testimonials

Take testimonials with a pinch of salt.

One person's experience will always be different to another's - we are all different, and we all like, and dislike, different things.

Most clients will not put their name to an open review on Google for confidentiality reasons, plus a therapist should never ask for a review as they are not allowed to 'ethically'.

So, any reviews you see on Google Maps etc are questionable, especially if there is a high number of them compared to other therapists in the area.

With AI around so much now, some therapists are purchasing fake 'reviews', you can usually spot a fake review easily once you know what to look for.

A fake review tends to be lengthy without spelling mistakes, or grammatical errors. There are probably have a series of reviews close together - month after month, and all sound like the same person could of wrote them (or AI wrote them). They are usually all 5* and they may sound more than good.

I urge you not to go on testimonials when choosing a counsellor, but instead to go with whom you like the 'sound' of, but not just that..look at experience, and further training. Just because a Dr. has a good 'bedside manner', it doesn't make them a good Dr.

You will never really know which is the right therapist for you, until therapy really gets going, and you come up against the difficult stuff together

A tip: Don't trust any therapist who gives you a guarantee - as this is also 'unethical'

To publish all testimonials spanning over 20 years would be too much, so to keep it simple here are three:

"If I am totally honest I was not convinced that counselling would help me as I am not in my comfort zone talking about myself, I could not of been more wrong...It became very apparent that my fears were daft!! I was worried that I would be judged, but you were totally non-judgmental and made me feel safe in disclosing things very personal to me". A Client

"Counselling has transformed my existence and it doesn't bear thinking about how I would of been without it and I shall always be grateful". A Client

"I have never had a male counsellor before. I was a bit worried, but I found Chirs very easy to talk to, and he helped me a lot with my issues with men, thanks very much Chris"