About Colleen
Colleen Downey has worked as a psychodynamic counsellor in the United Kingdom for six years. She holds BACP registration and brings practical support to people facing depression, stress and anxiety, relationship concerns, trauma and eating difficulties. Colleen positions the person as the expert in their own story and focuses on building on strengths.
She offers calm, steady support as people take first steps towards change. Her approach draws on psychodynamic therapy to look at patterns that repeat in relationships and everyday life.
How Colleen works
Sessions include talking through past and present experiences to uncover how they affect current feelings and reactions. This can help with attachment problems, communication difficulties, control issues and dissociation. Colleen also helps people dealing with grief, parenting strains, caregiver stress and compassion fatigue.
She can offer space to discuss mood disorders such as bipolar, obsessive-compulsive tendencies, eating and food-related issues, and anger or self-esteem struggles. Practical ways to cope with life changes and intense emotions are part of the work. People often bring concerns about intimacy, jealousy, trust, forgiveness, guilt and shame.
Colleen pays attention to how those themes show up in relationships and in how people manage their lives. She aims to create a steady, reflective space where clients can notice patterns and try alternative responses. Sessions are delivered in English and are available to people in the UK and internationally.
Colleen uses online formats including video calls, phone sessions, live chat and text-based messaging. To begin, clients complete a short matching questionnaire and schedule sessions according to therapist availability.
Colleen lists one way of working on the entry:
What Colleen works with
The areas below are the ones Colleen selected when setting up a profile. The first few are listed as the main focus; the rest are also named.
- Stress, Anxiety
- Relationship issues
- Trauma and abuse
Also listed
- ADHD
- Anger management
- Attachment issues
- Avoidant personality
- Bipolar disorder
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Communication problems
- Compassion fatigue
- Control issues
- Coping with life changes
- Depression
- Dissociation
- Divorce and separation
- Eating and food-related issues
- Eating disorders
- Family conflicts
- Forgiveness
- Grief
- Guilt and shame
- Hoarding
- Intimacy-related issues
- Jealousy
- Mood disorders
- Narcissism
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Paranoia
- Parenting issues
- Personality disorders
- Postpartum depression
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Self esteem
- Self-love
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Young adult issues
Training and background
| Register | BACP |
|---|---|
| Years in practice | 6 |
| Languages | English |
| Session format | Online: video, phone, live chat or messaging |
| Country | United Kingdom |
Memberships and registers are shown as supplied; they are not licences, and this directory does not verify them.
Online support options
Psychodynamic work via online sessions
Psychodynamic therapy helps people notice patterns that repeat in relationships and daily life. It looks at how early experiences and current feelings connect, and it can be useful for issues like attachment problems, communication difficulties, grief and long-standing emotional patterns.Colleen focuses on how past and present link together, using conversations to make sense of recurring reactions. Through this collaborative process she helps clients try different ways of responding and build clearer understanding of their emotions and behaviours.
Finding the right approach is part of the work itself. The therapist will discuss goals, preferences and practical needs to decide what fits best. This is a joint process where the person's priorities shape the plan rather than a one-size-fits-all solution.
Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat and text-based messaging. Video is helpful for face-to-face conversation and fuller interaction. Phone sessions need less bandwidth and can fit a short check-in or a busy schedule. Live chat and messaging let people work in smaller steps or when typing feels easier than talking. These options make therapy more flexible and easier to fit into daily life.
Start online instead of waiting
Our partner service asks a few questions about what you are looking for and matches you with a therapist for sessions from home.
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Common questions
What sorts of concerns can be brought to sessions?
How would you describe the therapeutic style?
What is Colleen's background and experience?
What credentials and location are listed?
Are sessions offered in other languages or internationally?
Which session formats are available?
How does payment and cost work?
What do I need to do to start?
A practical next step
Write down two things you would want to be different in six months. That is the most useful thing to bring to a first session, whoever it is with. If you would rather start now than keep reading, online sessions are the quickest route.
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