Counselling for adults · Farnham and online
I'm Naomi. People come to me when something has got too heavy to carry on their own.
Writing is enough to start. No call to book, and no pressure to make an appointment.
What people bring
Some arrive with a clear reason. Others just know that something isn't right. Both are fine.
Not on the list? Write anyway and say it in your own words. If I'm not the right person, I'll say so and point you somewhere better.
You don't have to know what to call it before you write to me.Naomi Ashcroft
The work
Person-centred, and trauma-informed since 2021.
I trained as a person-centred counsellor, and I've since trained in working with trauma. In practice that means I don't arrive with a plan for you or a worksheet to fill in. We start where you are, at the pace you set, and I follow.
Some weeks we talk about the thing that happened on Tuesday. Some weeks we go back twenty years. You decide what to bring, and you can say "not today" about anything.
Sessions are fifty minutes, usually at the same time each week. Most people come weekly for a while; some stay a few months, some stay longer. We review how it's going every few weeks, and you can stop whenever you want to.
No surprises
As much or as little as you like. You don't have to explain everything, and please don't feel you need to write your history in a first message.
I'll tell you honestly whether I have space, what I'd suggest, and what it costs. If a short phone call would help, I'll offer one. You can also say no to that.
Fifty minutes to talk about what brought you and to see how it feels to sit with me. No commitment to book a second one, and no charge if you decide I'm not right for you.
Fees and practical bits
Everything people usually have to email to ask.
About
I came to counselling after fifteen years in nursing, which taught me more about listening than any course did. I qualified in 2016, work in Farnham and online, and have monthly supervision with an experienced supervisor, which is how counsellors keep their work honest.
Outside the room I walk a great deal, mostly in the Surrey Hills, usually with a dog who has strong opinions about the route.
Questions
And the ones people feel silly asking.
Both happen most weeks, in that room, to people who were sure they'd do neither. Silence is allowed. So are tissues, which are on the table already.
Yes, with the limits I'll explain in the first session: I discuss my work in supervision without naming you, and there are rare situations where the law requires me to pass something on. I'd tell you if that ever came up.
Nobody can tell you that honestly at the start, and I'd be wary of anyone who does. We review it together every few weeks, and you decide.
No, I see adults individually. For couples work or for a young person, write anyway and I'll point you towards colleagues who do that work well.
Getting started
There's no rush, and no wrong way to start. Send a few lines and I'll reply within two working days.
Counselling isn't an emergency service, and I don't monitor messages in the evenings or at weekends. If waiting isn't safe, these people answer straight away.
Some people talk more easily side by side than face to face. From April to October I offer walking sessions on the paths near Farnham: same fifty minutes, same fee, no notebook.
We agree a route with enough quiet to talk privately, and we go whatever the weather unless it's genuinely unsafe. If it doesn't suit you, we go back to the room, no explanation needed.