Many people come to see me because they are feeling stuck, lost or unsatisfied with life in some way. It’s hard to see the whole picture when it’s happening to you.
You might be living with high levels of anxiety, anger, apathy or just unease. Perhaps these feelings are linked to a significant life event for example, a bereavement, a career change, a health event or your children leaving home. For others, there is just growing awareness that their life or work-place doesn’t seem to fit who they are any more.
I'm Mo Dixon, a dual-trained counsellor and coach, and I can help you to explore what’s going on for you. Together we can untangle the inner voices and behaviours that may be holding you back, think about how you want to move forward and I can help to support you through the change process.
I trained in a range of therapeutic approaches and can integrate counselling approaches and coaching techniques, depending on what seems appropriate in our work together .I also have a background as an academic psychologist and will help you develop your own inner counsellor/coach through sharing psychological knowledge.
I like to provide a calm, non-judgmental and focused environment for you to have the space and security to explore your life story. My style of working is quite interactive and our work will be a collaborative process with you taking the lead in pace and scope. Our therapeutic relationship will be a key part of our work together so it’s essential that we are a good fit. I like to connect to others with warmth, compassion and humour.
We will work collaboratively to navigate difficult feelings and situations and recognise your strengths and accomplishments with compassion and clarity.
Qualifications
• Postgraduate Diploma in Counselling and Coaching (BACP accredited)
• Postgraduate Certificate in Career Coaching and Counselling (CDI accredited)
• A Doctorate in psychology
• BSc Degree in psychology (BPS accredited)
• 15+ years of university lecturing
• 20+ years of psychological research
• Member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and Career Development Institute (CDI)
Counselling and coaching can both be helpful to gain understanding which can lead to change however each have different focuses and ways of working. Combining elements of both disciplines can help people choose and sustain changes to their lives.
In general, coaching takes a future-oriented stance towards helping people through life transitions; it tends to be more focussed around goals and is “action-oriented”. Some people find this is all they need. Others find they need to deal with issues from the past before they can focus on the future, and coaches are rarely trained to help with this ethically or effectively.
By contrast, counselling generally focuses on the difficulties in the past that have brought a person to this point, and helps people learn to view their own story with compassion. But some people find it hard to move forward from counselling. It can feel like it has untangled some of the knots but not provided a pattern to weave the threads together in the future.
Being dual-trained as both a counsellor and a coach allows flexibility so that we can integrate and adapt elements of both suited to what you need to achieve.
Career counselling can help you to grow, develop and strengthen your career or support you in a new endeavour. It can also be used if you are feeling stuck and may be unsure which direction to take. Together we will help you to clarify where you are now, where you would like to go, curate a plan to help you move forward and support you through the change process.
Coaching is a dynamic process which tends to be future-focussed. Occasionally we may need to work through some elements of your past in order to help you move forward. Being trained in counselling allows me to integrate this safely and effectively should the need arise.
Some common issues I work with clients on are:
• Work transitions including, starting a career, applying for promotions, redundancy, changing careers, retirement
• Curating a job to support your strengths
• Managing conflict and difficult work relationships
• Navigating work/life balance
• Career planning and development
• Dealing with burnout
• Feeling undervalued
• Imposter syndrome
“I found your style really approachable, warm, human and compassionate, and simultaneously incisive. I came away feeling stronger, clearer and like I have you in my corner!” - Sophie
Counselling can offer a pause in your life where you can take a breath and focus on you. Understanding some of the unconsicous processes that may have developed in our early life and how they continue to impact our current life choices can be a fascinating process but it can also feel a little unsettling too.. We will navigate this journey with compassion and humanity and help you to view your own life story with kindness. We will also focus on your strengths and resources and help you to think creatively about your future and what you would like it to be. We can integrate coaching techniques if needed to help you implement and support the new changes in your life.
I have experience of working with people with issues like :
• Anxiety, panic and stress
• Feelings of low self-worth
• Life transitions (including motherhood, redundancy, menopause, divorce/separation, empty nest etc.)
• Dealing with anger
• Bereavement, grief and loss
• Discovering and celebrating strengths
• Communication issues
• Helping you find purpose and meaning
I invite you to a free 15-minute phone or video call. We can talk about what you’re looking for and what approaches might work for you. We can decide if we are the right fit for each other. Research shows that the relationship between client and counsellor is fundamental for good outcomes, so it’s important that you find the right therapist. If we don’t think we’re right for each other, I may be able to recommend someone who might suit better. This conversation, like all of our work together, is completely confidential.
Weekly or fortnightly sessions are generally 50-minutes long.
I can also offer single session work to focus on particular issue or dilemma. These sessions tend to be 90 minutes.
It depends on what you want to achieve, the issues we are exploring, the depth of our work and how much you feel able to do between our sessions. In our initial call, we can talk about how we might like to work together. Some people find it helpful to have a fixed time frame to work in or a fixed number of sessions. Others like a more open-ended process. We can decide together what works best for you.
We will work collaboratively on the issues that you bring. The pace and scope of the work is led by you and focused around where you would like to be. My style is quite interactive, I am not the type of counsellor who is silent or minimally responsive. Ultimately, we are two people in a room and I consider you to be the expert on yourself. My role is to focus, reflect, support, be honest with you and value you for the unique person that you are.
I work in-person on Tuesdays in the City of London (near Liverpool St. Station) and Wednesdays in Buckhurst Hill ICentral Line). I also work online using Zoom on Mondays and Thursdays.
Regular (weekly or bi-weekly) 50 minute sessions are priced on a sliding scale depending on your financial circumstances and where the sessions take place
Online and Buckhurst Hill
Lower income £60
Middle income £70
Higher income £80
Central London near Liverpool St. Station
Lower income £70
Middle income £80
Higher income £90
I don't specify income bands since there may be other financial considerations (e.g. number of dependents, family wealth etc.). Please choose the rate that is appropriate to you.
Feel free to contact me to arrange an initial phone call. This enables us to discuss the reasons you are thinking of coming to counselling/coaching, and whether I am the right person to help. You can also call me on 07769984067 if you would prefer to leave a message or speak to me first.
To book an introductory chat, click here.