Alcohol
For when drinking has stopped being a choice. Dedicated support on the drinking problems page.
Addiction Counselling
Addiction Counselling in Brighton & Hove
The question isn't "why the addiction?", it's "why the pain?" Addiction is a habit that once provided comfort and a feeling of safety. Heal the wound underneath, and you take away the need for the anaesthetic.
Understanding addiction differently
Addiction persists because, at some point, it worked. The emotional, limbic part of the brain is wired to our survival instinct, and it can mistake an addictive behaviour for something essential to staying safe. That's why willpower alone so often fails: you're fighting a part of yourself that believes it's protecting you.
So we don't start with shame or "stopping". We start with curiosity. Together we explore the rational and emotional sides of your behaviour to understand why the same patterns keep repeating, and we work to soothe the fear that keeps them locked in place.
Recovery, in this sense, means recovering your true self: the one that was there before life's turbulence twisted things out of shape. It's nobody's fault, and it can be restored.
What I help with
Support for every kind of addiction
Addiction applies not only to substances but to behaviours, thoughts and emotional states. Whatever yours looks like, you'll be met without judgement.
Drugs & substances
Compassionate, confidential help with substance use, see substance use counselling.
Gambling
Breaking the cycle of compulsive gambling and the guilt, secrecy and debt that so often come with it.
Food & behavioural
Support for food, and for behavioural and process addictions where the "fix" is an action rather than a substance.
Affected by someone else's
Help for those living alongside a loved one's addiction, including within relationships.
The pain underneath
Very often trauma, anxiety or low mood is the driver. We treat the cause, not just the symptom.
How addiction counselling works with me
We work collaboratively, at a pace that always feels safe. Rather than "white‑knuckling" your way through, which is exhausting and tends to drive you back to the very thing you're trying to leave, we look at both the immediate habit and the unmet needs beneath it, so recovery becomes sustainable.
My approach is integrative: I draw on person‑centred and solution‑focused work, Internal Family Systems (IFS), Human Givens methods and, where trauma is involved, the Rewind Technique. We'll set realistic, SMART goals and build the internal resources to interrupt the cycle and re‑pattern it.
You can read more about my methods, session lengths and fees, or explore the wider counselling services I offer.
Take the first stepHow it works
Your path to recovery
01
Reach out
Book a free 15‑minute call or phone me. The first contact is the hardest, and the most important.
02
Choose how we meet
In person in Hove, by phone, or by secure video, across Brighton, Hove & Sussex.
03
Share at your pace
Bring as much or as little as feels safe. Therapy gently teases out the rest.
04
Re‑pattern & recover
With support and repetition, freedom from the cycle becomes real, and lasting.
Addiction kills, first the pain, then us
It doesn't have to. Book a free 15‑minute consultation and take the first step towards the life you deserve, in Hove or online.
What to expect
What addiction counselling with me actually involves
People often arrive worried that counselling will mean being judged, labelled, or told to stop before they feel ready. It isn't like that. Whether your difficulty is with alcohol, drugs, gambling, food, gaming, shopping or another compulsive pattern, our early sessions are simply about understanding: what the behaviour does for you, when it takes hold, and what it has quietly been protecting you from.
From there the work becomes practical. Drawing on Human Givens ideas, we look at the emotional needs, for security, connection, meaning and a sense of control, that aren't currently being met, and find healthier ways to meet them. Using Internal Family Systems (IFS), we get to know the part of you that reaches for the addiction and the part that wants to stop, so they are no longer at war. Where trauma sits underneath, the gentle Rewind Technique can settle the memories that keep driving the cycle, and solution-focused work helps you build on what already goes well.
Sessions last an hour and are completely confidential. We move at a pace you set, never faster than feels safe, and review progress together as we go. There is no requirement to have already stopped, to have hit "rock bottom", or to have all the answers before you begin, only a quiet wish for something different. Where it helps, I can also signpost you to medical, detox or mutual-aid services alongside our work.
I offer addiction counselling in person from my Hove practice, including nearby Brighton, Hove and Worthing, and by secure video across the UK, from London and Manchester to Birmingham. You can see every location I cover on the areas I cover page.
If you need urgent help right now
This is a private counselling practice, not a crisis or emergency service, and I can't always respond straight away. If you are in danger or thinking about harming yourself, please call 999 or go to your nearest A&E. For free, confidential support at any hour, contact the Samaritans on 116 123, or text SHOUT to 85258.
For confidential drug and alcohol information and advice, contact FRANK or call Drinkline on 0300 123 1110. For gambling, the National Gambling Helpline is 0808 8020 133.
Areas we cover
Addiction Counselling across Brighton, Hove & Sussex
In-person addiction counselling in towns across the area, and online right across the UK. Choose your area for local detail.