Our 1st Birthday

To mark the celebration of LPG Counselling’s first birthday each of the founders reflect back on this last year together.

Laura

I never intended to go straight into private practice. I didn't have the confidence, the business know how or perhaps most importantly, the encouragement. Counselling is a pretty old fashioned profession with lots of rules both written & unwritten. There's this idea that you get a job, or probably more accurately, you continue to volunteer, you pay your dues then after the designated time, you go into private practice.

Consciously or not, that's the road I planned to take until a huddled conversation in a coffee shop close to uni with Gavin and Paul where Gavin asked, “why not now?”

Why not now? Hadn't I already paid my dues? I had been studying on and off for a decade accumulating life experience and honing my therapeutic capabilities along the way so what was stopping me?

That conversation genuinely changed the course of my life and it displays so beautifully the balance, encouragement and zeal we all bring to each others lives. I was scared, nervous but excited. I don't believe I would have been brave enough to delve into the world of private practice without the support of Paul and Gavin, especially with the challenges that this year has brought us, navigating our first year in business alongside a global pandemic.

What I love about us as people and as counsellors is our ability to adapt. I feel like we walked into the business of private practice with a fresh perspective, we threw the rule book out the window and we've forged our own path. It is my favourite part of LPG Counselling and the thing that I'm most proud of reflecting on our first year. We stuck to our guns, we have made active steps to remove the power imbalance and elitism of our profession and we offer people something that we truly believe in.

I am so incredibly grateful to the clients that have chosen to work with us, the individuals that have supported us and the ability to share and build upon a collective vision alongside people that I love, trust and admire. Counselling can be an isolated profession and I am thankful that I get to share the highs, lows and everything in between with my friends.

LPG Counselling has continued to grow and evolve during the most challenging of circumstances which fills me with hope for our future.

Paul

On the one hand, it is hard to believe that it has already been a full year since Laura, Gavin and I launched LPG Counselling! The long months of planning leading up to the launch, of communing in coffeeshops to discuss company processes and draft official documents, of meeting with TMD our marketing team, with lawyers and accountants, seemed to stretch on and on. In comparison, our first year "in business" has flown by. Getting to spend my time working with clients is truly a privilege and even when the work is difficult it is always meaningful.

On the other hand, what a first year it has been! I anticipated that there would likely be a few hiccups and teething problems, but not a global pandemic. It is not every small business that sees their entire way of working rendered impossible within their first six months. LPG Counselling launched as a face to face counselling service and Covid-19 made this way of working impossible for an indefinite amount of time. When the first lockdown was announced we, like many other small businesses, closed our doors, but only for two weeks. We spent this time researching and putting into practice the changes required to move our services online. None of us had any experience offering counselling via video chat and I can certainly say that I was a little hesitant about it at first, but by giving ourselves those two weeks to prepare and get used to the software I quickly became comfortable working in this way. In fact, it is highly likely that LPG will continue to offer online counselling as well as face to face sessions once the pandemic is over; something we hadn't even really considered before lockdown.

All things considered I am amazed by how adaptable we have managed to be and I know that I would have seriously struggled to cope if not for the support of Laura and Gavin. Together we have overcome some sizeable obstacles this year, but our shared outlook on counselling and commitment to the Person Centred Approach, which first brought us together while at university, has been invaluable in helping us rise to these challenges as a team.

Gavin

“Hey, old friends lets look back…”

I had a lot of ideas of how running a business would be in it’s first year and to say that our first year has not exactly gone as predicted would be an empyreal understatement! Starting and running a business during a pandemic has not been easy on us professionally or personally. But it’s that struggle that showed me the part of the business that has meant the most to me: my relationship with my two partners Laura and Paul.

“I can't wait for tomorrow
Just as long as you're dancing next to me”

I can say honestly that without them LPG would not be what it is today. We are more than just business partners – we are friends! And it has been their friendship that has given me the strength to get through this year. Laura and Paul have reminded me that despite the many challenges we have faced we have also had many celebrations. The biggest one is just surviving the first year in a pandemic and getting to celebrate our first birthday! It has been commented on how different our personalities are and I believe it is because of these differences that we provide balance and support to each other.

“The road was filled with twists and turns

but that's the road that got us here”

The COVID-19 pandemic has shaken the very fabric of our societies and what our world will look after COVID-19 is far too early to say. However, this year has brought an important lesson to the forefront and it’s that no matter how much you plan;  no matter how many safety measures you put in place; no matter how much you try to minimize risk you can never truly prepare for what life can throw at you!

“I know the road seems long
But it won't be long 'till it's time to go”

Right now, many of us are in survival mode and must focus on getting through each day as it comes. Sometimes we just don’t have the privilege of time to process our experiences: the human being’s ability to function highly even during the most adverse of conditions is truly remarkable. However, not processing our experiences eventually wears us down and leads to mental and physical deterioration. Our psyches and bodies hold onto our experiences and it’s only when our lack of processing starts causing problems in life do we act on it but by that point we might be so exhausted that the path to recovery becomes a much slower process!  Don’t wait until you’re barely clinging onto the edge to seek counselling: come when you see the edge getting closer.

“Just keep movin' at your own speed
Your heart is all the compass you'll ever need”

Our vision of counselling has never been about “fixing” yourself – none of us are broken! It’s about providing support through difficult times; it’s about making space to process our experiences with another human being. This year has reminded me that we can’t do everything all on our own and we’re stronger when we reach out and share our lives with others. As our new world dawns we need to hear this message. It is going to be vital for us all to make space to process what has happened to our old world and to adjust to all the new changes in our lives.

“I know we've come so far…”

So, did we achieve all our objectives? Not exactly. Are we behind on our schedule? Kinda. Has our vision and personal resilience been strengthened? Hell yes!

You’ve heard that saying of how “2 heads are better than 1”? Well, LPG has 3 beating hearts: and I’m excited to see just “how far we can go!”

- All lyrics taken from the song “Come So Far” from Hairspray (2007)

The LPG Founders