Walking Free

We specialise in providing a specialist therapeutic model to help those who have experienced coercive, cultic and/or spiritual abuse and operate in an area of outstanding natural beauty.

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Counselling for Coercive, Cultic and Spiritual Abuse by Dr. Gillie Jenkinson

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Walking Free Counselling

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Professional Training

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Self-Help Workbook

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Walking Free Model

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Recovery Workshop

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Walking Free Counselling ✤ Professional Training ✤ Self-Help Workbook ✤ Walking Free Model ✤ Recovery Workshop ✤

COUNSELLING

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Walking Free Counselling

If you have experienced coercive, cultic and/or spiritual abuse, you may benefit from counselling using the Walking Free Model. Gillie Jenkinson has developed this model over 30 years of counselling and research because traditional counselling often fails to address the effects of such abuse. It focuses on the importance of understanding what has happened to you and how the experience has affected you. Walking Free Counselling was previously called Post-Cult Counselling. More details here.

FOR THERAPISTS & PROFESSIONALS

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Training & Supervision

Hope Valley Counselling offers training, supervision and consultancy to therapists and other professionals. This includes a Certificate training for therapists and other mental health professionals who are currently working with, or looking to work with, survivors and former members of coercive, cultic and/or spiritually abusive settings. More details here.

SELF-HELP WORKBOOK

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Walking Free Workbook

This book provides a comprehensive guide to recovery, based on a tested model of post-cult counselling (Walking Free Counselling), and years of research and clinical experience. It is designed to help survivors of diverse abusive settings. More details here.

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The Walking Free Model: Counselling for Coercive, Cultic and Spiritual Abuse (formerly Post Cult Counselling)

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Dr Gillie Jenkinson

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Gillie is an award-winning, accredited psychotherapist and counsellor, and a Director at Hope Valley Counselling. She has 30 years’ experience working with survivors of trauma and undue influence - including spiritual abuse, religious trauma and cults, partner and sexual abuse and rape. Gillie also provides training, supervision and consultation to professionals working in this area.

Featured Media

Below you can find a featured piece of media or writing that Gillie has recently been featured in

BBC Two - Inside The Cult of the Jesus Army

Dr Gillie Jenkinson was honoured to be filmed delivering Walking Free Counselling for the documentary ‘Inside the Cult of the Jesus Army’ which is accessible on BBC iPlayer in the UK.

From the BBC website:

“A look at the origins of the Jesus Fellowship. Founded in the 1970s, its early vision of communal living, shared finances and spiritual commitment changes over time, becoming more structured and controlling. Unexplained deaths begin to occur within the community, exorcisms are performed on members with 'unclean spirits', and children as young as two are disciplined with birch canes in a practice known as 'rodding'.

“Then, in 1987, leader Noel Stanton announces the launch of a ‘Jesus Army’. Members go onto the streets to evangelise, often amongst the homeless or people with addiction issues, and often bring new recruits back into community homes. One of these homes is in London, and it is here that a young girl becomes a witness to something that will change her life forever.”

FEEDBACK

Gillie is highly qualified and knowledgeable, and I am grateful for the wisdom and expertise she was able to offer me. I felt safe and able to trust her to work through trauma that I rarely speak about. She was not distant or desensitised; she was fully present and always responded with compassion and professionalism. Through her active listening I felt seen and heard, and that my experiences were understood and validated.

FEEDBACK

Thank you for helping me to move beyond the damage they caused, for helping me to believe in myself and know that I was brave. I did something amazing to stand up to the narcissistic bullies. I paid a heavy price, but you helped me to understand what they did, why they did it and that I can overcome the intrusion of their rhetoric. Thank you so much for everything and feeling strongly enough to help me to discount your costs. For that I am truly grateful.

FEEDBACK

PCC has been all I expected and more - incredibly insightful into how my transgenerational cult upbringing has shaped so much. Raising awareness of this has been a delightful challenge.

FEEDBACK

The Recovery Workbook was a helpful tool in my post-cult recovery as it gives a structure and I like seeing the ground covered. I’m glad I have it to look back on, it gives me a sense of completing a phase in my recovery.