My Approach

My approach is practical, active and evidence-informed. I want you to understand not only *why* you're struggling, but what is keeping the problem going and what you can actually do differently.

In relationship work, that might mean looking at the patterns you and your partner have fallen into, the assumptions you make about each other, how you respond when things become difficult, and what happens when attempts to resolve things repeatedly go wrong. With individual therapy, we might look at the patterns, beliefs and behaviours that are keeping you anxious, stuck or unhappy.

I’m interested in helping people move from insight to action. Understanding yourself is important, but insight on its own doesn't necessarily change anything. We’ll look at what needs to change, what gets in the way of that change, and how you can begin doing things differently.

I also try to keep therapy focused. You don't need to spend months going over the same ground simply because that's what therapy is supposed to look like. Sometimes meaningful change can begin quite quickly once we understand the problem properly and identify what needs to be different.

My style is warm and straightforward. I'll listen carefully, but I'll also ask questions, challenge assumptions when I think it is useful, and tell you what I think is going on. The aim is to give you something genuinely useful to take away from our work together.

About Me

I’m Graham Johnston, a Therapist & Relationship Expert. I work with individuals and couples, with a particular focus on relationships and on helping successful, capable people who find that their usual ways of coping aren’t working in this part of their lives.

People often come to me when they feel stuck: perhaps they keep having the same arguments, have become disconnected from their partner, are struggling with intimacy, or simply can’t understand why something that should be working isn’t. Others come because they’re dealing with anxiety, low mood, stress or a difficult period of change.

I believe therapy should be useful. My aim isn’t simply to help you talk about your problems, but to understand what is actually going on and help you make meaningful changes.

I’m a relationship expert on ITV’s My Mum, Your Dad, co-host of the relationship podcast Crazy in Love, a Psychology Today writer and author of A Straight Talking Introduction to Therapy. I also create courses and resources designed to help people understand relationships and make lasting changes.

I work with

• Companies
• Couples
• Individuals

Special Interests

Like all UKCP registered psychotherapists and psychotherapeutic counsellors I can work with a wide range of issues, but here are some areas in which I have a special interest or additional experience.

Types of Therapies Offered

• Psychoanalytic Psychotherapist

What I can help with

• Abuse
• Addiction
• Anger Management
• Anxiety
• Bereavement
• Bullying
• Chronic Illness
• Couple Issues
• Depression
• Domestic Violence
• Eating Disorders
• Identity Problems
• Infertility
• Mental Health Issues
• Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
• Online Counselling
• Parents
• Phobias
• Physical Abuse
• Post-Traumatic Stress
• Relationships
• Sex Problems
• Sexual Abuse
• Sexuality
• Spirituality
• Stress
• Suicide
• Telephone Counselling
• Terminal Illness
• Trauma
• Workplace Counselling