Stella Forster, Integrative Counsellor and Psychotherapist

Supporting your mental health with empathy, understanding and expertise – In Harrogate, face-to-face and online.

Offering a safe and confidential therapeutic space, supporting a wide range of issues, such as anxiety, depression, bereavement, stress, loss, trauma and more.

Get in touch today to arrange a no-obligation 15 minute telephone consultation.

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Services

Stella Forster Counselling and Psychotherapy offers weekly and fortnightly, face-to-face or online therapy sessions. Stella draws on multiple evidence-based approaches, adapting therapy to suit you as an individual.

Please see below for more information.

  • Starting counselling can be daunting. In this initial no-obligation phone consultation you have the opportunity to ask any questions you may have about what therapy entails, discuss the what brings you to therapy and consider whether you are a good fit with Stella. Stella will explain her approach and also signpost you elsewhere if necessary. Stella aims to create a welcoming and safe space for her clients.

    ​During the consultation you and Stella will either agree upon a time period for treatment, or the contract will be left on an open-ended basis.

  • Individual personal therapy is offered to adults over the age of 18 and young people aged over 11 with parental or legal guardian consent. Treatment can be time-limited or open ended to suit a range of conditions. Treatment takes place at the Harlow, Harrogate and each session lasts 55 minutes.

    Fees are £90 per session payable by bank transfer or cash on the day of the appointment.

  • Online therapy is offered to adults over the age of 18. Research has shown that online therapy can be just as positive an experience as in-person therapy. Online therapy can suit those clients needing more flexibility with their scheduling, or for clients preferring the comfort of their own home. Sessions last 55 minutes and can be conducted by Zoom or Microsoft Teams from a computer, tablet or smartphone.

    Fees are £75 per session payable by bank transfer on the day of the appointment.

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I am a registered member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy. I am Enhanced DBS checked and fully insured.

  • I am originally from Melbourne, Australia, where I trained and worked as a solicitor. In 1997 I went back to the University of Melbourne to train as a psychologist. I moved to the UK in 2000, gaining specific UK counselling and psychotherapy qualifications from Leeds Beckett University, receiving an MA with distinction in Integrative Counselling.

    I have extensive experience in different forms of counselling for both adults and children, working at a rape-crisis centre in Australia, as a well-being coordinator at Queen Mary’s School near Thirsk, and as a psychotherapist for Just B bereavement services in Harrogate.

  • I have worked with clients experiencing anxiety, panic attacks, historical trauma, child abuse, domestic violence including coercive control, depression, suicidal ideation, PTSD, prolonged grief disorder, psychosis, intergenerational trauma, sexual assault, relational difficulties, life transition struggles, bereavement, and loss.

    Many clients have come to therapy questioning why what has worked for them in the past no longer works for them now. Together we have discovered why, enabling clients to gain new understandings and make meaningful long-term change.

  • I combine techniques from several evidence based therapeutic approaches to tailor bespoke treatment plans that address the unique lived experiences of individual clients. I use psychodynamic, humanistic, transactional analysis, Cognitive Behavioural, Narrative and Somatic therapies with a focus on assisting clients to reach their goals and achieve meaningful, long-lasting change.

    I provide a safe therapeutic space for clients to express themselves and be heard. My therapeutic relationship with clients is based on trust, authenticity, and open communication.  

Stella Forster

Integrative Counsellor and Psychotherapist, LLB, BLitt (Psychology),
PGDip Counselling and Psychotherapy,
MA Integrative Counselling

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Contact Stella Forster

To set up an initial complimentary 15-minute telephone consultation or to get in touch on another matter please complete the form below.