About Chandana
Chandana Rathnayake helps people facing stress, anxiety, grief and low self-esteem. He works with those coping with major life changes, addiction issues, relationship struggles and questions about purpose. Chandana writes plainly and listens with patience so people can make practical changes in daily life.
He began practising as a counsellor in 2013 in Malaysia and moved to the United Kingdom in 2019. He has around 10 years of counselling experience and holds BACP and NCPS credentials.
Background and approach
He also works as a mental health adviser for young adults in higher education in the UK. Before counselling he spent twenty years living as a Buddhist monk in Sri Lanka. That background informs his style and brings a focus on simple, usable habits and attention to inner experience.
He left the monkhood to raise a family and now blends those life experiences with formal psychological training. In sessions he favours a collaborative, person-centred way of working. He encourages clients to bring their own strengths and life stories into the work and to try small experiments between meetings.
He speaks English and Sinhala and is available to work with international clients. People who are struggling to find direction, motivation or meaning often find his approach helpful. He also supports those dealing with bereavement, major change, self-criticism and process addictions.
Starting a conversation with him begins with a short matching questionnaire and scheduling a session.
Approaches that translate to online counselling
Client-Centred Therapy focuses on listening and building a respectful relationship so people feel heard and can explore what matters to them; it often helps with anxiety, low self-esteem and direction in life. Internal Family Systems treats difficult feelings as parts of a person and invites gentle dialogue with those parts to reduce inner conflict and manage behaviours such as process addictions.Finding the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will collaborate with the client to decide which methods fit their needs, goals and preferences. That process can include trying one approach for a few sessions and adjusting based on how the client responds.
Online therapy with Chandana uses video calls, phone sessions, live chat or text-based messaging. Video lets people use visual cues and longer conversations. Phone sessions need less bandwidth and can be easier to fit around work. Live chat or messaging can be useful for short check-ins or ongoing written reflection. These options make counselling more flexible and easier to fit into a busy life, while still allowing therapists and registered or accredited professionals to work closely with clients.
Questions people ask
What concerns does this counsellor commonly address?
How would you describe the therapeutic style?
What experience does he bring to counselling?
What credentials and region are listed?
Which languages are offered and can international clients connect?
What session formats are available?
How does payment and cost work?
How do I begin working with him?
What this therapist works with
Most often
Also listed
- Addictions
- ADHD
- Anger management
- Attachment issues
- Career difficulties
- Codependency
- Compassion fatigue
- Coping with life changes
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Depression
- Emptiness
- Family conflicts
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Fatherhood issues
- Forgiveness
- Guilt and shame
- Intimacy-related issues
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Midlife crisis
- Multicultural concerns
- Parenting issues
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Relationship issues
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Trauma and abuse
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 10 years
- Licensed
- Languages
- English, Sinhala
We will earn a commission if you sign up through our link, at no cost to you.