGBTQ+ people with mental health needs.
My sessions:
Life can throw many diverse challenges at us: for example loss, crisis and/or change that can cause us to questions our sense of direction. Yet I believe that within these challenging times we have the ability to grow and develop - even flourish - through exploring how our emotional, psychological and physical health and wellbeing are interconnected: the way in which one area feeds into another. This path of change often requires us to explore our internal and external worlds: who we are, our authentic selves, others around us as well as the world in which we live.

My sessions are delivered through a person-centered strength-based perspective with directive and none-directive dialogues/assessments/goal setting and, consequently, the building of a ‘resilience toolbox’ as a means to manage future stress, anxiety or trauma.

In my sessions, I will always:
 provide you with a trusting and safe space to explore your feelings and
emotions and, thus, what is influencing your crisis;
 assist you in understanding these challenges but also the possibilities for
positive growth and change and;
 navigate collaboratively the challenges you are facing.

Qualifications:
 Diploma in Person-Centred Counselling – in progress

 Certificate in Person-Centred Counselling

 Post Graduate Diploma in Health and Wellbeing

 Higher National Certificate in Nursing Studies

 PGCE Post16 Education

 MA Community Psychology

 Post Graduate Certificate in Psychology and Disability

 Bachelor of Arts (Honours) - Fine Art and Psychology

Recent CPD:
 Safeguarding - Pass
 Equality and Diversity - Pass
 Data Protection (GDPR) - Pass
 Dignity at Work – Pass
 Communicating with Care - Pass

 Health and Safety - Pass
 Suicide Prevention - Pass
 Counselling Online (BACP) - Pass

Sally @ Talk to the Rainbow

Sally

Integrative Counsellor and Couples Therapist

I am a professional counsellor experienced in working with young people and adults.

My training includes a FdSc in Counselling from the University of Gloucestershire, I have undertaken training in working with survivors of all kinds of abuse and clients who disassociate. I also trained to support people who use self-harm as a way of coping.

My experience has been gathered over the years by working for a counselling organisation which offers affordable counselling in people’s homes.

I am a qualified integrative counsellor but very person centred at the core of the counselling experience I offer. What this means for you is, I allow you to bring and explore what’s on your mind, rather than trying to fit you into a specific theoretical model. Within our sessions I will offer validation, reflection, humour and challenge to help you understand yourself better.

I am patient, transparent, honest and resilient, these qualities are fundamental to building a therapeutic relationship.

It is within the relationship that we develop that you will find a safe place for you to work through the life challenges that have brought you to counselling.

The exact way we work will be different to anyone else as you are an individual where we will generate your own unique way of working.

From me you will receive a non-judgemental, empathic, confidential experience alongside ethical working in accordance with the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy. I believe I can offer therapeutic healing relationships to aid people to facilitate change. If there is anything you would like to ask, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

I have experience with a wide range of issues including Abuse, Trauma and Dissociation, Anxiety, Depression, Bullying, Self-harm, Shame and Guilt, Fear, Family issues, Loss and Bereavement, Chronic Illness and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, LGBT, Relationship breakdown, Self-esteem, Sexual identity, and Age-related issues, whether it is loss of a partner/job/lifestyle/mobility or mental health

My. life experience and working background is broad and diverse supporting people from all walks of life across many issues.



Leila @ Talk to the Rainbow

Leila

Integrative Therapist

MBACP

Hello, I am Leila and I am an Integrative counsellor. I am based in the Yate, Bristol area where I have a face-to-face practice, I also conduct sessions online nationally via Zoom.

I am part of the LGBTQIA+ community and understand many of the challenges that can come along with that, including coming out later in life. I also have lived experience and work with individuals exploring their racial identity.

I understand that every experience is unique and different, and to me, we are the expert of ourselves. I look to support individuals to be autonomous and lead fulfilling lives. Different experiences require different work, and this is where working in an integrative way comes in. I work in a bespoke, holistic manner, using the modalities and theories that fit with your needs. These theories may include techniques such as CBT, Person-centred therapy, Gestalt and Transactional Analysis, although I feel that it is the therapeutic relationship that is most important. 

I aim to provide a safe, non-judgemental space for you to explore what's going on for you, build self-awareness and understand yourself better. We may make links to the past, looking at how this affects patterns and behaviour today as it is the here and now that I find beneficial to create real, lasting change. 

For the last 2 years I have been working with NHS offering counselling sessions to staff members. I have worked with individuals to provide relief from many different life challenges such as anxiety and panic attacks, PTSD, OCD, sadness and low mood, relational issues, trauma and abuse, grief and loss, burnout and work-based stress and social withdrawal and anxiety. 

I have an Advanced Diploma in Integrative Counselling and I am a member of the BACP, meaning that I work safely in accordance with their ethical framework.

