Helen Huston

Each of us is called to fulfil our giftedness in a manner that is ours alone – unique, ineffable, bountiful, mysterious, and singular.
– James H. Olthuis

Living in an imperfect world, with imperfect relationships means problems naturally develop for us all. At times these problems can become large enough to hide the life-giving uniqueness that each of us holds. They can attempt to define us, to speak for us and hinder our natural drive towards growth, wholeness and fulfilment. I see my role as helping individuals claim their lives back from the influence of these problems and reunite with their calling, their natural drive towards becoming all that they are capable of being.

I work through play with younger children and use Narrative therapy, Somatic Experiencing and various other approaches with older children, adolescents and young adults.

Alongside these approaches I offer psycho-education for parents and caregivers to help strengthen the parent-child relationship, develop a secure attachment, facilitate emotional regulation and enable a positive cycle of communication.

Please see my website for a fuller description of these modalities and services.

Areas of Special Interest

• behavioural difficulties
• relationship difficulties
• parenting
• emotional overwhelm
• anxiety
• separation anxiety
• separation and divorce
• depression
• anger
• grief
• self-esteem issues
• trauma
• bullying

Counselling Services

Parenting Consultation:

• The aim of this work is to facilitate the development of a secure, enjoyable, healthy attachment relationship between you and your child.
• To reduce problematic or concerning behaviours your child might be displaying.
• To facilitate the development of emotional health, resilience and good self-esteem.

Play Therapy (Ages 3-8):

• 16 sessions plus monthly parenting consults
• Play is a child’s world and therefore their most natural medium of expression.
• The aim of this work is to provide a safe, contained environment where you child can express themselves fully and work through difficulties and past traumas that might be hindering their healthy development.
• To help them experience an internal change in the way they see themselves, others and relationships.
• To learn that they can get their relational needs met without using problematic behavioural strategies to do so.

Strengthening Parent-Child Relationship (Ages 3-8):

• 3-4 sessions
• A combination of parenting consultation and play sessions with you and your child
• The aim of this work is to facilitate the development of a secure, healthy attachment relationship between you and your child through the medium of play.
• To facilitate the development of emotional health, resiliency and good self-esteem.
• To reduce any problematic or concerning behaviours your child might be displaying.

Children (Ages 8 upwards):

• 4-6 sessions
• The aim is to work collaboratively with your child/young person to empower them to connect with their uniquely capable, resourceful self.
• To establish and narrate the ‘I can,’ the ‘I am good enough,’ as they explore their beliefs, values and strengths and to facilitate them to reconnect with their drive and interest in life
• To work together playfully gaining an understanding of the different facets of the problem(s) they might be experiencing, including the problem’s effects, tactics and triggers and the beliefs and ideas that support it.
• To empower your child/young person to find solutions from their richly narrated resourceful self and their body’s innate healing capacity, to help to claim their life back from the negative influences of these problems and live life more fully.

Teenagers (Ages 12-20):

• 4-6 sessions depending on individual
• The aim of this work is to provide a space for teenagers to explore, express, grapple with and work through their own beliefs, values and ideas, to explore their strengths, hopes and dreams and to make decisions informed by these.
• To embrace the beauty of their emerging individuality and develop a positive view of themselves.
• To normalise the vulnerabilities and conflicts experienced in these teenage years
• To work through difficulties, problems and traumas that might be impacting this emerging self and which can try to convince them that they are not good enough, not capable, that life isn’t work living, or that there is no hope.
• To help them to reunite with the ‘I can,’ ‘I am capable,’ ‘I am good enough’ and help them to reconnect with their drive and interest in life.

Somatic Experiencing:

Please see my website for more information about this.

Background and Experience

I arrived in New Zealand from the UK in 2002 with my young family. My journey into counselling started in my 20s in London. More than 30 years later, I continue to study and have realised the importance of working with individuals both somatically and cognitively in order to facilitate healing.

I have worked with numerous children, adolescents and parents over my career, and have witnessed first-hand the drive that each of them hold towards health and healing and the potential they all have to realise it.

I have been involved in teaching degree students, have presented a number of times on attachment theory and its application to parenting and have written a book on how a young boy deals with Worries. 

The application of attachment theory to my own parenting has been life changing and alongside working with children and adolescents, it is my mission to share my experience and knowledge to parents so that they can positively influence their children’s emotional development and well-being.