Questions
Asked on the phone, answered here first
These are the ten we are asked most, in the order they usually come. Every one of them is also a fine thing to ask on the 15-minute call; nothing on this page is meant to save you from ringing.
Do I have to know what is wrong before I ring?
No. "Something is off and I cannot name it" is a normal opening and we hear it several times a week. The fifteen-minute call exists to work out what it is, and if it is us you need.
Between one and six weeks, depending on who you need. Every counsellor's current wait is printed on the site and we update it on a Monday.
Do you ask for proof of income for the lower fees?
No. You read the three bands, you choose one, and that is the end of it. No payslip, no form, no conversation about your household unless you want one.
Yes, at any point, and you can ask the practice rather than the person. Ring Marlene and say you would like to move. Nobody will be offended and your fee and band travel with you.
Will you tell my doctor, my employer or my family?
Nobody hears anything without your written permission, with two exceptions we explain in the first session: an immediate risk to life, and a court order.
What if I cannot afford even the lowest fee?
Say so on the call. We hold two places a year at no fee, and where they are taken we will tell you which Kingston services run free counselling and what their waits are.
Is online as good as being in the room?
For most of what we do, yes, and it is the same fee. For trauma work Camille prefers the room, and she will say so on the call.
How many sessions will I need?
It depends on what you bring. Each thing we work with carries a typical range on this site, from six to ten for panic up to sixteen to thirty for trauma. They are ranges, not promises.
To the building, yes, and plenty of people do for the first few. Into the room, no, except for couples work, because you will edit yourself without noticing.
Is there parking, and how do I find the building?
Four spaces at the back off the lane, and the gate is open from half past seven. We are the cream two-storey house, first floor, up the outside stairs.
Longer answers
The notes that go further
Where a question needs more than a paragraph, it has a note of its own.
If you have never done this before
What to expect of yourself in week one, which is usually less than you think.
Read itWhat we write down and who can see it
Four or five lines per session, in a locked cabinet, kept seven years.
Read itHow the sliding fee is decided
You pick the band. We do not ask for payslips, and we do not check.
Read itWhy we ask about sleep first
It is the one thing that moves fastest and makes everything else workable.
Read it