Henk @ Talk to the Rainbow

Henk

Counsellor

MBACP, AdDip

Everyone, including you, has an in-born drive to grow, and to live a happy and meaningful life.  Sadly, life itself, our immediate environment, or society, can throw obstacles in the way of this process.  Some of these obstacles are specific to the LGBTQ+ community.  Have faced many such obstacles myself, I am motivated to help other members of this community to overcome their issues.  As a Person-Centred Counsellor, I work from the belief that somewhere within us, we all possess the solution to these obstacles and/or issues that these obstacles have created.  My role is to help you find your individual solution to the issue(s) that brought you here.  The empathic, non-judgmental approach aims to provide a warm and trustworthy space in which you feel you can really open up, to be heard, to be yourself, and to explore that which troubles you – to gradually make sense of it all and help you find a way forward. 

I offer a 30-minute free consultation to see if you would be happy to work with me, and for me to get an idea of what brought you to seek counselling, and what you hope to get out of it.

Issues I work with include but are not limited to, loss, bereavement, loneliness, depression, anxiety, stress, self-esteem, sense of self, sex, sexual identity and relationship issues.  In addition, I am trained to help with issues of a spiritual nature – whether religious (not just Christian) or exploring the bigger questions in life which may surface, for example, following a bereavement.

I provide face-to-face counselling in Filton, Bristol on Mondays, and online / telephone counsellling Tuesdays - Fridays

As a Member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, I work according to its ethical framework, and have regular supervision to ensure best practice


Ezra @ Talk to the Rainbow

Ezra

Counsellor

MBACP (Accred)

I am an Integrative Counsellor working with any individual who wishes to access counselling. I am a part of the LGBTQ+ community, identifying as a non-binary pansexual person and work with anyone both within and out of the LGBTQ+ community. I have personal experience of many of life's pressures and challenges, including the difficulties surrounding ‘coming out’ and of being a non-binary person and how this impacts us.

My work is based in Person-Centred counselling, drawing on other approaches, such as Transactional Analysis, Gestalt and Psychodynamic, to inform my work. I acknowledge that each individual has a unique perspective on life, due to their experiences and so I tailor my approach to fit the needs of each person I work with.

I provide a warm, understanding and compassionate approach and it is my aim to build and nurture a relationship of trust and honesty to enable you to gain a sense of choice in your life. I offer a safe, supportive, friendly and confidential space for you to feel able to explore your feelings and a space to express yourself in the knowledge that I accept you as you are, without judgment. I view therapy as a creative partnership: the relationship between us is the medium through which learning and development takes place. I believe that everyone has the ability to make changes in their lives and their thinking and, with support, can work towards a more contented and happy way of being. I am constantly in awe of the transformation that people can make through counselling and I feel privileged to be able to be a part of it.

Accreditation, training, qualifications & experience.

I am an Accredited Member of the BACP with a Level 5 Diploma in Integrative Counselling and Psychotherapy.

I have studied Person-Centred, Psychodynamic, Transactional Analysis and Gestalt models.

I have experience of working short and long term with clients with a wide range of issues and from a wide range of backgrounds, including supporting people with depression and anxiety, PTSD, CPTSD, difficulties around gender identity, body dysmorphia, sexuality, addiction and victims of sexual, physical and/or emotional abuse.

I am an Accredited Member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy and abide by its ethical framework and its practice and training standards.

Kasia @ Talk to the Rainbow

Kasia

Play Therapist

MA in Practice-Based Play Therapy, PGdip Clinical Supervision (Provisional), BSc (Hons) Deaf Studies

Kasia is a qualified play therapist who has been practising for over 12 years.  She has an MA in Practice-based Play Therapy and is a provisional clinical supervisor. Kasia has experience working with adults and is currently in training as a counsellor.

As a member of the LGBT+ community, Kasia understands the diversity of difficulties faced and is passionate about providing support for the mental health of all members of the community by working with all age groups and with their support systems (e.g. family, schools, churches). With a background in drama and music, and through her life and work internationally (in Vietnam, Poland, Austria and the USA), Kasia brings a further diversity and vibrancy to her work with clients.

When not working in private practice Kasia works for a school for the Deaf and The Family Centre for Deaf Children. and is qualified to level six equivalency in BSL (British Sign Language).

As an LGBT+ Christian, Kasia values every individual and respects the experiences, beliefs and struggles of all her clients. She is passionate about inclusion in all areas of life for LGBT+ humans and is working for inclusion in churches, schools, healthcare, entertainment etc. 

She has particular experience working with anxiety, low self-esteems, gender identity, selective mutism, parenting issues, divorce/separation, trauma, adoption, attachment difficulties, ASD, ADHD, language delay, and conduct/ behaviour difficulties. She uses play therapy to facilitate for her clients to explore different parts of the self, relational difficulties and past experiences that affect current health and happiness.

Play therapy is a diverse creative arts therapy that can benefit anyone in its promotion of self-expression, creating new coping strategies and in providing new perspectives as these expressions are visually displayed. Kasia firmly believes in non-directive, client-led therapy and will adapt and attune to your needs, working at your pace. Kasia can work with individuals and groups.

Kasia abides by the PTUK ethical framework, including its practice and training standards.