Intrusive memories
Support for flashbacks, nightmares and re-experiencing.
Online Trauma Counselling · Wakefield
Online Trauma Counselling in Wakefield
Online trauma counselling for Wakefield, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Wakefield, from the cathedral and the centre to the streets around the Hepworth gallery, 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 Wakefield
Trauma Counselling for Wakefield, at a glance
- Areas covered online
- All of Wakefield: from the cathedral and the centre to Sandal, Horbury and Lupset
- Known for
- The cathedral, the Hepworth gallery and the old coalfield
- Region
- Yorkshire & North East (England)
- Local NHS / support route
- NHS Talking Therapies (find via the NHS finder)
- Format
- Secure video, UK-wide. In-person also available on the Sussex coast.
Life in Wakefield
Why people in Wakefield reach out
Wakefield is a cathedral city at the heart of the former West Yorkshire coalfield, and the closure of the pits left deep and lasting marks on the towns around it. Insecure work, money worries and a strong but stoic culture all shape what people here carry, often quietly.
Wakefield is a cathedral city at the heart of the old West Yorkshire coalfield, its slender spire the tallest in the county and its medieval Chantry Chapel still perched on the bridge over the Calder. Down by the river, The Hepworth Wakefield draws visitors to a city that has long nurtured sculpture, Barbara Hepworth was born here, and the Yorkshire Sculpture Park spreads across parkland just to the west at Bretton. This is the heart of the famous rhubarb triangle, and the ruins of Sandal Castle look out over it all. The pit villages that ring the district, from Stanley to Normanton, still carry the memory of coal, while the city centre and Trinity Walk keep the everyday rhythm going.
Beneath a calm, historic surface, struggle can be hard to voice; a confidential online hour asks nothing of appearances.
Wakefield's main hospital, Pinderfields, is run by the Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust; the city sits at the heart of the former West Yorkshire coalfield and is home to The Hepworth Wakefield art gallery.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Wakefield
SandalHorburyLupsetAgbriggKettlethorpeOutwoodStanleyOssettNormantonWrenthorpe
Wherever you are in Wakefield, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Wakefield
These figures are local context from official sources, not a description of you, but they show the scale of what people in and around Wakefield are living with, and why local support matters.
the rate of emergency hospital admissions for self-harm was 131.6 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.
I'm based in Hove and work with people across the Wakefield district online, by secure video, rather than in person. Sessions come to you, at home in Sandal or Horbury, or wherever's quiet in the outlying villages, so there's no trip into the city to fit in. We'd settle on a regular weekly time that works around your commitments and stick with it.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
How online trauma counselling in Wakefield 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 Wakefield
Why people in Wakefield come for trauma counselling
Trauma can keep the body braced long after the event, broken sleep, a quick startle, memories that surface uninvited, and hard or dangerous work leaves its own marks. I'm Bradley Riddell, a counsellor based in Hove, working with people across Wakefield by secure video rather than face to face. Trauma work is slow and led entirely by you: we build safety and grounding first, and only turn towards the difficult material when it feels right. Meeting from your own familiar space, out in Horbury or Outwood or wherever you feel unseen, can help you stay steady while we do this patient work together.
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 Wakefield
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Wakefield, 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 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.
Wakefield questions
Online Trauma Counselling in Wakefield: common questions
Can I get online trauma counselling if I live in Wakefield?
Yes. I work with people right across Wakefield, from the cathedral and the centre outwards, and anywhere else in Yorkshire & North 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.
Will I have to go through every detail of what happened?
No. Effective trauma work isn't about forcing yourself back through it all. Much of it is building a sense of safety and control in the present first. We approach memories gradually, only as far and as fast as feels manageable for you.
How soon can I start trauma counselling online in Wakefield?
We begin with a free 15-minute consultation, usually within a week, then a first video session at a careful pace. Working from Hove across the Wakefield district means no waiting list and no drive into the city when you're feeling vulnerable; the session comes to you.
How much is trauma counselling, and why not just use the NHS in Wakefield?
You can; Pinderfields and NHS talking therapies are free, though often with a wait. My fees are £80 for 60 minutes, £100 for 90 and £120 for two hours. Longer sessions can suit trauma work, and privately you'd start sooner and choose the pace.
Is trauma work safe to do online instead of in person in Wakefield?
For many people, yes. Being in your own space in Wakefield, rather than an unfamiliar room after a long trip, can feel steadier. I work from Hove by secure video, and we can use 90-minute or evening sessions so there's time to settle and close gently.
Are you based in Wakefield?
No, I work from Hove on the south coast and see Wakefield clients by secure video call. For people out in the former pit villages, where getting to appointments can mean a real journey, meeting online often makes support far easier to keep up week to week.
Is this something separate from the NHS?
Yes. I'm an independent private counsellor, arranged directly with you, not part of any local NHS or council service. You're welcome to use NHS talking therapies alongside or instead, I'm simply another option, available by video at a time that suits your week.
Online Trauma Counselling in Wakefield, 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 Yorkshire & North East: Leeds, Barnsley, Huddersfield. See all of Yorkshire & North East.
All counselling & therapy in Wakefield: 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.