What is Psychosexual Counselling?

Sexual problems are more common than you might think.  It is not uncommon for people to experience sexual issues at some point during their lives.  Psychosexual counselling is a talking therapy that is aimed at helping people who are experiencing difficulties in their sexual lives, regardless of sexual orientation, gender, disability, relationship status or cultural background.  There are various causes for sexual difficulties, they can originate from physical, emotional or psychological issues or it may be a combination of these factors.

Psychosexual counselling can be offered to both individuals and couples, if you are in a relationship. You and your therapist can discuss which option is best suited to your particular situation.

What We Offer

We offer psychological assessment and therapeutic support to adults living in the  London boroughs of Havering, Redbridge or Barking &Dagenham who are experiencing a variety of sexual difficulties. These are sometimes called psychosexual problems. These sexual difficulties include:

  • Painful sex
  • Anxiety about sex
  • Sexual difficulties associated with sexual trauma (that occurred more than 1 year ago)
  • Male sexual problems – including erectile difficulties, rapid and delayed ejaculation
  • Female sexual problems – including vaginismus
  • Difficulties with reduced sex drive or libido
  • Concerns about sexual wellbeing and enjoyment

Unfortunately, it is beyond the remit of our service to offer support related to:

  • Generic couples counselling
  • Gender dysphoria
  • Sex addiction
  • Paraphilia
  • Sexual practices which would be the subject of an action under the criminal justice system

We offer time-limited, short term psychosexual counselling to help both individuals and couples overcome psychosexual issues in a safe, confidential, non-judgemental, supportive and empathetic environment. Our service offers up to 6 sessions of psychosexual counselling.

How to access the service

To access the service we require a referral from a healthcare professional. It is essential that physical causes for sexual problems are ruled out prior to psychosexual counselling. In the first instance, please attend your GP for primary care investigations and request a referral.