If you’ve arrived here, you may be feeling stuck, sad, anxious, lost and alone. Perhaps you've been struggling for some time and are wondering if therapy might help you.

Life is often difficult and can feel daunting. This is especially true during periods of change, transition, stress and upheaval.

Beginning a new job or leaving an old one, starting a university course, preparing for retirement, moving to a new city, coming to terms with illness, losing an important relationship, these are all significant transitions that evoke feelings of sadness, anger, fear and loneliness and can give rise to anxiety and depression.

These major life events disrupt familiar routines and support structures and may leave you feeling cast adrift, insecure, and overwhelmed. If this resonates with your current experiences, then you may also feel isolated from friends, irritable, low in confidence and lacking purpose and motivation.

Perhaps you're noticing that your usual coping strategies are no longer working for you. You may feel stuck, confused, worried about the future and wondering where to turn to for help.

Times of great stress and upheaval in our personal lives and in the world around us can stir up troubling memories of past, painful events. When this happens, you may experience strong emotional and physical responses.  You may find yourself crying or getting angry, seemingly for no reason. You may feel restless, depressed, fatigued and lacking interest in things you previously enjoyed.  Perhaps your sleep is disturbed, possibly you're experiencing vivid dreams, nightmares or intrusive thoughts.  You may be struggling to make sense of what's happening and seeking the support of therapist who will bear witness to your story, accompany you on your healing journey and offer insight and guidance as you work through your present difficulties.

At such times in life, it is not unusual to experience self-doubt. You may be feeling directionless, powerless and uncertain about what is next for you . Your resilience and confidence in your ability to cope may feel depleted. Your sense of who you are  and how you would like to be in the world feels undermined by recent or past events resurfacing. You may be looking for therapy to help you get back on track and wanting to find out more.

Often starting in childhood and compounding over time, stresses in your relationships, community and environment can cause your wellbeing and sense of belonging to feel depleted and worn-down. This can create a profound sense of loneliness, dislocation and sensitivity to rejection.  Perhaps you would like to change this and unsure where to begin, you are wondering about giving therapy a try.

If you have arrived here to research therapy options or because you've decided you would like some support to figure things out.  I hope that you will stay on the site, read more about beginning therapy and my approach and when you are ready, please reach out to arrange a free consultation.

Some reasons you might start psychotherapy with me   

  • You’re finding it difficult to cope with pressures at home, work or university and would like support to get back on track.
  • Your confidence has been undermined, you feel held back from achieving your goals in life and would like help to address this.
  • You wish to work on setting and maintaining healthy boundaries in your work, study or personal life.
  • You are struggling with a loss, career setback, bereavement or relationship break-up and would like help to process this.
  • Anxiety and low self-esteem are stopping you from socialising, forming new relationships or achieving your potential and you   would like to explore underlying causes in order to change this.
  • You notice the same unhelpful or self-defeating patterns keep repeating and would like to change this.
  • You find yourself procrastinating and struggle to make progress with important assignments, creative work or career decisions.
  • You feel stressed, overwhelmed or burned out and you want help to step back, re-assess and rebuild.
  • Painful past experiences are preventing you from enjoying your life in the present.
  • You'd like a botter understanding of yourself, how you became the way you are, and to enhance your relationship with yourself, others and the world.

A bit about me and what I can offer you 

I'm Karen Nolan a BACP registered psychotherapist at KN Psychotherapy and Wellbing.

I offer a safe, confidential and respectful space, where you will feel heard, accepted and supported to achieve the changes that you want for yourself.  I bring compassion, curiosity, creativity and care to our therapeutic relationship .  In addition to a formal qualification in transactional analysis psychotherapy, I bring skills developed and honed over many years experience supporting people to work through a wide range of difficulties. This includes working with career setbacks, social anxiety, issues of identity, relationship breakdowns, family disputes,  professional disagreements, illness, bereavement and loss.

I have many years experience working with neurodivergent clients, especially adults with ADHD and this along with childhood trauma and Complex PTSD is an area of special interest for me..

I work psychodynamically, using transactional analysis.  This relational approach can be particularly helpful, if you are seeking to process painful or traumatic events, develop a stronger sense of self, enhance your relationships with others and build a more autonomous and fulfilling life in the present.

My therapeutic work is also informed by further learning I have undertaken in attachment theory and groupwork.  My ongoing, advanced training in group analysis has further enhanced my theoretical understanding of human development, sibling and family dynamics and dreamwork.  I find group analytic theory and skills are useful and applicable in both my group and individual work.

I value creativity and have a long-held belief that creative practices play a vital role in our sense of wellbeing and personal growth.  If you share this belief, please contact me to explore how we might incorporate creative work, such as journaling, mark-making and photography to support your therapy.

Based in Wigan, Greater Manchester,  I work predominantly online with people from across England and Wales and have some availability for in-person therapy in either Wigan or Bolton.  This is my offer:

  • Individual online psychotherapy.
  • Individual in-person therapy.  I have a limited number of spaces for weekly in-person sessions in Wigan or Bolton
  • Group therapy in-person in Bolton, Greater Manchester and online.
  • Therapeutic dream-sharing groups.  Online and in-person options available.

Therapy with me offers you a space to pause, process, reflect, recharge, connect and recover your creativity, confidence and sense of self.  I will listen, offer support and encourage you to make the changes you want for yourself . I will invite you to explore what's happening in your life, make links between past and present, gain new perspectives and insights, and find a way forward that feels authentic, compatible with your values and relevant to who you are and how you would like to be in the world now.

Journey together

If any of this resonates with your current situation, the difficulties you're experiencing and your reasons for seeking therapy,  then you're in the right place to begin your therapy journey.  Starting to think about how you might sort things out, although it feels daunting, can bring a huge sense of relief. Psychotherapy is not a magic wand, however therapy with me does offer a space to think and a scaffold to support you as you take your first steps creating your life as it might be, if your current difficulties were eased.

As your therapist, I will be there to accompany you on your journey, supporting you to process your feelings, gain clarity, explore possibilities and discover new ways of being.

I am an ethical practitioner, a registered member of BACP (British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy), member of ITAA (International Transactional Analysis Association). I am also a student member of the IGA (Institute of Group Analysis). If you would like to talk to me about beginning therapy, please get in touch to arrange a confidential, online consultation or continue exploring the site to find out more about me and how I work.