Client Testimonials

What do my clients have to say…

In this sphere of work client confidentiality is always paramount however some clients have been kind enough to allow me to include their comments. (Please note that in some cases names have been changed for privacy purposes).


Latest Testimonials Below

Female,42 years, anxiety, panic disorder, OCD.

Having seen a therapist for a good 5 years previously I was very dubious about starting with some one new, however I now wish I had met you sooner. I have learnt more in the past few months than I ever did in those 5 years.

Carla really has been a massive help to me and has changed my life. My levels of anxiety have decreased dramatically and the tools and techniques she taught me will forever be used.

Carla has helped me to get my life back

Carla has helped me to get my life back. I was struggling with OCD which had spiralled out of control and as a result was also suffering from extremely low mood. I was barely functioning. I was seeking continual reassurance from those close to me and putting a massive strain on those relationships. My OCD takes the form of an irrational fear of harming others and had taken over my life and made my world smaller. I avoided friends and family, going out, had given up driving and I even found going to the supermarket a super stressful experience. I did not enjoy anything any more. I had lost all perspective and any hope for the future and wished I was dead. I had such low self esteem and thought I did not deserve to be happy. Carla has helped me not only to feel like myself again but also worked with me to develop skills so that I feel confident I can manage the OCD going forward. Indeed skills that will be beneficial to my life in general. Carla’s therapy has literally turned my life around. Her wisdom, compassion and gentle firmness have helped me to understand the way my mind works, what behaviours are helpful to me and what behaviours are unhelpful. It’s really powerful stuff. My world has opened up. I am seeing friends and family again and the enjoyment is back in my life. I can go to the supermarket now without any anxiety. I am doing more things which involve interacting with other people, something I would have avoided before. I never thought I would get in a car and drive again but I am now driving and even enjoying it. Thank you so much Carla. What you do is amazing!

Extreme anxiety and low mood

I decided to contact Carla after suffering with extreme anxiety and low mood. There would be days where my anxiety would affect me so much to the point where I couldn’t leave my bed.

After my first few sessions I started to see a change in myself, starting to feel more positive about life and wanting to enjoy it more.

Carla helped me break down my worries and anxieties into small, manageable chunks which allowed me to understand them more and learn how to combat those feelings of worry. This also allowed me to realise that if I put my mind to it, I can achieve anything.

Carla is so patient, and I have never felt judged when I am speaking to her.

My life has completely changed in the space of a couple of months thanks to Carla. Most days are full of positive feelings, and the bad days are now very rare, which is a point I never thought I would get to.


Female aged 24.

I reached out to Carla after years of struggling with low self esteem. As soon as we began speaking, I truly felt heard and that my problems did deserve to be fixed and for me to feel comfortable in my own skin. After working together for even four weeks, I began to see a change in the way that I perceived myself. Carla's continued patience, calm demeanor and overall style of therapy worked wonders for me and I feel like I am truly on the way to, not only be able to like myself, but eventually love myself for the person who I am. I no longer feel hopeless and low when I reflect on myself and look in the mirror and actually feel proud of the person who I am. I would absolutely, wholeheartedly recommend Carla to anyone else who is struggling with their self esteem and worth, as I wouldn't be on the path I am now without her help. 

Once again, thank you so much for working with me over the past few weeks - you have been an absolute godsend and I can't wait to see what else my bright future holds for me.

The Situation was…

This time last year I was spiralling into the worst of my OCD. Stuck not only in the house but actually just imprisoned in my lounge. My house was built into safe zones and unsafe zones - where I refused to go. My nan’s area was off limits and I stayed away from her and needed her to stay away from me. No one could touch my things and I would not touch anyone else's.

People where not allowed to touch me - or even be in close proximity to me. I was washing my hands I can’t even remember how many times a day - but I was spending hours every day at my sink and when I wasn’t there I was in the shower and that would sometimes take up to 2 hours. I was struggling to eat or drink as I felt all the tableware, glasses and cutlery where contaminated - I was using plastic disposable cutlery and cups and paper cups for hot drinks. I wouldn’t touch surfaces or door handles and if I did by accident I would immediately wash my hands. I was having meltdowns 5+ times a day, because I couldn’t get clean. I had stopped using towels in the house and my mum had to double rinse my clothes so as to remove all washing powder.

Today…

I am no longer stuck inside the lounge, not only do I feel safe to enter every part of my home but I feel safe to leave it. I have been food shopping, I have mooched round the city centre and eaten while out a few times now. I have been to the hospital, to the Campbell centre to visit a friend and to the dentist.

I have watched TV with my nan in her bedroom, I have touched surfaces and door handles and picked stuff off the floor. I have done yoga and handstands (touching the floor), I have even done handstands on the stones at Willen Lake.

I use the household tableware, glasses and cutlery, I eat food prepared for me by my mum and have eaten food prepared by my Aunt at her house. I have even let my Aunt wipe down the restaurant table with cleaner (fear of cleaning fluid) before we ate and used the cutlery touched by a waitress.

I no longer wash my hands constantly and have even had food and drink without washing my hands first. I have cuddled and played with my brother and nephews- even playing acrobatics with xxxxx. Washing powder no longer bothers me and I am using face creams and suncream again. I have tried on clothes I bought at the shops without showering after.

