Drugs and substances
Confidential support for any kind of substance use.
Substance Use Counselling · Seaford
Substance Use Counselling in Seaford
Substance Use Counselling for Seaford and the surrounding area, in person or online. Seaford, beneath the dramatic Seaford Head and close to the Cuckmere, is a quiet coastal town further east. From my room in nearby Hove I offer a calm, confidential space to do this work.
BACP registered member25+ years of experienceLived experience
ConfidentialA safe, private space
Person-centredThe therapy fits you
In and around Seaford
Substance Use Counselling for Seaford, at a glance
- Known for
- Seaford Head, the Martello Tower and the seafront
- Area
- Coast: Brighton to Newhaven, East/West Sussex
- Getting to the Hove room
- From Seaford it is around thirty minutes west by car, or a train via Lewes or Newhaven, to reach the Hove office.
- Local NHS / support route
- East Sussex County Council's drug and alcohol support
- Format
- In person at my private Hove room, or by secure video UK-wide.
Life in Seaford
What is going on for people in Seaford?
Out here drug use is domestic and largely invisible. There is no district for it, no crowd, and the walk out towards Cuckmere Haven or up over the Head is as public as the town gets. So it happens at home. Cannabis every night because sleep has become conditional on it. Cocaine that used to belong to occasions and now attaches to any free evening. Prescription tablets carried on well past their reason. Being far enough from anywhere makes it easy to keep private, and also means very few people ever ask, which is a mixed blessing when what you actually want is for somebody to notice.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Seaford
Church StreetDane RoadSutton RoadBishopstoneThe BuckleChyngtonEast Blatchington
Wherever you are in Seaford, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Seaford
Official figures for Seaford, for context rather than as a description of you.
3.6 adults per 1,000 were in treatment at specialist drug-misuse services in 2020/21, below the England average of 4.5 per 1,000. Source: OHID Fingertips – Adults in treatment at specialist drug misuse services (2020/21).
the rate of deaths from drug misuse was 4.9 per 100,000 in 2022 - 24, below the England average of 5.8 per 100,000. Source: OHID Fingertips – Deaths from drug misuse (2022 - 24).
Reviewed June 2026.
What does substance use counselling involve?
Substance use counselling here is non-judgemental and one-to-one, working with the pain, fear or loneliness the substance has been managing, at a pace that protects your sense of safety.
Because the work itself is the same wherever you live, the detail sits in one place rather than all of them: the substance use counselling page sets out the methods, how sessions run and what they cost covers the practicalities, and my BACP registration covers accountability.
How do sessions work, in person or online?
Sessions take place in a private, comfortable room at Intergen House on Western Road in central Hove, held to the strict BACP confidentiality you would expect. We begin with a free fifteen-minute call to check we are a good fit, and the same sessions are available by secure video if travelling is difficult or you would simply prefer it.
In person means roughly half an hour west, by car or by train, and then the Hove room off Western Road. That is a real commitment on a difficult week, so video sessions carry most of this work for people at this end of the county. They are the same hour with the same counsellor, and you can mix the two across the months if you would rather.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
What can substance use counselling in Seaford help with?
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.
Substance Use Counselling in Seaford
Why people in Seaford come for substance use counselling
Stopping is not the price of admission. You are welcome while still using, and welcome while genuinely unsure whether you want anything to change, which is where a lot of people honestly are. What gets examined is what the substance does for you, since it is doing something, and what it charges: money, sleep, memory, and a social circle that has gradually thinned to whoever else is using. Where use happens alone and at distance from other people, that outside perspective is often the first thing missing. No guidance is given here on reducing or coming off, because that is medical work. East Sussex had 3.6 adults per 1,000 in specialist drug treatment in 2020/21, against 4.5 across England. East Sussex County Council's drug and alcohol support and STAR, the recovery service Change Grow Live runs across the county, are the routes for it, and the Sussex Mental Healthline covers nights and weekends.
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 callDrug, alcohol & addiction support in Seaford
My counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Seaford, free local drug and alcohol support is available through East Sussex County Council's drug and alcohol support.
For confidential information and advice, FRANK (on 0300 123 6600) and Drinkline on 0300 123 1110 are free, and Alcoholics Anonymous and SMART Recovery run peer-support meetings you can find online.
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.
If you drink heavily or use drugs daily, do not stop suddenly on your own. Withdrawal can cause seizures and can be dangerous. Speak to your GP or a local drug and alcohol service first, and they can arrange a safe, medically supported withdrawal. Counselling works alongside that, not instead of it.
Seaford questions
Substance Use Counselling in Seaford: common questions
Where do Seaford sessions take place, and can I meet online instead?
In a private room at Intergen House on Western Road in central Hove. From Seaford it is around thirty minutes west by car, or a train via Lewes or Newhaven, to reach the Hove office. Every service is also available by secure video across the UK, so you can meet from any private space in Seaford or blend the two.
Do I need to have stopped before the first session?
No. Turning up as you are is more useful than turning up as you think you ought to be, and there is no test at the door. The only practical requirement is being able to take part in an hour of conversation.
How does payment work?
Session by session, with nothing paid in advance. £80 covers an hour, £100 covers 90 minutes and £120 covers two hours. The 15-minute consultation before any of that is free, whether or not you go on to book. Travelling is not needed for it either, as it happens by phone.
Would using STAR at the same time be a problem?
Not at all. STAR, the East Sussex drug and alcohol recovery service provided by Change Grow Live, offers specialist and medical support that counselling does not, and the two combine well. Anything prescribed or supervised has to come from that side.
Can I be seen in the evening if I work in Brighton all day?
Evening appointments exist. If you are already in Brighton for work, the Hove room is far closer than it is from home, so some people book on a work day and travel back afterwards. Otherwise the same evening slot runs on video.
I feel a long way from any help out here. Is that just me?
It is a common feeling in a town at the end of the line, and it is partly practical rather than imagined. Distance genuinely does shape what is easy to reach, which is why video matters here, and why the free consultation costs you no travelling at all.
What if it is prescription medication rather than street drugs?
That is common and entirely workable. We look with care at what the medication or substance has come to do for you, without judgement, involving your GP where that helps, and it stays led by you.
What is the journey from Seaford to Hove like for substance use counselling?
Seaford is at the end of a branch line, so trains run up through Newhaven and Lewes onto the main line to Brighton and Hove; by car it is about thirty minutes west. Start with a free fifteen-minute call on 07914 681995 or through the contact page.
Free or paid for substance use support in Seaford?
Both. In East Sussex you can self-refer to Change Grow Live for free substance help with no GP needed. Privately, fees are £80 for sixty minutes, £100 for ninety and £120 for two hours after a free call, and the two can run together.
Do you offer evening or online substance use sessions for Seaford?
Yes. Given the branch-line journey, many Seaford clients find online video the more practical choice, and it is equally confidential. Evening appointments are available if you prefer to travel in, and you can move between in-person and online freely.
Substance Use Counselling in Seaford, 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 nearby: Newhaven, Peacehaven, Lewes. See all areas I cover.
Also available in Seaford: addiction counselling, counselling for drinking problems and anxiety counselling.
You may also find it useful to read about calming a craving as it rises and once an addict, always an addict?.
Prefer to meet remotely? The same substance use counselling is available online by secure video across the UK, or see online counselling by region.