Online Substance Use Counselling · Portsmouth

Online Substance Use Counselling in Portsmouth

Online substance use counselling for Portsmouth, by secure video, wherever you are. For many people in Portsmouth, online sessions are not a compromise but the thing that finally makes therapy possible: flexible, private and fitted around your life.

Online across the UKSecure videoFree 15-min consultation
BACP registered member25+ years of experienceLived experience
Bradley Riddell, counsellor in Brighton & Hove, introducing his approach to therapy
ConfidentialA safe, private space
Person-centredThe therapy fits you
Online substance use counselling by secure video for clients in Portsmouth

Substance Use Counselling for Portsmouth, without the journey

Known for the Spinnaker Tower, the harbour and the seafront, Portsmouth is a place of real character, with clients coming to me from across Portsea Island, from Southsea and Old Portsmouth to Fratton, Cosham and Copnor. Wherever you are across it, online counselling means experienced support without the travel, fitted around work, family and everything else.

My room is in Hove, but the work reaches a great deal further. By secure video I support people throughout the UK, Portsmouth included, with the same care and attention as an in-person session.

I also work online with people elsewhere in London & South East, including Southampton, Chichester, London.

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 Portsmouth online substance use counselling is the natural and effective choice.

Life in Portsmouth

Why people in Portsmouth reach out

Portsmouth is the most densely populated city outside London and a historic naval base, and the forces connection runs deep. Long deployments, frequent moves and the strain on families left behind leave their mark, and on a tightly packed island city privacy can feel in short supply. Reaching out here often means doing so quietly, without anyone needing to know.

The pace and scale of a busy urban area can be isolating even when you are never really alone. A session you join from your own space keeps the focus on you, not on the journey there.

What I help with

How online substance use counselling can help

Drugs and substances

Confidential support for any kind of substance use.

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 Portsmouth

Why people in Portsmouth choose online counselling

Privacy in a crowded city

In a place as busy as Portsmouth, a confidential hour from your own space means no chance of being seen coming or going.

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.

The comfort of your own space

Many people find it easier to open up from their own sofa than in an unfamiliar room. From Portsmouth, that comfort is part of the work, not a compromise.

A calm space for online substance use counselling in Portsmouth

How online sessions work

Here's what actually happens once we begin. 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.

Practically, it couldn't be simpler: a quiet room, a device with a camera, and a steady internet connection. After a free fifteen-minute call to check the fit, you'll get a private link to join at our agreed time.

Read more about online counselling, about substance use counselling, or about my methods, sessions and fees.

Start the conversation

Finding support in Portsmouth

My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally, and it can be worth knowing what else is there. In Portsmouth, you can refer yourself directly to NHS Talking Therapies Hampshire for free NHS talking therapy, with no GP referral needed. You can also find your nearest service 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.

Portsmouth questions

Online Substance Use Counselling in Portsmouth: common questions

Do you offer online substance use counselling for people in Portsmouth?

Yes. I work with clients in Portsmouth and right across the UK by secure video. You don't need to live near Brighton or Hove; online substance use counselling brings the same care to wherever you are.

How does online substance use counselling work from Portsmouth?

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.

Is online counselling private and confidential?

Yes. Sessions run on a secure, encrypted video link, and everything we discuss is held to the same strict BACP confidentiality as work done in person. All you need at your end is a private space.

Online Substance Use Counselling in Portsmouth, whenever you are ready

The simplest first step from Portsmouth is a free fifteen-minute call. There's no obligation, just a chance to ask anything and see how it feels.