Paula Appleton, BACP, NCPS
Gentle, story-focused counselling for practical change
Details
| Name | Paula Appleton |
|---|---|
| Credentials | BACP, NCPS |
| Based in | United Kingdom |
| Registered with | BACP, NCPS |
| Session format | Online |
| Languages | English, American Sign Language |
| Years in practice | 14 |
About Paula
Paula Appleton is a counsellor with 14 years' experience working with people facing stress, anxiety, depression and trauma. She uses a flexible, narrative-informed approach and adapts sessions to each person’s needs. Paula works with a wide range of concerns including addiction, grief, relationship strain and challenges linked to identity and intimacy.
She offers sessions in English and American Sign Language and accepts international clients. Paula shapes each session around the stories people bring.
Background and approach
She draws on Narrative methods to help people separate themselves from difficult problems and see other possibilities. She also uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Client-Centred ideas to build practical ways of living with hard feelings and values-led action.
Her experience includes supporting people with complex issues such as trauma and abuse, bipolar mood shifts, neurodiversity concerns including autism and ADHD, and long-term health conditions. She is familiar with parenting stress, bereavement, body image and eating difficulties, and care-related strain. Paula works in line with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy ethical framework and holds BACP and NCPS credentials.
She aims to keep language clear and practical during sessions and to set goals that suit each person’s life and pace. Sessions can be matched to communication needs, including signed English or other adapted approaches for deaf and hard of hearing clients. People often begin by outlining what matters most to them, and Paula helps turn that into manageable next steps.
Her style is calm and straightforward. She focuses on listening closely, asking helpful questions and trying out different ways to change a story that feels stuck.
What this therapist works with
Her listing names Stress, Anxiety, Relationship issues, Family conflicts among the things Paula works with, alongside the areas below.
- Stress, Anxiety
- Relationship issues
- Family conflicts
- Trauma and abuse
- Depression
- Addictions
- LGBT
- Grief
- Intimacy-related issues
- Eating disorders
- Sleeping disorders
- Parenting issues
- Anger management
- Self esteem
- Career difficulties
- Bipolar disorder
- Coping with life changes
- Coaching
- Compassion fatigue
- ADHD
- Abandonment
- Adoption and foster care
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Antisocial personality
- Attachment issues
- Autism and Asperger Syndrome
- Avoidant personality
- Blended family issues
- Body image
- Cancer
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Chronic pain, illness, and disability
- Co-morbidity
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Dependent personality
- Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD)
- Dissociation
- Divorce and separation
- Domestic violence
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Eating and food-related issues
- Emptiness
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Fatherhood issues
- Fertility issues
- First responder issues
- Forgiveness
- Gender dysphoria
- Guilt and shame
- Hearing impaired
- HIV / AIDS
- Hoarding
- Hospice and end-of-life counseling
- Immigration issues
- Impulsivity
- Infidelity
- Intellectual disability
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Men's issues
- Midlife crisis
- Veteran and Armed Forces Issues
- Money and financial issues
- Mood disorders
- Multicultural concerns
- Narcissism
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Paranoia
- Personality disorders
- Phobias
- Polyamory / non-monogamous relationships
- Postpartum depression
- Post-traumatic stress
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sex addiction
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sexual dysfunction
- Sexuality
- Smoking / vaping cessation
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Somatization
- Traumatic brain injury
- Trichotillomania
- Visually impaired
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Approaches listed
- Narrative Therapy: Named in her listing among her approaches.
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Attachment-Based Therapy: Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Client-Centered Therapy: Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT): Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT): Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Existential Therapy: Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Gottman Method: Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Jungian Therapy: Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Mindfulness Therapy: Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Motivational Interviewing: Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Psychodynamic Therapy: Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Solution-Focused Therapy: Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Somatic Therapy: Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Trauma-Focused Therapy: Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Internal Family Systems: Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Systemic Therapy: Listed by Paula among the ways she works.
- Training stated: This directory copies the approaches a therapist names and does not check training records. Ask Paula directly how much of the work is narrative and what a session usually looks like.
Narrative Therapy in this listing
Narrative Therapy appears in this therapist's own list of approaches. That tells you it is part of how she works. It does not tell you how much of a session it shapes, and this directory does not check or rate training.
If a narrative approach is what you are looking for, it is worth asking Paula directly how she uses it and what a session usually looks like.
Online session options
How Paula's approaches work online
Paula draws on Narrative Therapy to help people separate themselves from the problems they face and re-author their life stories. That approach suits concerns where past events or repeating patterns feel stuck, such as relationship difficulties, grief or identity questions.She also uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), which focuses on noticing thoughts and feelings while identifying actions that match a person's values. ACT can be useful for anxiety, stress, addictive behaviours and coping with health changes.
Finding the right approach is part of the work together. Paula will discuss what feels most useful and adapt methods based on the client's needs, goals and preferences. That collaborative process means plans may change as progress unfolds.
Online sessions offer practical flexibility. Video calls work well for in-depth conversations and visual signing in American Sign Language. Phone sessions need less bandwidth and can be easier to fit into a busy day. Live chat or text messaging supports briefer check-ins, written reflections and ongoing support between meetings. These options make it easier to keep therapy going from different locations and schedules.
Common questions about this listing
What kinds of problems does Paula work with?
She supports people with stress, anxiety, depression, trauma, addiction and grief. Other areas include relationship and intimacy issues, parenting stress, body image, eating and sleep problems.
What is Paula's therapy style like?
She uses a narrative-informed, client-centred style that is practical and conversational. Sessions focus on the stories people bring and on clear steps they can try between meetings.
How much experience does she have?
Paula has 14 years of experience working with a broad range of concerns, including trauma, bipolar mood issues, neurodiversity and long-term health conditions.
What credentials and location are listed?
She holds BACP and NCPS credentials and practices from the United Kingdom in line with the BACP Ethical Framework.
Which languages are supported in sessions?
Sessions are offered in English and American Sign Language, and communication needs can be adapted for deaf and hard of hearing clients.
What session formats are available?
Paula provides video calls, phone sessions, live chat and text-based messaging to suit different preferences and schedules.
How does payment and cost work?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability and sessions use a subscription model that can be cancelled at any time.
How do I begin working with Paula?
Start by selecting the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire and then schedule sessions according to the therapist's availability.
Contacting this therapist
Sessions with Paula are arranged through our partner platform. It asks a few questions about what you are looking for, then shows you the therapists available to you, including Paula where she has space. Ask about fees, and whether she holds a licence or registration where you live.
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