"Unsure of what to expect, I began counselling with Lynette during a very stressful time in my life arising from a change in jobs that I quickly realised was not going to work out. Being someone who considers work to be integral with my persona, the impact of this situation was, at the time, severe. Lynette helped me to put my expectations of myself into perspective, preventing me from crumbling entirely following my departure from the job. At this time, Lynette helped me to dig out and squash the false beliefs driving my feelings of inadequacy and self-doubt, and equipped me with the practical tools that I needed to change my way of thinking about the situation. Sometime later I returned to counselling with Lynette to revisit and work through some more deep-seated events that have coloured my life, in particular the sudden death of my sister. Lynette is a patient, kind and selfless listener. By helping me to reflect clearly on this painful time in my life, she helped me to see the value in knowing the truth about what really happened, allowing me closure on a period of my life that haunted me for almost two decades. Working with Lynette has allowed me to move forward with my life in ways I would not have expected, and I continue to recommend her services highly".
"When I first decided to start counselling I didn’t even know what my issues were, all I knew was that I was extremely stressed and unhappy. Lynette broke down all my anxieties and helped to pinpoint the root causes. This in turn let me focus on what was really stressing me out and I was able to resolve my feelings and change my thought process. Lynette was good at listening to me and not being judgemental, she made me feel like what I was going through was perfectly alright and that I wasn’t the only one going through similar problems. I left each session feeling uplifted and calm. I will definitely return to Lynette if I ever need to again in the future".
"After losing my Mum to cancer, and then 10 weeks later my Nana died from a ‘broken heart’ having lost her daughter, to then 6 months later having my Dad commit suicide, I was at a point where I knew if I was going to get through this horrible time, that I was going to need someone to help me. I gained from seeing Lynette for my grief a sense that it was all right for me to be feeling as bad as I did, that it didn’t mean I was weak and that I should have been able to cope on my own. Lynette’s words of comfort helped me grasp what I needed to achieve, and that was being able to get on with my life and to live with the grief. I feel that I have done a good job of this, and 18 months later I feel close to my Mum, Nana and Dad, and at the same time I know they are no longer here for me to lean on day by day. Lynette is a wonderful listener, and that gave me an opening to share honestly and feel safe. I felt heard and understood, and at all times I felt that Lynette was holding my hand but letting me find my own way. My daughter and I are eternally grateful to Lynette for what she has given to us both, a sense of acceptance in losing our loved ones, and a pathway to a brave new future without them. Thankyou Lynette".
"Dear Lynette: On this occasion, the end of my scheduled session with you, I wish to thank you for your kindness, empathy, wisdom and encouragement. Nearly two years ago when I first came to you, I was a lost soul facing not one but four traumatic life events. These events would definitely occur although their timing was uncertain. You are not a magician, Lynette, it was not within your power to stop those events from occurring. But you equipped me with the tools to cope with them and, indeed, to grow from the experience. I particularly valued your assistance with some problematic relationships that were wearing my down. Once again, it was not within your power to change the behaviours of people who were causing me stress. Yet with your guidance and encouragement, I was able to look at my own behaviour, and make the necessary changes, and, to my amazement, this had consequential effects upon others. Today, I am much more confident person. I have learned the power of forgiveness. I show greater empathy towards others. You know, Lynette, I like myself a lot more that I once did. Two years ago, I was a lost soul in need of direction, you helped me find my way. I know that there are other lost woulds out there, suffering alone as I write this letter, and it would please me to no end if you shared this letter, or extracts thereof, with them. Thank you so much for supporting me during a stressful time in my life."
Client Testimonials for Lynette at Choose Life Counselling Auckland
Due to confidentiality clients names cannot be given for testimonials. Even first names are not used although a client gives their permission.
"Unsure of what to expect, I began counselling with Lynette during a very stressful time in my life arising from a change in jobs that I quickly realised was not going to work out. Being someone who considers work to be integral with my persona, the impact of this situation was, at the time, severe. Lynette helped me to put my expectations of myself into perspective, preventing me from crumbling entirely following my departure from the job. At this time, Lynette helped me to dig out and squash the false beliefs driving my feelings of inadequacy and self-doubt, and equipped me with the practical tools that I needed to change my way of thinking about the situation. Sometime later I returned to counselling with Lynette to revisit and work through some more deep-seated events that have coloured my life, in particular the sudden death of my sister. Lynette is a patient, kind and selfless listener. By helping me to reflect clearly on this painful time in my life, she helped me to see the value in knowing the truth about what really happened, allowing me closure on a period of my life that haunted me for almost two decades. Working with Lynette has allowed me to move forward with my life in ways I would not have expected, and I continue to recommend her services highly".
