East Grinstead · in person in Hove or online
Addiction counselling and rehab advice for East Grinstead
If you've been searching for rehab in East Grinstead, whether it's your own drinking or using or a relative's, residential care and detox are arranged through DAWN, the West Sussex drug and alcohol service. I'm a counsellor, and recovery is part of my own history. Sessions are one to one, on a secure video link or in the Hove room, before, during or after that treatment.
The practical facts for East Grinstead
- Where sessions happen
- A private room at Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, Hove BN3 2JQ, or secure video.
- From East Grinstead by car
- About 44 minutes with clear roads (28.4 miles); longer at busy times.
- By train
- From East Grinstead, change at East Croydon for trains towards Brighton and Hove.
- Free local drug & alcohol service
- West Sussex Drug & Alcohol Wellbeing Network (DAWN), 0330 128 1113
- Fees
- £80 for 60 minutes, £100 for 90, £120 for 120. The first 15-minute call is free.
- Registration
- BACP registered member, no. 109340 (check the register); UKCP student member in advanced psychotherapy training.
A late-night search for a place that isn't there
You may be a parent in Ashplats who has waited up again for a son who said he'd be home hours ago, or a partner in Herontye afraid that drinking is about to cost someone a job they care about.
Or it may be your own drinking or using, and you're checking from the car outside the house whether there's anywhere local that nobody would hear about. Typing 'rehab East Grinstead', you may hope to find a building in town you can ring in the morning and drive someone to. The real route works differently, and it helps to know how before you spend weeks looking. For context, Mid Sussex recorded 393.9 hospital admissions per 100,000 people for alcohol-related conditions in 2023/24, using the narrow definition, lower than England's rate of 504.1 per 100,000. That is a figure for the whole district. It can't tell you how serious things are in your house, and a problem doesn't have to reach hospital to deserve help.
How DAWN, families and counselling fit together
In West Sussex the free door into treatment is the Drug and Alcohol Wellbeing Network, known as DAWN, which Change Grow Live runs, on 0330 128 1113. Their team assesses what is needed and, where it's safe and right, arranges detox, a community programme or a residential stay. Counselling covers the ground around it. Before that first call, we can work out what you'd actually say and what you're afraid they'll ask. During community treatment, sessions with me are a private hour that isn't about forms or targets. After a residential stay, coming home to the same streets and the same evening routine is often the hardest part, and steady weekly sessions give you somewhere to bring it. In the work itself we look at the job drinking, using or gambling has taken on in your life, the feelings it has kept quiet, and what could do that job instead. I've been through recovery myself, so nothing you say needs softening. If you're the parent, partner or grown-up child, the hour can be entirely yours: where your limits are, what you've stopped covering for, and how to keep your own life going.
Four starting points from East Grinstead
Still deciding whether to call
Counselling can start while you're making up your mind. We can prepare for the DAWN assessment together, so ringing 0330 128 1113 feels less like a leap into the dark.
Felbridge and the county line
Felbridge sits just inside Surrey, so the West Sussex service may not be the one that covers you there. Your GP can confirm which drug and alcohol team is yours.
Living with someone who uses
Carers Support West Sussex has support set aside for people caring for someone who drinks or uses drugs, whether that's a partner, a son or daughter, or a parent.
Home after a residential place
Coming back to familiar East Grinstead evenings after a stay DAWN arranged can be the shakiest stretch. Weekly sessions give those first months a fixed point.
Public health figures for the area
These are local authority figures from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities. "Similar to England" means the difference is not statistically significant. The figures describe a whole population over a period, not any one person.
Free drug and alcohol support for East Grinstead
For families, West Sussex Wellbeing runs council support for family and friends, and Carers Support West Sussex helps people looking after someone who drinks or uses drugs. Mid Sussex Wellbeing offers free coaching through its Alcohol Reduction Service if you want to drink less. Arise Counselling Service is affordable, but it says it does not take clients with severe addictions, so for dependency start with DAWN.
- Free drug and alcohol serviceWest Sussex Drug & Alcohol Wellbeing Network (DAWN)0330 128 1113Run by Change Grow Live. Free and confidential.
FRANK (on 0300 123 6600) and Drinkline on 0300 123 1110 are free and confidential, and Alcoholics Anonymous and SMART Recovery run peer-support meetings you can find online. For gambling, the National Gambling Helpline is free, day or night, on 0808 8020 133 (NHS gambling support).
If raising someone's drinking or drug use with them feels unsafe, or someone at home is hurting, threatening or controlling you, the National Domestic Abuse Helpline is free, day or night, on 0808 2000 247. In immediate danger, call 999.
Detox and residential rehab are arranged through the free local drug and alcohol service named here. It assesses what you need, arranges medically assisted withdrawal where that is safe and needed, and can refer for community or residential treatment. My part is one-to-one counselling before, alongside or after that treatment, to help the changes last.
If you need urgent help now
If you need help right now, please don't wait for a session.
In this area you can also text SUSSEX to 85258.
If you, or someone you live with, drink heavily every day, or take drugs such as benzodiazepines or GHB daily, do not stop suddenly without medical advice. Withdrawal can cause seizures and can be dangerous. Your GP or the local drug and alcohol service can arrange medically assisted withdrawal. Call 999 or go to A&E if someone in withdrawal is shaking visibly, unusually restless or agitated, confused, seeing or hearing things that are not there, or has a fit. For milder symptoms, such as a slight tremor or sweating, contact your GP or NHS 111 the same day (NHS guidance). Counselling works alongside medical support, not instead of it.
What people in East Grinstead ask before starting
Is there a rehab in East Grinstead I can contact?
The free route for East Grinstead is the West Sussex Drug and Alcohol Wellbeing Network (DAWN), run by Change Grow Live, on 0330 128 1113. They assess what's needed and arrange detox or a residential place when it's right. Paying for a private rehab is a separate decision. Either way, counselling with me can begin now and continue afterwards.
Our grown-up son still lives at home in East Grinstead and drinks daily. Is there support for us as parents?
Yes, and none of it depends on him agreeing. West Sussex Wellbeing has council-run support for family and friends, and Carers Support West Sussex works with people caring for someone who drinks or uses drugs. Counselling with me can be an hour for one or both of you to think about limits and what you'll stop doing. The safety note on this page about stopping suddenly is worth reading too.
Can I come to Hove for addiction counselling from East Grinstead, or is it all online?
Either. The drive to Hove takes about 44 minutes, so meeting face to face is realistic if you have a car. Video gives you the same session from home, with no waiting room and no one local noticing where you go. You can also mix the two. The free call is where we decide which suits you, and I'll tell you how soon you could start.
Can I use Arise Counselling Service in East Grinstead for my drinking?
Arise is a local charity offering affordable counselling, but it states that it does not take clients with severe addictions. If your drinking is heavy or daily, the right first contact is DAWN, the West Sussex drug and alcohol service, or your GP. If you mainly want to drink less, Mid Sussex Wellbeing's coaching is free. Counselling with me can sit alongside either.
How much do sessions cost, and is the first call free?
Sessions are £80 for 60 minutes, £100 for 90 minutes and £120 for 120 minutes, the same in person in Hove or by video. The first 15-minute call is free, with no obligation to book. There is no NHS referral needed to see me privately.
Start with a call, for you or for them
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.