Drugs and substances
Confidential support for any kind of substance use.
Online Substance Use Counselling · Durham
Online Substance Use Counselling in Durham
Online substance use counselling for Durham, by secure video, wherever you are. Waiting lists and a shortage of local specialists shouldn't stand between you and help. Online substance use counselling gives Durham a direct route to an experienced, BACP-registered counsellor, by secure video.
BACP registered member25+ years of experienceLived experience
ConfidentialA safe, private space
Person-centredThe therapy fits you
Substance Use Counselling for Durham, without the journey
From the heart of Durham, near the cathedral, the castle and the river Wear, out to its edges, from the peninsula and the centre to Gilesgate, Neville's Cross and Framwellgate, online sessions make it possible to get the right support without rearranging your whole day around a single appointment.
Hove is where my room is, but the support is not tied to Sussex. Over a secure link I work with people in Durham and far beyond, with the same depth and confidentiality as meeting face to face.
I also work online with people elsewhere in Yorkshire & North East, including Newcastle upon Tyne, Sunderland, Darlington.
If you would still prefer to meet in person and can travel to the Sussex coast, you are welcome to, but for most clients in Durham online substance use counselling is the natural and effective choice.
Life in Durham
Why people in Durham reach out
Durham's great cathedral and ancient university give the city a calm, storied face, but behind it sit intense academic pressure and a county still living with the loss of its coal industry. The gap between the gleaming university and the hard-pressed former pit villages around it shapes much of what people carry.
Beneath the calm, postcard surface of a historic city, struggle can be hard to voice. Online counselling offers a private route to support that asks nothing of appearances.
What I help with
How online substance use counselling can help
The false self
Letting go of the protective self that no longer serves you.
Specialised attention
One-to-one sessions shaped entirely around you.
Self-discovery
Rediscovering the authentic self beneath the coping.
Anxiety and low mood
Treating what the substance has been masking.
Sustainable change
Growing into recovery rather than forcing it.
Why online works in Durham
Why people in Durham choose online counselling
Around terms and deadlines
Sessions flex around the academic calendar and shift work, so support holds steady through the busiest weeks.
A wider choice of specialist
Working online means people in Durham aren't limited to whoever practises locally. You can choose the counsellor who genuinely fits the issue you're facing, not just the nearest one.
Easier to keep to
A weekly session you can take from home is far simpler to protect than one that needs travel. That consistency is exactly where lasting change comes from.
The same confidentiality
Sessions run on a secure, encrypted video link, and everything is held to the same strict BACP confidentiality as work done in person.
How online sessions work
Beyond the practicalities, this is the heart of how the work goes. My approach is integrative and humanistic, starting from a simple premise: you are the expert on yourself. With support you can find yourself again, without the anaesthetic, working at a pace that always protects your sense of safety.
All it takes at your end is a private spot where you can talk freely, a device with a camera, and a steady signal. We begin with a free fifteen-minute call, then I send a link you join at our agreed time each week.
Read more about online counselling, about substance use counselling, or about my methods, sessions and fees.
Start the conversationFinding support in Durham
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally, and it can be worth knowing what else is there. In Durham, 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, stay with the same counsellor throughout, and work at greater depth and pace; the two can run side by side, and I'm glad to work alongside any NHS or GP support you already have.
If you need urgent help now
This practice is not a crisis service. If you or someone else 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.
Durham questions
Online Substance Use Counselling in Durham: common questions
Can I have online substance use counselling if I live in Durham?
Absolutely. Durham is well within reach, because we meet by secure video rather than in person. You'll get exactly the same specialist support as someone sitting in my Hove room.
How does online substance use counselling work from Durham?
We meet over a secure, private video link at a time that suits you. You'll need a quiet space, a device with a camera and a steady connection. We always begin with a free fifteen-minute call so you can ask questions and check the fit.
Is online substance use counselling as effective as meeting in person?
For most people, yes. Online therapy can be just as effective as meeting face to face, and many find it easier to open up from home. Everything is held with the same strict confidentiality as in-person work.
Can I use the NHS in Durham as well as seeing you?
Yes, and many people do both. You can access support from your local NHS talking therapies or counselling service alongside our work; private counselling simply means you can usually start sooner and stay with the same counsellor throughout. I'm happy to work alongside any NHS support you're receiving.
Online Substance Use Counselling in Durham, whenever you are ready
When you're ready, book a free fifteen-minute call. It costs nothing, commits you to nothing, and is the simplest way to find out if I'm the right counsellor for you in Durham.
Online Substance Use Counselling in nearby places
Online substance use counselling in Newcastle upon TyneOnline substance use counselling in SunderlandOnline substance use counselling in DarlingtonOnline substance use counselling in LeedsOnline substance use counselling in SheffieldOnline substance use counselling in HullAll of Yorkshire & North East
Prefer to meet face to face? See counselling across Brighton, Hove & Sussex, or read more about how online counselling works and about substance use counselling in depth.