Counselling and Psychotherapy in Sidcup & Dulwich
Let’s start feeling more compassion towards ourselves
Welcome, and thank you for visiting my website. My name is Karlene Golding and I am an integrative therapist providing both short and long-term therapy to adult individuals and couples/ people seeking support in their relationships, in Sudcup, East Dulwich and online.
What is Therapy?
It may seem to you like the answer should be obvious, but often people come to therapy not knowing what the space is truly for. Therapy is different for everyone, and how you choose to use it will be unique to you. You may be finding life difficult to cope with and require some support, or you may simply be seeking a space where the focus is on you, to explore whatever is coming up for you in your life. Perhaps you seek therapy with a partner, sibling or friend, to try and work through some of the communication issues you are both experiencing. I see therapy as a potentially meaningful journey of self-discovery, as well as a way to help alleviate personal suffering. It is not about offering advice, but rather, it is about supporting you to potentially find the answers that feel right for you, through self-exploration. There may be patterns of behaviour that you are engaged in that you don't really understand, and that seem to be unhelpful in meeting your current needs. We can explore these dynamics together, and try to understand more about them. We can also look at how you communicate with others, and the dynamics at play in those relationships. See my article below to read a bit more about what therapy is and how it might help you.
I have experience of working with various issues, including anxiety, depression, difficulties relating to self-esteem, shame and guilt, identity, attachment and relationship issues. I can offer a space that may feel safe enough to explore some of these emotions and experiences, or other difficulties you may be facing in your life.
I work in an integrative way, meaning that I draw on different therapeutic models, depending on the individual needs of my clients. Whether meeting in person or online, this will be your space, and we will work together in a way that feels right for both of us/all of us. Often the work involves talking together, but sometimes use of writing, imagery and even movement can be helpful. Connecting with our bodies is important too - they may tell us things that we cannot easily process cognitively, and anxiety can often show itself through sensations in our bodies.
Alongside my therapeutic training, I have worked in the finance industry for over 18 years. I recognise the stresses people can feel when trying to cope with emotional and/or mental health issues in the workplace, and the discomfort of deciding whether or not to disclose these. Society has come a long way in recognising mental health issues and neurodiversity, and working to eradicate the stigma attached to them, but there is further work to do. Therapy can offer a space to explore difficulties you may be experiencing in this area.
Whilst I work with many issues and experiences, I am particularly drawn to helping clients explore feelings of self-doubt and even shame in themselves. These feelings are often associated with parts of oneself that we have discarded in some way (usually unconsciously), as they once felt unacceptable to us. Therapy can help people to uncover these parts of ourselves that we have devalued in some way. This can enable us to start feeling more compassion for ourselves, and increase our self-confidence.
How we relate to others, as well as ourselves, is also something I feel passionate about and can help you to work with, either individually or with your partner/friend/sibling etc. Perhaps you are experiencing a stormy relationship and volatile relationships are familiar to you. We can look together at the dynamics involved, and what pulls you to react as you do in certain situations.
"Karlene was calm, kind, non-judgemental, but most of all an extremely skilled therapist."
Confidential client 'M'
About Me
I am an integrative therapist who understands what it can feel like to struggle with strong emotions and to have difficulty managing one's mental health. I have experienced this in the past, and the process of working through those struggles has been integral in making me the therapist I am today. My own personal experience allows me to empathise with my clients in a particular way. Sometimes the difficulties people face are complex, and there can be judgement that overlays the experience, making it even more difficult to navigate, understand and accept. I am able to work with people in ways that can help support them to make sense and alleviate some of the self-judgement around their mental health and/or emotional difficulties (something I see a lot of in my work). Having worked deeply with my own sense of toxic shame at points in my life, I feel able to hold the therapeutic space for my clients in the face of what they may feel to be very frightening, shameful and/or confusing experiences. I am able to hold what comes up for me and process it internally while holding the space too. I don't just rely on my training to give me confidence in this. I also rely on my own experience of learning to bear and accept, over time, what once felt like contemptible parts of me. Having processed and learnt to own such debilitating toxic shame in myself allows me to hold the shame of my clients in the therapeutic space. This can be powerful for people - it can enable a sense of safety that allows them to bring whatever needs to be brought into the space, perhaps with a sense that it won't be too much for either/any of us - that it can be welcomed, held and processed, even if it isn’t easy to be with.
