About Pendulum Therapy Services

Hello, Ben here. I’m the founder of Pendulum Therapy Services and the lead counsellor and psychotherapist. A few people have asked me why I chose the name Pendulum, and I thought it might make a nice little story to share—one that might also help you understand therapy a bit more along the way.

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A few years back, a client walked into my room for their very first session with me. I already knew they hadn’t experienced therapy before, and as you might imagine, they felt understandably nervous and unsure. That first step into the room can feel like a big one, and this client was no different.

I gently asked if there was anything in particular they were worried about, or anything they wanted to share. They looked at me and quite honestly said that they “just didn’t get it.”

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“I don’t know how this is supposed to work,” they said. “Do I just tell you what’s going on and then you give me advice? How do I even know what to say?”

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I asked if they had ever heard of the “bucket metaphor”—something people often use in everyday life when they say things like, “my bucket is full,” or “I can’t fit anything else in right now.” Sometimes people imagine a glass, a jar, even a shelf—but for this story, I asked them to picture a bucket. One with a handle.

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They leaned in and nodded.
“I’ve heard of this,” they said. “My bucket is very full.”

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I explained that when you come to therapy, your therapist gently invites you to bring your bucket into the room. I asked them to imagine that between us, hanging from the ceiling, was a rope with a hook at the end—level with where we were sitting. I invited them to hang their bucket on that hook and swing it over to me.

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I explained that it’s always their choice how they do this. They might want to swing the whole bucket over as it is. Or they might choose to take a few things out first and only send some of it across. Either way, the first step is simply making the choice to swing the bucket.

My job, as the therapist, is to catch that bucket. I gently empty it out in front of me and might ask a few thoughtful questions about what I can see. Then I place one or two things back into the bucket and swing it back to them. The rest, I keep safe for now.

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Together, we focus on just those one or two things. They might decide these are important, meaningful parts of their story—things they want to keep, display, and reflect on. These can move from the bucket to their “mental shelf,” where they can be held with care and understanding. Or they might decide that some things no longer serve them, that they’ve been weighing the bucket down for a long time—and they’re ready to let them go.

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Once that work is done, the bucket can be swung back to me again. It might come back empty, ready for the next thing. Or something new might be placed inside. The choice is always theirs.

I explained that throughout our work together, the bucket moves back and forth between us—just like a pendulum. Sometimes it swings slowly, perhaps only once or twice in a session. Other times, it might swing more quickly, moving through lots of things in one go. Both ways are okay. Both are part of the process.

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This particular client and I continued to use the bucket and pendulum analogy throughout our work together. Watching their growth over time was an incredible privilege.

Fast forward a few years, and there I was—sitting down, trying to think of a name for this new therapy practice. Something that fit. Something that felt right. Almost immediately, this story came back to me.

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And that’s how Pendulum Therapy Services was born.

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That pendulum way of working still sits at the heart of how I practise today. I believe therapy works best when it feels collaborative, paced, and led by the person in the room—but also grounded in real life and real conversation. Some sessions move gently and slowly, others carry more momentum, but all of it is guided by what feels right and manageable for you. You always choose what goes into the bucket, what stays, what changes, and when the work feels complete. My role is to hold the space with care, curiosity, and a steady thread of practical thinking—so the work we do together feels meaningful, usable, and real.