FAQs

  • If you're reading this, chances are you're facing challenges in your life. You may be struggling with relationships, feeling isolated, or stuck. The good news is that these feelings can be signals for the changes you need to make. In counselling, I can support you in gaining inner clarity and strength, finding solutions, and living a more meaningful life.

    As your counsellor and Internal Family Systems (IFS) practitioner, my role is to help you gain a deeper understanding of yourself by bringing to light any stumbling blocks that may be holding you back. I believe that each person holds the answers to their problems within themselves. My approach is to provide a safe and confidential space where you can freely express your thoughts, judgments, and fears. Together, we will explore your beliefs, behavioural patterns, and relationships, and I will offer tools that can empower you to bring about lasting change.

    We will work collaboratively, using a variety of techniques depending on your needs, such as guided imagery, drawing, dream work, psychodrama, attachment theory, nondual approaches and IFS. I have also completed the Foundations of Relational Life Therapy course with Terry Real, which covered the principles and techniques behind effective couples therapy.

    These are just some of the tools we can use to expand your self-awareness and understanding of the world around you (individually or as a couple), so that you can make positive changes in your life.

    It's important for you to feel comfortable in your counselling sessions, as this is key to successful therapy. You are welcome to book an assessment session where we can get to know each other before committing to working together. Building a trusting relationship is crucial, and I am here to support you every step of the way.

    My IFS/counselling fees per session: £70 individual/£110 couples. These last 50 minutes on Zoom.

    I offer a limited number of discounted concession slots to ensure that individuals who would otherwise be unable to afford counselling can still access its benefits.

    I also offer specialized consultation and supervision for IFS practitioners, psychotherapists, and counsellors who integrate nondual teachings into their work.

    Finally, I offer one-on-one nonduality and meditation mentoring. Please contact me to discuss these options further.

  • I offer eclectic psycho-spiritual counselling, which is an approach that integrates psychological and spiritual perspectives to support individuals and couples in their mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being.

    It acknowledges the interconnectedness of the mind, body, and spirit, and aims to address issues at both psychological and spiritual levels.

    In my counselling sessions, I provide a safe and supportive space for clients to explore their thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and experiences.

    I draw on a variety of therapeutic techniques, including Internal Family Systems parts work, person-centered therapy, Relational Life Therapy, attachment theory, mindfulness, meditation, sound healing, voice coaching and nondual practices to help clients gain insights, develop coping strategies, and foster self-awareness and personal growth.

    My approach to psycho-spiritual counselling is inclusive and respects individuals' diverse spiritual or religious beliefs, or lack thereof. Whether you identify as neurodivergent, are in a non-monogamous relationship, or simply want to communicate more effectively through Nonviolent Communication, I'm here to listen without assumptions. My goal is to create a safe space where you can share your authentic self.

    Whether you are seeking support for anxiety, depression, grief, relationship issues, couples therapy, or exploring deeper existential or spiritual questions, I am here to provide compassionate and non-judgmental guidance on your unique journey towards healing and self-discovery.

    I also offer specialized consultation and supervision for IFS practitioners, psychotherapists, and counsellors who integrate nondual teachings into their work.

    Finally, I offer one-on-one nonduality and meditation mentoring. Please contact me to discuss these options further.

  • I have extensive training and experience working with people across a broad spectrum of psychological and spiritual challenges. I am particularly interested in early developmental trauma resulting in complex PTSD, anxiety, depression, emotional regulation challenges, attachment wounds and difficult relationships to food and body image. I am also interested in legacy burdens, ancestral trauma, personal and collective unconscious (based on Carl Jung’s work), somatic interventions (e.g. dance therapy), spiritual wounding, interlocking systems of domination and couples counselling.

    I have completed the Foundations of Relational Life Therapy course with Terry Real, which covered the principles and techniques behind effective couples therapy.

    I utilize Internal Family Parts (IFS) Cards (http://www.inneractivecards.com/) which can help clients to visualize different aspects of their personality.

    Additionally, I specialize in psychological trauma affecting the voice such as performance anxiety, throat constriction and stammering/stuttering.

    As a trained voice coach, I work with difficult emotions held in the body that can block your true voice and authentic expression. This can show up as a critical inner voice that inhibits your natural desire to express yourself fully.

    I combine simple yoga poses and breathing exercises with IFS parts work to work with the parts that struggle to vocalize.

    The aim of voice therapy is to welcome parts of us that avoid being heard and give them a chance to express, to free their voice from the past, and reconnect to their love of vocal creativity, spontaneous joy and living in the moment.

    I also offer specialized consultation and supervision for IFS practitioners, psychotherapists, and counsellors who integrate nondual teachings into their work.

