When the habit has taken the choice
Confidential, judgement-free therapy for dependency and compulsive behaviours — loosening the grip of the urge, and helping you trust yourself again.
Counselling, CBT & hypnotherapy in Fareham, Hampshire, and online
Help with dependency and compulsive behaviours
Alcohol, drugs, gambling, pornography or overspending. It can feel impossible to escape, and it is not a weakness. Confidential support to understand what drives it and change it.
Fareham, Hampshire, plus online therapy UK wide
Free · Completely confidential · No judgement · No obligation
Please read this first
Stopping alcohol or certain drugs suddenly can be dangerous, and occasionally life threatening. If you are physically dependent, particularly on alcohol or benzodiazepines, speak to your GP or a local drug and alcohol service before you make a big change, so withdrawal can be managed safely.
Talking therapy is not detox and it is not a substitute for medical treatment. We are an outpatient therapy practice, not a residential or medical service. We work alongside your GP and any NHS or specialist service, and for some people that medical support needs to come first.
Free NHS drug and alcohol services exist in every area, and you can self-refer without going through your GP.
Free, confidential helplines, whatever stage you are at
- DrinklineAlcohol: 0300 123 1110, weekdays 9am to 8pm, weekends 11am to 4pm
- FRANKDrugs, free 24/7: 0300 123 6600
- National Gambling HelplineFree 24/7: 0808 8020 133
- SamaritansFree, any time of day or night: 116 123
Struggling with debt as well? StepChange and National Debtline both give free, independent advice, and neither will judge you either.
Understanding it
Dependency is rarely about the substance alone
Whether it involves alcohol, gambling, pornography, drugs or spending, dependencies are driven by similar compulsive urges. They usually grow out of emotional needs and learned patterns, shaped by circumstances, past experiences and how the brain comes to expect relief or reward.
That is a large part of why trying harder so rarely works. Willpower is aimed at the behaviour, and the behaviour is only the visible end of something else.
Understanding the root rather than only the habit is what makes change hold. You also do not need to know which therapy you need. Tell us roughly what is going on and we will suggest what fits.
We can help with
Support for a range of dependencies
If what you are dealing with is not listed here, get in touch anyway. We will either help or point you towards someone who can.
- Alcohol
- Binge drinking
- Drugs
- Gambling
- Pornography
- Overspending and shopping
- Smoking and vaping
- Gaming
- Phone and social media use
- Compulsive behaviours
Hypnotherapy & counselling
Working with what sits underneath
Counselling gives you space to look at the emotional weight behind the behaviour: stress, loss, past experiences, or something you have never told anyone. For many people that is the part nothing else has touched.
Hypnotherapy works with the automatic layer, using deep relaxation to ease the intensity of cravings and triggers rather than trying to argue with them. Many people find it genuinely helpful here, though we would be straight with you that the research base for hypnotherapy in this area is thinner than for CBT.
CBT · Strongest evidence
Breaking the cycle, and planning for the hard days
CBT has the strongest evidence base for changing addictive and compulsive behaviour. It works on the thoughts and patterns driving the habit, and on identifying the specific triggers, moods and situations that precede it.
It also does something the others do less directly: relapse prevention. Rather than hoping the difficult moment does not arrive, you build a plan for when it does, because it will.
Alcohol & drugs
Nobody sets out for this
Nobody decides to become dependent on drink or drugs. Most often they start as a way to take the edge off something, and they work, which is exactly the problem. Over time the thing that was managing the pain becomes another source of it.
If you are finding you need a drink or something else to get through the day, or to handle stress, therapy can help with what is underneath it. Please do read the safety note above first, and speak to your GP if you are physically dependent.
Overspending
Help with problem spending
Spending becomes a problem when you buy things to feel better, to fill something missing, or to feel looked after. The lift is immediate and the consequences arrive later, which is the shape of every compulsive behaviour.
What often follows is debt, guilt, hidden purchases and unopened statements, and then more spending to escape the feeling that causes. If that is familiar, therapy can help you understand the pattern and change it.
If debt has become part of the picture, please also get free independent advice from StepChange or National Debtline. Therapy works on the driver, and specialist debt advice works on the numbers. You want both.
Worth saying plainly
You do not have to be ready to stop completely
Plenty of people arrive unsure what they want. Some want to stop, some want to cut down, and some simply want to understand why they cannot leave it alone. All three are legitimate starting points, and being uncertain is not a reason to wait.
Setbacks are also part of this for most people, and they are not a sign that you have failed or that the work was wasted. A slip usually tells us something useful about a trigger or a gap in the plan. Please come back rather than disappear.
No surprises
What happens when you get in touch
- 1
You send a message or call
A line or two is plenty. You do not have to explain anything you are not ready to explain.
- 2
A free 15 minute call
A relaxed, confidential chat with an experienced therapist. If we think a medical or specialist service should come first, we will say so.
- 3
We match you with the right therapist
We suggest the approach and therapist we think fits, in person in Fareham or online, and you decide whether to start.
Counselling from £72 a session. CBT and hypnotherapy from £90. See all fees
A different future is possible
Almost everyone who comes for this has spent a long time deciding whether to. Nobody here is going to be shocked, and nothing you say will be repeated. The hardest part is usually the message you have not sent yet.
Your questions answered
Dependency therapy questions, answered
Will I be judged?
No. Dependency is not a weakness or a moral failing. It is usually a way of coping with something painful that stopped working. Our therapists are warm and entirely non-judgemental, and everything you share is confidential.
Is it safe to just stop on my own?
Not always. With alcohol and with some drugs, particularly benzodiazepines, stopping suddenly can cause serious and occasionally life threatening withdrawal. Please speak to your GP or a local drug and alcohol service before making a big change. Therapy works alongside that, not instead of it.
Do I have to be ready to stop completely?
No. Plenty of people come in unsure, or wanting to cut down rather than stop, or simply wanting to understand it. Being uncertain is a normal starting point, not a reason to wait.
Which therapy helps most with dependency?
CBT has the strongest evidence base, particularly for triggers and relapse prevention. Counselling gets at the emotional weight underneath. Hypnotherapy helps many people with cravings and the automatic pull, though the research behind it is thinner. Most people use a combination, and we will suggest what fits you.
Is this the same as rehab?
No. We are an outpatient therapy practice, not a residential or detox service, and we do not provide medical treatment or prescribe. If what you need is detox or a residential programme, we will say so honestly and help you think about where to go next.
What if I relapse?
It is common, and it is not a reason to stop coming or to feel you have wasted anyone's time. A setback usually tells us something useful about a trigger or a gap in the plan. Please do come back rather than disappear.
Can therapy work alongside AA, NA, GA or NHS services?
Yes, and it often works best that way. Many people combine one to one therapy with a group, medical support, or an NHS service. We are glad to be one part of that rather than the whole of it.
Can you help with pornography or gambling specifically?
Yes. Both are common reasons people contact us, and both carry a level of shame that keeps people quiet for years. The work follows the same principles as any other compulsive behaviour, and it is entirely confidential.
Can I get help if it is someone else's drinking or using?
Yes. Living with someone else's dependency takes a real toll, and support for that is legitimate in its own right. Al-Anon, Nacoa and DrugFAM also offer specific help for families.
Can I have sessions online?
Yes. You can be seen in person at our Fareham practice or online from anywhere in the UK. Many people find online a more private way to take part, particularly with this.
Whenever you are ready, we are here
Start with a free 15 minute call. A relaxed, confidential conversation with an experienced therapist, with no cost and no obligation. Every call and message is completely confidential.