Vetamorphosis blog

The Vet Nurse Perspective: Can Counselling Really Help Me?

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 06:00:22 GMT

The Vet Nurse Perspective: Can Therapy Really Help Me?

In my years of working alongside vet nurses, certain themes come up again and again. We love what we do - but we so often feel undervalued, underutilised, underappreciated, and underpaid. We pour ourselves into this job, and so much of what we give goes unseen.

This isn't just a feeling. Research and lived experience back it up:

Anonymous (2024), The Guardian: "I earned more as a bin worker than a veterinary nurse"
Jeffrey and Taylor (2022), PMC: Wellbeing and workforce challenges in veterinary nursing

I am a champion of vet nurses. My entire career has been shaped by a belief in our value. But I have also lived through the lows this job can bring. I have struggled with self-forgiveness, felt certain that no one could truly understand me, and convinced myself I was somehow defective. For a long time, I fought those battles alone.

It doesn't have to be that way.

There are people who genuinely get it, who will listen without judgement and help you make sense of the fear, anxiety, sadness, and isolation that can come with this work. Not people who tell you to "just have a bath," or "stop taking yourself so seriously," or suggest that a funny TV programme will fix everything. People who have real insight into the veterinary world, who understand how hard the job is, and who have come out the other side.

Is counselling for me?

Have you ever caught yourself thinking any of these things?

Why does no one see how hard I work?
Does anyone even notice I should have left an hour ago?
I can't go home. If I do, I'll be letting everyone else down
I haven't had a proper lunch break all week
How am I supposed to study and work at the same time?
Shift work is destroying me
I must be the worst nurse in the world
What is wrong with me? Everyone else seems fine

If any of those sound familiar: I hear you. I became a counsellor because I never wanted anyone else to spend as many years feeling the way I once did.

Something you can try right now

When things feel like they're spiralling, the STOPP technique can help bring you back to yourself:

S — Stop. Pause before you act or react.

T — Take a breath. Notice the rhythm of your breathing: in and out.

O — Observe. What am I thinking or feeling right now? Is this a fact, or is it an opinion?

P — Pull back. Imagine hovering above the situation like a helicopter. What would you see from that wider view?

P — Practise what works. What genuinely helps you feel calmer? What would be the wisest decision to make right now?

About me

My name is Charlotte. I have been a vet nurse for 26 years and still work in practice at weekends. Since qualifying as a BACP-registered counsellor in 2023, I have worked with adults offering integrative counselling online and in person. I specialise in anxiety, depression, stress, burnout, and addiction, and I am trained in acute trauma and grief.

If anything in this article has resonated with you, I'd love to hear from you. You can find me in the Vetamorphosis Therapist Directory a not-for-profit service connecting veterinary professionals with therapists who have real, lived insight into veterinary life. Because you there is support available from someone who truly understands.

The Vet's Perspective: You Are Not Alone

Fri, 26 Jun 2026 06:00:22 GMT

There's a moment that changed everything for me. I was sitting in a wellbeing stream at a veterinary CPD conference, and for the first time I looked around the room and realised: I wasn't the only one struggling. The demands of veterinary practice, the creeping self-doubt, the feelings of imposterism, others were carrying them too. That moment of recognition was quietly profound, and it set me on the path I'm on today.

My name is Cate. I am a practising veterinary surgeon, a registered BACP member, and a counsellor. After that conference, I became a Vetlife volunteer, and my passion for supporting the veterinary community has only grown since. Whatever challenges you're facing, I want to help.

How I work

I am an integrative counsellor, which means I draw on a range of therapeutic models to find what works best for each individual I sit with. At the heart of my practice, though, is person-centred therapy .

Person-centred therapy is built on a simple but powerful belief: that every person has an inherent capacity for growth, healing, and reaching their full potential. My role is to create the conditions that allow that to happen through:

Sincerity and authenticity: I show up as a real person, not a detached professional
Non-judgemental warmth: you are valued and accepted, exactly as you are
Empathic understanding: your lived experience is heard and truly felt

That last point matters enormously in veterinary contexts. The nuanced stressors of veterinary practice - the emotional weight of clinical decisions, the culture of stoicism, the relentlessness of the work - are not things I need to have explained to me. I've lived them. That shared understanding deepens the therapeutic space in ways that are hard to quantify but very real.

Carl Rogers, the founder of person-centred therapy, believed that change becomes possible when we fully accept who we are. He put it this way:

"When the other person is hurting, confused, troubled, anxious, alienated, terrified... then understanding is called for. The gentle and sensitive companionship offered by an empathic person... provides illumination and healing. In such situations deep understanding is, I believe, the most precious gift one can give to another."

