Meet Tara, your person-centred counsellor.

Brighter Days are Possible

I’m Tara, and I will be your therapist at Sunray Counselling and Psychotherapy.

I started my counselling journey as a client, just like you. My world instantly changed when someone I love received a diagnosis of life-limiting illness and I had no idea how I could even start to navigate such a huge and scary change on my own. Thankfully, I didn’t have to, because my world was changed again by an amazing hospice therapist who showed me the power for change that therapy has to offer.

I knew then that I wanted to support people in emotional pain to experience the power of compassionate and ethical therapy too, and that’s how Sunray Counselling and Psychotherapy came to be.

My Training and Experience

Based in Yorkshire but offering online and telephone counselling across the UK, I am a fully qualified and insured therapist and hold membership with the British Association of Counsellors and Psychotherapists, and the National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society. I have a current enhanced DBS for working with adults.

I hold a Level 3 Certificate in Counselling Studies, a Level 4 Diploma in Therapeutic Counselling, and I am also undertaking a postgraduate MA in Counselling and Psychotherapy Practice. You can see my additional training here.

Many years ago I worked in healthcare, but more recently I worked in both charity and corporate sectors as a Communications Lead/Social Media Manager. However, counselling is where my heart is. I am genuinely interested in hearing about people’s stories and lives; to me, they bring powerful moments of genuine human connection.

I trained as a person-centred counsellor (you can read more about what this means here), but I integrate several different psychotherapeutic approaches into my practice including gently touching on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Gestalt Therapy, and Transactional Analysis. My way of working means these approaches complement the Person-Centred approach to give you a therapeutic toolbox of useful coping mechanisms and resources to support your therapy journey with me.

I have worked as a volunteer counsellor for York Women’s Counselling Service and also as a volunteer bereavement counsellor with Marie Curie. I have a strong background in counselling people to work through many different life experiences.

Areas I Work With

• emotional, physical, and sexual abuse or neglect, whether in childhood or as an adult

• bereavement, loss, and grief

• stress, anxiety, and depression

• PTSD

• guilt and shame

• complex/ongoing ill health

• family/parent carers

• identity and sexuality, particularly within the LGBTQ+ community

• neurodivergence

• menopause

• difficult family dynamics and relationships

My Approach to Therapy

Therapy is all about you and your individual experiences in life. As someone who has had therapy myself, I don't believe in 'complex clients', I believe that bad and sad things happen to people, and these things are the problem, not you as a human being. You are human first, not your trauma, or your anxiety, or your depression.

All parts of you are welcome at Sunray Counselling and Psychotherapy. Bring all the emotions and feelings to me thatyou can’t bring to others, and you will be safely held by me to explore them. I’m not here to ‘fix’ you, because I don’t believe you are broken. I’m here to meet you exactly as you are today.

Making the choice to start therapy can be a tough one. But it's a brave one. Together we can unpick where your feelings come from, and how you can start to move forward.

You don't have to carry it alone. I am here to help you.