Rate Marc Cullen

My name is Marc; I’m a 31-year-old accredited counsellor (NCPS), and I’m determined to help you with your mental health. I have been working with individuals and groups for over 5 years, helping with issues like anxiety, depression, grief, trauma, abuse, and addiction. I have completed the Level 5 Professional Diploma in Psychotherapeutic Counselling Practice which qualifies me to utilise cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT), psychodynamic, and person-centred methods in my client work.

The path to good mental health can be the most challenging of journeys. My service is here to simplify the process and give you the necessary tools to help you on your way. With experience in many areas, I provide a practical, high-quality, affordable counselling service, tailored to your needs. With a friendly and compassionate approach, I utilise a combination of cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT), psychodynamic, and person-centred methods.

My counselling service focuses on the 3 keys to mental health:

1) Your inner world

2) Your outer world

3) Your personalised self-care plan

Your Inner World

This contains the 4 aspects of thoughts, beliefs, emotions, and behaviours. When life gets difficult it’s because one (or several) of these aspects causes more difficulty than we can handle i.e. our resources to cope have been exceeded. For example, we may seek therapy due to our thoughts (negative or intrusive), beliefs (poor self-worth), emotions (anxiety or depression), or behaviours (addictive or self-defeating). How we think and feel today is largely affected by how we’ve thought and felt in the past; difficult experiences leave their imprint on the psyche.

This is where we utilise a combination of cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT), psychodynamic, and person-centred methods to help you come to terms with your complex inner world. As we begin to understand your thoughts and emotions on a deep level, your everyday mood will begin to transform. Negative states of anxiety, fear and sadness begin to soften, creating space for the positive qualities of calm, confidence, and satisfaction.

Your Outer World

Family, friendships, social activities, professional development, education, and health and fitness are several aspects of your outer world which are huge contributors to your mental health (there are also many more). The human brain responds to its environment, mostly in the developmental stages of childhood, but also throughout the entire course of life in a process called neuroplasticity – this is not a theory, but a process which has been confirmed by decades of scientific research. The cognitive and emotional circuitry of the brain is directly influenced by how we spend our time: when we change our habits and allocate our time and energy to activities which promote a healthy engagement with life, we have the power to literally change our brain functioning and improve our mental health. I will help you identify the areas of your outer world which you’d like to improve upon, and help you implement the required steps for change – a practical and rewarding process!

Your Personalised Self-Care Plan

Counselling is a vital part of the healing process. Another, equally important part is the action you take throughout the rest of your week. We must utilise our counselling sessions to help you understand and transform your day-to-day thoughts and emotions. In conjunction with this, I will gradually put together your personalised self-care plan which will help you take the practical steps to prioritise your mental health throughout the week – we will always discuss and agree upon this plan before completion. A personalised self-care plan is the greatest tool I can provide you with to help maintain (and even improve) your mental health, long after we have finished working together.

A typical self-care plan serves as the most practical of tools to help you in both your inner and outer worlds. Things like structure around sleep and wake times, morning and evening routines, mindfulness, physical exercise, relaxation methods, and personal-development practices are some of the core elements of self-care. The exact makeup of your care plan will depend on several things: your personality, social life, physical health, and future goals for mental health and life in general. I value the power of individual action just as much as I value the counselling profession. I’m passionate about helping you on both fronts, so that you may transform your mental health and regain a sense of control in your life.