I had planned to increase my session prices from £45 to £50 from the 1st October 2022. However, I have held back from doing so and have actually come to the decision to put a hold on this for the time being.
Why have I made this decision?
The cost of oil is at a premium, gas prices have gone up, the cost of food has rocketed, interest rates have increased, mortgages are costing more. Need I go on?
These are the headlines that dominate the news. Usually, I am pretty good at shielding myself from a barrage of negativity, but now I find myself feeling increasingly worried. Like most people, I’m thinking about what I spend and how I can cut back.
I am a busy working Mum of young children. To say my time is at a premium is an understatement! I had been contemplating getting a cleaner to ease the burden but now with the cost of living crisis, it’s a cost I could do without, and I have decided to solder on.
Soldering on with our mental health and wellbeing
We all have times in life where we will struggle. Yet what happens when you find it hard to justify spending the money to get help? Sometimes it can feel like a selfish thing to focus on you. I can assure you however taking measures to improve our mental health is never a selfish thing.
Whilst there is counselling via the NHS thought the IAPT service (Improving Access to Psychological Therapies), this service is heavily oversubscribed, and many are not deemed “bad enough” to access one to one counselling. This is when we might consider private therapy, but this costs money at a time when there is real financial pressure. So, we decide to solder on.
Soldering on when life is tough can see us pushing our difficulties to one side, but they don’t go away. We may feel increasingly unable to cope, overwhelmed and stressed. Using the analogy of a pan of boiling water, we get to the point where the level of water is bubbling perilously close to the top and it doesn’t take much for us to boil over.
Yet I am conscious many of us are walking around feeling very close to the point of boiling over. I genuinely want to help but I am aware that paying for counselling may feel like a stretch.
Price freeze
Pricing any kind of service is tricky. Overpricing means you put some people off because they can’t afford it, yet under-pricing sees people thinking you won’t be very good.
At £45 per session, I am utterly confident in saying I offer good value for money. I am a professional businesswoman who practises with the highest of ethics and standards. My clients experience me as a good listener with warmth, understanding, and compassion. In fact, a client who recently finished her counselling journey said:
“I’m very grateful to Gemma for how you have helped me at a time when I felt almost hopeless. I never felt judged or uncomfortable by/with you. I felt empathy and like you truly wanted to help. Thank you.”
What does this mean for you?
I am freezing my prices because I want to keep counselling accessible to as many people as possible. If you look at the price of counselling in the local area you will see my prices are very reasonable, and what’s more, you will get a great service.
If you are struggling, please don’t feel like you must solder on. Please know I am here to help you. You can get in contact via my website www.gemmaantcliffe-counselling.co.uk.