    Finally, I offer one-on-one nonduality and meditation mentoring. Please contact me to discuss these options further.

  • IFS offers a powerful, non-pathologizing approach honouring the wisdom within you. It provides key insights and skills to resolve inner conflicts, manage emotional triggers, and create lasting positive change.

    IFS reveals we all have a community of sub-personalities, or "parts," living within us. Some parts may protect us from pain while others hold onto past traumas. By learning to compassionately engage with these parts, we can transform our inner world.

    IFS allows us to understand our parts rather than fighting them. Instead of suppressing difficult emotions and memories, we can learn to address core wounds driving these protective parts.

    Through IFS, we learn that our essence, called Self, has the compassionate ability to thank our parts for trying to help while allowing them to gently let go of burdens and showing them newer, healthier ways to heal with their innate gifts and wisdom. This inner work can lead to deep integration and wholeness.

  • What is nonduality?

    Nonduality is a term from Sanskrit meaning 'not two' (Advaita: a = not; dvaita = two). It is a philosophical and spiritual concept that emphasizes the fundamental oneness and interconnectedness of all things. It challenges the perception of a separate and individual self, suggesting that reality is a seamless and unified whole. In the context of healing, nonduality offers a unique perspective and approach to understanding and addressing psychological and emotional challenges.

    Nonduality recognizes that suffering often arises from our identification with a limited and separate sense of self. We tend to create divisions and judgments in our minds, which can lead to feelings of isolation, fear, and dissatisfaction. By exploring the principles of nonduality, individuals can gain insight into the nature of this separate self and begin to shift their perspective towards a more inclusive and interconnected worldview.

    Healing in the context of nonduality

    This involves the recognition that our struggles and challenges are not isolated occurrences but are interconnected with the larger fabric of existence. By understanding that our personal experiences are inseparable from the collective human experience, we can develop compassion, acceptance, and a deeper sense of empathy. This shift in perception can contribute to emotional healing and personal growth.

    Nonduality encourages individuals to explore the nature of their thoughts, emotions, and beliefs without judgment or attachment. By cultivating mindfulness and self-enquiry, one can observe the arising and passing of mental and emotional phenomena, recognizing their transient and impermanent nature. This understanding can lead to a reduction in suffering and a greater sense of peace and well-being.

    Nonduality invites individuals to transcend good/bad thinking and embrace the paradoxes and contradictions inherent in life. It encourages the integration of opposing forces, such as light and dark, joy and sorrow, and love and fear. This integration can foster a more holistic and balanced approach to healing, acknowledging and embracing the entirety of human experience.

    Nonduality complements and expands upon existing therapeutic modalities, offering a broader perspective that can enhance the healing process. Each individual's journey towards healing is unique, and non-duality provides an additional tool for self-discovery, self-acceptance, and inner transformation.

    Client-practitioner relationship: Seeing through the eyes of love

    The nondual understanding allows the practitioner to see the client through the eyes of unconditional love. When the client feels seen for who the truly are, profound transformation takes place. This kind of relational connection becomes a portal for the client to see themselves clearly, transcending the layers of limiting beliefs that had prevented them from realizing their inherent perfection. Experiencing this relational, embodied, warm, safe, and unconditionally loving positive regard is immensely healing. It goes beyond the intellectual realm of reading books and delves deep into the core of one’s being.

    We carry wounds in relationship, and it is in relationship that we find healing. I find immense joy in witnessing the palpable power of this process in my practice, as I observe the frozen armour of negative beliefs melting away, allowing for a softening and a child-like smile to emerge. Being in the presence of unconditional love (whether it's from a friend, therapist, loved one, pet, or even a tree) holds immense value. When we are witnessed and recognized for our inherent beauty, healing becomes a joyful journey.

    Holding space

    Nonduality allows the practitioner to hold space for another with the understanding that all beings already exist within the great perfection that is our shared true nature. There is no need to fix anyone, for we are all expressions of the same sacred unity.

    The practitioner holds spaces as awareness, boundless and free of agenda. We meet the client in openness and compassion, not clouded by judgments of brokenness. Our role is to be a clear mirror, reflecting back their wholeness so they may remember who they truly are.

    As we listen deeply with an unguarded heart, we allow our client the freedom to unfold in their own way and timing. We allow our presence to be the healing energy and offer interventions only where appropriate or necessary. We recognize there is great wisdom within each soul. Our task is not to give strict advice or dictate the client’s path, but to hold the space for our client to access their own inner guidance.