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"Feeling lost and at the end of my tether, I sought help with Lynette as my life seemed to be a complicated maze of stressful moments, followed by periods of frustration and despair. I had no idea of why or how my life had become this confusing mass of internal turmoil..?? Lynette helped to provide a 'map' and a 'pathway' through my internal maze of feelings, and helped me identify the in-balances in my life, and helped me understand why I was where I was in my life. This coupled with tools to guide me on a journey of discovery of my own thoughts and feelings, I came out the other side of my journey looking back thinking that life really is wonderful, people really are amazing, and we all deserve to live life to the fullest".
“Occasionally you meet someone who is truly dedicated and naturally talented in their vocation, Lynette is one of these people. I first visited Lynette when I was very unhappy in a long term relationship. Lynette's skill and guidance undoubtedly helped me to achieve the type of relationship I wanted. Lynette has a counselling style that makes you feel at ease. Once I realised that I no longer wanted to be in the relationship that I was in Lynette provided expert support and guidance. I am writing this reference several months after my counselling sessions with Lynette came to an end, I feel this gives me true insight to recognise the skill that she has in counselling. All decisions I made were entirely my own but Lynette's skills at leading you to realise what you want from your life are very rare. I have no hesitation in recommending her, the hardest thing I have done in my life was leaving the relationship that I was in but looking back on the situation now I know that both my ex partner and myself are in a far better situation. I am indebted to Lynette for her support in getting me here”. Male Teacher in 30's
"Everything in life was going well on paper, however I had some mental roadblocks which were preventing me from getting full enjoyment out of my career and home life. At the time I couldn’t see the wood for the trees, so I decided I needed outside help to resolve some of the issues that were crippling me in moving forward. A few sessions with Lynette helped me restore my faith in myself, and to see issues from a less personal and more objective viewpoint. She helped me recognise why I felt the way I did, and to see things from a different perspective. My confidence has grown hugely during this time and overall I am much happier in my own skin. Lynette is caring, understanding and easy to talk to, and I highly recommend her to anyone going through difficulties in life that they want to address". Graphic Designer, Female 30's
"Lynette helped me work through a period of stress and turbulence, mainly concerning relationships I had with those close to me and my decision to remain living in New Zealand. She provided the support, insight and empathy I needed to get through this time and helped me understand a great many things about myself I would not have realised by myself. I would highly recommend counselling to those who feel even a little overwhelmed, as it can equip you with invaluable skills to help deal with what life throws at you and show you that you are not alone."
"When I first went to counseling with Lynette, I was unsure what to expect. I had been to other counselors and found that while there were temporarily helpful, I didn't see many lasting changes in my life which made me feel like I should be in counseling forever. Lynette was such a source of encouragement right from the start. Practically, Lynette was awesome at helping me learn new ways to think about situations that had paralyzed me in the past. I felt my confidence and perspective grow in a healthy way and I learned how to really combat and stop negative thoughts that had lead me towards depression in the past. Lynette was a voice of reason in my life during a time where it seemed like no one else had the patience or knowledge to help me. I appreciated that Lynette has a lot of life experience that she can draw from and while I found her to be a teacher and mentor she was also a friend during our counselling sessions. I felt that she was loyal to me and on my side which made it so easy to build trust with her.
One major change I saw from my work in counseling is the way I now handle my relationship with my abusive father (emotional abuse, not sexual abuse). I was able to see my father through new eyes and forgive him of the hurt he caused me in the past. I was also able to face to face confront him on some necessary things and found that he responded so well. It made me wish I had learned and done all this work years ago! But I'm so happy I did it now.
I personally encourage many people to see out counselling. I am happy to report that a few people have been so encouraged by my experience that they have gone to counselling themselves".
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June 2018 "I came to see Lynette after being given her details from a family friend who had great success with her counselling style. I had recently been made redundant and experienced some other family traumas of suicide and separation. All of these events caused me to become anxious, confused, have a lack of direction and doubt my decision making abilities to move forward. Through Lynette’s listening skills and powerful questioning, she kindly challenged my thought patterns, helped me break down some unhealthy beliefs, and establish “boundaries” which I need for good decision making. Lynette also equipped me with books and other resources which were really helpful. She also touched base with me several months later to see how I was going. I have now recommended Lynette to other family and friends who are now having a similar positive, empowering experience.”
"When I first decided to start counselling I didn’t even know what my issues were, all I knew was that I was extremely stressed and unhappy. Lynette broke down all my anxieties and helped to pinpoint the root causes. This in turn let me focus on what was really stressing me out and I was able to resolve my feelings and change my thought process. Lynette was good at listening to me and not being judgemental, she made me feel like what I was going through was perfectly alright and that I wasn’t the only one going through similar problems. I left each session feeling uplifted and calm. I will definitely return to Lynette if I ever need to again in the future".
