Ingrid Koehler

Thursday mornings in person in Totnes or online video or phone sessions.  

Mondays to Thursdays - online video or phone sessions only.

Hello, thank you for looking at my page and for being curious. I work in central Totnes, with easy access to car parks.

My approach is ‘talk therapy’ mainly, which aims to understand with compassion how your troubles have come about. Firstly, by exploring your story and whatever you choose to share and then by looking at ways of coping with or managing with your troubles. Within a safe space of caring, trust and confidentiality I try to come alongside you, respecting your level of comfort, either in person or online. Counselling can bring new insights to and awareness of our troubles and can help us understand our behaviour and that of others. Talking to someone who appreciates the human condition can help to strengthen and heal parts of ourselves or to let go of painful feelings, like guilt, shame or remorse or distorted thinking that have arisen through trauma, abuse, loss, perceived mistakes and general fear and regain our confidence, trust, self-worth and self-belief by accessing our inner resources and coping strategies.

I encourage unpacking emotions related to feeling out of control; feeling overwhelmed or confused, depressed or sad, sometimes for no definable reason; feeling hurt or vulnerable, angry, frustrated, desperate, or needy because of particular circumstances, a relationship or our life history. Other ways can be feeling emotional all the time or the opposite, numb or disconnected, or flat or pointless. We can often feel rage, lack of trust, resentment and anger or that we’re a victim of injustice, abuse and discrimination. We may have been told by others that we’ve had a ‘nervous breakdown’ or simply a ‘breakdown’. Having physical pain, chronic ailments and poor health can also take their toll. All forms of distress can affect our well-being and relationships.

Relationship difficulties are commonly at the heart of our distress and affect how we feel about ourselves. There is more general awareness in these days of the negative effect of being in a relationship with someone with narcissistic tendencies or personality disorders and the advice is usually ‘to see a therapist’ in order to process or move on from these relationships.

Counselling is very effective for trauma. I am 'trauma-informed' and not a specialist therapist in trauma. More is known now about the long-term effects of both shock/terror trauma (PTSD) and developmental trauma, often called complex post-traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD). Whether it be a specific shocking and frightening one-off event or emotional abuse, protracted neglect, abandonment, rejection and hurt which may even be in the distant past, the impact on our mental health can be marked. Also, the effects of short- and long-term grief and loss and can take its toll. In recent years, the effect of the Covid pandemic has had an impact in all areas of life and may need a safe space to process.

I have worked as a counsellor in private counselling practice since 2011 and continue to practise in central Totnes and online through video platforms. I have a background in nursing in the NHS, having worked in the specialty of cancer and cancer clinical trials for many years, though I am now retired from nursing. I work exclusively with adult individuals.

My counselling room is in a therapy practice, with a waiting room for clients on the first floor.

In the first session I will ask you to tell me what brings you to counselling.  I will then ask some details about your circumstances, family history and a short risk assessment.  I will give you some information about how I work and some of my 'terms and conditions' regarding confidentiality, cancellation policy, data protection etc.  At the end of the session will then decide if we can work together going forward.