Anxiety and worry
When your mind will not settle and everything feels urgent.
Online Counselling and Therapy · Carlisle
Online Counselling and Therapy in Carlisle
Online counselling and therapy for Carlisle, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Carlisle, from the city centre and the castle to the streets around the cathedral, 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 Carlisle
Counselling and Therapy for Carlisle, at a glance
- Areas covered online
- All of Carlisle: from the city centre and the castle to Botcherby, Currock and Stanwix
- Known for
- The castle, the cathedral and the border country
- Region
- North West (England)
- Local NHS / support route
- NHS North Cumbria Talking Therapies
- Format
- Secure video, UK-wide. In-person also available on the Sussex coast.
Life in Carlisle
What brings people in Carlisle to counselling?
Carlisle sits a long way north of everywhere else, with the cathedral and the castle at its centre and a lot of countryside in every direction. That distance affects how people get help: you tend to wait longer before deciding something counts. Plenty of people in Botcherby, Denton Holme or Belah spend a year telling themselves they are just run down. There is no name for it yet. Work is fine, or fine enough, and the Cumberland Infirmary is for real emergencies. Meanwhile you have stopped ringing friends, you are sleeping badly, and you snap at people who did not deserve it. That is usually the point at which somebody looks up counselling.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Carlisle
the city centreStanwixBotcherbyCurrockDenton HolmeHarrabyBelahUpperby
Wherever you are in Carlisle, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Carlisle
Official figures for Carlisle, for context rather than as a description of you.
In the Carlisle local authority district, 23.5% of adults reported a high anxiety score (6 or above out of 10) in the year ending March 2023, in line with the England average of 23.3%. Source: Office for National Statistics (ONS), Personal well-being estimates by local authority (Year ending March 2023 (2022-23)).
recorded depression on GP registers stood at 19.2% of patients aged 18+ in 2024/25, above the England average of 14.3%. Source: OHID Fingertips – Depression: QOF prevalence (2024/25).
the rate of emergency hospital admissions for self-harm was 157.7 per 100,000 in 2023/24, above the England average of 117 per 100,000. Source: OHID Fingertips – Emergency Hospital Admissions for Intentional Self-Harm (2023/24).
Reviewed June 2026.
What does counselling and therapy involve?
Counselling and therapy here is one steady starting point for whatever you are carrying, anxiety, low mood, addiction, relationships or the past, integrative and led by you, so we begin with what matters most and shape the work around you.
Because the work itself is the same wherever you live, the detail sits in one place rather than all of them: the main counselling and therapy page sets out the methods, the practical side covers the practicalities, and my credentials and registration covers accountability.
What happens in an online session?
Sessions run over a secure, encrypted video link, held to the same BACP confidentiality as meeting in person. After a free fifteen-minute call, you join from any private space on a phone, tablet or laptop.
Online sessions from Hove solve a practical problem here. Specialist help in this part of the country can mean a long journey, and a long journey is an easy reason to give up on the idea. This way there is no drive, no fuel cost and no half-day gone. You can try a single session from home, or from the car, and decide afterwards. Phone works as well as video if the connection is unreliable where you live.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
What does counselling and therapy help with?
Low mood and depression
For the flatness, exhaustion and loss of interest that drain the colour from things.
Addiction and habits
Alcohol, drugs, gambling or behaviours that have stopped feeling like a choice.
Relationships
Conflict, distance and trust, as a couple or on your own.
Trauma and the past
When something you have been through still shapes your present.
Life feeling stuck
For the big transitions, losses and crossroads that leave you unsure which way to turn.
Counselling and Therapy in Carlisle
Why people in Carlisle come for counselling and therapy
This is the least demanding way in. You are not required to have a diagnosis, a history or a clear question. We stay in the present and work out what is actually happening, and the work is usually short to medium: a few months rather than years. That matters in a city where distress often goes unspoken until it becomes urgent. Emergency hospital admissions for self-harm here ran at 157.7 per 100,000 in 2023/24, well above the England average of 117, which suggests a lot of people arrive at help late rather than early. Starting when it is still vague is not an overreaction. NHS North Cumbria Talking Therapies takes self-referrals and costs nothing, and it is a sensible place to look at the same time. Recovery Steps Cumbria handles drug and alcohol support if that has become part of how you are getting through the week.
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 Carlisle
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Carlisle, you can refer yourself directly to NHS North Cumbria Talking Therapies for free NHS talking therapy, with no GP referral needed.
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.
Carlisle questions
Online Counselling and Therapy in Carlisle: common questions
How long before someone can actually see me?
Usually a week or two. There is a free 15-minute consultation first, generally within a few days of you getting in touch. That speed is one of the main reasons people in Carlisle try private counselling whilst they are also waiting for an NHS place.
What if I cannot explain what is wrong?
Then you say that, and we start from there. A first session is mostly me asking questions and you answering as best you can. Clarity is the outcome of counselling more often than it is the ticket in. Vague is entirely workable.
How does this compare with NHS North Cumbria Talking Therapies?
That service is free, self-referred and structured, usually a set number of sessions with a specific focus. This is paid, more flexible in what we cover, and available quickly. Neither is better in the abstract, and using both at different points is common.
What does it cost, and can I stop whenever?
£80 for an hour, £100 for 90 minutes, and you can stop at any point without notice or penalty. Nothing is paid in advance beyond the session you are booking. The 15-minute consultation before you start is free of charge.
Living out towards the edge of the city, my internet is not great. Is that a problem?
No. Phone sessions work perfectly well and some people prefer them anyway, because talking is easier when you are not watching your own face. If a video call breaks up we simply switch to voice and carry on where we left off.
Is this separate from NHS services at the Cumberland Infirmary?
Yes. I'm an independent counsellor working online from Hove, separate from NHS Talking Therapies and the Cumberland Infirmary. Some people see me while waiting for NHS support, others prefer private sessions from the start. I'm happy to help you weigh up which route might suit you.
How quickly can I start counselling in Carlisle?
Generally within a week or so. Working online from Hove means no local waiting list, so after a free fifteen-minute call I can usually offer a first session soon after. Wherever you are, from Currock to Harraby, we meet by secure video or phone, with nothing to travel to.
How much is counselling, and should I try the NHS in Carlisle first?
Sessions are £80 for the standard sixty minutes, with longer options at £100 for ninety and £120 for two hours. NHS Talking Therapies is free but often has a wait, so some people start privately with me while it comes through. The first fifteen-minute consultation costs nothing.
Do you offer evening sessions this far north in Carlisle?
Yes. Meeting online matters all the more this far north, where support can otherwise mean a long drive. Online work makes evenings and quieter daytime slots easier to keep, and we would agree one regular time and hold it week to week, so it becomes dependable.
Online Counselling and Therapy in Carlisle, 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 North West: Lancaster. See all of North West.
Also available in Carlisle: anxiety counselling, depression counselling and psychotherapy.
If you would like to read more first, I have written about how change actually sticks and where to start when you cannot name it.
For anyone near the coast, the same counselling and therapy runs in person in Brighton. Every area covered is listed separately.