When I chose the name Cite-Therapy for my counselling practice, I wanted to capture a belief that lies at the very core of how I work: you already hold the knowledge, wisdom, and resources you need to grow and heal. My role is not to give you answers, but to walk alongside you as you discover them for yourself.

This idea comes from the work of Carl Rogers, the founder of person-centred therapy. Rogers challenged the traditional view of the therapist as the authority, instead recognising that the client is the true expert on their own life and experiences.

Why “Client is the Expert” matters?

So often, we’re told what to do, how to feel, or how to live by others—family, friends, even professionals. But in therapy, the focus shifts back to you. You know yourself best. You understand your struggles and your hopes, even if they sometimes feel hidden or unclear. Counselling provides the space to reconnect with that inner knowing.

The Person-Centred Approach

In my practice, I draw on Rogers’s principles of person-centred therapy, which rest on three key conditions: 

· You are accepted exactly as you are, without judgment.

· I seek to deeply understand your perspective and emotions. 

· I show up authentically, creating a relationship built on trust. 

These conditions create a safe and supportive environment where you can explore freely and find your own way forward in a safe environment.

Unlike advice-giving or problem-solving approaches, person-centred counselling is non-directive. That means I won’t tell you what to do. Instead, I’ll support you to uncover your own insights and solutions. This process empowers you, strengthens your sense of agency, and validates your lived experiences.

At the heart of this approach is a belief in your innate capacity for growth. Even when life feels overwhelming, you have the potential to move toward healing, self-understanding, and positive change. My role is to create the conditions in which that natural process can unfold. 

Clients who experience counselling where they are truly heard, valued, and trusted often find clarity, resilience, and self-compassion they didn’t know they had.

That’s why I chose the name CITE - Client Is the Expert—to remind you (and me) that the answers lie within you. My job is simply to hold the space where you can discover them.

Working with clients I am often using some breathing/grounding exercises. Some clients are open to give it a go and try, and some are hesitant, some would say I have tried, doesn’t work… While I understand we are all different and have had different experiences, I strongly encourage everyone to find something that works for them. It could be a walk in nature, dance classes, exercise, doing some gardening, crafts, hobbies or using breathing exercises in your day-to-day basis. 

I would like to explain a bit more  about how breathing calms our nervous system. 

· Deep, slow breathing sends a signal to our brain to calm down and activates the parasympathetic “rest and digest” system. 

· Using our diaphragm for deep breaths it stimulates the vagus nerve. The part in brain that triggers the body’s relaxation response. 

· Taking slow and steady breaths, its increases oxygen supply to our brain, making us calm and improving cognitive function. 

· Rapid, shallow breathing during stress can lower carbon dioxide levels, increase the excitability of the amygdala and worsen our anxiety. Deep breathing helps to stabilize these levels and reduces the brains stress responses. 

· The physical process of deep breathing helps to lower our cortisol levels, the stress hormone. 

Benefits of deep breathing 

· Breathing reduces anxiety and stress, by moving from a “fight or flight” state to a “rest and digest” state. 

· Breathing exercises promotes relaxation, slowing down our heart rate, relaxing muscles and lowering blood pressure, leading to a greater sense of calm. 

· Breathing enhances our focus, improves our concentration and cognitive function. 

· Breathing improves our overall sleep, calms our mind and body. 

I hope you will give it a go and see if it works for you!