Online Psychotherapy · Derry

Online Psychotherapy in Derry

Online psychotherapy for Derry, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Derry, from within the walls and the centre to the streets around the Peace Bridge, with the same BACP-registered, confidential support as an in-person session, and no journey.

Online across the UKSecure videoFree 15-min consultation
BACP registered member25+ years of experienceLived experience
Bradley Riddell, BACP-registered counsellor offering online psychotherapy for Derry, introducing his approach
ConfidentialA safe, private space
Person-centredThe therapy fits you

In and around Derry

Psychotherapy for Derry, at a glance

Areas covered online
All of Derry: from within the walls and the centre to the Bogside, the Waterside and Creggan
Known for
The city walls, the Peace Bridge and the river Foyle
Region
Northern Ireland (Northern Ireland)
Local NHS / support route
NHS psychological therapies (Northern Ireland)
Format
Secure video, UK-wide. In-person also available on the Sussex coast.

Life in Derry

Why people in Derry reach out

Derry, the walled city on the Foyle, carries a particularly deep history of the Troubles alongside long-standing economic hardship and its distance from Belfast. Intergenerational trauma, insecure work and isolation in the north-west all shape the pressures people here carry.

Derry, also called Londonderry, sits inside the only complete set of city walls left in Ireland, looking down over the Foyle and the elegant sweep of the Peace Bridge. The Bogside carries its Free Derry mural and its history close to the surface, while the Waterside spreads across the far bank and Creggan climbs the hill above. It is a warm, quick-witted city that comes alive each autumn for one of Europe's biggest Halloween celebrations, with the Guildhall lit up and the streets in costume. Ulster University's Magee campus, the shops of Foyleside and the new transport hub give the north-west its own centre of gravity, a long way from Belfast and proud of it.

Ulster University's Magee campusAltnagelvin Area Hospitalthe walled city and its autumn Halloween festivalthe North West Transport Hub

Border communities can feel far from the nearest city and its services; online brings discreet, experienced support directly to you.

Derry hosts Ulster University's Magee campus and is served by Altnagelvin Area Hospital, the main acute hospital of the Western HSC Trust for the north-west.

Areas covered

Neighbourhoods in and around Derry

BogsideWatersideCregganBishop StreetRosemountCulmoreShantallowthe DiamondBallymagroarty

Wherever you are in Derry, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.

The psychotherapy itself

Psychotherapy here goes a little deeper and usually a little longer than counselling, into the patterns, beliefs and early relationships that shape how you feel now, so change is understood at the root and holds.

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 psychotherapy 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.

Getting support in Derry need not mean a long drive to Belfast for an appointment. Sessions are held online, by secure video, across the whole of Northern Ireland, so help reaches the north-west as easily as anywhere else. The counsellor is based in Hove and works UK-wide by video rather than seeing anyone face to face in the city, which means you can talk from home, wherever you are on either bank of the Foyle.

Book a free 15-minute call

What I help with

How online psychotherapy in Derry can help

Recurring patterns

When the same difficulty keeps returning in different forms.

Attachment and relationships

How early bonds still shape the way you connect now.

Identity and self-worth

Working with a harsh inner voice and a shaky sense of self.

The past in the present

When something unresolved keeps replaying beneath the surface.

Beyond symptom relief

Understanding the root, not just quieting the symptom.

Lasting change

Insight that holds, so change does not slip back.

Psychotherapy in Derry

Why people in Derry come for psychotherapy

Derry carries a particularly deep history of the Troubles, and for many people some of what they feel today has roots that reach back years, even generations. Psychotherapy makes room for that slower, more searching work, following the threads of old grief, fear or silence rather than only managing the present. It is unhurried and steady, held over time. Sessions take place online by secure video, from the privacy of your own home on either side of the Foyle, so nothing depends on travelling. Bradley is based in Hove and works UK-wide, letting this deeper work unfold at its own pace.

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 call

Finding support in Derry

My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Derry, your GP can refer you to talking therapies and counselling through Health and Social Care. You can find support through Lifeline, Northern Ireland's crisis helpline, free on 0808 808 8000.

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 Lifeline free on 0808 808 8000. Lifeline is free on 0808 808 8000, and the Samaritans are on 116 123.

Derry questions

Online Psychotherapy in Derry: common questions

Can I get online psychotherapy if I live in Derry?

Yes. I work with people right across Derry, from within the walls and the centre outwards, and anywhere else in Northern Ireland, by secure video, no need to travel to Hove, and just as confidential as meeting in the room.

How is psychotherapy different from counselling?

Psychotherapy usually goes deeper and longer, into the patterns, beliefs and early relationships shaping how you feel now, rather than only the present difficulty. It suits people who notice the same things keep coming round.

Does it have to be long-term?

Not necessarily, but depth work benefits from time. We agree the pace and depth together and review as we go, so it stays led by you.

Will I have to talk about my childhood?

Only where it helps make sense of the present. We follow what is alive and relevant for you, gently, never forcing a return to anything before you are ready.

I think my difficulties go back a long way; can that be worked with online?

Yes. Psychotherapy explores those deeper, longer-held roots at a gentle pace, and it works well by secure video. From home in Derry you can do this steady work over time. Bradley is based in Hove and works UK-wide by video, so nothing depends on travelling.

How do I begin deeper psychotherapy in Derry?

You start with a free 15-minute consultation, then your first full session, usually within a week or two. Psychotherapy is longer-term work held online by secure video, so you can commit to regular sessions from home in Derry rather than travelling to Belfast each week.

Is paying for psychotherapy worth it when the north-west has NHS services?

NHS psychological therapy in Derry is free but often shorter and waited-for. Private psychotherapy, at GBP80 an hour or GBP100 to GBP120 for longer sessions, gives open-ended, consistent work with one counsellor, which deep difficulties usually need. A free 15-minute call helps you weigh it up.

Does long-term psychotherapy work online from Derry?

Yes. Regular video sessions build the same lasting relationship as in-person work, and you never lose time driving to Belfast. From a quiet room anywhere in Derry, with evening slots available, ongoing therapy can fit steadily around work and family life on either side of the Foyle.

Do I have to travel to Belfast to be seen?

No. Because sessions are online by secure video, you can take part from home in Derry without the long journey east. The counsellor is based in Hove and works UK-wide by video, so distance from Belfast makes no difference to getting started.

Online Psychotherapy in Derry, 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 Northern Ireland: Lisburn, Craigavon. See all of Northern Ireland.

All counselling & therapy in Derry: Addiction · Substance Use · Drinking Problems · Anxiety · Depression · Relationship · Trauma · Counselling & Therapy.

Closer to the Sussex coast? The same psychotherapy is available in person in Brighton & Hove, or see all in-person areas.