Laura West
Experienced psychotherapist with a nursing background
About Laura
Laura West helps people facing stress, anxiety, depression and grief. She also supports those struggling with self-esteem and big life changes. With a calm, practical approach she aims to make talking about difficult things feel manageable.
Laura trained originally as a Registered General Nurse and spent 17 years working in NHS hospitals. Much of that time was spent in specialist nursing roles, including as a Macmillan Breast Cancer Specialist Practitioner, where she provided emotional and psychological support during treatment journeys.
Background and approach
This hands-on clinical work shaped her interest in counselling and psychotherapy. After moving into therapy, Laura completed a diploma in Psychotherapy and Counselling and is a member of the National Counselling Society, listed with the credential NCPS. She uses an integrated approach that draws on psychodynamic ideas alongside humanistic and person-centred influences developed during her nursing career.
In practical sessions she focuses on what matters to the person in front of her. Conversations aim to uncover patterns, name feelings and identify small, doable steps that help people feel better. Techniques may include gently examining past experiences, testing new ways of thinking, and setting short-term goals.
Laura’s work covers a wide range of concerns including abandonment issues, chronic pain or long-term illness, communication problems, isolation, life purpose, narcissism, post-traumatic stress, social anxiety and divorce or separation. She frames therapy as a collaborative process, with the pace set by the person seeking help.
What Laura works with
How Laura works
Listed by Laura among the ways they work.
Listed by Laura among the ways they work.
Listed by Laura among the ways they work.
Listed by Laura among the ways they work.
Sessions & fees
Approaches and online therapy that fit your needs
Client-Centred Therapy puts the person and their experience at the heart of sessions. The therapist listens without judgement and helps the person find their own answers, which suits work on self-esteem, life purpose and emotional processing.Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, or CBT, looks at how thoughts, feelings and behaviours link together. It uses practical exercises to test unhelpful thinking and build new coping strategies, which can be useful for anxiety, stress and social phobia.
Finding the right approach is part of the work together. The therapist will discuss options and tailor methods to what the person wants to achieve, their comfort level and everyday life. This is a collaborative process and the plan can change as progress is made.
Online therapy offers several practical benefits. Video calls allow face-to-face conversations without travel. Phone sessions can be useful when bandwidth is limited or a shorter check-in is needed. Live chat and text messaging let people send messages or have brief exchanges that fit around work, school or caregiving. These options make it easier to keep therapy consistent and to try different formats to see what works best.
| 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
Also listed
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 19 years
- Registered with
- NCPS
- Languages
- English