— A Way of Being, Houghton Mifflin, 1980

Working with trauma and the body

I have completed a Level 6 Advanced Diploma in Trauma, which has deepened my understanding of how traumatic experiences can live in the body; showing up as autonomic dysregulation, somatic sensations, or even chronic physical symptoms. My sessions often incorporate a focus on the mind-body connection , using breathing practices and grounding techniques to help release physical tension and emotion. If you've ever felt that something is "stuck", that talking alone doesn't quite reach it, this way of working may resonate with you.

About me

I work with adults and young people (16+) online. You can find me in the Vetamorphosis Therapist Directory a not-for-profit service connecting veterinary professionals with therapists who have genuine insight into veterinary life.

You are not the only one in the room struggling. And you don't have to keep doing it alone.

The Unconscious Mind

Thu, 18 Jun 2026 11:10:52 GMT

What is this ‘unconscious’?

Both in the world of psychology and in normal society, we frequently hear the word ‘unconscious’. “ He did it unconsciously… ”, “ Her unconscious is running her life… ”, “ He doesn’t understand that he always unconsciously reacts that way… ” And so on.

So. What is this ‘unconscious’? The very word presupposes that it is something we don’t know about – so how can we understand it? It is this unconscious mind that is central to counselling and psychotherapy and is one of the keys to understanding how we operate in our lives.

Essentially, the unconscious is a set of automatic systems. Transferring our attention to the physical body for a moment, it is evident that we are a highly complex biological machine which could not possibly function without automatic systems. We do not have to think about beating our heart, breathing, or digesting our food – it happens automatically and, thank goodness that is so, otherwise we could not move a step or lift a finger without engaging in some very complex decisions.

The psyche, the mind, is just as complicated and just as dependent on automatic systems. Apart from the things that happen at a reflex level, most of these systems develop during childhood. Here is an example of a positive one which almost everyone reading this will have experienced – our parents taught us to come to the edge of the road, look right, look left, look right again (at least in the UK!) and then walk if it’s clear. We don’t have to think about this – we just do it – it’s unconscious. And that is what the unconscious is. It is a set of programmed behaviours which we developed in our childhood and now, not only don’t have to think about but, importantly, don’t even know about.

This is all very well if they work for us. Sadly, not everyone has an ideal childhood and the various things which happen to us as children force us to develop survival strategies which may not be helpful to us as adults. For instance, our childhood might have been so chaotic that we survived by making sure we were absolutely in control of everything we could possibly control. Or we might have discovered that if we lost our temper and had a meltdown, everyone backed off… Or we might have discovered that if we obsessively looked after everyone and everything except ourselves, this was how we survived. And so on and so on.

So, bless us, we emerge into adulthood carrying a whole portfolio of unconscious attitudes, ways of behaving and ways of seeing the world which got us to that point. Unfortunately, these ways of thinking and behaving have become our automatic systems. We don’t know about them and, while they are unconscious, they run us.

One of the major functions of counselling and therapy is simply to make the unconscious conscious. “ Oh every time X happens I react by doing Y ”. The minute you bring these systems into consciousness, you have a choice – you can choose not to behave in that way, or have that attitude, or respect that thought. The more we know about these things the more responsibility, control and authority we have over how we operate.

This may not be easy. These things are deep in our psyche. However, with the right type of talking therapy we can haul these unhelpful systems into the light of day and make choices around them. Sometimes I say to my clients – you will reach a point where you say “ oh sh*t, I’ve just done that again! ” And then you will reach the point where you say “ oh sh*t, I’m just doing that again! ” And finally, to the point when you say “ oh sh*t, I’m just going to do that again – so I won’t! ” Result!

So, in summary, the unconscious mind is a set of automatic systems to help us run a very complex neurological machine. Some of these are basic and instinctual but many develop during our childhood and may or may not be helpful when we reach adulthood. Talking therapies are one way of bringing these automatic systems into the light of day so that we can make choices around them and be in more control of our lives.

I'm Adrian Longstaffe, a retired vet and psychotherapist. I'm a Vetamorphosis Network member. Having believed myself to be the only person in the UK qualified both as a veterinary surgeon and a psychotherapist, I was delighted to discover others with similar breadth of training and interest. The veterinary profession has its own constellation of particular issues and it is heartening to be in support of a group of therapists who know the profession from the inside. You can find more about me and the other therapists in the Network in the Vetamorphosis Therapist Directory

Have you ever gone for a walk and spent the whole time entirely in your head?

