Gravesend · online by video, with the Hove room for occasional sessions
Trauma therapy for Gravesend
If something frightening happened to you and your body still hasn't let go of it, whether last month or decades ago, I offer trauma therapy to people in Gravesend by secure video. You choose the pace and what gets said. You don't have to tell me what happened to book the free 15-minute call.
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 Gravesend
- Where sessions happen
- A private room at Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, Hove BN3 2JQ, or secure video.
- From Gravesend by car
- About 79 minutes with clear roads (64.9 miles); longer at busy times.
- By train
- From Gravesend, 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.
Rescues on the river, and harm closer to home
Gravesend's RNLI lifeboat station is at Royal Terrace Pier, which is in constant 24-hour use alongside the Port of London Authority, and river pilots are based in the town.
If you've been at a rescue on the water, as crew, pilot or bystander, the effect can build quietly, one call-out at a time, until sleep goes or you stop feeling much at all. Trauma can just as easily follow a crash, an assault, a sudden death, a frightening birth, or a childhood in which home never felt safe. Afterwards you might jump at sudden noises, avoid certain streets, feel cut off from the people you love, or flare up without knowing why. These are the reactions of a nervous system that learned danger, and they don't mean you're weak. They can show up years later, set off by something as ordinary as a siren or a smell.
Steadiness first, and the memory only when you choose
The early sessions are about steadiness: noticing how alarm builds in your body, what brings it down, and who and what supports you between sessions. You don't have to give a detailed account of what happened, today or later. When you feel ready, and only then, we approach the experience in manageable pieces, and you can stop at any moment. Some of what I use, such as the Rewind Technique, can work with a memory without you narrating it aloud. If you work on the water, in a hospital or in another emergency role, we can also look at the slow build-up from many incidents, and at the habit of carrying on that can make asking for help feel like letting the crew down. Where a GP or an NHS mental health team is already involved, our sessions work around what they're doing. If what hurt you is still happening at home, your safety comes before any trauma work, and we'll talk about that plainly. And if self-harm has become a way of getting through, you can tell me without being lectured.
Where trauma can come from, and support nearby
After a shout on the Thames
Being part of a rescue on the river, as crew, pilot or witness, can replay long after the boat is back at Royal Terrace Pier. We go at your pace.
A death no one saw coming
Sudden or violent loss can be trauma and grief at once. Cruse Bereavement Support runs a national helpline for the grief, and our sessions can hold both.
When nights are the hardest
If memories surge after dark, Medway Safe Haven at Medway Maritime Hospital is open day and night, and Release the Pressure, the Kent helpline, answers on 0800 107 0160.
A childhood that set the alarm
Growing up where home never felt safe can leave you braced decades later. North Kent Mind supports people across Gravesham, alongside the slower work we do together.
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 Gravesend
Where fear or low mood set in after what happened, NHS Talking Therapies Kent and Medway will hear from you directly. North Kent Mind runs counselling and support groups across Gravesham, and Dartford Safe Haven offers out-of-hours support every evening. If the harm came from a partner or family member, the domestic abuse contacts on this page come first. Private trauma therapy can run alongside any of these.
- 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 organisationSamaritans of Medway, Gravesham and SwaleLocal Samaritans branch, Priory Road, Strood, Rochester ME2.
- Local organisationNorth Kent Mind Counselling & Therapy Services
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 (Mental Health Matters) (check opening times before you go).
What people in Gravesend ask before starting
I'm on the lifeboat crew at Gravesend and one rescue keeps replaying. Is that trauma?
It may be. Intrusive memories, poor sleep, feeling on edge and avoiding reminders are common after a rescue that went badly, and they say nothing about your courage or competence. It's worth telling your GP too. If you'd like, we can work, by video and at your pace, on the way your body still reacts as if it were happening now, without you having to retell it in detail.
After something traumatic in Gravesend, could NHS Talking Therapies Kent and Medway help me?
It's a reasonable place to start if anxiety or low mood have followed a frightening experience. You can refer yourself on 0333 091 0414, with no GP needed, and it's worth asking about waiting times when you call. Private trauma therapy with me can run alongside it or follow on, whichever suits you.
Is it worth travelling from Gravesend to Hove for trauma sessions in person?
Occasionally, perhaps. A room away from home can help keep difficult material out of the house, and a longer session in Hove can offer that. But it's about 79 minutes each way, and driving straight after hard work can leave you shaky. For the regular weekly sessions, video from Gravesend is usually the gentler choice, and we can mix the two.
How quickly could I begin trauma therapy from Gravesend, and what is the first session like?
If the free call feels right to us both, we set up a first video session, and you'll hear plainly from me how soon there's room. The first session is about you, not the event: how you're sleeping, what helps, who is around you and what you hope for. You won't be asked for the story. If you feel shaken afterwards, we'll have planned for that together.
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.
A short call, with nothing you have to explain
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.