Counselling for Children & Teenagers in Leeds
Neurodivergent-affirming, trauma-informed counselling for children and young people in North Leeds and online across the UK.
Growing up can feel complicated. Anxiety, friendships, school, family life, neurodivergence, difficult experiences and simply trying to work out who you are can sometimes become a lot to carry.
We offer a warm, flexible space where children and young people can be themselves, understand more about what they're experiencing and find ways forward that work for them.
[Book a Free Introductory Call]
Does this feel familiar?
Anxiety
&
Worry
Low Confidence &
Self-Esteem
Low Mood
Overwhelm
When your mind won't switch off and you're worrying about what might happen.
When you doubt yourself, compare yourself to others or feel like you're not good enough.
When you're feeling low, flat, disconnected or just not quite yourself.
When everything feels too much and even small things can suddenly feel really difficult.
Understanding Yourself
Friendship Struggles
Belonging & Connection
School & College Struggles
Making sense of who you are, how you feel and what you need from the people around you.
When friendships feel confusing, difficult or leave you feeling left out or alone.
Finding people you can feel comfortable with and spaces where you can be yourself.
When school, college, learning, expectations or simply getting through the day feels hard.
If you're the young person reading this
Maybe counselling was your idea.
Maybe somebody else thinks it would help.
Or maybe you're not particularly sure about the whole thing.
That's okay.
You might feel anxious, overwhelmed, angry, exhausted or different from everyone around you. Your brain might never seem to switch off. You might get through school or college and then have absolutely nothing left when you get home.
Perhaps feelings arrive all at once.
Or someone keeps asking "How do you feel?" and you genuinely don't know.
You don't need to understand what's happening before you come to counselling and you don't have to spend 50 minutes sitting opposite someone making eye contact and answering questions.
We can talk, draw, use games, creativity, visual ideas, sensory approaches or find other ways of communicating. You can move around. You can take your time. And you can tell us when something isn't working for you.
Therapy is something we do with you, not to you.
You don't have to pretend you're okay here.
You might recognise...
“My brain won't switch off.”
“School takes everything out of me.”
“I don't know what I'm feeling.”
“Everything suddenly gets too much.”
“I feel different from everyone else.”
“I'm tired of people asking me what's wrong when I don't know either.”
You don't have to relate to any particular list to come to counselling. Sometimes the starting point really can be:
“I don't know. I just know things don't feel okay.”
If you're a parent or carer
It can be incredibly difficult watching your child struggle, particularly when you aren't sure what's happening or what would actually help.
Perhaps they seem to cope outside home and fall apart afterwards.
Maybe they've become quieter, more anxious, angry or withdrawn.
School might have become increasingly difficult.
Friendships may be causing distress.
They might be struggling to sleep, constantly worrying, masking, becoming overwhelmed or losing confidence in themselves.
You may already have tried talking, reassuring, giving them space, helping them solve things and trying not to put too much pressure on them.
You may still be wondering:
“What else can I do?”
Counselling gives a young person a relationship and space outside home where they don't have to look after anybody else's feelings or have all the answers.
We don't see parents as the problem.
Parents and carers often hold an enormous amount too.
Where appropriate, we can work alongside you while also protecting the privacy your child needs to build a trusting therapeutic relationship.
We'll explain how confidentiality works, including the circumstances in which we may need to share something because we're concerned about safety.
You also don't need to know exactly what's wrong before contacting us.
A free introductory conversation gives you an opportunity to tell us a little about what's happening, ask questions and think together about whether counselling with us feels like the right next step.
What might counselling help with?
Feeling different or misunderstood
ADHD • autism • masking • sensory overwhelm • burnout • feeling different • identity • belonging • understanding yourself
School, friendships & everyday life
School anxiety or avoidance • friendship difficulties • social anxiety • bullying • sleep • motivation • transitions and change • family difficulties
Anxiety & emotions
Anxiety and worry • panic • overwhelm • low mood • anger • perfectionism • self-esteem • understanding emotions • difficulty switching off
Difficult experiences
Trauma • grief and loss • difficult family experiences • self-harm • feeling numb or disconnected • thoughts about not wanting to be here
Your child doesn't need a diagnosis or a particular “problem” to come to counselling. Sometimes knowing that life feels harder than it should is enough of a place to begin.
Counselling that adapts to the young person
We don't believe every child or teenager should have to fit into the same way of doing therapy.
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Some young people love talking.
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Others communicate more easily while drawing, playing a game, using something visual, moving around or doing something alongside the conversation.
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Some know exactly how they feel.
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Others experience feelings physically or only understand what happened several hours — or days — later.
We can adapt how we work around the young person's communication, sensory needs, processing style, interests and pace.
That can be particularly important for autistic and ADHD young people, including those who mask or have spent a long time feeling misunderstood.
Our aim isn't to teach a young person how to appear less neurodivergent.
It's to help them understand themselves, recognise their needs and find ways of navigating life that work better for them.
What happens when we first meet?
There isn't a test and there isn't a right way to do counselling.
The first sessions are about getting to know each other and beginning to understand what might be helpful.
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A young person can ask questions too.
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They can tell us what they don't like.
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They can say “I don't know.”
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They don't have to talk about difficult experiences before they're ready.
Building enough trust to work together is part of the therapy — not something we expect a young person to arrive with.
Otley
Leeds
Not ready for counselling?
You don't have to be ready for counselling to find something that might help.
Our free resources for children and young people explore things like anxiety, overwhelm, emotions, neurodivergence and finding ways to feel a little safer or more settled.
Frequently asked questions
You don't have to decide today
Finding the right counsellor matters.
A free introductory conversation gives you or your young person an opportunity to meet us, ask questions and get a sense of whether working together feels right.
There is no pressure to book counselling afterwards.