Anxiety and worry
When your mind will not settle and everything feels urgent.
Counselling and Therapy · Lewes
Counselling and Therapy in Lewes
Counselling and Therapy for Lewes and the surrounding area, in person or online. Lewes, the historic county town of East Sussex, is famous for its castle, steep twittens, Harveys Brewery and Bonfire night. From my room in nearby Hove I offer a calm, confidential space to do this work.
BACP registered member25+ years of experienceLived experience
ConfidentialA safe, private space
Person-centredThe therapy fits you
In and around Lewes
Counselling and Therapy for Lewes, at a glance
- Known for
- Lewes Castle, the Harveys Brewery and the South Downs Way
- Area
- Lewes & Mid Sussex, East/West Sussex
- Getting to the Hove room
- From Lewes the office is around twenty minutes by car on the A27, or a short direct train to Brighton and on to Hove.
- Local NHS / support route
- Health in Mind, the East Sussex NHS Talking Therapies service
- Format
- In person at my private Hove room, or by secure video UK-wide.
Life in Lewes
Why people in Lewes get in touch
Lewes is a town that looks like it has its act together. The castle above the rooftops, the steep twittens, the shops and the societies, and a general air of people getting on with things capably. That can be a hard backdrop for feeling lost in. You may not be able to say what is wrong. Nothing has happened, or nothing that would explain it, and yet the mornings have become heavy and the things you used to enjoy have gone quiet. There is no need to have this worked out before you speak to anyone. Beginning without a name for it is the ordinary way in.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Lewes
Cliffe High StreetSchool HillKeere StreetSouthoverThe WallandsLandportNevillSt Anne's
Wherever you are in Lewes, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Lewes
Official figures for Lewes, for context rather than as a description of you.
24.1% of adults reported a high anxiety score in 2022/23, above the England average of 23.8%. Source: OHID Fingertips – Self-reported wellbeing: high anxiety score (2022/23).
recorded depression on GP registers stood at 17.4% of patients aged 18+ in 2024/25, above the England average of 14.3%. Source: OHID Fingertips – Depression: QOF prevalence (2024/25).
the rate of emergency hospital admissions for self-harm was 192.7 per 100,000 in 2023/24, above the England average of 117 per 100,000. Source: OHID Fingertips – Emergency Hospital Admissions for Intentional Self-Harm (2023/24).
Reviewed June 2026.
What actually happens in counselling and therapy?
Counselling and therapy here is one steady starting point for whatever you are carrying, anxiety, low mood, addiction, relationships or the past, integrative and led by you, so we begin with what matters most and shape the work around you.
Rather than say the same thing on every page, the substance lives on everything on counselling and therapy, with the practical side for the practical questions and professional standards and registration for registration and ethics.
What does a session actually involve?
Sessions take place in a private, comfortable room at Intergen House on Western Road in central Hove, held to the strict BACP confidentiality you would expect. We begin with a free fifteen-minute call to check we are a good fit, and the same sessions are available by secure video if travelling is difficult or you would simply prefer it.
Sessions take place in Hove, about twenty minutes by car or a direct train to Brighton and two stops further on. Booking a single appointment to see whether it suits you is entirely reasonable and nothing more is assumed. If the journey is impractical, or you would rather not be seen setting off at the same time each week, the same hour is available online by secure video from home.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
What can counselling and therapy in Lewes help with?
Low mood and depression
For the flatness, exhaustion and loss of interest that drain the colour from things.
Addiction and habits
Alcohol, drugs, gambling or behaviours that have stopped feeling like a choice.
Relationships
Conflict, distance and trust, as a couple or on your own.
Trauma and the past
When something you have been through still shapes your present.
Life feeling stuck
For the big transitions, losses and crossroads that leave you unsure which way to turn.
Counselling and Therapy in Lewes
Why people in Lewes come for counselling and therapy
This is the place to start when you cannot yet name the problem. No diagnosis is needed, no referral, and no coherent account of yourself. We work from the week you have actually had, and the real shape of the difficulty usually becomes clear over the first two or three sessions. Some 24.1% of adults in the county reported a high anxiety score in 2022/23, a little above the England average of 23.8%. The focus stays on the present: what you dread, what you avoid, what has fallen out of your life without you deciding it should. This is shorter work than psychotherapy, often six to twelve weekly hours, reviewed as we go so that carrying on is always a live choice. Where something older is clearly underneath, longer work can be discussed later. Health in Mind takes self-referrals and costs nothing.
