What is talking therapy and how does it work?

Talking therapy is a safe, confidential space where you can explore your thoughts and emotions with a trained therapist. By being listened to without judgment, you can begin to understand yourself more deeply and move toward positive change.

How do I know if talking therapy is right for me?

If you're struggling with anxiety, low mood, stress, relationship difficulties, trauma, or simply feeling stuck, therapy may help. Many people come to therapy not because they have all the answers, but because they want a space to figure things out.

What happens in a person-centred therapy session?

In person-centred therapy, you lead the pace and direction of each session. Your therapist provides empathy, understanding, and acceptance, helping you explore whatever feels most important in the moment.

How many sessions will I need?

There is no fixed number. Some people benefit from short-term therapy over a few sessions, while others prefer longer-term support. We will regularly review how things are going and you are always in control of when to finish.

Is talking therapy confidential?

Yes. Everything shared in therapy is confidential, with a few legal exceptions around safety. I will explain these clearly in our first session so you feel fully informed and comfortable.

THERAPY SERVICES

Online Therapy in the UK

What therapy actually is, how it works, and how to know if it might help.

A warm home workspace representing online therapy sessions in the UK by video

Therapy online in the UK has become a normal way to talk to a counsellor.

You do not have to sit in a waiting room. You do not have to travel across a city after work. You meet over video, from your own space, with someone who is trained to listen carefully and without judgement. That is, in the simplest terms, what online therapy is.

A calm and grounded environment representing online counselling with a UK-based counsellor.

Benefits of Talking Therapy

Gaining clarity and understanding about your thoughts and emotions

Improving self-confidence and reducing self-doubt

Finding relief from stress, anxiety, and overwhelming emotions

Building healthier coping strategies to manage life’s challenges

Strengthening relationships through better communication and connection

Creating lasting changes that support balance, resilience, and wellbeing

Book a Free Consultation and start your journey to a calmer, more confident you.

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What online therapy actually looks like

Most people have an idea of therapy that comes from films and television. A leather couch, a notepad, a long silence, a dramatic breakthrough. Real therapy looks very little like this.

We meet by video, for 50 minutes, at a regular time that works for both of us. You can talk about whatever is on your mind that week. I listen. I ask questions sometimes. I do not give advice, and I do not hand you worksheets or homework. The work happens through the conversation itself, and through the space to say things you may not have said out loud before.

How do I know if I need a therapist?

This is one of the most common questions I get, and there is no clean answer. People come to therapy for all sorts of reasons. Some have had a crisis. Many have not. Some have tried to manage something on their own for years and have reached a point where they would like some help understanding it.

You do not need a diagnosis. You do not need a good enough reason. If part of you has been thinking about speaking to someone, that alone is usually enough. I wrote a longer piece on this, Do I Need a Therapist, which goes into more detail.

Cost of private therapy in the UK

Private therapy fees in the UK vary. A rough range would be £50 to £120 per session depending on the counsellor's training, location, and experience. My sessions are £60. You pay per session, so there is no commitment to a block of sessions you are not sure you need. If you want to stop after a few weeks, you can. If you want to pause and come back, you can.

NHS talking therapy is also an option for many people, usually through NHS Talking Therapies (formerly known as IAPT), though waiting times can be long in some areas. If you are on an NHS waiting list and would like to start sooner, private therapy can bridge the gap.

How I work

I am a trainee counsellor working toward accreditation, and my approach is trauma-informed and body-aware. That means I take the nervous system seriously. It means I see anxiety, depression, burnout and recurring patterns in relationships as parts of a whole story, not as separate problems to be solved.

You can read more about specific presentations on the anxiety, depression, and trauma pages, or read the Survival Cycle blog for an overview of how I think about this work.

Getting started

If you would like to book a first session, you can do that through the booking page. If you would like to ask something before booking, you can message me and I will get back to you the same day. There is no script and no pressure. A first session is a place to see whether this feels like the right fit for you, not a commitment to anything beyond that one session.

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Frequently Asked Questions

There is no list of criteria. Most people who come to therapy are not in crisis. They are people who have been carrying something for a while and would like someone to help them make sense of it. If part of you has been quietly thinking about it, that is usually a signal worth listening to. You do not need a reason that sounds serious enough.
Fees vary quite a bit. A rough range is £50 to £120 per session. My sessions are £60, paid per session, not upfront. That keeps things flexible. There are no long-term contracts and no cancellation fees if you give reasonable notice.
Yes, through the NHS. The main route is a service called NHS Talking Therapies (formerly IAPT), which you can often self-refer to. Waiting times vary. For some people, NHS counselling is the right fit. For others, the waiting list or the short number of sessions offered means they look for something more flexible.
In the UK, the words overlap more than they separate. All three mean someone trained to work with emotional and psychological difficulties. The differences often come down to training route and length, rather than what happens in the room. What matters more is whether the person you choose feels like the right fit for you.
Research suggests that, for most presentations, online therapy works as well as in-person therapy. What matters most is the relationship between you and the therapist. Some people actively prefer online. It removes travel, it feels less exposing, and it lets you be in your own space afterwards. Others miss the in-person sense of shared space. Neither is wrong.
For private therapy in the UK, you do not need a referral from a GP. You can contact a counsellor directly and book a session. You also do not need to prove anything about the reason you are coming. You are welcome to come because you want to.