Oliver Williams, BACP

Oliver Williams is a counsellor and psychotherapist with five years' experience. He offers straightforward, respectful therapy and aims to build an honest working relationship with each person who comes to him.

He has worked in a range of settings, including as an associate psychotherapist at The Priory and with a domestic abuse agency. He has provided therapy through specialist employee assistance programmes for professional adults and a digital counselling service for children and young people. He has also worked with the long-term unemployed via the Department for Work and Pensions.

Oliver uses several practical approaches in his work. He draws on client-centred methods to focus on each person's experience. He uses cognitive behavioural techniques to help people spot unhelpful thinking and develop different responses. He also uses emotionally focused and mindfulness approaches to help with feelings and present-moment awareness, plus solution-focused work to set and reach short-term goals.

Common concerns he supports include stress, anxiety, relationship and intimacy-related issues, trauma and abuse, self-esteem, depression, grief, anger and career worries. He also focuses on areas such as abandonment, attachment issues, adoption and foster care, autism and Asperger syndrome, and fatherhood issues.

Oliver has created resources outside the counselling room, including a short film called The Dark Heart Therapy aimed at helping men and boys feel more comfortable about seeking help. He works in English and offers sessions to clients in the United Kingdom and internationally.

How his approaches work online

Oliver uses cognitive behavioural therapy to help people notice unhelpful thoughts and try small experiments to change them. This approach can be useful for anxiety, low mood and stress because it focuses on clear steps and practical skills.

He also uses emotionally focused therapy to help people understand and name strong feelings and how those feelings affect close relationships. That work often involves identifying patterns and trying new ways of relating during and between sessions.

Finding the right approach is part of the work together. He will talk about goals, preferences and what feels most helpful, then try methods that match those aims. Sessions can be reviewed and adapted as progress is made so the plan stays practical and relevant.

Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat and text-based messaging. Video calls allow face-to-face conversation and visual cues. Phone sessions can fit a short break or be easier when bandwidth is limited. Live chat and messaging suit people who prefer typing, want brief check-ins, or need a flexible way to reflect between sessions. These options make it easier to schedule therapy around work, family commitments and other responsibilities.