Intrusive memories
Support for flashbacks, nightmares and re-experiencing.
Online Trauma Counselling · Portsmouth
Online Trauma Counselling in Portsmouth
Online trauma counselling for Portsmouth, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Portsmouth, from across Portsea Island, Southsea and Old Portsmouth to the streets around the Spinnaker Tower, 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 Portsmouth
Trauma Counselling for Portsmouth, at a glance
- Areas covered online
- All of Portsmouth: across Portsea Island, from Southsea and Old Portsmouth to Fratton, Cosham and Copnor
- Known for
- The Spinnaker Tower, the harbour and the seafront
- Region
- London & South East (England)
- Local NHS / support route
- NHS Talking Therapies Hampshire (italk)
- Format
- Secure video, UK-wide. In-person also available on the Sussex coast.
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.
Portsmouth is packed tightly onto Portsea Island, a city where the sea is never far and the naval base and Historic Dockyard sit at its heart. Life around Southsea, Fratton, Cosham and Copnor is bound up with the Royal Navy and the ferry port, alongside the University of Portsmouth and the wards of Queen Alexandra Hospital up at Cosham. The forces connection shapes many families here, with deployments, postings and long stretches apart, and on such a densely built island there is rarely much distance between neighbours. That closeness can make privacy feel scarce, and reaching out for support something people would rather do quietly. Having a confidential ear, away from the base and the street, can make all the difference.
With deep forces connections, deployments and frequent moves leave their mark; online counselling travels with you and stays consistent through postings.
Portsmouth is home to His Majesty's Naval Base Portsmouth (a principal Royal Navy base), the University of Portsmouth and Queen Alexandra Hospital.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Portsmouth
SouthseaOld PortsmouthFrattonCoshamCopnorNorth EndPortseaMiltonBuckland
Wherever you are in Portsmouth, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Portsmouth
These figures are local context from official sources, not a description of you, but they show the scale of what people in and around Portsmouth are living with, and why local support matters.
the rate of emergency hospital admissions for self-harm was 177.1 per 100,000 in 2023/24, above the England average of 117 per 100,000. Source: OHID Fingertips – Emergency Hospital Admissions for Intentional Self-Harm (2023/24).
Local data last reviewed June 2026. Each figure shows the year and links to the official source it was read on.
The trauma counselling itself
Trauma counselling here is gentle and led by you, drawing on methods designed for trauma including the Human Givens Rewind Technique, so a difficult memory is returned to ordinary recall.
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 trauma counselling 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.
On a crowded island city, even a short trip can mean traffic across the few roads on and off Portsea, so many people welcome not having to travel at all. Online sessions are held securely from home, whenever suits. The practice room is in Hove, a train along the coast if you can reach the Sussex side for an in-person meeting, but for Portsmouth the work is done online, discreetly and without anyone needing to know.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
How online trauma counselling in Portsmouth can help
Hypervigilance
Help when your nervous system is stuck on high alert.
Numbness and avoidance
For when you cope by shutting down.
Trauma behind addiction
Healing the wound that drives the habit.
Sub-threshold trauma
Reaching the quieter, accumulated hurts.
Feeling safe again
Working always at a pace that is led by you.
Trauma Counselling in Portsmouth
Why people in Portsmouth come for trauma counselling
The forces connection that runs through Portsmouth means many people here carry experiences that are hard to speak about, and on a densely built island privacy for doing so can feel scarce. Whether tied to service, to work at the port, or to something else entirely, trauma can surface in hypervigilance, in disturbed sleep, in reactions that others do not understand. Reaching out often means doing so quietly. Trauma-focused counselling offers a contained, confidential space to work through what happened at your own pace, held securely online from home, so support comes to you discreetly, with no one on your street needing to know.
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 callFinding support in Portsmouth
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Portsmouth, you can refer yourself directly to NHS Talking Therapies Hampshire (italk) for free NHS talking therapy, with no GP referral needed.
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 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 Trauma Counselling in Portsmouth: common questions
Can I get online trauma counselling if I live in Portsmouth?
Yes. I work with people right across Portsmouth, from across Portsea Island, Southsea and Old Portsmouth outwards, and anywhere else in London & South East, by secure video, no need to travel to Hove, and just as confidential as meeting in the room.
Do I have to describe what happened in detail?
No. Methods like the Human Givens Rewind let us process a memory without you reliving it or even speaking the detail aloud.
Is it safe to do trauma work online?
Yes, when it is paced carefully. We go slowly, keep you grounded, and you stay in control of what we approach and when.
What if I get overwhelmed during a session?
We build in ways to settle and pause, and never move faster than feels safe. Being in your own space online can make that easier.
As a veteran, how private is trauma counselling in a city this close-knit?
Very private. There is no local waiting room to be seen in and nobody on your street need know. You join securely from home, everything stays confidential, and we work through difficult experiences only as fast as feels safe for you.
How soon can I start trauma counselling online in Portsmouth?
Often within a week of a free consultation. Bradley works online with Portsmouth clients, so there is no clinic to reach across the island. Trauma work from your own private space, in Southsea or Fratton, can feel steadier and safer.
What do trauma sessions cost, and can the NHS help in Portsmouth?
Trauma counselling is £80 for sixty minutes, £100 for ninety and £120 for two hours, with the longer sessions often suiting it. NHS Talking Therapies Hampshire is free but frequently oversubscribed, so many in Portsmouth begin privately to be seen sooner.
Is online trauma counselling as good as in person in Portsmouth, and are evenings available?
Many Portsmouth clients, including service personnel, find online trauma work just as containing, with familiar surroundings between sessions. Bradley offers some evening slots for naval routines, and the Hove room is reachable by train if meeting in person would help you feel safer.
My partner is often away on deployment and I'm managing at home alone. Can counselling help with that?
Yes. The strain of deployments, moves and long separations is something many forces families in Portsmouth carry. Online sessions fit around childcare and the up-and-down of a service routine, and can be held whether your partner is home or away, entirely privately from your own front room.
It's such a close-knit island city. How private is this really?
Very private. There is no local waiting room to be seen in and nobody on your street need know. You join securely from home, and everything discussed stays confidential, which many people in Portsmouth value given how closely the city is packed together.
Online Trauma Counselling in Portsmouth, 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: Southampton, Chichester. See all of London & South East.
All counselling & therapy in Portsmouth: Addiction · Substance Use · Drinking Problems · Anxiety · Depression · Relationship · Counselling & Therapy · Psychotherapy.
Closer to the Sussex coast? The same trauma counselling is available in person in Brighton & Hove, or see all in-person areas.