About Michael
Michael James is a counsellor with BACP accreditation and 28 years of experience. He invites people to pause and notice what matters, then use that awareness to make clear, practical choices. He describes mindfulness simply as intentional awareness and uses it to help clients see repeated patterns and move beyond them.
Michael adopts a person-centred way of working, following what each person brings to the room. Sessions focus on the client's needs and on building a trusting, collaborative relationship.
Background and approach
He also takes a trauma-informed stance, recognising how past or ongoing trauma can shape current difficulties. In conversation he helps people reframe identity, purpose and meaning. That can feel useful for anxiety, grief, relationship issues, addiction or problems with self-esteem.
He also supports concerns linked to LGBT identity and intimacy-related struggles when those topics arise. His practice blends mindful awareness with reflective dialogue. That might include simple breath-based attention, noticing body signals, and talking through how those experiences relate to everyday choices.
The aim is practical change rather than abstract theory. Michael has worked with a wide range of difficulties over nearly three decades. He encourages a steady pace, adapting methods and language to each person.
Prospective clients who prefer a collaborative, awareness-based approach may find his style helpful.
What Michael works with
Everything Michael lists, in their own terms. LGBT is the reason Michael is listed here; the rest shows what else Michael works with.
- Stress, Anxiety
- Relationship issues
- Trauma and abuse
- Grief
- Depression
- Addictions
- LGBT
- 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
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Antisocial personality
- Attachment issues
- BDSM, kink, and alternative sex culture
- Body image
- Cancer
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Chronic pain, illness, and disability
- Co-morbidity
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Dependent personality
- Dissociation
- Divorce and separation
- Domestic violence
- Eating and food-related issues
- Emptiness
- Family problems
- Forgiveness
- Gender dysphoria
- Guilt and shame
- Hearing impaired
- Hospice and end-of-life counselling
- Impulsivity
- 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
- Post-traumatic stress
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sexuality
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Approaches Michael lists
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Attachment-Based Therapy
- Client-Centred Therapy
- Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT)
- Existential Therapy
- Hypnotherapy
- Mindfulness Therapy
- Solution-Focused Therapy
- Somatic Therapy
- Trauma-Focused Therapy
Listing an approach is not evidence of training in it. This directory copies what each counsellor names and does not check training records.
How his approaches translate to online therapy
Michael uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to help people notice their thoughts, choose values-based actions, and take small steps that match what matters to them. ACT can be useful for anxiety, low mood and life changes because it focuses on practical choices rather than trying to remove difficult feelings.He also works from an attachment-informed perspective, which looks at how past relationships shape current patterns. This approach helps people to better understand relationship struggles and to practise new ways of connecting and communicating.
Finding the right therapeutic approach is part of the process. Michael will work collaboratively to decide which methods suit a person's needs, goals and preferences, and will adjust the pace and focus as therapy unfolds.
Session formats are not specified in the biography, so please confirm current online options before booking. In general, online work can make it easier to fit therapy into busy lives, shorten travel time, and offer alternatives such as phone check-ins when bandwidth or a shorter meeting is preferable. Registered or accredited professionals, including therapists using the approaches above, can adapt exercises like mindful noticing, values work and relational practice to an online setting while keeping sessions practical and focused on everyday changes.
Questions people ask about Michael
What issues does he work with?
He helps with stress, anxiety, depression, grief, relationship and intimacy-related issues, addictions and a wide range of other concerns listed in his profile, including LGBT matters.
What is his therapeutic style like?
He uses a person-centred approach that follows the client's lead and combines mindful awareness with reflective conversation to support practical change.
How much experience does he have?
He has been practising for 28 years and draws on long experience using mindfulness and relational work to address presenting problems.
Where is he based and what credential does he hold?
He practises in the United Kingdom and holds BACP accreditation as shown in his profile.
Which languages are available for sessions?
Sessions are offered in English.
Can he work with people outside the UK?
He accepts international clients according to the information in his profile.
How much do sessions cost?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability; sessions use a subscription that can be cancelled at any time as described in the fact sheet.
How do I begin if I want to try therapy?
Use the Start Therapy button, complete the short matching questionnaire, and then schedule sessions according to the therapist's availability.
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