West Hampstead · online by video, with the Hove room for occasional sessions
Counselling and therapy for West Hampstead
If something has been weighing on you in West Hampstead and you can't quite name it yet, talking it through with a counsellor is a sensible first step. My only room is in Hove, roughly 108 minutes south by road, so from NW6 our sessions would usually happen on a private video link, with the same counsellor every week and no travel. A Hove session now and then is possible too.
The practical facts for West Hampstead
- Where sessions happen
- A private room at Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, Hove BN3 2JQ, or secure video.
- From West Hampstead by car
- About 108 minutes with clear roads (84.0 miles); longer at busy times.
- Free NHS talking therapy
- NHS Camden Talking Therapies, 020 3317 6670
- 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.
Three stations, one busy lane and a lot of solitary flats
West Hampstead sits in zone 2 with three stations within a short walk of each other: the Jubilee line, the Overground on the Mildmay line and the Thameslink platforms off Iverson Road.
That makes it an easy place to leave every morning and a hard one to slow down in. West End Lane fills up after work with bars, cafes and bakeries, and the ward leans towards working-age adults, with a smaller share of under-25s and over-65s than Camden as a whole. Plenty of people here live in converted flats a long way from family, keep long London hours, and come home to a quiet room. The ward is not uniform either: some streets are comfortable, while others sit well down the national deprivation rankings, and income deprivation among older residents reaches the most deprived band. Whichever of those describes your street, it is easy to keep going on autopilot until sleep, mood or the evening glass starts to slip.
Bringing a vague unease rather than a clear problem
Most people who ring me from a place like this are not sure what to call what is happening. It might be a flatness that has hung around since a move to London, a relationship that has gone quiet, worry about a parent getting older somewhere else, or the sense that a busy social life near West End Green has started to feel like hard work. You do not need a label before we begin. Early on, we examine what is really happening in your week, what sets it off and what keeps it going, then agree together on a focus. If I think another service would suit you better, such as your GP or a specialist team, I will say so plainly and help you find it. My way of working is integrative, drawing on Human Givens among other traditions, and there is more about it on the how I work page. I have over 25 years of practice behind me and my own recovery as well, so if drinking on West End Lane has crept from a treat into a habit, you can say so without bracing for a reaction.
Pressures that build up around West End Lane
Living between three platforms
With the Jubilee line, the Overground and Thameslink all on your doorstep, the working day can stretch at both ends and leave little room to notice how you really are.
Nights out on West End Lane
The bars and restaurants along the high street make socialising easy, and that can quietly turn regular drinking into the only way you unwind.
Far from family in a small flat
A ward full of working-age adults often means people who moved here alone, and loneliness can settle in even with neighbours on every side.
When a mother or father needs you
Worry about an ageing parent, nearby or across the country, is easier to carry with support, and Camden Carers offers free help to people looking after someone.
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 West Hampstead
Free help in Camden can run alongside our sessions. You can contact NHS Camden Talking Therapies yourself, without a GP letter, about worry or a persistently low mood. Mind in Camden and Reach Out Camden offer community mental health support, the West Hampstead Women's Centre on Cotleigh Road provides advice and support groups for women, and Sidings Community Centre on Brassey Road runs free wellbeing and mindfulness classes.
- Free NHS talking therapyNHS Camden Talking Therapies020 3317 6670Free 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 itCGL Camden Integrated Drug and Alcohol Service (Change Grow Live Camden)020 7485 2722Free and confidential.
- Local organisationCamden Carers
- Local organisationAmparo suicide bereavement support, North Central London
- Local organisationCentral London Samaritans
- Local organisationWest Hampstead Women's CentreWomen-only community charity.
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.
Locally, the Camden and Islington Crisis Single Point of Access is on 0800 917 3333. Local drop-in crisis support: Camden Crisis Sanctuary (Hestia) (check opening times before you go).
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 West Hampstead ask before starting
Would sitting in your Hove room be realistic from West Hampstead?
It is possible, though the room is around 108 minutes by car from NW6, or a Thameslink train to Brighton and a short change. Meeting weekly on secure video spares you that trip, and you still see the same person each time. If being physically together matters to you now and then, an occasional Hove appointment can be arranged.
How soon could I start, living off West End Lane?
Our first contact is a free 15-minute chat, on the phone or on screen, whichever you prefer. If we agree to go ahead, I tell you which weekly slots are genuinely free and you choose, so there is no long list to sit on. For worry or a low mood, NHS Camden Talking Therapies also accepts self-referrals on 020 3317 6670.
Can I do video counselling from a shared flat in NW6?
Yes, provided you can find somewhere private for the hour. A bedroom with the door closed and headphones in usually works, and some people sit in a parked car. If privacy at home is difficult, tell me early and we can choose a time when your flatmates are out.
What if I need help urgently in Camden before our next session?
Counselling sessions are planned ahead, so for a crisis you need a faster route. The Camden and Islington Crisis Single Point of Access answers on 0800 917 3333 at any hour, and Camden Crisis Sanctuary run by Hestia offers a calm space out of hours. If life is in immediate danger, call 999. The urgent help box on this page lists more contacts.
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 conversation for NW6, whenever you're ready
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.