Other people can touch my things without me thinking they were now contaminated. And I have touched other peoples phones (even people outside of my household). I haven’t had a meltdown like I was having for about 4 months. I am going round my friends house on Saturday for her birthday and I have my friends coming up for the day on the 26th.

he most amazing thing is that a lot of the things I do now without even thinking about it - whereas before I was exhausted from playing out contamination scenarios in my head coming to the conclusion each time that I was definitely now contaminated. I have even accidentally drank off milk a number of times now and not thought I was going to die from it. Even when I ate out the restaurant put way to much paprika on my avocado toast (paprika is form the deadly nightshade family and so too much can be toxic) I just scrapped a lot of it off and carried on eating the avocado on toast.

My Therapy Journey

When I first started therapy, the majority of my day was spent obsessing over my skin. If I was having a bad day /week/month it meant a lot of time just thinking about how terrible my skin was. I felt so unhappy and that this would take over my life. After 4 months of therapy I feel like a cloud has lifted. I spend so much more time laughing and feeling happy. My bad days/weeks/months have turned into a bad half an hour every now and then. I use the tools learned in my session to change the way I am thinking and the BDD doesn’t ruin my day like it used to. After years of suffering with BDD I feel like I have it under control and I can focus on everything else in my life and enjoy myself. I even went out with my friends the other day with the spot in the middle of my face completely uncovered. Here is a self portrait of me when I first started therapy and now.

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"We approached Carla for help at a time when we both believed our marriage had irretrievably broken down. If fact, we had already instructed Family Law Solicitors and had endured 8 hours of unproductive mediation.

Neither of us began the process of relationship couple counselling with much hope, as we felt that too much damage had been done to our marriage and that we would never be able to stay together and be genuinely happy. It was most certainly a ‘last ditch attempt’ before proceeding with divorce.

Our major issues were based around the inability to resolve arguments, lack of love and affection towards each other, a total loss of trust and respect in our marriage; and the negative impact that living in a toxic relationship was having on our children.

Carla enabled us to initially identify key factors that had caused our complex issues and then encouraged us to set goals - both individually and as a couple. She also gave us guidance to understand why our beliefs, behaviours and reactions were impacting our marriage; and what techniques we could use to ensure that we can identify triggers and manage them moving forward.

By giving us focus and belief that we could resolve our problems using acceptance, understanding and genuine affection towards each other, we are now able to prioritise our marriage, articulate our feelings and thoughts to each other, and crucially communicate in a way that is positive and nurturing.

Undoubtedly, the counselling we received has saved our marriage. Thanks to Carla we have found immense happiness, understanding and the ability to leave the past in the past. Prior to meeting Carla, neither of us believed that this would be possible. The impact has also changed the dynamics of our home to the extent that our children now reflect on how awful homelife was for them, and the positive impact our sessions have also had on our family.

Carla is an incredible individual. Professional, calm, reflective, empathetic, non-judgemental and incredibly honest. We cannot ever thank Carla enough for helping us to strip back and then re-build our marriage, enabling us to look forward with positivity and excitement to our future together."

Bio
Female
Early Thirties
2 children
Professional
British / Arab
Dealing with trauma/ anxiety

I started my sessions with Carla in June 2020 and I have received weekly sessions for 5 months. Carla has been my life saver in a time of life which has been incredibly difficult. I was reluctant to have therapy but after my first session with Carla it knew it was the best decision I made.

Carla is incredibly experienced, I have never felt judged or felt uncomfortable in sharing my life with her. I have learned so much about myself and how to be my own therapist. She has equipped me with the tools to manage my anxiety and process my trauma, which have made a huge difference to the quality of my life and my families.

Carla is patient and caring and my favorite part of my sessions is when she challenges my thinking. I always looked forward to our sessions together.

"When you listened to me you actually “heard” me and your wisdom and advice has helped me to find the real me and to accept and believe in myself as a woman." Lindsey’s testimonial

“We argued constantly, we never laughed together, it was over. As a last ditch attempt to save the marriage for the children’s sake, we saw Carla. That was five years ago, we are still going strong!”
(Catherine and Mark)

“My life had got so small, I was no longer able to work, I had no social life. Terrible things had happened to me, I felt alone and scared with no way out. My partner insisted I booked a consultation session, I am so glad I did, my life turned around”.
(Aarifah)

“I was in a traumatic car accident, I could not get the images out of my mind, they played over and over. I couldn’t work in the end, I stopped seeing friends and family, life was a nightmare. Carla helped me put this behind me, I am now my old self, enjoying the life I use to”.
(Theo)

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If you have been a client of Carla's, please do share your experience to help others that may now be treading in your footpath - Email Carla

If you think that you too could benefit from an initial discussion please contact me on 07803 895800 or click here to send an email.

 

Carla is an experienced and highly trained therapist working in Milton Keynes (Bucks). She is both BABCP accredited and a BACP Member. She is also an accredited Family Law Consultant with Resolution. Carla is an empathetic counsellor who works with her clients in a safe, comfortable and confidential environment.

Central Milton Keynes - & Buckinghamshire (London)

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Call on: 07803 895 800

Or email: carla@carlaswan.com