Daily or binge drinking
Support whatever your pattern looks like.
Online Counselling for Drinking Problems · Reading
Online Counselling for Drinking Problems in Reading
Online counselling for drinking problems for Reading, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Reading, from the centre and the university quarter to the streets around the Thames, 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 Reading
Counselling for Drinking Problems for Reading, at a glance
- Areas covered online
- All of Reading: from the centre and the university quarter to Caversham, Tilehurst and Earley
- Known for
- The Thames, the Oracle and the Kennet
- Region
- London & South East (England)
- Local NHS / support route
- Reading Borough Council's drug and alcohol support
- Format
- Secure video, UK-wide. In-person also available on the Sussex coast.
Life in Reading
Why people in Reading get in touch
Alcohol in Reading is mostly a decompression habit. A drink on the train back down the line. A bottle opened the moment the laptop shuts, because nothing else signals that the day is over. A round after work that becomes the reason the evening has any shape. The town's hospital figures are unremarkable, with alcohol-specific admissions at 445.8 per 100,000 in 2023/24 against an England average of 611.7 per 100,000. The death figure is not unremarkable. Alcohol-specific deaths reached 25.5 per 100,000 in 2024, well above the England average of 13.8 per 100,000, which points to a lot of drinking that goes unnoticed until it cannot be.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Reading
CavershamTilehurstEarleyLower EarleyWoodleyWhitleySouthcoteColeyEmmer Green
Wherever you are in Reading, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Reading
Official figures for Reading, for context rather than as a description of you.
the rate of hospital admissions for alcohol-specific conditions was 445.8 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 25.5 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 is counselling for drinking problems, in practice?
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.
The method travels; only the geography changes. counselling for drinking problems in detail explains it properly, the practical side answers the practical questions, and how to check my registration shows how the practice is held to account.
What do I need for 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.
There is no room in Reading, so sessions run online by secure video from Hove. For drinking that has an obvious practical benefit: the hour takes place in the same setting as the habit, so the account stays specific. Slots can be arranged before work or at lunchtime, which suits anyone who would rather not discuss alcohol during the window when they would usually be drinking it.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
Which difficulties does counselling for drinking problems address?
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 Reading
Why people in Reading come for counselling for drinking problems
You do not have to promise to stop and you do not have to have hit anything. Both ideas are widespread and both do real damage, because they set an entry requirement that keeps capable people out for years. A town like this is full of people performing well at work and drinking a little more each quarter, and neither fact interferes with the other until quite late on. So the opening question is not the units. It is what the alcohol is for: closing the day, quieting a job that follows you home, filling an evening after a commute that consumed the rest of it. Then what it charges you. Reading Borough Council's drug and alcohol support and the Change Grow Live service handle treatment and the medical side, and Mind in Berkshire covers wellbeing.
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 Reading
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Reading, free local drug and alcohol support is available through Reading Borough Council's drug and alcohol support.
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.
Reading questions
Online Counselling for Drinking Problems in Reading: common questions
How do I know if this applies to me?
If the amount is climbing, or you are hiding it, or the promised night off keeps not arriving, that is enough. Nothing worse has to happen first. A free 15-minute consultation is the simplest way to find out, and it is usually available within a few days of getting in touch.
What will this cost?
Appointments are £80 for an hour, £100 for ninety minutes and £120 for two hours, paid individually. The 15-minute consultation costs nothing at all. Since there is no travel and no parking to pay for, the fee is the whole expense, which is not true of much in this town.
Is there NHS or council alcohol help in Reading?
Yes. The council sets out its drug and alcohol support for the town, and Change Grow Live delivers the Reading drug and alcohol service itself. If you drink heavily every day, speak to them or to your GP before making changes, because coming off alcohol is a medical matter.
Can I take the session from work?
People do. A bookable meeting room with a door works well, as does a car in a quiet corner somewhere. Video is standard and telephone is available when the connection struggles. There is nowhere in Reading to attend in person, so wherever you are is where it happens.
Everyone in my team drinks like this. What makes mine the problem?
A shared habit can still be costing you specifically. Industries with long hours normalise a level of drinking that no one individually chose, and the comparison hides what it is doing to your sleep, your mood and your money. Your own account is the only useful measure.
I only really drink to relax after work. Is that worth talking about?
It can be. Drinking to unwind is where many problems quietly begin, especially after high-pressure days. If it has become the main way you switch off, or the amounts are creeping up, a confidential conversation can help you see the pattern clearly before it settles further.
How soon can I speak to someone about a drinking problem online in Reading?
Often within a week. The free 15-minute consultation lets us talk through your drinking before you commit, then we set a regular time. Working online removes the trip into town or along the M4, so you can start quietly from home wherever you are in Reading.
Can I get drinking problem counselling on the NHS locally in Reading?
Yes. Your GP can refer you and Berkshire's council-funded alcohol service takes self-referrals for free, with Drinkline offering confidential phone advice. If you would rather go private, sessions here are £80 for 60 minutes, £100 for 90 and £120 for 120, after a free consultation.
Can drinking counselling fit around a demanding Reading commute?
It can. Because everything is online, sessions sit in the evening or on a working-from-home day, with none of the travel that already fills a Thames Valley week. Many people find that easier to keep private than a local room. In-person meetings are possible in Hove if you prefer.
Online Counselling for Drinking Problems in Reading, 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 London & South East: Slough, Oxford, Basingstoke, London. See all of London & South East.
If counselling for drinking problems is not quite what you are looking for, addiction counselling, substance use counselling and depression counselling may fit better in Reading.
If you would like to read more first, I have written about questioning “once an addict” and riding out an urge.
If you can reach the south coast, this work is also done face to face in Hove, where the room is — all in-person areas are listed here.