About Michelle Fernando, trainee person-centred counsellor
A trainee counsellor working between the UK and Sri Lanka, with a deep interest in how culture and family shape who we are.
I'm Michelle Fernando, a Trainee Person-Centred Counsellor and student member of the BACP, based in Shrewsbury (UK) and Rajagiriya, Colombo (Sri Lanka). I'm trained in Sri Lanka and the UK, and I offer online counselling in English, mainly for women, with a particular interest in culture, family and migration. I work under regular clinical supervision, and I'm open with you about my trainee status.
My background in Sri Lanka and the UK
Before I am a counsellor, I am a human being who knows that life is complicated. I believe that helping someone move towards self-acceptance sits at the heart of meaningful change.
My work has been shaped by different cultures. Before my current placement in the UK, I worked as a Placement Counsellor at FPA Sri Lanka and as an intern at Deep Haven Counseling in Colombo. I have also taught as a visiting lecturer and psychology tutor.
Those experiences taught me one lesson above all: human distress does not arise in a vacuum. It is tied to our environment, our culture, our families and the power structures we live within.
Why I work in a person-centred way
I chose the person-centred approach because it fits what I believe about human dignity. It is non-directive and non-pathologising.
I don't see the people I work with as patients who need to be cured. I see them as individuals who, when offered genuineness, empathy and acceptance, have their own capacity to grow. For me, the relationship is the therapy. I've written a longer explanation of person-centred counselling, and my services page explains what sessions are like.
The core conditions: empathy, acceptance and congruence
In our sessions I offer three things, first described by Carl Rogers. I don't think of them as techniques. They are a way of being with you.
- Empathy. Not only an intellectual understanding, but a felt sense of being with your world as you experience it.
- Unconditional positive regard. A deep valuing of you that doesn't depend on your behaviour or on meeting anyone's expectations. I'm not here to approve or disapprove of you.
- Congruence. I will be a real person with you, and I won't hide behind an expert mask.
A note on culture and power
Therapy has often been built around Western ideals of independence and individualism. I question that. For many of us, especially those from collectivist backgrounds, identity is relational. We belong to our families and our communities, and that belonging can hold both comfort and pressure. I write more about this in family duty and the self and identity and belonging.
I try to stay aware of the power in the room. I am not the expert on your life. You are. My role is to walk alongside you and respect your culture, your pace and your ambivalence.
Who I work with
My focus is women. That includes women who have moved abroad for work, study or a partner's job and feel unsettled or alone, and women from South Asian or other collectivist families who feel torn between duty and their own needs. You can read more on online counselling for women, online therapy for expats and South Asian counselling online.
I don't turn anyone away because of gender. If something here speaks to you, you are welcome.
A UK-trained counsellor, online, for clients abroad
Many of the people who find me live outside the UK. Some are looking for a British counsellor in Europe, by which they usually mean someone trained in the UK, working in English, who understands how counselling is done there. I'm UK-trained and based in Shrewsbury, and I see clients abroad online.
Working across borders raises fair questions about confidentiality, emergencies and which rules apply. I've answered them in can a UK counsellor see clients abroad? If culture and family are part of what you'd bring, see counselling for South Asian women and families.
Training and supervision
I'm still in training, and I want you to know that from the start. I'm completing an MSc in Counselling & Psychotherapy at Keele University and I'm a student member of the BACP, so I follow the BACP Ethical Framework.
All of my client work is supported by regular clinical supervision. In supervision I reflect on my practice with an experienced practitioner, without sharing anything that identifies you. This is how counsellors learn safely, and it means the work we do together is never done in isolation. My trainee status is also why my fee is £45 per session.
Professional and educational background
- MSc Counselling & Psychotherapy, Keele University (in progress)
- PGDip Counselling & Psychosocial Support, University of Colombo (Merit)
- BSc Psychology, Coventry University (2:1)
- Placement Counsellor, Axis Counselling, Shrewsbury (current)
- Placement Counsellor, FPA Sri Lanka (previously)
- Intern, Deep Haven Counseling, Colombo (previously)
- Visiting lecturer and psychology tutor
If you'd like to work with me, you can read what to expect in a first counselling session, book a first session or read my writing in Reflections.
Questions people ask
What does it mean that you are a trainee counsellor?
It means I'm still completing my professional training, an MSc in Counselling & Psychotherapy at Keele University. I'm a student member of the BACP and follow its Ethical Framework. All of my client work is supported by regular clinical supervision with an experienced practitioner, where I reflect on my practice without sharing anything that identifies you.
Why did you choose the person-centred approach?
Because it matches what I believe about human dignity. Person-centred counselling doesn't treat you as a patient to be cured. It trusts that, given empathy, honesty and acceptance, people can find their own way forward. It also leaves room for culture and family. Nobody has to be measured against one idea of a good life.
Where are you based?
I'm based in Shrewsbury in the UK and also in Rajagiriya, Colombo, in Sri Lanka. Most of my sessions take place online by secure video, in English, so you can join from wherever you live. Evening sessions are available in UK time. In-person sessions in Shrewsbury are possible by arrangement.
Can a UK counsellor see clients who live abroad?
Yes, online. I'm a UK-based trainee counsellor, and sessions are delivered from the UK by secure video. That means the counselling is private and sits outside the health system where you live, and it can't replace local emergency care. Before we start, we agree how you would reach urgent help locally. The fee is £45 per session, charged in pounds.
Are you a BACP registered counsellor?
No. I'm a BACP student member, which is the membership open to counsellors still in training, and I follow the BACP Ethical Framework. I'm not on the BACP register and I'm not accredited, because those come after qualifying. I work under regular clinical supervision, and I'd rather you know exactly where I am in my training than guess.
Do you work with men too?
Yes. My focus is women, especially women living abroad and women from collectivist or South Asian families, but I don't turn anyone away because of their gender. If my way of working feels right for you, you are welcome to book a first session or email me with any questions.