Panic attacks
Support for racing thoughts, panic episodes and chest tightness.
Online Anxiety Counselling · Wakefield
Online Anxiety Counselling in Wakefield
Online anxiety counselling for Wakefield, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Wakefield, from the cathedral and the centre to the streets around the Hepworth gallery, 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 Wakefield
Anxiety Counselling for Wakefield, at a glance
- Areas covered online
- All of Wakefield: from the cathedral and the centre to Sandal, Horbury and Lupset
- Known for
- The cathedral, the Hepworth gallery and the old coalfield
- Region
- Yorkshire & North East (England)
- Local NHS / support route
- NHS Talking Therapies (find via the NHS finder)
- Format
- Secure video, UK-wide. In-person also available on the Sussex coast.
Life in Wakefield
Why people in Wakefield reach out
Wakefield is a cathedral city at the heart of the former West Yorkshire coalfield, and the closure of the pits left deep and lasting marks on the towns around it. Insecure work, money worries and a strong but stoic culture all shape what people here carry, often quietly.
Wakefield is a cathedral city at the heart of the old West Yorkshire coalfield, its slender spire the tallest in the county and its medieval Chantry Chapel still perched on the bridge over the Calder. Down by the river, The Hepworth Wakefield draws visitors to a city that has long nurtured sculpture, Barbara Hepworth was born here, and the Yorkshire Sculpture Park spreads across parkland just to the west at Bretton. This is the heart of the famous rhubarb triangle, and the ruins of Sandal Castle look out over it all. The pit villages that ring the district, from Stanley to Normanton, still carry the memory of coal, while the city centre and Trinity Walk keep the everyday rhythm going.
Beneath a calm, historic surface, struggle can be hard to voice; a confidential online hour asks nothing of appearances.
Wakefield's main hospital, Pinderfields, is run by the Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust; the city sits at the heart of the former West Yorkshire coalfield and is home to The Hepworth Wakefield art gallery.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Wakefield
SandalHorburyLupsetAgbriggKettlethorpeOutwoodStanleyOssettNormantonWrenthorpe
Wherever you are in Wakefield, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Wakefield
These figures are local context from official sources, not a description of you, but they show the scale of what people in and around Wakefield are living with, and why local support matters.
30.3% of adults reported a high anxiety score in 2022/23, above the England average of 23.8%. Source: OHID Fingertips – Self-reported wellbeing: high anxiety score (2022/23).
Local data last reviewed June 2026. Each figure shows the year and links to the official source it was read on.
The anxiety counselling itself
Anxiety counselling here is practical and solution-focused: we work on the worry, panic, social anxiety and over-thinking that are actually affecting your day, and on simple ways to settle a nervous system stuck on high alert.
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 anxiety 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.
I'm based in Hove and work with people across the Wakefield district online, by secure video, rather than in person. Sessions come to you, at home in Sandal or Horbury, or wherever's quiet in the outlying villages, so there's no trip into the city to fit in. We'd settle on a regular weekly time that works around your commitments and stick with it.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
How online anxiety counselling in Wakefield can help
Social anxiety
Help with confidence, self-consciousness and fear of judgement.
Chronic worry
Support for overthinking, catastrophising and decision paralysis.
People-pleasing
Working with the need for control and approval.
Sleep and tension
Calming a nervous system stuck on high alert.
Responding differently
Tools for when anxiety starts to take hold.
Anxiety Counselling in Wakefield
Why people in Wakefield come for anxiety counselling
Wakefield's slender cathedral spire and the Hepworth by the Calder give it a settled look, but the old coalfield around it, Stanley, Normanton, Ossett, still carries the strain of pit closures and insecure work. Anxiety can grow in that quiet: money that won't add up, a chest that tightens before a shift, a mind that races once the house is still. I'm Bradley Riddell, a counsellor based in Hove, and I work with people across Wakefield by secure video rather than in person. Together we look at what keeps the worry spinning and build steadier ways to hold it, at a weekly time you join from Sandal, Horbury or wherever's private.
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 callFinding support in Wakefield
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Wakefield, you can refer yourself directly to NHS talking therapies for anxiety and depression, with no GP referral needed. You can find support through the NHS Talking Therapies finder.
Private sessions with me usually mean you can start sooner and stay with the same counsellor throughout; I am glad to work alongside any NHS or GP support you already have.
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.
Wakefield questions
Online Anxiety Counselling in Wakefield: common questions
Can I get online anxiety counselling if I live in Wakefield?
Yes. I work with people right across Wakefield, from the cathedral and the centre outwards, and anywhere else in Yorkshire & North East, by secure video, no need to travel to Hove, and just as confidential as meeting in the room.
Can online counselling really help with panic attacks?
Yes. We work on what happens in your body when anxiety spikes and rehearse practical ways to settle it, which translates well to video sessions you do from a place you already feel safe.
What if my anxiety makes video calls themselves difficult?
That is common and completely workable. We can start with the camera off, keep early sessions short and build up at your pace; many anxious clients find home the easiest place to begin.
How long does anxiety counselling usually take?
It varies, but solution-focused work often makes a difference within a handful of sessions. We review together rather than committing you to an open-ended course.
People round here just get on with things, will counselling feel odd?
It might at first, and that's normal. Counselling is only a confidential conversation with someone outside your world. Because we meet online, from your own space, there's no waiting room and no clinic to be seen entering, which many find makes the first step easier.
How soon can I start anxiety counselling online in Wakefield?
Usually within a week. After a free 15-minute consultation we book a first session by secure video. I'm based in Hove and work online across the Wakefield district, so there's no waiting list and no trip in from Sandal, Horbury or the outlying villages.
What are your fees, and how do they compare with NHS help in Wakefield?
Sessions are £80 for 60 minutes, £100 for 90 and £120 for two hours, after a free 15-minute consultation. NHS talking therapies at Mid Yorkshire are free but can involve a wait; privately and online, you can usually start sooner and keep one regular time.
Can we meet online in the evening rather than in person in Wakefield?
Yes. I work from Hove by secure video, not from a room in Wakefield, so there's no drive in from the former pit villages. Evening or off-peak slots are often possible, which suits anxiety that builds around work and family life.
Are you based in Wakefield?
No, I work from Hove on the south coast and see Wakefield clients by secure video call. For people out in the former pit villages, where getting to appointments can mean a real journey, meeting online often makes support far easier to keep up week to week.
Is this something separate from the NHS?
Yes. I'm an independent private counsellor, arranged directly with you, not part of any local NHS or council service. You're welcome to use NHS talking therapies alongside or instead, I'm simply another option, available by video at a time that suits your week.
Online Anxiety Counselling in Wakefield, 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 Yorkshire & North East: Leeds, Barnsley, Huddersfield. See all of Yorkshire & North East.
All counselling & therapy in Wakefield: Addiction · Substance Use · Drinking Problems · Depression · Relationship · Trauma · Counselling & Therapy · Psychotherapy.
Closer to the Sussex coast? The same anxiety counselling is available in person in Brighton & Hove, or see all in-person areas.