Brian Sheppard — Clinical Psychotherapist & Mental Health Specialist

It means I've completed a recognised psychotherapy training, I meet the UK Council for Psychotherapy's standards for practice, and I'm bound by its code of ethics and complaints process. It also means I have regular clinical supervision and keep my training up to date. Anyone can call themselves a therapist in the UK; registration is how you tell the difference. You can check my entry on the UKCP register (opens in a new tab) in under a minute (search “Brian Sheppard”; my membership number is 2011197340), and I'd encourage you to do the same for any therapist you're considering.

Because it means very little you tell me will be new to me. I've sat with people in psychiatric wards, in their kitchens and in A&E corridors, and I've held the clinical responsibility for them. So when you tell me the thing you've never said out loud, I don't flinch. I also know when something needs more than therapy, and I'll say so rather than let you drift. A psychotherapist's way of listening with a nurse's eye for when you're not okay is the most useful thing I bring.

Adults, one-to-one, online. Most of the people I see are men in their thirties to sixties, often at the point where work, a relationship or a divorce has knocked them sideways and they can't think straight. I also work with single mothers who have no room in their week for themselves, with people finding their way through separation and co-parenting, with people questioning their sexuality or identity, and with Black and Black British clients who want a therapist who understands their background without needing it explained. Everything I help with is on the online counselling page.

I don't offer couples sessions, work with children, or provide psychiatric assessment or medication, and I'm not an emergency service. If you're not sure whether I'm the right fit, the introductory call is exactly for that, and if I'm not, I'll say so and point you somewhere better.