" I have been to Lynette of Choose Life Counselling at three different points of my life. She helped me to work through hurt and anger caused by the behavior of a family member. That relationship, I'm thrilled to say, has been mended and is better then ever. I also returned to Choose Life Counselling to help cope with anxiety caused by a very unhealthy work environment. Lynette equipped me with coping strategies and helped me to be assertive in the work place. Through our sessions, I was able to come to the decision to leave that job and I am now in a welcoming and balanced work environment. Her calm and caring manner always put me at ease and I appreciated her sense of humor! She was easy to talk to, very supportive and I always felt more empowered when I left our sessions. I recommend Lynette very highly to anyone looking to see a counselor. And I really am very grateful!"
"After many years of battling with grief due to the death of my parents, and having tried 2 other counsellors, my confidence in the counselling process had become somewhat diminished. Thankfully this was fully restored after meeting with Lynette for a course of sessions. I found Lynette's professional and approachable attitude very comfortable to be around which allowed me to open up on a level I had previously been unable to. Our work on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy was invaluable to my healing process and as a subsequence, with Lynette's help, I have been able to find that natural state of equilibrium I had been searching for. I cannot emphasize strongly enough how much these sessions changed my life in the way I think and deal with situations. I would, without doubt, highly recommend Lynette to anyone who is wanting to find balance and happiness in their life." Female
"I can highly recommend Lynette as a counsellor. I was the type of person who never thought I could go to counselling but Lynette is very warm and caring and soon put me at ease. She is very easy to talk to and I soon found myself opening up. I got to a point in life where I just felt stuck and completely overwhelmed and didn’t know what to do. It really helped having someone to talk to and that had the skills to be able to help me work through things. She has helped immensely and now I feel I can move on in life with tools to help me to better cope with life’s stressors." Sarah 7 May 2015, Female 30's Personal Assistant
"After losing my Mum to cancer, and then 10 weeks later my Nana died from a ‘broken heart’ having lost her daughter, to then 6 months later having my Dad commit suicide, I was at a point where I knew if I was going to get through this horrible time, that I was going to need someone to help me. I gained from seeing Lynette for my grief a sense that it was all right for me to be feeling as bad as I did, that it didn’t mean I was weak and that I should have been able to cope on my own. Lynette’s words of comfort helped me grasp what I needed to achieve, and that was being able to get on with my life and to live with the grief. I feel that I have done a good job of this, and 18 months later I feel close to my Mum, Nana and Dad, and at the same time I know they are no longer here for me to lean on day by day. Lynette is a wonderful listener, and that gave me an opening to share honestly and feel safe. I felt heard and understood, and at all times I felt that Lynette was holding my hand but letting me find my own way. My daughter and I are eternally grateful to Lynette for what she has given to us both, a sense of acceptance in losing our loved ones, and a pathway to a brave new future without them. Thank you Lynette." Receptionist, Female, late 30's
" Dear Lynette: On this occasion, the end of my scheduled session with you, I wish to thank you for your kindness, empathy, wisdom and encouragement. Nearly two years ago when I first came to you, I was a lost soul facing not one but four traumatic life events. These events would definitely occur although their timing was uncertain. You are not a magician, Lynette, it was not within your power to stop those events from occurring. But you equipped me with the tools to cope with them and, indeed, to grow from the experience. I particularly valued your assistance with some problematic relationships that were wearing my down. Once again, it was not within your power to change the behaviours of people who were causing me stress. Yet with your guidance and encouragement, I was able to look at my own behaviour, and make the necessary changes, and, to my amazement, this had consequential effects upon others. Today, I am much more confident person. I have learned the power of forgiveness. I show greater empathy towards others. You know, Lynette, I like myself a lot more that I once did. Two years ago, I was a lost soul in need of direction, you helped me find my way. I know that there are other lost souls out there, suffering alone as I write this letter, and it would please me to no end if you shared this letter, or extracts thereof, with them. Thank you so much for supporting me during a stressful time in my life." Lawyer, Male, 60's
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August 2018 "I met with Lynette due to a 'perfect storm' of circumstances: my mother had been diagnosed with dementia, I had been suffering stress-related health issues, and I was feeling very overwhelmed. Lynette was absolutely wonderful. She has a very practical and proactive approach and gave me the tools and advice to cope with my situation and feel so much more confident about everything. She literally 'took a weight off my mind' and I would recommend her to anyone. Don't wait until nagging issues become insurmountable. Go and see Lynette and nip them in the bud."
Take the first step forward to get the help you need...
Call Lynette on 021 422 400 to make an appointment today
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The Choose Life Counselling office address is at 177 Bonair Crescent, Millwater, Silverdale, Auckland, New Zealand.
