Email Therapy

What is email therapy?

Email therapy is a therapeutic approach where you and your therapist communicate through structured, confidential emails. Instead of holding sessions in-person or on video, the work happens through written exchanges.

This is sometimes called ‘written therapy’ or ‘email counselling’ and is a type of asynchronous therapy (meaning that communication exchange has a time delay rather than being ‘live’).

I use evidence-based psychological tools, models, and theories in our written exchanges, as I would during an online video session. For many people, expressing themselves in writing can feel easier than speaking face‑to‑face.

Why people choose email therapy

• Flexibility for people with chronic pain or physical health conditions — you can write when you’re able to, without needing to sit through a full live session.

• Helpful for cognitive diversity or slower processing — written therapy gives time to think, reflect, and respond without feeling ‘put on the spot’.

• Fits around busy or unpredictable schedules — ideal for parents, carers, shift workers, and professionals who can’t commit to the same time each week.

• More privacy in busy households — no need to speak out loud or worry about being overheard on a video call.

• Calmer for people who find talking overwhelming — writing can feel less anxiety‑provoking than speaking or being seen.

• Easier for expressing difficult emotions — many people find they can explore feelings more clearly and deeply in writing.

How email therapy works

• Email therapy uses secure email addresses that are free and simple to set up;

• We agree on a weekly or fortnightly email exchange, so you have a predictable structure;

• You send me an email, to an agreed word length and within an agreed timeframe.

• I reply with a therapeutic response of the same length and within the agreed timeframe. I spend the same amount of time reading and responding as I would in an online 50‑minute session. My reply may include reflections, gentle questions, psychological concepts, or practical strategies to help you explore things from different angles.

• This time‑delay between our written exchanges can help with deeper reflection and is a purposeful part of the intervention.