Teddington · online by video, with the Hove room for occasional sessions
Counselling and therapy for Teddington
Perhaps something has been wrong for a while in your Teddington life and you can't quite say what. That is a fair point to get in touch. You'd be talking with me alone, one person and one counsellor, and because the room I use is a long way south in Hove, sessions from Teddington normally happen by secure video, with the odd visit to Hove for anyone who would like one.
The practical facts for Teddington
- Where sessions happen
- A private room at Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, Hove BN3 2JQ, or secure video.
- From Teddington by car
- About 80 minutes with clear roads (55.6 miles); longer at busy times.
- By train
- From Teddington, change at Clapham Junction for trains towards Brighton and Hove.
- Free NHS talking therapy
- Richmond Talking Therapies (NHS Richmond Wellbeing Service), 020 3513 4455
- 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.
Between the river, the lab and the Waterloo train
From the towpath, Teddington can look like a place where nobody struggles.
Family homes run from the Thames down to Bushy Park, Broad Street and the High Street have their shops, and at the river end sits Teddington Lock, the lowest non-tidal lock on the Thames. Off-peak, six South Western Railway trains leave each hour for Waterloo, so plenty of residents spend their working day in central London. Others work closer to home, at the National Physical Laboratory on Hampton Road or at LGC beside the park, where precision is the whole job. A suburb this calm can make your own unease feel out of place. You might be holding things together for children or an ageing parent, getting through a demanding role, and only noticing late in the evening, with the house finally quiet, how heavy everything has started to feel.
Unsure what is wrong, but sure something is
General counselling suits the moment before you have a label. Some people come with something specific, such as a separation, redundancy or a parent whose health is failing. Others bring something harder to pin down: irritability at home, nights spent replaying conversations, a sense that the careful, measured person everyone relies on is running on empty. If your work rewards getting things exactly right, it can be hard to bring something messy and unfinished into a session, even a virtual one, and that is welcome here too. Over the first few sessions we piece together what has been pressing on you, and why it hasn't eased, then agree together what to focus on. I'll tell you honestly if a different kind of support would fit you better, whether that's your GP or a free local service. I work integratively, and one of the strands I use is Internal Family Systems; there's more on the page about how I work. I've spent over 25 years in this field and have come through recovery myself, which means whatever you bring, including drinking or shame, can be said out loud without it being met with alarm.
Pressures that come with a TW11 week
Long days via Waterloo
Six trains an hour to central London make commuting easy to fall into, and a day bookended by platforms can leave little room for anything that restores you.
High-stakes, exacting work
If you work somewhere like the National Physical Laboratory, where accuracy matters enormously, that same standard can quietly turn inward and become relentless self-criticism.
Caring for family in Teddington
Caring for a partner, child or parent can crowd out your own needs, and Richmond Carers Centre offers carers support of its own alongside our counselling.
Becoming a parent in TW11
New parenthood is not always the happy time people expect, and Richmond PANDAS meets at St Mary's Parish Hall on Langham Road for parents finding it tough.
Public health figures for the area
These are local authority figures from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities. The figures describe a whole population over a period, not any one person.
Free and low-cost support for Teddington
Private sessions with me can run side by side with Teddington's free and low-cost help. If worry or a flat, low mood is the main thing, Richmond Talking Therapies (NHS Richmond Wellbeing Service) lets you put yourself forward without seeing your GP first. RAID Counselling Service sees adults in person at Waldegrave Road. Richmond Borough Mind supports people across the borough, and Sheddington and the Elleray Centre both offer company and something to do.
- Free NHS talking therapyRichmond Talking Therapies (NHS Richmond Wellbeing Service)020 3513 4455Free NHS talking therapy for anxiety, low mood and related difficulties. You can refer yourself, with no GP referral needed.
- If drinking or drug use is part of itWithYou Richmond020 3228 3020Run by We Are With You (WithYou). Free and confidential.
- Local organisationRichmond Carers Centre
- Local organisationRichmond PANDAS
For gambling, the National Gambling Helpline is free, day or night, on 0808 8020 133 (NHS gambling support).
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.
The South London NHS Mental Health Crisis Text Service is another option: text 80991 or WhatsApp 0303 330 1511.
If you 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 Teddington ask before starting
Is an in-person session possible from Teddington?
Face-to-face sessions take place in one room, at Intergen House in Hove, which is around 80 minutes from Teddington by car or by rail with a change at Clapham Junction. Week to week, a secure video call from home spares you all of that, and you can still arrange a session in Hove now and again if being in the same room would help.
Living in Teddington, how long would I wait to begin?
It opens with a free 15-minute chat with me, on the phone or on screen, whichever you prefer. Should we decide to carry on, I'll give you the real gaps in my week and you pick the one that suits, rather than joining a queue. Separately, Richmond Talking Therapies on 020 3513 4455 accepts self-referrals from Teddington residents who are struggling with anxiety or low mood.
Is there a counselling charity in Teddington I could walk to?
RAID Counselling Service, run by Richmond Advice and Information on Disability, offers low-cost counselling in person at its Teddington offices on Waldegrave Road for adults aged 18 and over, and you refer yourself. If being able to walk to a session matters to you, it is well worth a look, and you could weigh it up against video sessions with me.
I've recently lost someone. Is there anything local in Teddington?
The parish runs a free Bereavement Café on the third Monday of each month in the parish's centre on Church Road, with volunteer listeners trained by Princess Alice Hospice. It can be a gentle place to sit with others. Our sessions can run in parallel if you want more room to talk about the loss and all it has stirred up.
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.
A first quiet conversation from Teddington
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.