A free, unhurried first step
Not sure if it is right for you? A free fifteen-minute call is a no-obligation way to talk it through.
Book a free 15-minute callFinding support in Lewes
My counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Lewes, you can refer yourself directly to Health in Mind, the East Sussex NHS Talking Therapies service for free NHS talking therapy, with no GP referral needed.
Seeing me privately usually means you can start sooner and stay with the same counsellor throughout, working at greater depth and pace; the two can run side by side, and I am glad to work alongside any NHS or GP support you already have.
Other local and national support verified for this area includes:
If you need urgent help now
This is not a crisis service. If anyone is in immediate danger call 999. For urgent mental health support, call NHS 111 and choose the mental health option. The Samaritans are free, day or night, on 116 123, or text SHOUT to 85258.
Lewes questions
Counselling and Therapy in Lewes: common questions
Where do Lewes sessions take place, and can I meet online instead?
In a private room at Intergen House on Western Road in central Hove. From Lewes the office is around twenty minutes by car on the A27, or a short direct train to Brighton and on to Hove. Every service is also available by secure video across the UK, so you can meet from any private space in Lewes or blend the two.
Must I be able to say what is wrong before I book anything?
No, and most people do not. The free 15-minute call asks nothing of you beyond a rough sense of how things are. Working out what this actually is forms part of the early sessions rather than something you have to bring already sorted out.
How much is it, and can I stop after one appointment?
You can stop whenever you like, including after the first hour, which costs £80. Ninety minutes is £100 and two hours £120. Payment is per session with nothing in advance, and the opening 15-minute conversation carries no fee and no expectation.
What does Health in Mind offer and how do I reach it?
It is the NHS Talking Therapies service for East Sussex, free at the point of use, and you can refer yourself directly rather than waiting for a GP appointment. It offers structured, time-limited therapy. Waits vary, and many people start privately while their referral is being processed.
Would it be better to come to Hove or to meet online?
Both are properly available and neither is a lesser version. Travelling in gives the hour a clear boundary, which some people value. Video suits weeks when the drive is unappealing or work runs late. Switching between the two as circumstances change is completely normal.
My life here is comfortable and I still feel wrong in it. Does that make sense?
It makes sense to a great many people, and it is one of the harder things to say out loud in a town where everyone appears content. Circumstances and feelings are not the same thing. We would look at when it started and what has quietly changed since.
How quick is it from Lewes to your counselling room?
Lewes has fast, frequent trains to Brighton in around fifteen minutes, where you continue a couple of stops to Hove. By car the A27 takes about twenty minutes. Both are easy, and online video sessions are there for weeks when getting over the Downs is inconvenient.
How quick is the journey from Lewes to your Hove counselling room?
After a free fifteen-minute call, Lewes has fast, frequent trains to Brighton in around fifteen minutes, where you continue a couple of stops to Hove and a short walk to Western Road. By car the A27 takes about twenty minutes. When getting over the Downs is awkward, counselling runs online.
How much is counselling, and can I get it free on the NHS in Lewes?
Fees are £80 for an hour, £100 for ninety minutes and £120 for two hours, with a free fifteen-minute consultation. Free NHS talking therapies are available via your GP or self-referral, though waits can be long, so many Lewes clients prefer starting privately without a delay.
Will I have privacy from Lewes, and do you work evenings there?
Yes. In a close county town where faces are quickly known, many clients value a room over the Downs in Hove, well away from the Cliffe and the castle. Online sessions by secure video keep it even more private. Evening appointments are available to fit around work and family.
Counselling and Therapy in Lewes, whenever you are ready
A free fifteen-minute call is the simplest place to start, no obligation, just a chance to see if we are the right fit.
Also available nearby: Newhaven, Ditchling, Brighton. See all areas I cover.
Related work in Lewes: anxiety counselling, depression counselling and psychotherapy.
If you would like to read more first, I have written about how change actually sticks and where to start when you cannot name it.
Prefer to meet remotely? The same counselling and therapy is available online by secure video across the UK, or see online counselling by region.