Dartford · online by video, with the Hove room for occasional sessions
Trauma therapy for Dartford
If something frightening, recent or long past, still grips you in Dartford, trauma counselling lets you work with it at a pace you choose. Nothing has to be spelled out before you're ready to say it. From Dartford we'd work over secure video, since my single room is in Hove, about 78 minutes' drive away.
If you are thinking about ending your life, call 999 or the Samaritans free on 116 123, day or night. More urgent help is on this page.
The practical facts for Dartford
- Where sessions happen
- A private room at Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, Hove BN3 2JQ, or secure video.
- From Dartford by car
- About 78 minutes with clear roads (64.7 miles); longer at busy times.
- By train
- From Dartford, change at London Bridge for trains towards Brighton and Hove.
- Free NHS talking therapy
- NHS Talking Therapies Kent and Medway, 0333 091 0414
- Fees
- £80 for 60 minutes, £100 for 90, £120 for 120. The first 15-minute call is free.
- Registration
- BACP registered member, no. 109340 (check the register); UKCP student member in advanced psychotherapy training.
When it happened somewhere you still have to go
Some frightening experiences can be left behind.
Others are tied to places you can't avoid, especially in a town where daily life runs through a handful of them. If it happened on a platform at Dartford station, on the approach to the crossing, on a ward at Darent Valley Hospital or on the shop floor at Bluewater, you may pass that spot every week, and your body may react before you've registered why, with a jolt or a sudden need to get out. Other trauma has no single place. It might be years of growing up around shouting or drinking, a relationship where you learned to read every mood, or a death that came without warning. It's common to carry on for a long time, sleeping badly, staying busy and telling everyone you're fine. Staying on guard like that is how a body tries to keep you safe after something frightening, even long after the danger has passed.
How trauma work goes when you set the pace
Nothing in this work is rushed, and you can call a halt whenever you like, with no reason needed. The early sessions build steadiness: learning to catch the moment you start slipping back into it, and practising what anchors you in today, such as feeling your feet on the floor or naming what you can see around you. We approach the memory itself only once that steadiness holds, and then in small pieces. With the Rewind Technique, a memory can be worked on without you describing it out loud, so what happened stays yours to keep private. We also look kindly at what has helped you survive, the vigilance and the shutting down, without treating any of it as a fault. If what happened came to you through your work, it deserves the same care as anything else. Where an NHS team is already involved, our sessions can sit beside theirs, and we'd agree at the outset how that works.
Support around the work, near Dartford
After something at work
Staff at Darent Valley Hospital or on the shop floor at Bluewater can be left shaken by aggression, an emergency or a death. You don't have to have been hurt yourself for it to stay with you.
Somewhere to go in the evening
If memories come back hard after dark, Dartford Safe Haven, 18 Hythe Street, opens its doors to adults from 6pm until 11pm with no referral needed.
A voice on the phone
Bexley and Dartford Samaritans have a branch in Bexleyheath with face-to-face support, and 116 123 is free at any hour, whether or not you feel in danger.
Groups as well as one-to-one
North Kent Mind's wellbeing services in Dartford include group support for anxiety and self-esteem, a regular contact nearer home while our sessions happen on screen.
Public health figures for the area
These are local authority figures from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities. The figures describe a whole population over a period, not any one person.
Free and low-cost support for Dartford
Private trauma counselling can sit alongside free support. NHS Talking Therapies Kent and Medway can help with anxiety or low mood in the wake of something frightening, and you can contact it directly. North Kent Mind offers counselling and groups locally, though it says plainly that it isn't a crisis service. For urgent support in Kent, the Release the Pressure helpline is on 0800 107 0160.
- Free NHS talking therapyNHS Talking Therapies Kent and Medway0333 091 0414Free NHS talking therapy for anxiety, low mood and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). You can refer yourself, with no GP referral needed.
- If drinking or drug use is part of itWest Kent community drug and alcohol service (Change, Grow, Live)0330 128 1113Run by Change Grow Live (CGL). Free and confidential.
- Local organisationNorth Kent Mind Counselling & Therapy Services
- Local organisationBexley & Dartford SamaritansLocal Samaritans branch, 35 Glynde Road, Bexleyheath DA7 4EU.
For gambling, the National Gambling Helpline is free, day or night, on 0808 8020 133 (NHS gambling support).
If someone at home is hurting, threatening or controlling you, the National Domestic Abuse Helpline is free, day or night, on 0808 2000 247.
If you have experienced rape or sexual abuse, at any time in your life, the Rape Crisis 24/7 Support Line is free on 0808 500 2222 for anyone aged 16 or over in England and Wales.
If you need urgent help now
If you need help right now, please don't wait for a session.
Locally, the Release the Pressure Helpline - Kent is on 0800 107 0160. Local drop-in crisis support: Kent and Medway Safe Havens (Mental Health Matters); Dartford Safe Haven (check opening times before you go).
What people in Dartford ask before starting
Do I have to tell you what happened before trauma counselling can start from Dartford?
No. When we first speak, it's enough to say there's something in your past that still reaches into the present. The early sessions are about feeling steadier, and later we can work with a memory without you ever narrating it. What you share, and when, stays your decision, and you can always decline a question.
Is any free trauma support available close to Dartford?
None of the local services I can point you to in Dartford is a dedicated trauma service. If anxiety or low mood came after what happened, NHS Talking Therapies Kent and Medway can be reached without a GP on 0333 091 0414. North Kent Mind runs counselling and groups, Dartford Safe Haven offers an evening drop-in, and none of these rules out private sessions with me.
Can trauma work by video feel safe if I'm at home in Dartford?
It can, if home feels safe and private. We agree how each session will close, leave time to settle before the end, and plan what you'll do afterwards. If someone at home could overhear, or home is connected to what happened, tell me, and we'll look at other options first, including an occasional longer session in Hove.
How soon could trauma counselling start from Dartford, and what if I feel worse at first?
After the free call we can pick a first video session, and I'll tell you straight which times are open. The first few sessions can leave you raw for a day or so; that's expected, and we'll have a plan ready for it. If it becomes too much, ring the Release the Pressure helpline on 0800 107 0160, call Samaritans on 116 123, or dial 999 if you're in danger.
How much do sessions cost, and is the first call free?
Sessions are £80 for 60 minutes, £100 for 90 minutes and £120 for 120 minutes, the same in person in Hove or by video. The first 15-minute call is free, with no obligation to book. There is no NHS referral needed to see me privately.
Start slowly, from somewhere you feel safe
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.