Sarah Layzell Counsellor & Psychotherapist

I qualified in 1997 with a Diploma in Existential Psychotherapy & Counselling from Regent's College London and achieved BACP accreditation in 2003. I completed couples' counselling training with Jill Gabriel in 2011 and qualified as a supervisor with CSTD Bath in 2017.

I have a MSc. in the Sociology of Health & Illness (University of London, 1990) and before becoming a full-time therapist, worked in research, specialising in mental health and disability.

My first counselling job was with Diabetes UK, helping people come to terms with their diagnosis and the changes and losses this involved. For 3 years I worked for Kinergy, providing counselling for men and women who had been raped or sexually abused, so I have particular expertise in this area.

I continue my professional development by frequently undertaking additional training, most recently focusing on Mindfulness, Attachment Theory and embodied approaches to working with trauma.

I see people - individuals and couples - with all sorts of problems, as well as those whose goal is to explore their lives further, including counsellors & psychotherapists-in-training. I am particularly interested in helping people with relationship problems, depression, stress & anxiety, loss (including loss of an animal), menopause, transitions, difficulties with food and the aftermath of sexual abuse.


Personal Influences
I am especially influenced and helped by reflective spiritual practices; especially those rooted in Buddhism and yogic traditions. I draw strength and inspiration from the natural world and am interested in the therapeutic potential of working in nature and with animals. I run for the joy of moving outside in nature and recently - like so many! - have discovered the pleasure and shivers of open water swimming