Group therapy is a structured, confidential setting to explore emotional and relationship difficulties with others. A trained therapist facilitates the work, and each group has up to eight people.
Through conversation and feedback, you can see familiar patterns, feel less alone, put thoughts and feelings into words and try new ways of relating.
Meet a group therapist to talk about what brings you and whether the group is right for you.
Find your place, learn the boundaries and take part at your own pace.
Notice what happens between members. Feedback, care and disagreement all matter.
Try being more direct, set boundaries and hear other perspectives.
Loneliness & belonging
Social anxiety
Trust & intimacy
Boundaries
Repeated roles
Conflict & anger
Shame & self-criticism
Change & loss
Iwona is training in group analytic psychotherapy. She sees group therapy as a place to look at how we relate to others, revisit familiar patterns and understand ourselves through other people’s eyes. Experiences of belonging — or not belonging — in families, friendships, school and work can shape how we make relationships. Iwona has worked for many years with adults with complex mental health needs, where groups were central to support and change. She knows groups can be difficult, but also deeply valuable and transformative.
Sue is a UKCP Registered Group Analyst, psychotherapist and art psychotherapist. She convenes and teaches the Group Analysis South Brighton & Hove Foundation Course, and has led groups for many years. Her work draws on group analysis, psychodynamic and interpersonal approaches, as well as creative arts therapies. She has worked across NHS adult and children’s services, and now offers individual and group psychotherapy. Her therapeutic groups are long-term, open groups for adults, giving people time to understand themselves and their relationships.
A small group meets regularly with one or more therapists. Members talk about what is happening in their lives and, importantly, what unfolds between people in the room. Feedback, difference, conflict, care and belonging all become part of the work.
No. You are encouraged to participate honestly, but you are not forced to disclose before you are ready. Trust and participation develop over time.
Confidentiality is central. The expectations and limits are discussed clearly before you join, and members agree not to share identifying information outside the sessions.
Groups are kept small enough for each member to be known and for relationships to develop. The size and current membership of a particular group will be discussed before you join.
Contact us to arrange an individual conversation with a group therapist. You can discuss what brings you, ask questions about the groups currently available and decide together whether one is the right next step.
Groups meet every week for 90 minutes.
Group therapy works best over a longer period. Many people choose to attend for a year or more, though shorter periods can be possible.
You start with an assessment. If the group looks right for you, you may then have two to five individual preparation sessions with the group therapist.
Possibly. You can join when there is a suitable opening. The preparation period may take a few weeks or several months.
Groups have up to eight people and include people of different genders.