Thu, 04 Jun 2026 17:15:20 GMT

Have you ever gone for a walk and spent the whole time entirely in your head?

I was a vet for many years before making the transition into a counsellor. Growing up in the countryside, I have always spent time in nature, and found relaxation and solace there.

When I first heard of forest bathing, I thought rather disparagingly that it was simply a walk in the woods. A particular event made me change my mind. Returning from a walk one day, a friend asked me what route I had taken. I couldn't tell them. I had spent the time entirely in my head with thoughts of what I had done and needed to do. That was quite a shock. Coincidentally, another friend recommended a forest bathing course, which I enrolled on, and discovered that forest bathing is so much more than just a walk in the woods.

Being in woods in general is beneficial, but during a forest bathing session, a participant is asked to take part in several invitations which enhance the effects of being in nature. It can also extend beyond woods into all environments where there is something natural present. It roots us in the present moment and allows worries and concerns to fall away. It engages all the senses and ignites feelings of wonder and belonging. We enter the wonderful state of flow. It has proven beneficial effects on mental, emotional and physical health.

The research supports this. Time in green spaces lowers blood pressure and stress levels, boosts the immune system, and has benefits for cardiovascular health, diabetes and even pain. Being in woods is particularly helpful, alleviating fatigue and aiding concentration, focus and memory.

Some simple things you can try in a green space:

Stand still for a few minutes, close your eyes. What can you hear? What direction is it coming from? What can you feel? What can you smell?
Walk slowly, breathing in for 4 counts and out for 4
Try a 5-4-3-2-1 grounding: 5 things you see, 4 you feel or touch, 3 you hear, 2 you smell, 1 you taste
Sit and look at something you're drawn to. Observe slowly, without trying to think too much

And if you're indoors, even looking at views of green spaces, using pine or lime essential oils, or keeping houseplants can help. A very readable book to learn more is Into the Forest by Dr Qing Li.

I now offer forest bathing sessions to any interested clients.

I'm Claire Poole, a vet for many years (BVMS, MRCVS) and a BACP-registered counsellor since 2015. I offer integrative, person-centred counselling online, and I'm trained in ecotherapy including walk-and-talk sessions, forest bathing, and canine-assisted therapy with my dog. I work with adults, children and young people, and I have a particular interest in supporting the veterinary community; a world I know from the inside.

You can find me in the Vetamorphosis Therapist Directory , a not-for-profit service connecting veterinary professionals with therapists who have genuine insight into veterinary life: Directory

What is therapy?

Thu, 04 Jun 2026 14:38:42 GMT

What is therapy, really?

For many, the word still carries connotations. It’s something for people in crisis, or a process that involves being analysed and told what's wrong with us. In reality, it's something far more ordinary, and often far more useful, than that.

At its core, therapy is a relationship. A consistent, confidential space where you can say the things you can't easily say elsewhere, without being judged, directed, or fixed. Whilst a therapist may share useful resources to help you immediately, the therapist's role isn't to hand you solutions. It's to offer a space in which you can begin to understand yourself more clearly.

It helps to know that different types of talking therapy work at different levels. The terminology can be confusing.

A counsellor typically trains for one to two years and is particularly skilled at short to medium-term work focused on current difficulties.

A psychotherapeutic counsellor trains for three to six years, offering deeper work that explores underlying patterns and the therapeutic relationship itself.

A psychotherapist trains to Master's level over four to six years, and generally works longer-term with more complex presentations.

Coaches work differently again. The work here tends to be future-focused and goal-oriented, less concerned with emotional healing and more with practical action.

None of these is inherently "better." The right fit depends on what you're carrying, what you're ready for, and (crucially) whether you feel genuinely understood by the person in front of you.

For veterinary professionals, that last part matters enormously. The culture of the profession, with its stoicism, its high standards, its particular relationship with distress, isn't always easy to explain to someone on the outside. The Vetamorphosis Directory exists because we believe support works even better when your therapist already understands the world you're coming from.

You don't have to be in crisis to reach out. Curiosity about yourself is enough to begin.

Visit the Directory to explore options of therapists with insight into your world: Directory

Vetamorphosis blog

The Vet Nurse Perspective: Can Counselling Really Help Me?

The Vet Nurse Perspective: Can Therapy Really Help Me?

The Vet's Perspective: You Are Not Alone

The Unconscious Mind

What is this ‘unconscious’? ﻿

Have you ever gone for a walk and spent the whole time entirely in your head?

Have you ever gone for a walk and spent the whole time entirely in your head?

What is therapy?

What is this ‘unconscious’?