Intrusive memories
Support for flashbacks, nightmares and re-experiencing.
Online Trauma Counselling · York
Online Trauma Counselling in York
Online trauma counselling for York, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across York, from within the walls and the centre to the streets around the Minster, 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 York
Trauma Counselling for York, at a glance
- Areas covered online
- All of York: from within the walls and the centre to Clifton, Acomb and Heworth
- Known for
- The Minster, the city walls and the Shambles
- 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 York
Why people in York reach out
York's walls, Minster and tourist crowds give it a postcard calm, but behind it sit a high cost of living, a large student population and the pressure of a city always on show. Struggle can feel out of place here, and that can make it harder to reach out.
York is enclosed by its medieval walls, the great Minster rising over a knot of narrow streets that includes the timber-framed Shambles. The rivers Ouse and Foss thread through the centre, and flood it when they rise, past Clifford's Tower and the Jorvik quarter that recalls the city's Viking past. This was a great railway city, celebrated now at the National Railway Museum, and a great chocolate one too, home to Rowntree's and Terry's. Two universities, the larger at Heslington on the eastern edge, bring a big student population, while the racecourse on the Knavesmire and the year-round crowds of visitors keep the city busy. Beyond the walls, Clifton, Acomb and Heworth settle into quieter, everyday neighbourhoods.
Beneath a calm, historic surface, struggle can be hard to voice; a confidential online hour asks nothing of appearances.
York is home to the University of York and York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (York Hospital); the city has a long confectionery history through Rowntree's, now part of Nestlé, which still operates a factory there.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around York
CliftonAcombHeworthBishopthorpeFulfordFishergateHolgateDringhousesHuntingtonHeslington
Wherever you are in York, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in York
These figures are local context from official sources, not a description of you, but they show the scale of what people in and around York are living with, and why local support matters.
the rate of emergency hospital admissions for self-harm was 91.8 per 100,000 in 2023/24, below 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 in York online, by secure video, rather than in person. In a city where the centre is always thronged with visitors, meeting from home has its own appeal, no walk through the crowds, no parking within the walls. You join from wherever's quiet and we keep a regular weekly time around your week.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
How online trauma counselling in York 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 York
Why people in York come for trauma counselling
Trauma can keep your body on guard long after the event, broken sleep, a quick startle, memories that surface uninvited, however capably you carry on around the crowds. I'm Bradley Riddell, a counsellor based in Hove, working with people across York by secure video rather than in person. Trauma work is careful and led by you: we build a foundation of safety and grounding first, and turn towards the hard memories only when you're ready. Being in your own familiar space, rather than crossing the busy centre to an unfamiliar room, can help you feel more in control while we work.
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 York
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In York, 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.
York questions
Online Trauma Counselling in York: common questions
Can I get online trauma counselling if I live in York?
Yes. I work with people right across York, from within the walls 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.
Can trauma really be worked on over video?
It can. We move at your pace and keep grounding techniques to hand, and being in your own space often helps you feel more in control. If additional in-person support were ever needed, I'd help you find suitable local options alongside our work.
How soon can I start trauma counselling online in York?
We begin with a free 15-minute consultation, usually within a week, then a first video session at a gentle pace. Working from Hove across York means no waiting list and no walk through the crowds when you're feeling raw; the session simply comes to you.
How much is trauma counselling, and why not use the NHS in York?
You can; York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals and 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 would start sooner and set the pace.
Is trauma work safe to do online instead of in person in York?
For many people, yes. Being in your own quiet space in York, rather than an unfamiliar room reached through the crowds, 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.
Do you have a room in York?
No. I work from Hove on the south coast and see York clients by secure video call. For a compact, busy tourist city, that saves navigating the centre and parking, sessions come to you at home in Acomb, Clifton or wherever feels private.
I'm a student at one of the universities, can you help?
Yes. Online sessions continue through term, placements and holidays wherever you are, so a move between York and home doesn't break things off. I work privately, separate from the universities' own counselling services, which you can also use.
Online Trauma Counselling in York, 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, Hull, Harrogate. See all of Yorkshire & North East.
All counselling & therapy in York: 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.