Karen Bell

• Stress and anxiety
• Trauma and abuse
• EMDR and CBT

About Karen

Karen Bell works on stress, anxiety, addictions, relationship problems, trauma and abuse, depression and related concerns using a person-centred approach that puts the client's feelings first. She is a member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and has 18 years of experience in counselling in the United Kingdom.

Karen practised in a GP surgery and provided trauma counselling for an organisation supporting people who had been abused. She also worked for Northumbria Police as an occupational health counsellor, specialising in trauma and employee assistance work. That background means she has dealt with self-harm, suicidal thoughts, bereavement and work-related stress.

Her way of working is grounded in person-centred counselling, often called Rogerian practice, where the client's perspective shapes each session. She also uses attachment-based ideas, cognitive behavioural techniques and EMDR when these fit the person's needs. Sessions aim to be direct and practical, with attention to feelings and daily coping.

Clients often bring concerns such as family and parenting stress, intimacy and communication problems, grief, eating and sleeping issues, chronic illness, addiction, ADHD and compassion fatigue. Karen also notes experience with abandonment, adoption and foster care matters, ageing issues and body-image difficulties.

She welcomes people of any sexual orientation, gender, culture or religion, and invites those with protected characteristics or neurodiversity to share their needs and preferences. To start, clients are asked to use the service's matching process and book a first session.

Karen stresses that talking therapy can help with the habits people develop to cope, and she encourages anyone unsure whether their issue is listed to get in touch.

How Karen uses therapeutic approaches in online sessions

Karen offers person-centred counselling that focuses on the client's feelings and what they bring to sessions. This approach values the client's perspective and aims to make sessions responsive to their needs and concerns.

She also uses cognitive behavioural therapy, which looks at thoughts and behaviours and uses practical techniques to change unhelpful patterns; this can help with anxiety, mood and coping skills. Attachment-based work examines relationship patterns and how early connections affect current relationships, which can be useful for intimacy, attachment issues and some trauma-related concerns.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. The counsellor will discuss goals and preferences with the client and decide together which methods to try. This collaborative process helps shape the focus of sessions and the techniques used.

Please confirm the specific session formats available before booking as the biography does not list formats in detail. Online sessions can make it easier to fit counselling around work, family or other commitments and can reduce travel time. They also allow for shorter check-ins or video sessions that approximate face-to-face contact, depending on the options offered at booking.

Topics Karen lists

• Stress and anxiety
• Addictions
• Relationship issues
• Trauma and abuse
• Depression
• LGBT
• Family conflicts
• Grief
• Intimacy-related issues
• Eating disorders
• Sleeping disorders
• Parenting issues
• Anger management
• Self-esteem
• Career difficulties
• Bipolar disorder
• Coping with life changes
• Compassion fatigue
• ADHD
• Abandonment
• Adoption and foster care
• Aging and geriatric issues
• Antisocial personality
• Attachment issues
• 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
• Forgiveness
• Guilt and shame
• Hoarding
• Impulsivity
• Infidelity
• Isolation and loneliness
• Jealousy
• Life purpose
• Men's issues
• Midlife crisis
• Money and financial issues
• Mood disorders
• Narcissism
• Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
• Panic disorder and panic attacks
• Personality disorders
• Phobias
• Postpartum depression
• Post-traumatic stress
• Pregnancy and childbirth
• Prejudice and discrimination
• Process addictions
• Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
• Self-harm
• Self-love
• Sex addiction
• Sexual assault and abuse
• Sexual dysfunction
• Sexuality
• Quitting smoking or vaping
• Social anxiety and phobia
• Somatization
• Traumatic brain injury
• Trichotillomania
• Visually impaired
• Women's issues
• Workplace issues
• Young adult issues

Ways of working

• Attachment-Based Therapy
• Client-Centred Therapy
• Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
• Existential Therapy
• Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
• Hypnotherapy
• Psychodynamic Therapy
• Solution-Focused Therapy
• Trauma-Focused Therapy

Questions about Karen

Does she work with anxiety and stress?

Yes. She regularly helps people with stress, anxiety and related coping difficulties using person-centred and cognitive behavioural methods.

What kind of counselling does she offer?

She practises person-centred counselling and draws on attachment-based approaches, CBT and EMDR when appropriate.

How much experience does she have?

She has 18 years of experience working in counselling roles including GP surgery, trauma services and occupational health for police staff.

Where is she based and what is her credential?

She works in the United Kingdom and is a member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP).

Can I have sessions in another language?

Sessions are offered in English.

Do you offer phone or video sessions?

Please confirm current session options before booking as formats are not specified here.

How much do sessions cost?

Cost varies with location; sessions use a subscription model that can be cancelled at any time.

How do I start with her?

Select the Talk to a counsellor online button, complete the short matching questionnaire and schedule a first session.