Daily or binge drinking
Support whatever your pattern looks like.
Counselling for Drinking Problems · Portslade
Counselling for Drinking Problems in Portslade
Counselling for Drinking Problems for Portslade and the surrounding area, in person or online. Portslade, just west of Hove, blends the historic Old Village with Portslade-by-Sea and the harbour. From my room in nearby Hove I offer a calm, confidential space to do this work.
BACP registered member25+ years of experienceLived experience
ConfidentialA safe, private space
Person-centredThe therapy fits you
In and around Portslade
Counselling for Drinking Problems for Portslade, at a glance
- Known for
- Portslade Old Village, the harbour and Victoria Recreation Ground
- Area
- Brighton & Hove, East/West Sussex
- Getting to the Hove room
- Portslade is a short hop east along New Church Road or the coast road, around ten minutes by car or bus, or two stops on the train to Hove.
- Local NHS / support route
- NHS drug & alcohol service finder (see below)
- Format
- In person at my private Hove room, or by secure video UK-wide.
Life in Portslade
Why people in Portslade get in touch
Drinking near the harbour has a long habit of being sociable and unremarked. A finished shift, a pint, a wind-down that everyone recognises and nobody queries. Higher up in the Old Village the pattern is domestic instead, a bottle at home once the day is done. Neither version looks like a problem from the outside, and neither has a moment where it obviously tips. What changes is internal. The wind-down stops working and becomes the only way to stop. Mornings get flatter, the mood gets shorter, and there is a running calculation about what was drunk last night that you have never mentioned to a single person on Boundary Road or anywhere else.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Portslade
Portslade Old VillagePortslade-by-SeaMile OakSouthern CrossBoundary RoadStation RoadAldringtonVictoria Recreation Ground area
Wherever you are in Portslade, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Portslade
Official figures for Portslade, for context rather than as a description of you.
the rate of hospital admissions for alcohol-specific conditions was 578.7 per 100,000 in 2023/24, below the England average of 611.7 per 100,000. Source: OHID Fingertips – Admission episodes for alcohol-specific conditions (2023/24).
the alcohol-specific death rate was 16.4 per 100,000 in 2024, above the England average of 13.8 per 100,000. Source: OHID Fingertips – Alcohol-specific mortality (2024).
Reviewed June 2026.
What actually happens in counselling for drinking problems?
Counselling for drinking problems here looks beneath the habit at what drives it, you do not need to have hit rock bottom to begin, and signposts medical, detox and peer support where useful.
Because the work itself is the same wherever you live, the detail sits in one place rather than all of them: counselling for drinking problems in detail sets out the methods, how I work, sessions and fees covers the practicalities, and my BACP registration covers accountability.
What happens in a session?
Sessions take place in a private, comfortable room at Intergen House on Western Road in central Hove, held to the strict BACP confidentiality you would expect. We begin with a free fifteen-minute call to check we are a good fit, and the same sessions are available by secure video if travelling is difficult or you would simply prefer it.
The Hove room is a ten-minute run east along the seafront, or two stops on the train, so an in-person session costs very little in travelling. Earlier appointments are worth considering if evening is when drinking begins, because the conversation lands differently before the day has closed. Secure video is available for every slot and needs only a room where you will not be interrupted.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
What does counselling for drinking problems help with?
The cause, not the habit
Looking beneath the drinking to what drives it.
Anxiety and low mood
Working with what the alcohol has been managing.
Privacy at home
Sensitive support without anyone needing to know.
Signposting
Links to medical, detox and peer support where useful.
Without the anaesthetic
Reconnecting with the person beneath the drinking.
Counselling for Drinking Problems in Portslade
Why people in Portslade come for counselling for drinking problems
This work asks for neither a rock bottom nor a promise of abstinence. If your drinking has become something you think about more than you would like, that is a sufficient reason and an early one, which is generally easier ground than a late one. We begin with what alcohol is doing rather than how much of it there is. It might be ending a shift, quieting an overactive head, smoothing an evening that would otherwise feel too long, or standing between you and something you have not looked at directly. Once that is clear, choices become possible that willpower alone never produced. Anything to do with reducing a heavy or daily intake is a medical matter for your GP, not for counselling. Alcohol-specific admissions across Brighton and Hove were 578.7 per 100,000 in 2023/24, below the England average of 611.7. The NHS find a service directory shows local alcohol services, and Mind in Brighton and Hove runs its own support.
