East Grinstead · in person in Hove or online
Depression counselling for East Grinstead
If you're in East Grinstead and life has flattened out, with a tiredness sleep doesn't reach, or a loss that has gone numb and taken your interest in things with it, depression counselling gives you an hour a week to stop pretending you're fine. It runs on screen or face to face in Hove, at the pace your energy allows.
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 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 NHS talking therapy
- NHS West Sussex Talking Therapies – North Team, 01403 620434
- 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.
Dark at both ends of the commute
In winter, a commuter's day from East Grinstead can begin and end in the dark: out to the station before it's light, through Oxted towards London, back long after the High Street shops have shut.
Weekends turn into recovery time. Slowly the things that gave the week some colour fall away, the walk along the Forest Way, a Saturday on the Bluebell Railway with the children, the friends in Imberhorne you used to see. Low mood may not look like sadness at all. It can feel like nothing much: an evening on the sofa you couldn't account for, messages left unanswered for days. For a partner who stays at home, or anyone living alone in Ashurst Wood or Felbridge, empty weekdays can do the same. Grief can turn into this too, once the funeral is over and everyone else has gone back to normal. Sometimes there's no reason you can point to, and that is still worth bringing.
Small steps for a mind that has run low
Depression takes the very energy you'd need to push back against it, so the work begins modestly. In early sessions we look at what has changed, sleep, appetite, interest, contact with people, and at what keeps the heaviness in place, often a harsh inner voice and a world that has shrunk to work and the sofa. We look for what has gone missing, such as purpose, connection and some control over your days, and plan changes small enough to manage, perhaps a short walk on the Worth Way or one reply to a friend. If grief sits underneath, we make room for the person you've lost. One figure needs careful reading: in West Sussex, 14.5% of adults registered with a GP had depression recorded in 2024/25 (England: 14.3% in 2024/25). It shows what GP records hold, not how many people actually feel this way. Medication is a matter for your GP, and counselling can run alongside it. If thoughts of suicide or self-harm come up, please tell me, and if you feel unsafe before we next meet, use the crisis numbers further down this page.
When the weeks start losing their colour
Leaving and returning in darkness
Winter commutes north via Oxted can leave the week with almost no daylight of your own, and weekends spent only catching up.
Pleasures that stopped pulling
A walk on the Forest Way, an hour in East Grinstead Museum, a day on the Bluebell Railway: when none of it feels worth the effort, that loss deserves attention.
Worn down by caring
Looking after a partner or parent can slowly empty you. Carers Support West Sussex offers support to carers, alongside our sessions.
A free NHS option to try
You can phone NHS West Sussex Talking Therapies yourself about low mood on 01403 620434, and seeing me privately needn't wait for their reply.
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 and low-cost support for East Grinstead
If you'd like free help as well, NHS West Sussex Talking Therapies works with low mood and depression, Mind in Brighton and Hove runs West Sussex services, and Mid Sussex Wellbeing is a free council wellbeing service. Arise Counselling Service in East Grinstead offers affordable counselling. You're free to use any of them as well as seeing me privately, in whatever order suits you.
- Free NHS talking therapyNHS West Sussex Talking Therapies – North Team01403 620434Free 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 itWest Sussex Drug & Alcohol Wellbeing Network (DAWN)0330 128 1113Run by Change Grow Live. Free and confidential.
- Local organisationCarers Support West Sussex
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.
In this area you can also text SUSSEX to 85258.
What people in East Grinstead ask before starting
Can I get help for depression in East Grinstead without seeing my GP first?
Yes. You can contact me directly, and NHS West Sussex Talking Therapies also accepts self-referrals through its North Team. A GP appointment is still worthwhile, because tiredness and low mood can have physical causes, and your GP can talk through medication with you if you want that. Counselling and medical care work comfortably side by side.
I've stopped doing everything I used to enjoy in East Grinstead. Is counselling worth it if I don't feel sad?
Yes. Depression often shows up as flatness rather than tears: the walks stop, hobbies gather dust, invitations go unanswered. If that has lasted for weeks, it deserves attention. We'd look at what has drained away and at small ways back to it, at a pace that respects how tired you are.
Is video counselling from East Grinstead any use when I can hardly get up?
It's often the most realistic option on those weeks. There's no 44-minute drive to Hove, no waiting room and nothing to get ready for. You need a private space and a phone, tablet or laptop. When you have more energy, we can switch to meeting in Hove if you'd like, or simply keep going on screen.
What if I have thoughts of ending my life between sessions in East Grinstead?
Please act straight away rather than waiting for our next appointment. Ring 999 if your life is in immediate danger. Otherwise you can text SUSSEX to 85258, phone NHS 111 for urgent mental health help, or reach Samaritans free on 116 123 at any hour. Then tell me when we next speak, so we can plan together for harder days.
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 short call about how heavy things have been
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.