People usually choose to have therapy because they are experiencing difficulties and distress in their lives. Sometimes people can feel isolated even where an individual has supportive family and friends and they can find it difficult to explain why, for example they may be feeling anxious or depressed. Or it may be easier to talk about personal family or relationship issues with a person who is independent of friends and family. There are many life issues which can be difficult to deal with – bereavement, divorce, health issues, bullying, redundancy, ongoing stress. However, you do not have to be in crisis, or on the verge of one, before choosing therapeutic help. You may be experiencing underlying feelings of dissatisfaction with life in general or be seeking balance or meaning in your life. All of these reasons and more will bring people into therapy.
Therapy is time set aside by you and the therapist to explore what has brought you to therapy. This might include talking about life events (both past and present), feelings, conscious worries, relationships, ways of thinking or patterns of behaviour. The therapist will help you to develop a clearer and deeper understanding of your situation, and to identify the appropriate course of action for you – either to help you resolve your difficulties or find better ways of coping.
Some people use the terms “counselling” and “psychotherapy” inter-changeably. While there is considerable overlap between the two, there are important differences. The therapist will want to be sure that what they offer is appropriate to you before there is any commitment and he/she will be happy to explain his/her approach. “Counselling” is a relatively short-term process which is suitable when your main focus is the resolution of a particular difficulty or situation affecting you in the present. Some examples are: bereavement, coping with a significant life change life eg: redundancy or the end of a relationship, a bullying situation or work problem, anger issues. “Psychotherapy” is a longer process which helps you understand the deeper roots of a problematic situation which is more generalised, in order to develop broader and deeper resourcefulness within yourself. Some examples include: generalised or specific anxiety, depression, relationship problems, low self esteem which is long established, eating distress, addiction or unresolved trauma. Both counselling and psychotherapy involve a contractual arrangement in which a therapist meets a client, in privacy and in confidence, to deal with the distress that has brought the individual into therapy and help you to find ways to live your life more fully and to experience greater freedom and self acceptance. For more information click here.
CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) is a collaborative, practical and problem-focussed approach to personal problems whereby both the client and therapist work together towards understanding problems in terms of the relationship between thoughts, feelings and behaviour. The more actively involved the client is in this goal-orientated process, the better the outcome. Treatment is often action-orientated, with specific technique-driven, brief, direct and time-limited exercises for specific psychological disorders. For more information click here.
The Counselling and Psychotherapy profession in not yet fully regulated. So it is very important that you choose a therapist who is fully qualified, fully accredited (to practitioner level) and is experienced, especially in the area that concerns your personal issue. In Arduna, every therapist is interviewed and examined in detail to ensure:
• Full qualifications, usually to Masters Degree (or equivalent)
• Full accreditation with a recognised and reputable professional organisation with its own code of ethics and practice
• A minimum of five years experience as a therapist
• In addition, any therapist in Arduna who works in a specialist area eg relationships, addiction, children/adolescents, family, has a specific training in that area
Please feel free to check these details on any therapist in Arduna – this website is designed to help you discover all such details on the therapist you may attend.
No. Arduna operates as a referral agency and a provider of facilities for professional counsellors, psychotherapists and psychologists who work independently from Arduna Ltd. This means that, once Arduna has made the referral to the independent contracted therapist, the legal and professional relationship is between the practitioner and the client. This also means that Arduna Ltd or any of its centre/administration staff have no access to confidential information.
Each session will be about 50 minutes. How long you may have to continue attending depends on many factors ie: the nature and depth of the issue which brings you to therapy, the type of outcome you desire, your own willingness and motivation to change etc. In other words, each client’s situation is unique. The therapist will be happy to discuss this with you in the first session and will be happy to agree to review and evaluate with you on a regular basis in relation to this and any other issue. Most therapists will suggest an initial number of sessions, usually six. This will enable the therapist to get to know you and your circumstances in more detail and give you an opportunity to become more relaxed and more open in talking about your difficulties in therapy.
Appointment times are available from 8am to 9pm Monday to Friday and 8am to 6pm on Saturday and Sunday (depending on a therapist’s availability).
Our phone lines are open from 10am-4pm Monday to Friday (closed for lunch 1-1.30pm). Outside these hours you are welcome to leave a confidential message and contact number on our answer machine and you will be contacted as soon as possible. Please feel free to telephone us on (01) 833 2733 to ask any questions you would like answered or for any information you would like. Arduna’s Centre Staff will be glad to help you in any way they can.
Your appointment is your allotted time and space to speak to your therapist. Each therapist operates their own cancellation policy and will advise you of this at your first appointment.
If you have been referred by your doctor, care agency or other professional, a standard letter of acknowledgement will be sent as a matter of courtesy, stating only that you have made the appointment. Should you prefer this letter not to be sent, please inform either reception or the therapist within one day of your first appointment, and it will not be sent.
Fees vary depending on the type of therapy you are attending for. You can contact our centre staff during office hours (10am-4pm Monday to Friday, closed for lunch 1-1.30pm) and they will be happy to advise you of the relevant fee. Please note we do not have card facilities in the Centre. The fee is due at the end of each session and is payable directly to the therapist. If this does not suit alternative arrangements can be made directly with the therapist. Receipts for payment of fees can be requested from the individual therapist. The therapist will give at least one month’s notice of any change in the fee.
At Arduna we are conscious of the sensitive nature of the work that we do and, therefore, we abide by GDPR which ensures the protection and security of any personal data that Arduna holds. Arduna Ltd does not hold records or notes of the therapy sessions that are carried out between clients and therapists.
We are based at 54 Clontarf Road, Clontarf, Dublin 3, D03 R2X6. Please see our Location section on the website for more details and directions.