Interview: Rochdale celebrity life coaches The Speakmans

Nik and Eva Speakman

Leading life coach therapists Nik and Eva Speakman are about to embark on a five-night tour to challenge mind-sets as they talk live on stage at various UK locations.

For the first time in a theatre environment The Speakmans will share their positive change techniques, usually reserved for individuals, with a live audience.

The Littleborough couple, famed for successfully treating many people live on television, have had countless successes and, in addition to their private clinic, now have a regular presenting slot on ITV's This Morning.

Before they got too busy with their tour, Rochdale Online caught up with the couple for a chat...

So who have you worked with? Anyone we know?

We have been very fortunate in helping lots of celebrities from around the world, including an Oscar nominated film actress. Whilst we have worked with many well-known names, the majority of our clients are not celebrities and are lovely people from all over the UK and from all walks of life.

What is the most challenging issue you have faced in your time giving therapy?

Quite recently we worked with a group of 25 people who were involved in the Tunisia terror attacks in 2015 - it was challenging, but being able to make a difference to their quality of life was incredibly rewarding.

What inspired you to start in this line of work?

When Nik was ill many years ago, and was told he probably only had six weeks to live, he searched for an answer to save his life. It was at that moment that he realised that not everything we are told is correct, and that there are undiscovered answers to issues which are currently considered incurable. This is what started our voyage of discovery to find solutions to issues that people often believe they will have for life.

How would you describe your methodology?

Our pioneering therapy is called ‘Schema Conditioning Psychotherapy’. Knowing that we are all a product of our environment and that no one is born with any issues or anxiety disorders, we know that any negative behaviours are learned due to a personal life experience. Our methodology is to uncover the belief (or schema) that created the anxiety disorder or negative belief, and provide overwhelming evidence to alter that belief.

What does Rochdale mean to you and why do you like living here?

We've lived in the Rochdale area for 24 years. It's where our children were born, we’ve made many close friends here and the people of Rochdale are very friendly and down to earth.

How to be happy with The Speakmans will premiere at Birmingham Symphony Hall in April before moving on to Manchester, followed by Blackburn, Nottingham and Guildford venues in May.