Sharon McHugh
Hello, my name is Sharon and I live in Billericay Essex. I am an Therapeutic Integrative Counsellor, and my core is Person Centred Therapy allowing me to hold a space for you to talk about what you are feeling, to explore why you are feeling like you are, and to really listen to what you are saying, a space where you can be you. I also use Cognative Behaviour Therapy and Transactional analysis, allowing you to choose different ideas and ways that will assist us on the journey to understanding the parts of your life that are causing you unease.
Since a young age I have felt sadness in many people I have met along my lifes journey, and as I grew older, and more able to understand I realised that people put on different faces for different people and this can cause them to lose themselves, and feel burdened and weighed down.
I decided that I didn’t want anyone to be feel that way when they were around me, I wanted people to feel comfortable being who they are in my company.
This led me to firstly really explore who I was, to learn and understand myself, and to go through my own life experiences to make sure they were not impacting on how I was interacting with other people.
The journey I have embarked on to understand myself has been a long, amazing, happy, sad and eye opening journey which has led me down the path of becoming a counsellor, something I am eternally grateful for, as being a counsellor is not something I do, it is something I am.
I wish you peace and love xxx
Since a very young age I have always been able to sense when someone is putting on a ‘mask’ to hide their true feelings and are pretending to be OK when they are really not. I found this quite overwhelming as a child as I felt that I could not do anything to support them to feel better, and the feelings would be there as long as I was around the person.
As I moved into teenage years I became a little braver and would speak to the person that I felt was hiding behind a ‘mask’, and ask them if they were ok, which was sometimes all that was needed to allow the person to share what was going on for them.
As I moved into my early twenties I feel my spiritual side actively sought out people and allowed people to seek me out, people who needed to talk and unburden themselves, and feel listened to.
I feel humbled that I have been allowed in to the lives I have met along my own journey, and feel truly blessed that I have been trusted to listen to peoples inner most thoughts and to share such private parts of their lives.
I decided to train as a counsellor, to fine tune my listening skills, my empathy, and to learn about myself so I could be the best I could be to walk the journey with whoever I am lucky enough choses me to walk on their journey with them.
To further develop my spiritual side I regularly attend spiritual development classes run by Nichola Farmer of ‘Awakening the Illuminated Heart’. This allows me to focus on my own wellbeing so I can be the best I can be for the people I meet along my lifes journey.
I am a member of the BACP (British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy) and as such follow their ethical framework, keeping you and myself safe by the boundaries they require, such as confidentiality, doing no harm and others.
I offer Integrative counselling and have trained in Person Centred Counselling, Cognative Behaviour Therapy and Transactional Analysis.
Counselling Skills Level 2
Counselling Skills Level 3
Integrative Counselling Advanced Diploma Level 4
I have been volunteering at St. Lukes Hospice as a counsellor for about 18 months, and I also volunteered as a counsellor at Synergy Addictions in Billericay for around 18 months.
I have also completed many hours of continued professional development, keeping myself up to date on any changes within the counselling world that may affect myself or you.
Below is just a small description of issues that my clients and myself have worked through, however, feel free to contact me to discuss any questions you may have.
addiction
Bereavement
Anxiety
Depression
Self Esteem
Anger
Disability
Grief
Loss
“People are just as wonderful as sunsets if you let them be. When I look at a sunset I don’t find myself saying “Soften the orange a bit on the right hand corner.” I don’t try to control a sunset. I watch with awe as it unfolds.” ‘Carl Rogers’