Alan Opfer
Practical, non-judgemental support for recovery and stress
About Alan
Alan Opfer helps people who are feeling overwhelmed by addiction, stress, anxiety or low mood. He writes in a straightforward way and aims to offer practical, non-judgemental support. Alan has three years of professional experience and works from a client-centred perspective.
Alan draws on his own lived experience of addiction and recovery to inform his approach. That background shapes a focus on practical coping strategies, harm-reduction ideas and ways to manage relapse triggers.
Background and approach
He aims to meet each person where they are and build on their strengths. In sessions he uses client-centred listening to learn what matters most to the person. He pairs that with solution-focused work to set achievable goals and mindfulness techniques to reduce stress and improve emotional regulation.
The result is a mix of talking, short exercises and everyday skills to try between sessions. Alan has worked in roles providing housing support and has experience with multidisciplinary services. He is registered with the BACP, which is listed as his professional credential.
He practises in the United Kingdom and offers appointments in English. People who want direct, practical help for addiction, relationship strain, grief or life changes may find his style helpful. He aims to be steady and clear, helping people build small, sustainable changes that fit into daily life.
What Alan works with
How Alan works
Listed by Alan among the ways they work.
Listed by Alan among the ways they work.
Listed by Alan among the ways they work.
Sessions & fees
How Alan’s approaches work online
Client-Centred Therapy focuses on listening and reflecting what matters to the person. It helps people feel understood and shapes therapy around their priorities rather than following a fixed plan.Mindfulness Therapy involves simple attention and breathing exercises to reduce stress and ground emotions. These techniques can help with anxiety, low mood and urges linked to addictive behaviour.
Solution-Focused Therapy looks for small, practical steps that move a person towards their goals. Sessions emphasise what is already working and build short-term actions to create change.
Deciding which approach to use is part of the process. Alan works collaboratively to identify goals, try different methods and adjust based on what helps most. He emphasises shared decision-making so the plan fits the person’s needs and preferences.
Online work offers practical benefits. Video calls let people keep visual contact for deeper conversation, phone sessions use less bandwidth and can fit into a short break, and live chat or text-based messaging allow quick check-ins or a written way to process thoughts. These options make it easier to fit therapy around work, care duties and daily life, while still focusing on meaningful change.
| Session length | Typically 50 minutes |
|---|---|
| Client ages | Adults, 18 and over |
| Fees | Subscription via BetterHelp, cancel anytime |
| Insurance | Not billed directly |
Questions people ask
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Areas of focus
What this therapist works with
Most often
- Stress, Anxiety
- Addictions
- Anger management
Also listed
- Abandonment
- Adoption and foster care
- Antisocial personality
- Attachment issues
- Avoidant personality
- BDSM, kink, and alternative sex culture
- Career difficulties
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Chronic pain, illness, and disability
- Co-morbidity
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Coping with life changes
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Dependent personality
- Depression
- Dissociation
- Domestic violence
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Emptiness
- Family conflicts
- Family problems
- First responder issues
- Forgiveness
- Grief
- Guilt and shame
- Impulsivity
- Intellectual disability
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- LGBT
- Life purpose
- Men's issues
- Midlife crisis
- Money and financial issues
- Mood disorders
- Narcissism
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Paranoia
- Phobias
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling)
- Relationship issues
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self esteem
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sex addiction
- Sexuality
- Smoking / vaping cessation
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Trauma and abuse
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 3 years
- Registered with
- BACP
- Languages
- English
