Peckham · online by video, with the Hove room for occasional sessions
Trauma therapy for Peckham
Trauma can leave your body acting as if the danger is still present, long after it has passed. If that's how life in Peckham feels, counselling offers a slow, careful place to work on it. You choose what we talk about and when, and details are never demanded. From Peckham we'd meet by secure video, since my one room is in Hove.
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 Peckham
- Where sessions happen
- A private room at Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, Hove BN3 2JQ, or secure video.
- From Peckham by car
- About 90 minutes with clear roads (52.2 miles); longer at busy times.
- By train
- From Peckham Rye, change at East Croydon for trains towards Brighton and Hove.
- Free NHS talking therapy
- Talking Therapies Southwark, 020 3228 2194
- 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.
Living on alert in streets you know well
Trauma isn't only one terrible event. For someone in Peckham it might be a frightening incident on a bus or on the way home late, a sudden death in the family, or an assault that was never reported. It might be something you saw or had to deal with at work, and were expected to shrug off by the next shift. It might be years of growing up around someone else's drinking or anger, or a relationship you've only recently left. For some families, what happened belongs to another country and another time, and it reached the next generation through a parent's silence or a grandparent's fear. Afterwards an ordinary sound on Rye Lane, such as a siren or a raised voice, can jolt you into alarm before your mind has caught up. You might sleep in fragments, keep yourself busy so nothing has room to surface, or feel numb around people you love.
Steady ground first, the memory only when you're ready
Trauma counselling with me begins in the present. Early sessions are about stability: learning to notice the first signs that a memory is pulling you back, and finding what brings you into the here and now, such as your feet pressed into the floor, an object in your hand or the sounds outside your window. Only when that feels dependable do we turn towards what happened, a small piece at a time, and you can pause or stop without explaining why. You never have to tell the whole story. The Rewind Technique, for instance, lets us approach a memory without you describing it aloud. The ways you've coped, staying watchful, avoiding certain streets, shutting down, are treated as the ways you protected yourself. If faith matters to you, it's welcome in the work, and so is any distrust you feel towards services or authority after what happened. We agree how each session will end and what you'll do once the call closes, so you aren't going straight from a hard memory into a shift or the school gate. If you're already in NHS care for this, we'd agree at the start how our work fits with theirs.
Other help within reach of Peckham
In crisis, and unable to speak
If you're in crisis and talking aloud feels impossible, you can reach SLaM's crisis text line for south London by WhatsApp on 0303 330 1511 or by texting 80991.
After a sudden, shocking death
When someone dies by suicide, the shock can sit in the body like trauma. The South East London Suicide Bereavement Service, from SLaM and South East London Mind, supports people bereaved this way.
Something that happened on shift
If you drive from Peckham bus garage, or work at King's College Hospital or the Maudsley, an incident at work can stay with you. It counts as trauma, and it deserves the same care.
Women's hubs in Peckham
Pecan runs women's hubs in Peckham. If what happened has left you wary of people, time among other women can be a gentler way back into company.
Free and low-cost support for Peckham
Private trauma counselling can run beside free support. Talking Therapies Southwark accepts self-referrals for anxiety or low mood, including when it began after something frightening. South East London Mind's Southwark Wellbeing Hub is another starting point, Cruse Bereavement Support helps after any death, and the art therapy at Copleston Church and Community Centre offers a non-verbal option alongside talking.
- Free NHS talking therapyTalking Therapies Southwark020 3228 2194Free 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 itCGL Southwark020 3404 7699Run by Change Grow Live (CGL). Free and confidential.
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.
The South London NHS Mental Health Crisis Text Service (SLaM) is another option: WhatsApp 0303 330 1511 or text 80991.
What people in Peckham ask before starting
Do I have to go through the details of what happened to start trauma counselling from Peckham?
No. When we first speak, a single line such as 'something happened and I'd like help' is enough. Early sessions focus on feeling steadier, and when we do approach a memory, it doesn't have to be put into words. You're free to say 'not that' to any question, at any point, and you never owe me a reason.
Is there free trauma support in Southwark?
I can't name a dedicated free trauma service for Southwark. Talking Therapies Southwark, on 020 3228 2194, covers anxiety and low mood on the NHS without a GP referral, for the worry or flatness that can linger after a frightening event. South East London Mind runs services across the borough. After a suicide, the South East London Suicide Bereavement Service can help. Any of them can run alongside our work.
Would trauma counselling from Peckham ever mean coming to Hove?
Only if you want it to. At about 90 minutes' drive, or a rail trip that changes at East Croydon, sessions from Peckham happen by video, so you can finish somewhere you know and rest. If you'd value one session in person later, it can be arranged, with time built in for the trip home. The work doesn't depend on it.
Could trauma counselling stir things up before it helps, and how soon can I start?
It's possible to feel unsettled for a day or two after early sessions, and we plan for that together. I'll be clear after the free call about when a weekly space is free. If things become too much between sessions, the SLaM crisis text service is on WhatsApp 0303 330 1511, Samaritans are on 116 123, and 999 is for immediate 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.
Begin gently, on your own terms
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.