Counselling is a ‘talking therapy’ that can help people who are feeling stressed or anxious about things that are happening in their life or who struggle to cope with a sudden loss or bereavement.
Counselling is available at Action in Mind by appointment only for adults aged 18+ living in the Stirlingshire area, Monday – Friday between 9.00am – 5.00pm. Sessions can either take place face-to-face at our premises at 19 Dean Crescent in Stirling, or by phone call/video conference.
The most common referral route is through your GP practice but referrals are accepted from support workers, mental health nurses, health visitors etc – people who are involved in your care. Self referrals are only accepted if you do not receive support from anywhere else.
Our Counselling Service is only funded for people living within Stirlingshire, Scotland.
What is Counselling
Counselling is a ‘talking therapy’ that can help people who are feeling stressed or anxious about things that are happening in their life or who struggle to cope with a sudden loss or bereavement.
Like other talking therapies, such as Mindfulness or Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), counselling is about the person themselves and what they wish to bring to the sessions.
Counselling has helped people to transform their lives in positive ways and find the confidence to handle difficult situations better and with increased resilience and skill. Counselling at Action in Mind offers a safe, confidential space for people to talk about their mental ill-health and related issues, and build trust with someone who will listen without judgement. Sometimes people have no one else in their lives that they feel they can talk to openly, or the people they do have struggle to know what to say. Taking time out to speak to a counsellor is a way of looking after yourself and putting yourself first.
Counsellors
Action in Mind counsellors are trained and registered with either COSCA (Counselling and Psychotherapy in Scotland), BACP (British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy) or BABCP (British Association for Behavioural Cognitive Psychotherapist)
We offer a placement service to trainee counselling psychologists at various local universities working towards either becoming a qualified counsellor, or achieving their doctorate and become chartered psychologists, and to students from independent training establishments running courses in CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) or counselling group work. Before starting placements with us, students are trained to a standard that makes them ready to see counselling clients. We will always ask clients if they would prefer not to have a trainee or student for their sessions.
Please note we are currently at full capacity for trainee placements.
Children and Young People’s Counselling
Please click here for more information about the counselling services we provide to children and young people.
What clients say about the benefits of counselling at Action in Mind
“To have someone to talk to and help me plan out ways to deal with my issues has been a huge help and it’s easy to communicate with someone who genuinely cares and has an interest in helping others.”
“I was made to feel very comfortable and that I could speak without judgement. These sessions allowed me to rationalise my anxiety and put things into perspective making day to day life a lot easier which I am very grateful for. I started off feeling very hopeless and low, I was scared I would never get out of the situation I was in however I am a lot happier now and feel motivated about the future.”
“Being able to admit to some of my issues to someone without feeling judged and being able to speak honestly. Also didn’t feel put under pressure when I was finding it hard to say what I was feeling.”
“These sessions allowed me to rationalise my anxiety and put things into perspective making day to day life a lot easier which I am very grateful for.”
“These sessions allowed me to rationalise my anxiety and put things into perspective making day to day life a lot easier which I am very grateful for.”
Our Befriending Team works with individuals in Stirlingshire who experience poor mental wellbeing and are socially isolated by giving them the opportunity to regularly meet with a volunteer befriender.
Our volunteer befrienders are locally recruited and offer their free time to the befriending service. They must be 18 years or over and fulfill all of the requirements outlined in our bespoke volunteer recruitment and training program. Throughout their time working with our clients, they are provided with ongoing support from the Service Manager.
Who can use the Befriending Service?
Adults over the age of 18 who are struggling with their mental health and do not live in supported accommodation can access our befriending service. As the service operates in the local community, individuals must be able to leave their home independently. They can be referred by any person working with them in a professional capacity.
What happens in Befriending?
Our service users can expect to be supported by a volunteer Befriender on a one-to-one basis to engage with activities within the local community. Befriending clients are supported to devise their own personal goal plan by identifying key outcomes that they wish to achieve as a result of befriending support. It is the role of Befrienders to help motivate the client to take progressive steps towards achieving these. Befriending support is available to people for 12 months.
Our Befriending Service is only funded to support people living in Stirlingshire, Scotland.
