Reigate · in person in Hove or online
Trauma therapy for Reigate
If something frightening, sudden or long-running still reaches into your sleep, your temper or your body, trauma counselling gives it careful attention. For people in Reigate I work by secure video or in my room in Hove, which is close enough for regular visits. You choose what we look at and when, and nothing is pulled out of you.
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 Reigate
- Where sessions happen
- A private room at Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, Hove BN3 2JQ, or secure video.
- From Reigate by car
- About 51 minutes with clear roads (39.7 miles); longer at busy times.
- By train
- From Reigate, change at Gatwick Airport for trains towards Brighton and Hove.
- Free NHS talking therapy
- Mind Matters Surrey, 0300 330 5450
- 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.
Keeping it out of sight in a busy working life
In Reigate plenty of people keep a demanding week going, on the London trains, at a head office on London Road or at a desk in Woodhatch Place, and trauma can be carried quietly inside that routine for years.
What happened might be a single event, such as a road collision, a frightening night in A and E at East Surrey Hospital, or an assault you've never told anyone about. It might have gone on for a long time, such as bullying at work that nobody stopped, or a relationship in which staying quiet felt safest. Often the routine itself becomes the way of coping: early starts, full diaries and no gaps where the memory can get in. Then something small breaks through, a raised voice in the next room or a meeting that suddenly feels like a trap, and your body reacts as though the danger were happening now. You might sleep in short bursts, snap at people you love, or go so flat that colleagues assume you're fine. That reaction made sense when it began.
Going at the speed your nervous system can manage
The first thing we work on is the present, not the past. Together we notice what happens in your body when something drags you back, perhaps a tight throat, a racing pulse or a sudden blankness, and we practise whatever brings you back into the room you're in. That foundation comes first and stays in place, however long it takes. When you tell me you're ready, we approach what happened gradually and in parts, and you never have to give a detailed account. The Rewind Technique, for instance, lets us work with a memory while its content stays private to you. If you've kept going by staying busy, we also make room for the tiredness that busyness has been holding off, without treating your ways of coping as faults. Any session can pause or stop, and you don't have to explain why. If the harm came from someone you still share a home with, or you feel unsafe right now, your safety is dealt with before any memory work, so please ring the domestic abuse helpline shown on this page first. If you're already receiving NHS care, our sessions can run alongside it.
Support near Reigate around the edges of the work
Nights when memories crowd in
Redhill Safe Haven opens its doors from 6pm to 11pm every day, and runs a virtual option at the same hours if leaving the house feels like too much.
A death that came without warning
Shock can sit inside grief after a sudden loss. Cruse Bereavement Support - Surrey East can support you through the bereavement while our sessions work with the shock.
Fear or low mood afterwards
If anxiety or low mood set in after something frightening, you can refer yourself free to Mind Matters Surrey on 0300 330 5450.
After an emergency admission
A frightening stay at East Surrey Hospital can replay for months once you're home. We can work with it gently, without you going back over every detail.
Free and low-cost support for Reigate
I can't name a trauma-specific service in Reigate itself, so the local routes here are general ones. Mind Matters Surrey can help with anxiety or low mood that followed a frightening event, Redhill Safe Haven offers an evening walk-in space, and the 24/7 crisis line from Surrey and Borders Partnership answers on 0800 915 4644. Private trauma counselling can run beside any of them.
- Free NHS talking therapyMind Matters Surrey0300 330 5450Free 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 iti-access0300 222 5932Free and confidential.
- Local organisationReigate Community Counselling Centre
For gambling, the National Gambling Helpline is free, day or night, on 0808 8020 133 (NHS gambling support).
Private counselling with me can run alongside any of these; you do not have to choose one or the other.
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 Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS FT Mental Health Crisis Helpline is on 0800 915 4644.
What people in Reigate ask before starting
Where can I get free support after a traumatic experience in Reigate?
The free options near Reigate aren't trauma-specific, but they can still help. When anxiety or low mood has set in since, Mind Matters Surrey is a free NHS option you can contact yourself. Redhill Safe Haven, at the Wingfield Resource Centre, is open for walk-ins each evening, and Cruse Bereavement Support - Surrey East is there after a sudden death.
Do I have to talk about what happened in my first trauma session from Reigate?
No. The first sessions focus on how you're coping day to day and what helps you feel steadier. When we do approach a memory, it can be in small pieces, and in ways that don't need you to put it into words. You decide how much you share and when, and pausing is always allowed.
Should I come to Hove for trauma counselling or stay on video in Reigate?
Either can work, and you can switch between them. Hove is about 51 minutes' drive, so regular visits are realistic if sitting with someone in person matters to you, as long as you leave time to settle before driving home. Video lets you stay in a room where you already feel secure. If neither feels right yet, we'll talk it through before deciding.
I've never told anyone what happened. How do I start trauma counselling from Reigate?
Book the free 15-minute call, and leave the details out entirely. I'll ask what is affecting you now and say honestly when a regular time is free, and nothing is booked until you choose. If things become unmanageable before we begin, ring the round-the-clock Surrey and Borders crisis number, 0800 915 4644, and use 999 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.
A careful first step, taken when you choose
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.