Greenwich · online by video, with the Hove room for occasional sessions
Depression counselling for Greenwich
If you're in Greenwich and the colour has gone out of things, whether after a loss or for no reason you can name, depression counselling is a place to say so without dressing it up. I'm a BACP-registered counsellor, and from Greenwich we'd meet by secure video, so getting help doesn't mean a long trip on a day you can barely get up.
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 Greenwich
- Where sessions happen
- A private room at Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, Hove BN3 2JQ, or secure video.
- From Greenwich by car
- About 87 minutes with clear roads (67.7 miles); longer at busy times.
- By train
- From Greenwich, change at London Bridge for trains towards Brighton and Hove.
- Free NHS talking therapy
- Greenwich Time to Talk, 020 3260 1100
- 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.
Close enough to see the park, too flat to go
Low mood has a way of shrinking a place. Greenwich Park might be close enough to see, and still you can't remember the last time you walked through it. The market, the riverside and the busy town centre carry on as if nothing has changed, and when you feel flat, all that bustle can make them seem further away. You get through work or lectures, come home with nothing left for friends, and cancel, because explaining feels harder than staying in. Sometimes it follows a death, a break-up or the end of a job. Sometimes there is no obvious cause, which can make it harder still to admit. In late October the clocks go back to Greenwich Mean Time, named after this town, and the dark afternoons that follow can make an existing low feel heavier. Some people notice irritability, or that they're drinking more, long before they would call any of it sadness.
Working with the flatness at a speed you can manage
We begin with how things actually are, without you having to justify any of it: sleep, appetite, who you still see, what you've stopped doing, and whether any part of the week feels slightly lighter. After that, we turn to whatever is holding the low in position. That might be a harsh inner voice, a loss that never had room to be grieved, or weeks that have lost their shape outside work. Changes stay small and fit the life you have: one reply to a friend, a short walk in Greenwich Park on a Saturday morning, or going once to a peer group and leaving early if you need to. Solution-focused questions can help us notice what already helps a little, and build from there. Where grief sits underneath the flatness, we give the person you lost proper time. Your GP guides any medication, and counselling can run alongside whatever they suggest. Thoughts of suicide or self-harm can be spoken about here without alarm, and I'd rather you told me than kept them back. If they feel urgent, the help listed further down this page comes first, before waiting for a session.
Low mood, the Greenwich versions
A bereavement nobody asks about now
Everyone else seems to have moved on, and you're still stuck in the week it happened. Cruse Bereavement Support - Greenwich is the local bereavement service, and our sessions make room for it too.
When the clocks go back
Darker afternoons from late October can deepen a low that was already there. We can plan ahead for the winter months instead of waiting to be caught out by them.
Company without explaining yourself
South East London Mind's Monday Social Group at The Forum on Trafalgar Road is peer support with people who have lived with mental health difficulties, and it can sit beside our sessions.
Flat behind the coursework
Studying at the University of Greenwich or Trinity Laban, perhaps far from family, with low mood hidden behind ordinary attendance and deadlines met just in time.
Free and low-cost support for Greenwich
For free NHS help with low mood, the borough's service is Greenwich Time to Talk, which accepts self-referrals. South East London Mind's free counselling at Ormiston Road is another option, and Greenwich Carers Centre supports people worn down by looking after someone. The Lewisham, Greenwich and Southwark Samaritans branch at New Cross is there too. You can lean on any of them alongside private sessions with me.
- Free NHS talking therapyGreenwich Time to Talk020 3260 1100Free 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 itVia Greenwich0300 303 4552Free and confidential.
- Local organisationSouth East London Mind Greenwich - Monday Social Group (peer support)
- Local organisationWoman's TrustFree counselling charity for women affected by domestic.
- Local organisationCruse Bereavement Support - GreenwichBereavement support.
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 WhatsApp Service is another option: WhatsApp 0303 330 1511.
What people in Greenwich ask before starting
Can I get NHS help for depression in Greenwich without seeing my GP?
Yes. Greenwich Time to Talk, run by Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust, takes self-referrals for depression on 020 3260 1100, and it's free, although there may be a wait. Private counselling is the other route if picking who you see, longer sessions or a regular time of your choosing matter to you, and you're free to use both at once.
I don't feel sad, just nothing. Would depression counselling from Greenwich make sense for me?
Yes. Depression often shows up as numbness, tiredness or irritability rather than tears, and you don't need a reason, a label or a GP letter to start. We'd look at how long it has been like this, what has dropped away and what an ordinary week looks like now. Booking the free 15-minute call is all it takes to begin.
Is video enough for depression counselling, or should I come to Hove from Greenwich?
Video is enough, and at about 87 minutes by car it's the realistic option from Greenwich. On weeks when even getting up is hard, you can still join from wherever you are, and the work is the same. A session in the room can be arranged if you ever want one, but nothing about the counselling depends on it.
What should I do if I feel unsafe at night in Greenwich before we've started?
Please don't wait for a session. If you might act on thoughts of suicide, ring 999; for urgent help that isn't an emergency, ring NHS 111 and pick the mental health option. Samaritans answer free on 116 123 at any hour, and Oxleas lists a crisis WhatsApp line for south London that takes messages on 0303 330 1511 if speaking feels too hard.
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, whenever you can manage one
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.