I hear you ask "What is shoulder to shoulder therapy?" and I would reply... It is a type of counselling/therapy that works when the counsellor and the client share an activity together, side by side, such as walking or doing something creative. This type of therapy helps to explore relationships and reach those deep emotions which are difficult to deal with in a face to face situation and having the beach and the headlands in such close proximity to where I work makes it an ideal situation for shoulder to shoulder work.
For instance, one client and I sat together exploring books containing patterned and plain paper. My client was able to relate the different assorted colours and patterns to her own feelings and emotions and went on to use the pages as a template to make her own bunting. Whilst doing this she was able to explore some very difficult aspects and once the bunting was complete she had a reminder that although life had been very difficult for her she was also able to look to the future in a more positive light.
Another client of mine wanted to go to the beach and so we spent several sessions walking and talking, shoulder to shoulder and sitting on the rocks side by side. This worked very well on the days when the weather was good to us and on the not so good days we spent time sitting side by side exploring the client's relationships using different sized and coloured stones, beads and pieces of old lego.
So there you have it... an idea of what shoulder to shoulder work is about.