Daily or binge drinking
Support whatever your pattern looks like.
Online Counselling for Drinking Problems · Torquay
Online Counselling for Drinking Problems in Torquay
Online counselling for drinking problems for Torquay, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Torquay, from the harbour and seafront to the streets around the English Riviera, 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 Torquay
Counselling for Drinking Problems for Torquay, at a glance
- Areas covered online
- All of Torquay: from the harbour and seafront to Babbacombe, St Marychurch and Chelston
- Known for
- The harbour, the seafront and the English Riviera
- Region
- South West (England)
- Local NHS / support route
- Torbay Council's drugs support
- Format
- Secure video, UK-wide. In-person also available on the Sussex coast.
Life in Torquay
Why people in Torquay get in touch
One figure stands out here more than any other. Hospital admissions for alcohol-specific conditions in this area ran at 1041.6 per 100,000 in 2023/24, well over the England average of 611.7, while the alcohol-specific death rate was 13.7 per 100,000 in 2024, just under the England average of 13.8. A resort makes drinking look like part of the entertainment for six months of the year, and almost nobody stands out while it does. The other six are quieter, and that is where the harm accumulates: at home in Chelston or Shiphay, without the season, the hours, or the company that used to make it look sociable.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Torquay
BabbacombeSt MarychurchChelstonEllacombeWellswoodCockingtonShiphayTorreWatcombe
Wherever you are in Torquay, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Torquay
Official figures for Torquay, for context rather than as a description of you.
the rate of hospital admissions for alcohol-specific conditions was 1041.6 per 100,000 in 2023/24, above 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 13.7 per 100,000 in 2024, below 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 approach does not change with the postcode, so rather than repeat it on every page you can read it in full, the methods and what each session covers, on the main counselling for drinking problems page, alongside how sessions run and what they cost and my BACP registration.
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.
Every appointment happens by secure video, because Bradley works from Hove. With alcohol, that removes two practical obstacles at once: nothing to drive to, and nowhere to be seen going. Sessions can be booked early, before the day gets away from you, or in the evening when the pull is at its worst. The same hour each week gives the drinking a fixed point to be measured against.
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 Torquay
Why people in Torquay come for counselling for drinking problems
You do not have to call yourself an alcoholic and you do not have to stop before you start. Those two conditions keep people waiting for years, and neither applies here. Plenty of those who come are working through a season, holding down long hours, and drinking a little more each month without ever having decided to. What we look at is the job the drink is doing: the wind-down after a late finish, the company in an empty winter, the anxiety it quietens temporarily. Some people choose abstinence and some change the shape of their drinking. Both are real outcomes. If you drink heavily and daily, please speak to a doctor before you change it, since alcohol withdrawal carries genuine risk. Torbay Council's drugs support is the free route to the Torbay Drug and Alcohol Service for exactly that.
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 Torquay
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Torquay, free local drug and alcohol support is available through Torbay Council's drugs 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.
Torquay questions
Online Counselling for Drinking Problems in Torquay: common questions
How do I tell the difference between a heavy season and a real problem?
By looking at what happens when the season ends. If the drinking stops with the hours, it was probably situational. If it carries on, or grows when there is less to do, that is a pattern with its own momentum and worth bringing here.
What will it cost, and can I stop when I want?
You can stop at any point, without notice. Sessions are £80 for an hour, £100 for 90 minutes and £120 for two hours, with the first 15-minute conversation free. Payment is session by session, so a quiet financial month never creates a debt.
What if I need medical help to cut down safely?
That is a job for your GP and Torbay Council's drugs support, which leads to the Torbay Drug and Alcohol Service for supervised withdrawal and prescribing at no cost. Counselling does not provide it. Once that side is organised, this work sits alongside it well.
I work nights in hospitality. Are there times that suit?
Usually. Late-morning and early-afternoon appointments suit night workers far better than evenings, and because nothing involves travel, a session can sit in the middle of a broken day. We can look at your actual pattern before deciding anything at all.
The whole bay drinks in summer. Why would mine be different?
Because you are the one asking. A busy resort gives everybody the same excuse, so comparison tells you very little. The more useful test is whether you can leave it alone on a night you meant to, and what the morning after that feels like.
When the season ends I drink more to fill the quiet. Can counselling help?
Yes. A steady, confidential conversation can hold through the long off-season and help you look at your drinking honestly. Sessions are held online by secure video from home. The counselling room is in Hove, on the Sussex coast.
How quickly can I get help for a drinking problem in Torquay?
Usually within days. We start with a free 15-minute consultation to see whether we are a good fit, then book your first full session. It is all online, so you can begin from anywhere in Torquay, from Torre to Watcombe, without joining a local waiting list.
What will drinking problem counselling cost, and is NHS help available in Torquay?
My fees are £80 for 60 minutes, £100 for 90 minutes and £120 for 120 minutes, after a free 15-minute consultation. NHS alcohol support in Torquay, through your GP or Torbay Hospital, is free but can mean a wait, whereas private online sessions with me are paced around you.
Is online drinking problem counselling private, and can we meet in the evening in Torquay?
Yes. Online sessions are discreet, and you speak from home rather than a clinic anywhere in Torquay, including Babbacombe or St Marychurch. I offer some evening slots for after work. My only in-person room is in Hove, so face-to-face suits those able to travel to the Sussex coast.
Online Counselling for Drinking Problems in Torquay, 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 South West: Exeter, Plymouth. See all of South West.
Related work in Torquay: addiction counselling, substance use counselling and depression counselling.
You may also find it useful to read about riding out an urge and why practice makes permanent.
Within reach of Sussex? counselling for drinking problems is offered in the room in Brighton as well as online; see the full list of areas.