The first meeting between therapist and client begins before the first question is asked.

I am often aware of the small things: how someone enters the room, where they choose to sit,

their clothing, their voice, their pace, perhaps a hesitation or a moment of uncertainty. None of

these observations tells me who a person is. They are simply pieces of information that I hold

lightly, with curiosity rather than judgement.

• For me, curiosity is an important part of therapeutic work. I want to meet the person who is sitting in front of me, rather than immediately fitting their experience into a diagnosis, a theory or a particular explanation.

There is also something less tangible. Over years of sitting with people, I have become aware of an intuitive sense of what may be happening beneath the words. Sometimes I notice a change in tone, a movement away from a difficult subject, or a feeling in the room that has not yet found words.

This does not mean assuming that my first impression is right. Intuition needs to remain open to being questioned. The client's story is always the greater authority.

Perhaps this is why I have always felt privileged to sit with people and hear their life stories. Each person brings a world that I could never know in advance.

Therapy begins, for me, with that willingness to wonder: Who is this person, and what might I discover if I take the time to really listen.