Sonia Dugay

Sonia Dugay is a registered Counsellor practising in the south of the United Kingdom. She has worked with a wide range of people, including a period spent at a support centre for survivors of rape and sexual abuse.

Many survivors of such trauma bring concerns into the counselling room that include anxiety, anger management difficulties, low self-esteem, intimacy problems, eating disorders, self-harm and relationship challenges - these have been central to much of her work.

More recently Sonia has been working in private practice. During the lockdown she supported clients presenting with different kinds of distress: some were young adults struggling with loneliness, anxiety and career changes, while others faced mid life crises, relationship difficulties or low confidence.

She has also provided counselling to people dealing with issues arising from DNA surprises.

Sonia recognises that some topics are hard to talk about, and she aims to offer a non-judgemental space where a person can be heard and begin to offload worries. Her practice favours listening to what the client needs rather than telling them what to do, following a person-centred approach that trusts the client to find their own answers.

She also draws on psychodynamic theory to look more deeply at how earlier life experiences - the child within the adult - may help explain current difficulties.

On a personal note, Sonia believes exercise supports mental wellbeing; a brisk walk or a dance class helps her when life feels difficult. Raised in a broadly Christian home but not deeply religious, she does not consider herself to follow any particular religion now, while remaining interested in other faiths and open to understanding different cultures. She respects that religion matters to many people in varied ways.

Sonia is warm, friendly and genuinely interested in others, and she looks forward to meeting new clients.