Jenny Hodsdon
at
Meadows Counselling
About Me
My passion for talking therapies started when I studied Psychology at University. My final year option covered different theories and I became increasingly interested in attachment theory and how important it is that we are nurtured by our parents or other significant carers. I learnt about the things we need in order to thrive in life as we move into adulthood, and what happens to us when we don't.
In addition, I was interested in how we respond to stress and especially what influences our ability to bounce back when we are challenged; what helps us cope and return to a state of calm, or a regulated nervous state.
During a particularly difficult time in my life, I had some counselling with the University counsellor. The counsellor was warm and genuine and helped me to see thinking patterns I had developed over time that may have been helpful in the past, but had become more of a hindrance as I faced new challenges in my life.
This 'becoming aware of myself' was the start of a great journey of self discovery for me. Incidentally, I was around 47 at the time, so it is never too late to start your own journey.
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Counselling helped me to realise that the struggles I had been having throughout my life (mainly anxiety, panic attacks and periods of low mood) were, in part, due to the fact my childhood was missing some of the vital elements I mentioned earlier. This is something I often encounter with my clients. I am sharing my experience because we are often led to believe that we are 'stuck', cannot change or improve things for ourselves. I feel I am proof of that because I had counselling with some great counsellors and because I started to learn about myself.
Having self-awareness means that things start to make more sense; to drop into place, a bit like a jigsaw.
During my teens I experienced a number of Adverse Childhood Events (ACEs). Again, this is something I find is often present in the timelines of my clients.
Societal attitudes, our peers, colleagues at work can all impact our mental health but there can still be a great deal of stigma around accessing support for it.
For many years mental health was only ever talked about in hushed voices, if it was mentioned at all. As a result, in the past, many people didn't receive any form of formal support ie counselling, signposting or pastoral care at school. In addition, it was generally believed that children were not affected by grief or stress.
It is no surprise then that for many, being finally listened to by someone who is warm, empathic and non-judgemental can feel immensely healing.
In 2016 after qualifying, I started my private practice so that I could help others to discover more about themselves especially if low mood, low self esteem or chronic, high-functioning anxiety were making daily life a struggle. and particularly if this is connected to a difficult childhood. I have expanded my practice so that I also see clients who have concerns related to grief or loss, especially if this involved the psychological loss of a person due to brain injury, memory loss, dementia, addiction or severe mental illness, rather than a physical loss. This type of loss of a person is called Ambiguous Loss and is something many of us encounter in the course of our lives without it being recognised, by society or even ourselves.
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