I work Monday to Thursday.

Monday and Tuesday: 10am until 2.30pm.

Wednesday and Thursday: 10am until 5pm.

Your free 15 minute call is an opportunity for us to have a brief telephone chat about your current needs, and for us both to determine whether support with me is appropriate for you.

The call is also a chance for you to see whether I am the right therapist for you. 

No absolutely not. There may be lots of reasons why you decide not to go ahead. It may be that you don't feel I am the right therapist to help you, it may not feel like the right time for you to have therapy, or it could be that the approaches I offer don't feel quite right for your needs. 

You may want to have a call with other therapists and this is OK! You are about to invest in yourself and you want to ensure you have found someone who you click with, that gets you and that makes you feel hopeful that they can help you. 

Each session after your free consultation costs £95.00 per 60 minute session.  

Take a Step Forward sessions cost £325.00 for a 3 hour package and are payable in full at the time of booking.

Payments must be made via BACS 48 hours before each session to secure your slot. If payment is not made prior to the session, I cannot confirm the slot for you. 

When you book your session, I will send you my account details. 

Treatment sessions are 60 minutes and are held remotely by video.

Following an assessment and agreeing your treatment goals, you will work toward your goals by getting an understanding of your thoughts, feelings and behaviours, how they impact each other and learn helpful strategies to change them.

If your emotional difficulties started within the last year, it is likely you will need between 6 - 12 sessions. However, if you have been experiencing difficulties for a longer period of time, it is likely you will need up to 20 sessions to see change.

The goal of CBT is to help you to understand and manage your own symptoms and the more you practise the better you will get. Building new ways of being and new habits takes consistency and to support this after each session there will be an agreed ‘homework’ or ‘skills practise’ to apply what has been learnt in the session.

After a block of therapy some people choose to attend sessions fortnightly for a period of time or alternatively an ad hoc check in session for some support and to talk through any setbacks.

EMDR sessions are either 60 or 90 minutes long depending on the stage of therapy.

Once we have agreed that EMDR is suitable, we will take a full history of your life and identify any past experiences that are linked to your current symptoms/problems and we will identify how you would like it to be different in the future.

Next we practise emotional regulation strategies so that you can feel grounded and calm inside and outside of sessions.

We will then start processing the trauma memory or memories that have been identified.

This can take from one session to many months of sessions, depending on how many adverse experiences you have been through, what you would like to work on and the nature of the trauma.

At the end of each session we use the emotional regulation strategies to reground in the here and now prior to you leaving the session.

You will also practise these at any time outside of sessions, when you need to.

EMDR can make you feel physically and emotionally tired and it is important to give yourself the time afterwards to rest and have some time for you.

For EMDR sessions, I wouldn't recommend having longer than a week in between sessions due to the nature of the therapy and what it may bring up for you between sessions.

Take a Step Forward begins with a detailed questionnaire that helps identify your primary area of concern. We use this information to shape a focused 2-hour session, during which I select and introduce the most appropriate evidence-based techniques for your needs. We will explore and practise these strategies together, ensuring you feel confident applying them.

After the session, you will receive an individualised workbook to continue your learning and reflection. A follow-up session one month later allows us to review your progress, troubleshoot any challenges, and celebrate the positive changes you’ve made.

The aim of Take a Step Forward is to offer short-term, low-intensity support grounded in evidence-based approaches, primarily Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). The emphasis is on guided self-help, supporting you to develop practical skills and build confidence in using them independently. Throughout the process, you will learn tools and strategies such as psychoeducation, problem-solving, behavioural and cognitive techniques, and meditation or journalling methods informed by a compassion-focused approach.

What you’ll learn

• Psychoeducation
  Personalised information about the psychological processes contributing to your difficulties and how they are maintained. This provides a clear rationale for the interventions we will use.

• Problem-Solving Skills
  A structured method for understanding and addressing the challenges affecting your wellbeing, helping reduce overwhelm and increase clarity.

• Behavioural and Cognitive Strategies
  Techniques for identifying unhelpful patterns and their consequences, building new habits, and increasing motivation through behavioural change. You will also learn to recognise that thoughts are not always facts and practise replacing unhelpful thinking with more balanced alternatives.

• Meditation or Journalling
  You can choose the approach that resonates most with you, and we will develop a realistic, sustainable habit that fits your lifestyle.

• Guided Self-Help
  Your personalised workbook supports ongoing learning, allowing you to apply techniques in everyday situations and return to the material whenever you need it.

STARTING - You can book a 15 minute call to clarify if me and my approach are right for you or you can go straight ahead and contact me to book your first session.

15 minute phone call - An email will be sent out to you with confirmation of your time. The email will also contain a quick questionnaire so I can have an idea of what your current symptoms/difficulties are.

This is not an assessment but a brief discussion to help you make a decision on the right option forward for you and so I can advise if therapy with me is the right option.

You can then book in a session or have a think about it.

First therapy session - You will receive an email confirmation of your session with a zoom link.

You will also receive a therapy agreement to sign and return before a session can go ahead.

You will be required to provide information including address, DOB, GP Details and next of kin. You can find out more about how this data is used and stored in my privacy policy.

CONTINUING - For therapy to be effective, appointments need to be attended regularly and effort is required to make the best use of our sessions. If there is anything going on for you that may hinder this, we can discuss this together. 

ENDING - We will discuss at the beginning how many sessions you may be likely to need and so for the majority of the time there will be a natural completion. However, circumstances change and you can stop treatment at any time for any reason.

If you cancel a session in advance, we can re-arrange this, however short-term cancellations (i.e. less than 48 hours before your appointment time) will be charged at the full session rate.

The reason for this is appointments cannot be rebooked at such short notice. We cannot book a new appointment in until the missed appointment has been paid for.

It is possible to contact me between sessions however please be aware that I am not able to respond immediately:

Email: hello@sophielongdentherapy.co.uk

Mobile: 07776 943447

Please also be aware, I am not a crisis service so if you find yourself really struggling to cope, the best support for you at this time would be the Samaritans on 116 123, you can call NHS 111, call your GP, or attend your local A&E department.