Tracey Johnstone

Hello my name is Tracey. I am currently studying for a level 4 diploma in therapeutic counselling focusing on person centred therapy.. I also work full time with people attending Stepping Hill A&E on a frequent basis who are facing adversity in their lives whilst also struggling with addiction or mental ill health. I quickly realised my clients have often experienced trauma in childhood and not had any support as adults which in turn led to struggles with mental health and addiction. I noticed that often my clients want to go for a walk in a local park with my dogs and just talk about how they were feeling and start to open up more about what their life experience has been and how it has impacted on their self- worth. I feel extremely privileged my clients allow me into their lives and talk to me about really difficult and challenging experiences. I have personal experience of family members struggling with depression and addiction and understand the impact this has on family of those in addiction or struggling with their mental health. I also faced my own mental health struggle when in 2012 my Mum passed away at St Anne’s hospice. After caring for her for 20 years, I found it a really difficult to cope with the void left when she died. I was offered bereavement counselling from Saint Annes hospice and can honestly say it saved my life.

Person centre therapy helped me to accept my grief and acknowledge it as part of the healing process. Having experienced person centred therapy and seeing how a simple act of walking and talking in a person centred way has a huge positive impact on my clients wellbeing, it is a natural progression for me to become a person centred therapist and to take it outdoors into nature and I am very grateful to be offered a placement as a student counsellor at Cheshire Wellness Centre to progress on my journey.