    Nondual practitioners let go of desired outcomes, allowing unforeseen blessings to emerge. We do not cling to how things should be but rather intuitively tap into an eclectic approach that allows new possibilities to reveal themselves in the stillness. Holding space with patience and trust allows insight to dawn like the morning sun after a long night. Sometimes healing comes through tears. Sometimes it comes through silence. We trust the mystery of each soul's journey, as we walk alongside them as a reminder of their wholeness, already complete just as they are.

    Interconnectedness and ancestral wounds within healing

    Our cellular life begins in the womb of our grandmother, revealing the deep unity between us across generations. Though we may appear separate in form, at the deepest level we share an intergenerational consciousness - we are interconnected expressions of the same life force. When we honour our intrinsic unity with all our ancestors, we touch the infinite web of life that links us beyond time and space. Healing one strand sends ripples through the whole. As we mend wounds in our own hearts, we help mend ancestral wounds passed down through our family, inner and outer. Across time, our consciousness is one, eternally emerging from the same source. To heal is to realize there was never any separation - only the ephemeral forms of one interconnected family, whatever our blood or name. The more we embrace this unity, the more love flows through our entire ancestral tree.

  • A therapeutic approach integrating nondual awareness and somatic experiencing with the IFS model. It recognizes an omnipresent Self manifesting as both particle and wave concomitantly, with the wave-state of Self present as an ongoing reality not limited to meditative or altered states. Nondual IFS views parts as expressions of underlying awareness rather than separate entities, addresses multiple aspects of psyche simultaneously, and extends healing to collective levels, acknowledging universal interconnectedness.

    More details here: Nondual IFS.

  • PhD Psychophysics awarded by University of Manchester, UK.

    Advanced Listening Qualification awarded by the Counselling and Psychotherapy Central Awarding Body, UK.

    Diploma in Counselling and Spiritual Care awarded by the Institute of Counselling, UK.

    Sound Therapy and Voice Therapy awarded by The Sound Healing Academy.

    Internal Family Systems Level 1 awarded by IFS Institute.

    Foundations of Relational Life Therapy course - principles and techniques behind effective couples therapy, awarded by Relational Life Institute (Terry Real).

    Ordained spiritual minister and metaphysics scholar (UK).

    I attend regular supervision which is a legal requirement for all practising counsellors in the UK. I also attend regular Continuing Professional Development events and follow the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and Data Protection Bill for all my record keeping.

    I am an accredited member of ACCPH (0002508): https://www.accph.org.uk/england/manchester-england-uk/therapists-and-coaches/laura-patryas

  • I offer specialized consultation for IFS practitioners, psychotherapists, and counsellors who integrate nondual teachings into their work. My services are particularly valuable if you:

    1. Need support in guiding clients to attune to Self (presence/awareness)

    2. Have clients grappling with profound existential or nondual questions

    3. Wish to deepen your understanding and application of nondual IFS principles

    My consultation services include:

    • One-on-one sessions to discuss your cases and enhance your nondual IFS practice

    • Joint sessions with you and your client to demonstrate techniques or address complex situations

    • Guidance on integrating nondual awareness into your therapeutic approach

    Please email me to discuss your specific needs and how we can work together to enhance your therapeutic practice.

  • Are you curious about or feeling stuck in your meditation, mindfulness, or contemplative practice? As a spiritual teacher, I offer personalized mentoring to help you transcend limitations and deepen your nondual awareness.

    My approach integrates:

    * Wisdom gleaned from decades of intensive meditation practice

    * Practical strategies for overcoming common challenges

    * Gentle guidance in recognizing and abiding in your innate awareness

    I support practitioners at all levels:

    * Beginners striving to establish a consistent practice

    * Experienced meditators looking to expand their understanding

    * Anyone seeking to:

    - Refine their meditation techniques

    - Seamlessly integrate mindfulness into daily life

    - Explore the profound depths of nondual awareness

    - Navigate and make sense of challenging experiences or insights

    Reach out via email to explore how we can work together on your journey towards awakening and self-realization.

  • This will vary from person to person. It’s usual to aim for six sessions initially with a review at the end to determine whether further sessions are required.

    Normally, we will meet in person or on-line (via Zoom) weekly or bi-monthly. Sessions last 50 minutes.

  • I abide by the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) & The National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society (NCS) ethical guidelines for respecting client confidentiality.

  • Our initial session will give you the opportunity to see if we are a good fit and whether you would like us to work together. We will discuss what brings you to counselling and what you hope to achieve. I will also ask you questions about yourself and your history. Should I feel that your needs can be better met by another practitioner or type of counselling, I will discuss that with you.

  • Your appointments are important as they are a commitment to yourself. If you need to cancel, please let me know 48 hours ahead of our session, if not the full fee will be payable.