There are times when talking helps things become clearer.
And there are times when, despite understanding, something in the body remains unchanged.
I offer two ways of working, depending on where you find yourself.
Talking Therapy provides a space to explore thoughts, emotions, and patterns through conversation. It can bring clarity, perspective, and a deeper understanding of your experience. Where words are difficult, there is also room for simple creative expression.
For some, this is enough.
For others, there may be a sense that insight has been reached, but something still does not shift. The mind understands, yet the body continues to hold tension, anxiety, or a sense of being unsettled.
Integrative Therapy for Mind & Nervous System works at this deeper level. Alongside conversation, each session includes direct work with the body, with you supported on a treatment couch. This work is informed by Bowen therapy and gentle somatic practice, allowing the nervous system to settle and reorganise.
As the body begins to soften, the mind often follows — allowing change to be not only understood, but felt and sustained.
You do not need to decide in advance which approach is right.
We begin where you are, and the work unfolds from there.
How I work
My work is grounded in the understanding that human experience is interconnected. Thoughts, emotions, bodily responses, relationships, and early experiences continually influence one another, often outside of conscious awareness. When something feels difficult or stuck, it rarely exists in isolation.
I work both psychologically and holistically, drawing on integrative counselling approaches that allow us to attend to understanding and lived experience together. This may include exploring patterns of thinking, emotional responses, relational dynamics, and how your body holds and responds to what you have been through.
The work includes both conversation and direct engagement with the nervous system, allowing shifts to take place not only through insight, but through experience.
The therapeutic relationship itself sits at the centre of the work. I offer a steady, reflective presence where curiosity can unfold at your own pace, without pressure to arrive anywhere too quickly. For those who are naturally thoughtful or analytical, therapy often begins with understanding — and over time, this begins to shift how things are felt and experienced.
I do not rush change or apply techniques without context. Instead, we work collaboratively, allowing awareness, self-compassion, and choice to develop in a way that is grounded and sustainable.
Over time, this creates space for change that holds — within yourself, in your relationships, and in how you meet the world.
Who I work with
I work with adults who are seeking thoughtful psychological support and a space to reflect on their inner and relational worlds. My work is primarily offered face-to-face, as integrative therapy, which includes direct work with the body and nervous system. Online sessions are available only for talking therapy.
Many of the people I work with are capable, responsible, and outwardly functioning, yet sense that something is not quite at ease beneath the surface. You may find yourself holding a great deal together, while internally feeling overwhelmed, disconnected, or caught in patterns that continue despite your efforts to understand them. At times, it can feel as though you are living mostly “in your head,” with insight present, but experience not fully shifting.
I support individuals who are navigating anxiety, low mood, stress, identity questions, or the impact of earlier relational experiences. Others come because something in their relationships feels strained, repetitive, or unresolved, and they want to understand what is happening beneath the surface rather than simply manage what shows up.
I also work with couples who are experiencing difficulty in communication, distance, or recurring patterns they cannot shift on their own. Relationship work offers a space to slow things down, understand each person more fully, and attend to what is happening between you.
This work tends to suit those who are naturally reflective, or who sense that they want something more than strategies or surface-level change — a way of working that allows both understanding and experience to come into alignment over time.
For those who wish to step more fully into this work, there is also the option of immersive mental wellbeing retreats, offering a more contained space to deepen the process over time.
The ways of working
I offer several ways of working, depending on what you are seeking support with. While each service has a distinct focus, all are grounded in the same holistic, psychologically informed approach.
A reflective space to explore thoughts, emotions, and patterns through conversation, with room for creative expression where words are not enough.
A deeper form of therapy that combines psychological work with hands-on nervous system support on a treatment couch, allowing change to be both understood and felt.
A more contained space to step away from daily life and deepen the work, allowing mind and body to settle over time. Held twice a year in autumn and spring.
What It’s Like to Work Together
We begin with a conversation.
There is no expectation to arrive with a clear explanation or a defined goal. You may already have a sense of what feels difficult, or you may simply know that something is not sitting right. We start there.
Sessions unfold at a pace that allows things to become clearer without forcing them. At times, this may look like conversation—exploring what you notice, what you feel, and how things have come to be as they are. At other times, the work may move more quietly, allowing space for the body and nervous system to settle.
You do not need to perform, explain yourself perfectly, or get it “right.”
The work is not about fixing, but about understanding and allowing change to unfold in a way that holds.
Over time, people often notice that things begin to shift—not only in how they think, but in how they feel, respond, and relate. What once felt overwhelming may become more manageable; what felt distant may become more accessible.
The process is steady rather than rushed, and collaborative rather than directed. We pay attention to what is emerging, and allow the work to develop in a way that is both grounded and sustainable.
Blog
Further reflections, if you wish to explore.
The Body Keeps the Score (But Not the Story) – Part 2
Why change happens in relationship?
In the first part, we explored how the body holds experience not as story, but as pattern.
If this is the case, a natural question begins to form:
If the body learned through experience… how does it learn something different?
Therapy, Coaching, and Consultancy: Understanding the Difference
People often arrive looking for support with a simple question: “How do I move forward from here?” At first glance, therapy, coaching, and consultancy can
The Body Keeps the Score (But Not the Story) – Part 1
Many people understand their emotional patterns yet still feel anxious, tense, or reactive in their bodies. This piece explores why insight alone often isn’t enough — and how the nervous system holds experience not as story, but as pattern. A gentle introduction to relational, integrative therapy.
Contact
Ruta Gabalis Integrative Therapy
38 Spalt Close, Brentwood, Essex, CM13 2UN
+44 7949 430411
info@rutagabalis.co.uk
© Ruta Gabalis Integrative Therapy