About dfsCounselling
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Douglas Stevenson
BD (Hons), DipMin, DipHE, MCOSCA, MBACP
Firstly, I’m passionate about what I do.
I have spent the majority of my career as a minister and a counsellor. I have celebrated with people the joys of life and I've been with individuals and families when they’ve been at their lowest and most despairing. I am more than conscious that life can throw too many curve balls in the direction of those least expecting them. That has to be acknowledged and then — if we wish — take steps to move on. However, this is often easier said than done but it’s important to know that when we are struggling help is available. As a therapist I have sat in the client’s chair — as have many other therapists — and the work I did with my counsellor was incredibly beneficial for my own well-being.
As well as this self-analysis I have recently returned to the University of Edinburgh to embark on research — leading to a MScR/PhD — using myself as a client as I look at the effects which trauma can have on an individual.
I feel that I have two important skills which shape my practice as a therapist — I’m a good listener. I am also accepting that everyone one of us is a unique and creative individual with special gifts as well as faults, but we'll concentrate on the former.
I studied counselling skills in Edinburgh in 1988; this therapeutic process has shaped my life ever since. I did further counselling training in the early 1990’s specialising in drug and alcohol dependency, working in a rehabilitation clinic and eventually becoming a fifth step listener with the AA (12 steps programme).
This desire I have for working alongside people has been born out of interacting with folks from all walks of life which has allowed me to address a range of emotional, psychological and behavioural issues — ranging from the effects of suicide and the repercussions this has on loved ones, to food eating disorders, anxiety, depression, anger management and everything else in between.
Therapy offers an individual a reflective space: a space away from friends, family and colleagues with a skilled professional. Indeed research shows that, regardless of the therapeutic orientation, fundamentally it's the relationship with the therapist that offers the potential for transformation.
I am trained in the Person-Centred, Humanistic approach but I will also draw on other therapeutic models learned during my training and practice in order to provide the opportunities required for an individual’s personal growth and direction.
Presently I am working from rented room in Buckie which would be convenient for people living in Macduff, Banff, Whitehills, Sandend, Portsoy, Cullen, Portknockie, Findochty, Fordyce, Fochabers, Deskford, Keith. The rooms offer some tranquility and peace from the frenetic pace of life and the hour we spend together will never be wasted.