A free, unhurried first step
Not sure if it is right for you? A free fifteen-minute call is a no-obligation way to talk it through.
Book a free 15-minute callDrug, alcohol & addiction support in Portslade
My counselling sits alongside the help available locally. You can find your nearest free NHS-funded drug and alcohol service via the NHS “find a service” directory (search “Portslade”).
For confidential information and advice, FRANK (on 0300 123 6600) and Drinkline on 0300 123 1110 are free, and Alcoholics Anonymous and SMART Recovery run peer-support meetings you can find online.
Other local and national support verified for this area includes:
If you need urgent help now
This is not a crisis service. If anyone is in immediate danger call 999. For urgent mental health support, call NHS 111 and choose the mental health option. The Samaritans are free, day or night, on 116 123, or text SHOUT to 85258.
If you drink heavily or use drugs daily, do not stop suddenly on your own. Withdrawal can cause seizures and can be dangerous. Speak to your GP or a local drug and alcohol service first, and they can arrange a safe, medically supported withdrawal. Counselling works alongside that, not instead of it.
Portslade questions
Counselling for Drinking Problems in Portslade: common questions
Where do Portslade sessions take place, and can I meet online instead?
In a private room at Intergen House on Western Road in central Hove. Portslade is a short hop east along New Church Road or the coast road, around ten minutes by car or bus, or two stops on the train to Hove. Every service is also available by secure video across the UK, so you can meet from any private space in Portslade or blend the two.
Everyone I drink with drinks the same. Am I overreacting?
Comparison is a poor measuring stick, especially where a whole workplace or street shares a habit. A more honest test is private: how much thought it takes up, whether you have tried to cut back without telling anyone, and how a fortnight without it would feel.
What do you charge for counselling about drinking?
Sessions run at £80 for the hour, £100 for 90 minutes and £120 for two hours, paid as you go rather than in advance. The 15-minute consultation at the start is free, and it is a reasonable place to ask anything you are unsure about.
Which NHS route covers alcohol here?
Use the NHS find a service directory, which lists specialist alcohol services you can access without paying. No verified council page exists for Brighton and Hove, so that national route is the accurate one. Counselling alongside it is a common arrangement.
Can I keep this off my medical record?
Private counselling is not recorded on your notes and nothing is passed to your GP unless you want it to be. The exception any BACP counsellor holds is serious risk to life, and even then it would be talked through with you first.
I drink after night shifts at nine in the morning. Is that different?
Different timing, same question. Drinking at the end of your working day is not made worse by that day ending in daylight, but it does make comparisons with other people useless and it can hide the amount from you. Worth bringing to a session.
I only really drink to unwind after work, is that worth talking about?
If unwinding has become something you rely on, it is worth exploring. We look at what the drink does for you and whether there is a steadier way, honestly and at your own pace, with no pressure to label it.
How do I book drinking problem counselling from Portslade?
Book a free fifteen-minute consultation on 07914 681995 or through the contact page. From Portslade the room is about ten minutes east along the coast road or New Church Road, or a couple of stops by train to Hove, then a short walk to Western Road.
What does drinking counselling cost, and what free help is near Portslade?
My fees are £80 for an hour, £100 for ninety minutes and £120 for two hours, after a free call. For free routes, Portslade residents can self-refer to Pavilions for alcohol support and to NHS Talking Therapies Brighton and Hove for related low mood or anxiety.
In person or online for a drinking problem in Portslade, and are evenings available?
Both. The Hove room is a short trip east, with evening slots to fit around work, and it keeps a comfortable distance from daily life. If you would rather stay home, secure video is equally private, and blending the two is fine as recovery settles.
Counselling for Drinking Problems in Portslade, whenever you are ready
A free fifteen-minute call is the simplest place to start, no obligation, just a chance to see if we are the right fit.
Also available nearby: Hove, Southwick, Hangleton. See all areas I cover.
Related work in Portslade: addiction counselling, substance use counselling and depression counselling.
There is more on this in my writing: questioning “once an addict” and riding out an urge.
Prefer to meet remotely? The same counselling for drinking problems is available online by secure video across the UK, or see online counselling by region.