Alcohol
For when drinking has stopped feeling like a choice.
Online Addiction Counselling · Cardiff
Online Addiction Counselling in Cardiff
Online addiction counselling for Cardiff, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Cardiff, from the bay and the centre to the streets around the castle, with the same BACP-registered, confidential support as an in-person session, and no journey.
BACP registered member25+ years of experienceLived experience
ConfidentialA safe, private space
Person-centredThe therapy fits you
In and around Cardiff
Addiction Counselling for Cardiff, at a glance
- Areas covered online
- All of Cardiff: from the bay and the centre to Cathays, Roath, Canton and Grangetown
- Known for
- The castle, the bay and the Principality Stadium
- Region
- Wales (Wales)
- Local NHS / support route
- Local council drug & alcohol service (see below)
- Format
- Secure video, UK-wide. In-person also available on the Sussex coast.
Life in Cardiff
Why people in Cardiff reach out
Cardiff, the Welsh capital, blends a revived waterfront and a big student population with neighbourhoods that carry real hardship. The pace of capital-city life, rising costs and the contrast between the gleaming bay and harder-pressed areas all shape the pressures people here carry.
Cardiff grew from a modest market town into what was once the greatest coal-exporting port in the world, its wealth shipped out through Butetown and the docks that locals still call Tiger Bay. The old Coal Exchange and the Pierhead Building remember those days, while the regenerated bay now holds the Senedd and the Wales Millennium Centre. As the Welsh capital, the city carries the national rhythms: rugby internationals filling the streets around the Principality Stadium, a large student population around Cathays and Cathays Park, and the civic grandeur of City Hall and the National Museum. Beyond the centre, Roath, Canton and Grangetown keep their own village feel, each with independent shops, cafes and a strong sense of neighbourhood pride.
Capital-city life is exhilarating and exhausting at once, with time and privacy always short; an hour that comes to you is often what makes therapy possible.
Cardiff is home to Cardiff University and the University Hospital of Wales (the Heath) in Cathays/Heath, and hosts the Senedd and Welsh Government at Cardiff Bay alongside the Principality Stadium in the city centre.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Cardiff
CathaysRoathCantonGrangetownSplottAdamsdownButetownLlandaffWhitchurchCyncoedRiversidePontcanna
Wherever you are in Cardiff, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Cardiff
These figures are local context from official sources, not a description of you, but they show the scale of what people in and around Cardiff are living with, and why local support matters.
In Cardiff the age-standardised drug-misuse death rate was 6.9 per 100,000 in 2022 to 2024, below the Wales average of 8.5 per 100,000. Source: Office for National Statistics (ONS), Deaths related to drug poisoning by local authority, England and Wales (drug misuse, Table 6) (2022 to 2024).
Local data last reviewed June 2026. Each figure shows the year and links to the official source it was read on.
The addiction counselling itself
Addiction counselling here treats the pain beneath the habit, not just the symptom, alcohol, drugs, gambling, food or behavioural, so recovery is something you grow into rather than force.
The approach is the same wherever you live, so rather than repeat it on every page you can read it in full, the methods, what each session covers and fees, on the main addiction counselling page and on how I work.
How online sessions work
Sessions run over a secure, encrypted video link held to the same strict BACP confidentiality as meeting in person. After a free fifteen-minute call to check we are a good fit, you join each session from any private space using a phone, tablet or laptop, no software to install, no waiting room and no journey at either end.
Face-to-face counselling and specialist addiction services can be found across Cardiff, and it is always worth exploring what is close to home. My own practice is based in Hove, on the Sussex coast, so I am not in the city in person. What I offer instead is confidential counselling by secure video, which reaches anywhere in Wales and across the UK. For many people, meeting online from their own front room turns out to be easier than travelling to an appointment at all.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
How online addiction counselling in Cardiff can help
Drugs and substances
Compassionate, confidential help with substance use.
Gambling
Breaking the cycle of compulsive gambling, guilt and debt.
Food and behavioural
Support for food and process addictions.
Affected by a loved one
Help for those living alongside someone's addiction.
The pain underneath
We treat the cause, not just the symptom.
Addiction Counselling in Cardiff
Why people in Cardiff come for addiction counselling
Cardiff carries all the momentum of a capital: rugby weekends that fill the streets around the Principality Stadium, a big student population around Cathays, and the daily push of city life. In that noise, an addiction can quietly take hold and be easy to explain away. Whether it is a substance or a behaviour that has started running the show, my work looks gently at what sits underneath the pattern rather than just the habit itself. I am based in Hove, not in the city, so we meet by secure video, which for many people juggling capital-city schedules is simply the easier way to begin.
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 Cardiff
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Cardiff, your GP can refer you to local NHS-funded drug and alcohol services, and you can find your nearest one via the NHS “find a service” directory.
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 press 2 for urgent mental health support. The CALL Helpline for Wales is free on 0800 132 737, and the Samaritans are on 116 123.
Cardiff questions
Online Addiction Counselling in Cardiff: common questions
Can I get online addiction counselling if I live in Cardiff?
Yes. I work with people right across Cardiff, from the bay and the centre outwards, and anywhere else in Wales, by secure video, no need to travel to Hove, and just as confidential as meeting in the room.
Do I have to be abstinent before we start?
No. We begin wherever you are. The work is about understanding the need the behaviour has been meeting, not passing a test first.
Can you help with gambling or behavioural addictions, not just substances?
Yes. The same approach applies to gambling, food and other compulsive behaviours, because we work with the underlying pattern rather than only the substance.
Is it really confidential if I'm worried about people finding out?
Completely. Sessions are private, online means no waiting room, and everything is held under the BACP Ethical Framework.
Is online addiction counselling as effective as meeting in person?
For most people, yes. The relationship and the work matter far more than the room. Meeting by secure video from your own home in Cardiff removes the journey across the city, and many find it easier to speak openly from a space that already feels safe.
How soon can I start online addiction counselling in Cardiff?
Usually within a week. After a free 15-minute consultation to see whether we fit, we book your first full session at a time that suits you. Wherever you are in the capital, from Cathays to Grangetown, everything runs by secure video, so there is no waiting list to join.
How do your fees compare with NHS addiction services in Cardiff?
NHS substance misuse support through Cardiff and Vale health board and the free Dan 24/7 helpline costs nothing, though waits vary. My private sessions are £80 for 60 minutes, £100 for 90 and £120 for 120, with a free 15-minute consultation first and no waiting list.
Do you offer evening online addiction sessions for people working in Cardiff?
Yes. Many people around Cardiff Bay and the city centre work long office hours, so I keep some evening slots. Sessions are held by secure video from your own front room, which means no crossing the capital after work and no travel once we finish.
Can I see you in person in Cardiff?
No. My practice is based in Hove, so I do not offer face-to-face sessions in Cardiff. I work with people across the capital and the wider region by secure video, which many find more convenient than travelling to an appointment.
Do you work with Cardiff's student population?
Yes, by video. Students around Cathays and the universities are welcome to get in touch. Sessions take place online wherever you are based, so term time and holidays back home need not interrupt the work.
Online Addiction Counselling in Cardiff, 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 online across Wales: Newport, Barry, Pontypridd. See all of Wales.
All counselling & therapy in Cardiff: Substance Use · Drinking Problems · Anxiety · Depression · Relationship · Trauma · Counselling & Therapy · Psychotherapy.
Closer to the Sussex coast? The same addiction counselling is available in person in Brighton & Hove, or see all in-person areas.