Martin Firstbrook
BA (Hons), PgDP, MBACP (Accred)
About
A lifetime being curious about the human condition.
When I was nine, I bought A Little Book of Wisdom, which I stumbled across in a bookshop. In my teens I found myself drawn to philosophy - I wasn't entirely sure why, and I'm not sure I understood most of it (!) -but something about trying to understand ourselves and how we live fascinated me. That curiosity never really left.
After some early career searching, I eventually found somewhere to apply that interest directly. I spent 20 years working in and leading Leadership Development and HR functions within financial services, including board-level positions at some of the City's most prominent organisations. During that time, I also trained and worked as an executive coach, regularly assessing and coaching leaders and investors across Europe, Asia, the US and Africa.
That experience coincided with bringing up young children and trying to protect some space for a life outside work. It gave me a deep understanding of the interface between our personal and professional lives, and the toll that demanding careers can sometimes take.
But my work as a coach also left me increasingly curious about something else. I often worked with people who understood perfectly well what they should do, but found themselves unable to do it — something I could recognise in myself too. Coaching could help us identify the destination, but didn't always help us understand what kept getting in the way. That curiosity eventually led me to retrain as a psychotherapist.
I now bring those different experiences together. I work as a psychotherapist, couples counsellor and executive coach from my practice in Epsom, Surrey, and online, alongside continuing executive coaching work within financial services.
What has remained constant throughout is the curiosity that started all those years ago: an interest in what makes each of us who we are, the patterns we develop along the way, and our capacity to continue changing and developing throughout our lives.
al services companies.
Martin Firstbrook
Working Style
My approach is friendly, transparent and research-informed. I work both online and face to face, offering counselling, psychotherapy, coaching, or a combination of these. Rather than fitting you into a predetermined model, we'll be curious together about what is happening, the patterns that may sit beneath it, and what feels most useful to explore.
I am professional but down to earth. Our work will sometimes involve serious reflection, and at other times there may be lightness, humour and relief. I am active and engaged, rather than simply a passive participant. There will be moments where listening carefully is central, and others where I offer observations, questions or challenges that help us look at something differently, make connections, or understand how what is happening now fits into the wider pattern of your life.
Approach
I start from the perspective that people make sense. The ways we feel, behave and relate, even when they cause us difficulty, have meaning that can be understood in the context of our history, our current circumstances and the person we are becoming. Exploring these patterns and making sense of them is an important part of my approach. As understanding develops, so too can our freedom to relate differently to ourselves, make different choices, and discover what we want from our lives.
I draw on a range of therapeutic approaches and ways of working. Our sessions may be more analytical at times, and more exploratory, imaginative or relational at others. Where useful, I also draw on ideas from neuroscience, psychology and related fields as tools for developing understanding. The intention is not simply to reduce symptoms or solve an immediate problem, but to understand what is happening more deeply and support meaningful, sustainable change and development.
Education and Qualifications
Registered Member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy
BACP Accredited status, recognising enhanced experience and training
Advanced Diploma in Couples Therapy accredited by COSRT, College of Sexual and Relationship Therapists
Postgraduate Diploma in Psychosynthesis, accredited by BACP and the UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP)
Member of the British Psychological Society and BPS Special Group in Coaching
Meyler Campbell Business Coach Programme, accredited by the World Association of Business Coaches
Level 1 & 2 Gottman Method Couples Therapy Training
Certificate in Groupwork — Gestalt and Psychodynamic
British Psychological Society, Qualified Specialist in Test Use
Accredited to use a range of psychometric tools including: Gottman Relationship Checkup, Hogan Assessments HDS, HPI, MVPI; Neo PI-R; MBTI; BeTalent Strengths, Values and Decision Making Style