Counselling & Psychotherapy
Nicholas King
LGBTQi
Recent decades have undoubtedly seen improvements in attitudes and support for LGBTQi+ issues and, as Stonewall notes, the diversity of Lesbian, gay, bi and trans communities now reaches out to include people of all ages, gender, disability, ethnic background and faiths.
Whilst the richness of diverse experience and increasing acceptance is a cause for celebration LGBTi+ people still continue to experience prejudice and discrimination and often have to cope with challenges to basic freedoms and rights taken for granted by wider society. If you have been experiencing difficulties living your life openly as a Lesbian, gay, bi or trans person it may help you to know that I regularly work with LGBTQi+ issues and am experienced in providing support for the kinds of problems you may be facing today.
Some of the LGBTQ+ issues I provide counselling for;
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Coming Out
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Discrimination
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Asylum
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Hate Crime
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Relationships
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Gender Dysphoria
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Managing the real life experience
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Support for young trans people
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Transitioning in later life
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Trans and non-binary community
"Trans and non-binary people in Britain continue to face huge levels of abuse and discrimination in all areas of their lives just for being themselves." Stonewall.org.uk
The traditional, bi-modal view of gender is coming under increasing pressure as the value of recognising personal variations in gender identity is becoming more widely understood and accepted. There is still a long way to go in challenging views that continue to favour a rigid gender dichotomy on the basis that this represents "normality". The limitations of a binary approach to gender is that it fails to make room for the spectrum of gender identities that have always existed but are now becoming more and more apparent as individuals wishing to connect authentically with their sense of self have begun to assert themselves.
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The right to live authentically
As we now know, the mismatch that can be experienced between biologically assigned sex and gender identity can be deeply distressing and for some people can only be alleviated by transitioning physical appearance in order to make it more consistent with an individual's true sense of self.
Whilst media reports have tended to focus on gender reassignment surgery as the most obvious aspect of the trans experience it is of course possible for others to identify themselves at different points on the gender spectrum and for this reason may opt for only partial reassignment or indeed none at all. Whichever individual path we might choose to take in asserting our gender identity the key component is the right to be treated equally and accepted for the gender we identify ourselves with regardless of the degree to which this corresponds or not to the biological sex assigned to us at birth.
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How I can help you
For me, LGBT and heterosexual identities are equally valid and simply part of the spectrum of sexual or gender orientations/identities that should be viewed as a basic human right and I am pleased to be able to offer LGBTQi affirmative counselling.
Whether you're currently in distress or trying to work through an issue connected with living your life fully, I can help. I'm a passionate advocate of inclusivity generally and aim to ensure that every aspect of my practice affirms the experiences of those seeking my help. As well as being aware of LGBTQi issues, I am sure you'll find me warm and respectful to your needs, and I hope that this will help you in your decision if you are currently searching for the counsellor who is right for you.
I offer a free 15 minute exploratory call so please please feel free to contact me.