So why have I decided to call my counselling practice, The Lighthouse Counselling when I live 66 miles away from the nearest sea?
I have personally been a fan of windmills and lighthouses for many years. I find them to be pretty and fascinating. They are usually standing tall seen from quite a distance and their design is often one that makes me stop and look in awe.
In my late teens on holiday with my family in Spain, the local gift shop was selling various items made of shells, trinket boxes and other little nick-nacks. The item that struck me though was a Lighthouse. The one below. A lighthouse decorated with shells. I had to have it. It was wrapped in bubble wrap and gift wrap in the shop and I was so concerned about it getting damaged, I sat with it on the plane keeping it safe rather than packing it in the suitcase. It was so precious and somehow, despite me having moved a number of times since buying it, it's still intact. It now lives in my counselling office, behind where I sit, so you can see it if you work with me.
Great, it's a cute ornament, but where does counselling fit in?
Funny you ask that. Historically people were sent to the seaside if they were unwell, had a disease, if they were in pain or to fully recover after a bout of illness. The sea air is good for you and there are said to be healing properties of being beside the sea. People escaped to the seaside for a mini break and still do now. People were recommended to submerse themselves in the cold water and there is evidence to show that cold water swimming can help with things like depression and mental health issues in general.
I'm sort of starting to see where you're coming from, so the sea is good for you. Is that it?
There is a bit more to it. The beach is my happy place, I'll be content sitting on the beach watching and listening to the waves, taking in the salty smell of the sea, the taste of the salt on my lips when the sea breeze brings some of the water with it. It's a delight for my senses and it doesn't matter to me if it's raining, stormy, if the sea is as calm as a mill pond or crashing waves being fiercely thrown about, I love it.
So are you calling yourself a lighthouse then if you like being on the beach?
Well sort of. I have been described as calm whilst counselling, regardless of what I have been given to work with from my clients. I stand (or sit in this case) strong, sturdy and resilient. I help to shine a light on the darkness people bring, a life situation that seems to be so dark and bleak yet I shine the light into what is going on for them and guide them to find their way, by showing their thoughts and feelings.
A lighthouse is usually seen as tall, so it can be easily seen by the ships out at sea, however I am not tall, but I still liked the idea of The Lighthouse Counselling as a name. Also using just the initials of the practice, it's TLC - tender loving care.
It fits with how I am as a counsellor. I treat each client with the love they deserve as a human being.