During the pandemic, I adapted the format of this welcome page to mirror the impact COVID-19 had on our lives - the uncertainty and fear, anxiety, loss (perhaps of loved ones, as well as our old ways of life), isolation and distance from others (to name but a few challenges).

Whilst for most, the acute and life-threatening risk of COVID-19 has greatly diminished, it continues to cast a shadow over our lives - many have lost loved ones, many are living with symptoms of long-COVID and we have all had to adapt to living with it as a background to our daily existence.

If the safety and certainty of life were shown to be an illusion when COVID-19 hit in 2020, the invasions of Ukraine and Israel have compounded this realisation. Even if we are lucky enough to not be directly affected, we have seen how easily life can be completely turned upside down in the blink of an eye, perhaps reminding us of past traumas or distressing periods when we had no control over what happened to us.

So if you are finding it hard to manage, that is entirely understandable. If you feel overwhelmed and your usual coping strategies aren’t working, therapy/counselling may help. That might be a short-term piece of work, focussing on a specific area (e.g. social anxiety) or a longer, more organic, free-flowing piece of work, exploring and processing past transitions and painful experiences so they can stay in the past and not affect you now.

But emotional distress comes in many different forms and is not just COVID-19 related - see the page 'What can therapy help with?' for more on this.  Why not get in touch to explain in your own words what you want help with?  I would love to hear from you.  My contact details are to the right of each page on my website.

I currently see clients and supervisees via video or phone sessions. This is clearly different to face to face sessions but can be incredibly helpful. There are some practicalities that need to be considered - take a look at my new page ‘working remotely’, in About Therapy.

I also offer supervision for qualified psychotherapists and counsellors. Supervision has always been incredibly important for me in my work, and I aim to offer a similar space to other clinicians. I hold a diploma in relational supervision and aim to extend the focus on attachment into my supervision as well. Currently, all supervision is online.

A little bit about me

My name is Helen Cordery, and I am a UKCP-registered attachment-based psychoanalytic psychotherapist and supervisor.  I offer counselling and psychotherapy, via online or in-person sessions. I prefer offering ongoing sessions, although can also offer time-limited input. I trained at The Bowlby Centre in London, and have been working as a psychotherapist since early 2009. 

I work with individual adults (not couples, groups or children/young people) on an open-ended basis, to enable you to permanently change your life for the better.  

Looking for shorter-term, focused input, especially around the virus? I can offer individual sessions or pre-agreed blocks of sessions (say 4, 6, or 12 weekly sessions).  

I am registered with the UKCP and comply with their Codes of Conduct.