About Colleen
Colleen Downey is a psychodynamic counsellor practising in the United Kingdom. She offers calm, steady support to people dealing with stress, anxiety, depression and relationship difficulties. Colleen names psychodynamic work as her main approach and brings six years of clinical experience to sessions.
Colleen aims to help people understand patterns that repeat in their lives. She listens for the underlying feelings and life events that influence current worries. Sessions focus on talking through what matters, noticing recurring themes, and making small changes that feel manageable.
Background and approach
People contact Colleen about many concerns including trauma and abuse, eating problems, grief, and intimacy-related issues. She also works with mood disorders, ADHD-related struggles, and stress from caregiving or life change. Her practice pays attention to attachment difficulties, dissociation, and obsessive behaviours when these show up in sessions.
Colleen uses a conversational style that is reflective rather than prescriptive. She invites clients to explore their history and present experience at a pace that suits them. Over time she helps people connect emotional experience with everyday choices, so coping feels more effective.
Practical matters such as session format and scheduling are handled through the site. Sessions are available by video call, phone, live chat or text-based messaging, and international clients can be seen. Colleen describes the work as collaborative and grounded in helping people build steadier, more manageable ways of living.
How psychodynamic work translates to online therapy
Psychodynamic Therapy focuses on how past experiences, relationships and early attachments shape present feelings and behaviour. In practice this involves talking about memories, current reactions and repeating patterns to build understanding and shift unhelpful habits. It can be helpful for anxiety, relationship issues, trauma-related difficulties and long-standing mood concerns.Colleen approaches this collaboratively. She will work with each person to decide how much emphasis to place on exploring history versus tackling immediate symptoms. Together they will shape the work around the client’s goals, preferences and what feels most useful at each stage.
Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat and text-based messaging. Video calls let clients use body language and tone, while phone sessions need less bandwidth and can fit into short breaks. Live chat or messaging supports brief check-ins, reflective notes or more flexible contact over the week. These options make it easier to fit therapy around work, family life and travel while keeping continuity of care with a registered or accredited professional.
Questions people ask
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What this therapist works with
Most often
- 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
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 6 years
- Licensed
- Languages
- English
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