Kirsty Bunce Counselling
Getting Started
The first step is to make contact either by phone or email via the contact details provided. We will then have a cost-free, obligation free phone chat to see if we might work well together.
If you decide to go ahead with therapy we will book a first session, either face to face or online.
At your first session you will be given information about session length and frequency, confidentiality and cancellation policy.
You will also be given information about what I can offer you as your therapist, and be asked about what you would like to get from therapy, your hopes, your goals and perhaps your fears.
During sessions you will be encouraged to explore the problems you are struggling with, and express your associated thoughts and feelings.
Your counselling process and your experience of counselling will be unique to you, and will be dependent on your own aims for the sessions, and the commitment you make to this sometimes painful, but extremely rewarding process.
Common Reasons People Come To Therapy
Anxiety, Overthinking and Emotional Reactivity
You may find your mind constantly busy — replaying conversations, anticipating problems or struggling to switch off. Anxiety can feel exhausting and isolating.
Together, we identify the thought patterns and nervous system responses driving it, and use practical strategies (including CBT where helpful) to reduce overthinking and restore steadiness.
Trauma and Difficult Past Experiences
Some experiences do not fully settle, even years later. You might feel triggered, hypervigilant, emotionally numb or deeply self-critical without fully understanding why.
Trauma-informed therapy helps process what has felt overwhelming — whether a single incident or developmental experiences that shaped how safe you feel in relationships.
Family Struggles and Narcissistic Dynamics
Growing up with a narcissistic, emotionally unavailable or unpredictable parent can leave lasting effects — difficulty trusting yourself, over-responsibility, people-pleasing or chronic guilt.
Sibling conflict, step-family tensions or fractured family relationships can also carry deep emotional impact. Therapy provides space to untangle these dynamics, strengthen boundaries and rebuild a more stable sense of self.
Low Self-Worth, Perfectionism and Imposter Feelings
You may appear capable and competent, yet internally feel “not good enough.” Harsh self-criticism, fear of failure or a constant drive to achieve often have deeper roots.
We work both cognitively and emotionally — shifting unhelpful beliefs while addressing the underlying experiences that shaped them.
Relationship Difficulties and Breakdown
You may notice repeating patterns in relationships — withdrawing, over-functioning, conflict that escalates quickly or difficulty trusting.
Sometimes relationships reach a crisis point or break down altogether, leaving grief, confusion or loss of identity. Therapy can help you understand the dynamic, process the emotional impact and move forward with clarity.
Loneliness and Disconnection
Even when surrounded by others, you may feel alone. Loneliness can be particularly painful for high-functioning adults who are used to being the strong one.
Therapy offers a space where you are seen and understood — and where we explore how to build deeper, more secure connection in your life.
Depression and Loss of Direction
Low mood can show up as flatness, lack of motivation, irritability or quiet hopelessness. Sometimes it follows a specific loss or life event; sometimes it feels harder to define.
Together, we explore both practical strategies and deeper meaning — helping you regain momentum and emotional vitality.
Chronic Illness and Ongoing Health Challenges
Living with chronic illness, pain or hormonal changes can impact identity, confidence and emotional wellbeing.
Therapy can support you in navigating uncertainty, frustration and loss — while strengthening resilience and self-compassion.
Stress, Burnout and High Responsibility
Many clients I work with carry significant professional or family responsibility. You may feel outwardly successful but inwardly depleted.
Therapy provides space to recalibrate, address unhelpful patterns of over-functioning and prevent long-term emotional exhaustion.
Types Of Therapy
Individual Therapy
Individual Therapy Life can feel overwhelming at times. You might be navigating a specific difficulty, or simply carrying a sense that something isn’t quite right. Individual therapy offers a space that is entirely yours, where you can begin to understand what’s...
Clinical Supervision
Clinical Supervision in Farnham, Surrey Reflective, Integrative and Trauma-Informed Supervision for Therapists Supervision should be more than oversight. It should be a thoughtful, containing space where you can reflect deeply on your work, develop clinical clarity...
Couples Therapy
Couples Therapy in Farnham, Surrey Thoughtful, Structured Support for Relationships Under Strain Most couples don’t seek therapy because they don’t love each other. They come because something has become stuck — conflict that goes in circles, distance that feels...
Trauma Therapy
Trauma Therapy in Farnham, Surrey Compassionate, Evidence-Based Support for Trauma, PTSD and Relational Wounds Not all trauma looks dramatic. Many of the clients I work with are capable, thoughtful adults who function well in their careers and relationships — yet...
EMDR Therapy
EMDR Therapy in Farnham, Surrey Trauma Therapy for PTSD, Anxiety and High-Functioning Adults If you are looking for EMDR therapy in Farnham, Woking, Guildford or the wider Surrey area, you may be someone who appears to cope well on the outside — yet internally feels...
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
At times, it can feel as though you are stuck in patterns that repeat themselves, no matter how much insight you have. You may understand why you feel the way you do, but still find yourself reacting in the same ways, thinking the same thoughts, or feeling overwhelmed...
How I Work - More About Kirsty
Who I Am – About Kirsty
I am someone who has been deeply interested in psychological and social dynamics since my teens. I have always been curious about what shapes people — how family systems, social expectations and early relationships quietly influence the way we experience ourselves and others.
Significant life changes of my own led me, at one point, to pause and unravel parts of my identity in order to understand myself more deeply. That process strengthened not only my self-awareness, but also my commitment to understanding the complexity of other people’s inner worlds. It deepened my respect for how layered, resilient and adaptive we all are.
I bring nearly 20 years of clinical experience working with individuals, couples and young people across a range of settings. For 10 of those years, I was also a lecturer and trainer in counselling and psychotherapy, supporting the development of trainee therapists. Teaching sharpened my clinical thinking and strengthened my ability to hold complexity while communicating clearly and practically.
I am an integrative therapist, trained in Person-Centred Therapy, CBT, Transactional Analysis and Existential Therapy. Over time, my work has increasingly specialised in trauma-informed therapy. I pay close attention to attachment patterns, nervous system regulation, shame dynamics and the relational space between therapist and client.
Alongside my core therapeutic training, I am also a trained yoga teacher. While I do not teach, this training enriched my understanding of the mind–body connection and the importance of nervous system regulation — something that now informs the way I work with stress, trauma and emotional resilience.
I believe therapy works best when warmth and clarity sit alongside one another. People need emotional safety — and they also need thoughtful direction.
You will meet me as a real person: professional, grounded and present — not distant, and not overwhelmed by complexity