Hove · the room is on Western Road
Bereavement and grief counselling in Hove
When someone close to you has died, whether you live by Palmeira Square, in Aldrington or up in Hangleton, you can come to Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, for grief counselling, or we can talk by secure video while you stay home. There's no right way to grieve and no deadline for it. You can come to the free 15-minute call without knowing what to say, and that's fine.
If you are thinking about ending your life, call 999 or the Samaritans free on 116 123, day or night. More urgent help is on this page.
The practical facts for Hove
- Where sessions happen
- A private room at Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, Hove BN3 2JQ, or secure video.
- Free bereavement helpline
- Cruse Bereavement Support helpline, 0808 808 1677
- 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.
Familiar streets after someone has gone
Grief in Hove often lives in very ordinary places.
The bench on Hove Lawns where you used to sit together, the walk along Church Road you now take alone, a cricket season at the County Ground without the person who always had the tickets. In a settled, residential town, other people's lives carry on around you at the usual speed, and the cards and casseroles tend to stop a few weeks after the funeral. You may have spent months taking the train into Brighton to visit the Royal Sussex County Hospital, only to find the days strangely empty once the visiting ended. Or your family may be scattered along the coast or up the line to London, so you're grieving at a distance from everyone else who knew the person. However the loss arrived, the quiet afterwards can be the hardest part.
Grief without stages or a timetable
I work with grief as it actually arrives, which is rarely in neat stages or a set order. Some weeks you may feel close to normal, and then a song in a shop or a birthday in the diary brings it all back. That isn't going backwards. In our sessions you can talk about the person as they really were, the good and the difficult. People are often surprised by what grief contains besides sadness: anger at the person who died, at doctors or at family, guilt about things said or left unsaid, and sometimes relief, especially after years of caring or a relationship that hurt. All of that is welcome here and none of it makes you a bad person. If the death was by suicide, the questions it leaves can be heavy, and we can take them slowly. If drink has become the way you get through the evenings since the death, we can look at that too, gently and without judgement. I have lived experience of recovery, so it won't shock me. You set the pace throughout.
Losses people in Hove carry
After years of caring
When caring for a parent or partner ends with their death, the loss of the role can be as disorientating as the loss of the person. The carers' organisations named below know this well.
A death by suicide
Bereavement by suicide often brings questions that have no tidy answer. Bereaved by Suicide Sussex, part of Cruse, supports people bereaved this way, and sessions here can run alongside it.
A partner others didn't see
If your relationship wasn't fully recognised by family, or you were kept to the edges of the funeral, grief can feel lonely. MindOut and Brighton and Hove LGBT Switchboard support LGBTQ people in the city.
Getting through evenings with drink
If evenings since the death have come to revolve around a glass, Kennedy Street Recovery offers a peer-led drop-in hub in the city, and in sessions we can explore the loss beneath it.
Free bereavement support for Hove
Free bereavement help in the city can sit beside private sessions. If the death was by suicide, Bereaved by Suicide Sussex, run by Cruse Bereavement Support, offers dedicated help for people in Hove and across Sussex. If you looked after the person who died, The Carers Centre for Brighton and Hove and Carers Hub Brighton and Hove both support carers. Mind in Brighton and Hove offers wider mental health support, and Brighton Hove and District Samaritans is the local Samaritans branch.
- Free bereavement helplineCruse Bereavement Support helpline0808 808 1677Free, from trained volunteers. Open Monday and Wednesday to Friday 9.30am to 5pm, Tuesday 1pm to 8pm.
- Free NHS talking therapyBrighton and Hove Wellbeing Service0300 002 0060Free NHS talking therapy for low mood or anxiety that has settled in after a loss. You can refer yourself, with no GP referral needed.
- If drinking or drug use is part of itBrighton & Hove Recovery Service01273 731900Run by Change Grow Live. Free and confidential.
If someone at home is hurting, threatening or controlling you, the National Domestic Abuse Helpline is free, day or night, on 0808 2000 247.
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.
What people in Hove ask before starting
Is it too soon for grief counselling if the funeral has only just happened?
There's no rule about when to start. Some people in Hove want to talk within days, while others wait months or years until the practical tasks are done and the house goes quiet. If it feels early, the free 15-minute call can be a way of finding out whether now suits you, with no obligation to book.
Where can I get free bereavement support in Brighton and Hove?
The Cruse Bereavement Support helpline is free on 0808 808 1677, and in Sussex Cruse runs Bereaved by Suicide Sussex for people bereaved through suicide. If low mood or anxiety has followed the death, you can refer yourself to the Brighton and Hove Wellbeing Service. You can use these alongside private sessions with me.
Should I come to the Western Road room or talk by video from home in Hove?
Whichever feels kinder. The room is close to most of Hove, and getting out of a house full of reminders can help. On the other hand, crying in your own home and not having to travel back afterwards suits some people better. You can move between the two, and video is always there on harder days.
It's been over a year and I still feel it every day. Is something wrong with me?
No. Grief doesn't follow a calendar, and the second year can be as hard as the first, once the support around you has thinned out. Feeling the loss every day usually reflects how much the person mattered. Counselling gives that grief somewhere to go each week. If you're finding it hard to want to carry on, please use the urgent help numbers on this page.
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.
Talk about the person you've lost
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.