Epsom · online by video, with the Hove room for occasional sessions
Depression counselling for Epsom
When low mood has settled in, mornings heavy, interest gone, people kept at arm's length, depression counselling gives you one steady hour a week in which none of that has to be hidden. From Epsom our sessions are on secure video, which means you can come as you are, even on days when leaving the house isn't possible.
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 Epsom
- Where sessions happen
- A private room at Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, Hove BN3 2JQ, or secure video.
- From Epsom by car
- About 61 minutes with clear roads (44.7 miles); longer at busy times.
- By train
- From Epsom, change at Clapham Junction for trains towards Brighton and Hove.
- Free NHS talking therapy
- Mind Matters Surrey, 0300 330 5450
- 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.
Flatness after the crisis has passed
Low mood can settle in after something has ended, once the pressure to keep going lifts.
You may have come home from a long stay at Epsom Hospital, physically mending, and found that the relief everyone expected never came, only tiredness and a grey indifference. You may have spent years caring for a parent in Woodcote and, after they died, lost both the person and the purpose that filled each day. You may be a student who moved to Epsom for the University for the Creative Arts or Laine Theatre Arts and found your first winter away from home harder than you expected. Or nothing obvious has happened, and the lack of a reason becomes one more thing to feel guilty about. Across Surrey, depression was recorded for 13.0% of adults on GP registers in 2024/25 (England: 14.3%). That counts how often depression is recorded and coded, not how many people live with it, and it says nothing about you. Low mood can also show up as irritability or oversleeping, with no obvious sadness at all.
Weekly sessions when everything feels effortful
You don't need to arrive with an account of why. We start with how things actually are: sleep, appetite, energy, who you still see, and what has slipped out of your week without a decision. Then we look for what holds the heaviness in place. It might be grief that was postponed because there were forms to fill in and people to look after, a harsh inner voice that keeps score, or weeks without shape since work, caring or college stopped. Changes are small and chosen by you, perhaps a twenty-minute walk on Epsom Common or around Horton Country Park, one message answered, or one meal eaten at a table. Some weeks we'll talk a lot, and others we'll go slowly and let quiet be part of the hour. I've been in this work for more than 25 years, so however bleak it sounds, it won't put me off. Medication is a matter for your GP, and counselling can sit alongside whatever they suggest. If you've had thoughts of ending your life or of hurting yourself, you can say so here without me panicking or pulling away. We'd talk about keeping you safe, and the crisis contacts further down this page work at any hour.
Ways low mood can arrive in an Epsom life
When invitations stop coming
Turning people down until they stop asking. Mary Frances Trust runs Community Connections groups in Epsom for registered members, and our sessions can look at what makes going back so hard.
After years of looking after someone
Action for Carers Surrey supports people who care for a relative, and the hollow weeks after caring ends deserve attention of their own.
A first winter at college
Away from home on UCA's Epsom campus or at Laine Theatre Arts, with deadlines piling up and the energy to meet them gone.
Mourning that turned to numbness
A death that left you numb rather than tearful. Cruse Bereavement Support has Surrey branches and a national helpline, and our sessions can give the loss the room it never had.
Free and low-cost support for Epsom
You can contact Mind Matters Surrey yourself about low mood, at no charge, though your GP is still the person for medication questions. Once you've registered, Mary Frances Trust Community Connections groups in Epsom can be a gentle way back towards people. On the hardest evenings, the Epsom Safe Haven at the Brickfield Centre is open to adults from 6pm to 11pm.
- Free NHS talking therapyMind Matters Surrey0300 330 5450Free 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 iti-access0300 222 5932Free and confidential.
- Local organisationAction for Carers Surrey
For gambling, the National Gambling Helpline is free, day or night, on 0808 8020 133 (NHS gambling support).
Private counselling with me can run alongside any of these; you do not have to choose one or the other.
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 Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS FT Mental Health Crisis Helpline is on 0800 915 4644. Local drop-in crisis support: Epsom Safe Haven (check opening times before you go).
What people in Epsom ask before starting
Can I get free NHS help for depression in Epsom without seeing my GP first?
Yes. Surrey's NHS Talking Therapies service is called Mind Matters Surrey; it costs nothing and accepts self-referrals for low mood on 0300 330 5450, although a waiting list is possible. Your GP is still the right person for medication. Private sessions with me give you a say in who you see and when you start, and you can use both.
Since coming out of Epsom Hospital I've felt low and flat. Could counselling help with that?
It can. Coming through a serious illness or operation can leave you exhausted, frightened and grieving the life you had before, even while everyone around you is relieved. That deserves attention in its own right. Mention it to your GP or hospital team too, since physical health and mood affect each other, and counselling can run alongside their care.
Is depression counselling by video from Epsom as useful as being in the room?
For most purposes the work is the same, and on heavy days video is easier to keep to, because there's no 61-minute drive to Hove to talk yourself out of. If you'd like an in-person session later, an occasional longer one in Hove is possible. A regular time and being properly listened to both work over a screen.
How soon can depression counselling start for someone in Epsom?
We'd begin with a free 15-minute call, and if working together seems right to us both, I'll give you a realistic date for a weekly slot. If you feel at risk while you wait, don't hold on alone. Ring the Surrey and Borders crisis line on 0800 915 4644 at any hour, call 999 in an emergency, or go to the Epsom Safe Haven between 6pm and 11pm.
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.
Start small: one free call, nothing more
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.