My Training
My therapeutic training journey began in 2008, where I completed an introductory certificate in psychoanalytic psychotherapy, at the former London Centre for Psychotherapy in London. I followed this with a foundations of Analytical Psychology certificate at the Society of Analytical Psychology, and went on to complete 2 years of a diploma in integrative transpersonal counselling at Re-Vision. I later retrained at The Awareness Centre in Clapham, where I completed a diploma in integrative counselling - fully qualifying me to work in private practice. I have also completed a practitioner certificate in creative writing for therapeutic purposes at the Metanoia institute and a certificate in couple and relationship counselling at the Grove Practice.
I have worked therapeutically with clients at Re-Vision's Low Cost Counselling Service, ACT in Bromley (formerly BCCS) and LCCS at The Awareness Centre. I have also worked in the NHS' IAPT service. I am currently working privately at Dulwich Therapy Rooms in East Dulwich and also in Sidcup- offering face-to-face, online sessions and telephone sessions.
Diploma in Attachment-based Psychotherapy (To begin September 2025 - Optima Health)
Completed:
COSRT-accredited Certificate in Couple/relationship Therapy Level 5 - passed with merit (The Grove Practice, 2025)
Group Facilitation Programme - completion of all modules (The Gestalt Centre, 2025)
Essentials of Trauma Therapy (self-study certificate - The Grove Practice, 2024)
Diploma in Integrative Counselling (The Awareness Centre, 2024)
Practitioner Certificate in Creative Writing for Therapeutic Purposes (Metanoia Institute, 2019)
Stages 1 and 2 of 3-stage Diploma in Transpersonal Integrative Counselling (Re-Vision, 2018)
Foundation Certificate in Analytical Psychology (Society of Analytical Psychology, 2010)
Introductory Certificate in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy (2009)
Testimonial
"I was going through a troubling time after the epidemic and the lockdowns, which I had found very hard. I started seeing Karlene, hoping to deal with the troubles that were at the 'surface' level of my day-to-day thinking.
Karlene was calm, kind, non-judgemental, but most of all an extremely skilled therapist. It turns out that the troubles that were at the 'top level' of my brain were that - only the surface. I hadn't been able to see this myself, but Karlene, very carefully and gently, helped me to unpick this. There were layers to my issues, going back decades, which we began to peel back. I came to an understanding of certain events that had taken place in the past that were colouring my experience of the present.
Having this understanding is hugely helpful - I now have the ability to watch my own thought processes and understand when they are going down certain avenues coloured by past experiences, and to redirect where necessary.
I cannot recommend Karlene enough. Sometimes it is simply not possible to see beyond our own day-to-day thinking patterns to begin to understand why we experience life or certain situations the way we do, without the help of a skilled 'other'. For me, Karlene was exactly what I needed at that point in time, and I cannot thank her enough."
Confidential client 'M'
My Locations - Sidcup & Dulwich
Woodside Wellness Rooms, Sidcup
I see clients at both the Woodside Wellness Centre in Sidcup and Dulwich Therapy Rooms in East Dulwich.
Woodside Wellness Rooms:
I see clients on Friday evenings and Saturday mornings. Online and telephone sessions are also available most days.
Dulwich Therapy Rooms:
I see clients on Wednesday evenings and Sundays. Online and telephone sessions are also available most days.
Fees & Availability
I offer a free 15-minute phone call to briefly discuss what you are looking to gain from therapy, and to establish whether we both wish to begin working together. For relationship counselling I offer a 20-minute video call.
My Fee:
Individuals -
£75 - £80 (depending on location) per 50-minute session.
Couples/relationship -
£85 per 50-minute session (weekly - Sidcup).
£90/£108 per 50/60-minute session (weekly - Dulwich)
£150 per 90-minute session (bi-weekly - Sidcup).
£140 per 80-minute session (bi-weekly - Dulwich).
Sessions for individuals usually take place on a weekly basis, at the same time and day each week. Fortnightly sessions are possible in some cases, but I would usually recommend beginning with weekly sessions.
Sessions for couples and other relationships tends to be either weekly or fortnightly, but weekly is usually best initially.
Articles
Judgement, Shame & The Shadow
Sometimes people seek therapy with the hope of quickly overcoming the difficulties they are facing in their lives. They may see their reactions to certain people and situations as illogical, and believe they just need to learn ways to think ‘rationally’.
What is Therapy & Can it Truly Help me?
Are you wondering exactly what
therapy is, and whether it could be helpful for you?
Get in touch
Feel free to contact me using this web form if you would like to arrange an initial 15-minute phone call. This would be to discuss the reasons you are thinking of coming to therapy and to decide whether we wish to begin working together.
All enquires are usually answered within 24 hours. All contact is strictly confidential and I use secure phone and email services.
© Karlene Golding
powered by WebHealer