Melanie Duffin , BACP

Melanie Duffin is a counsellor who focuses on helping people manage stress, anxiety, family tension, trauma and grief. She holds a BACP accreditation and brings ten years of experience to conversations about self-esteem and confidence. Melanie writes in a down-to-earth way and aims to make the first step feel manageable for anyone who is unsure where to begin.

Her approach is practical and person-centred. Sessions aim to be welcoming so people can talk about difficult feelings without feeling judged. Melanie listens for what matters most to each person and works at their pace to clarify goals and next steps.

She uses a mix of methods to suit the person in front of her, including cognitive and mindfulness-based ideas to help change unhelpful thoughts and build small, concrete habits. Attachment-focused work is used when relationships and early patterns are important to the issue being discussed.

Melanie has supported people through a wide range of concerns such as abandonment, caregiving stress, chronic illness, body image and communication problems. She also helps with life events like bereavement, cancer-related distress and adjusting to ageing.

Appointments are offered remotely by video, phone, chat or text messaging. The first steps are straightforward: a short matching questionnaire and then scheduling a time to begin. Melanie aims to keep sessions clear, practical and focused on what the person wants to change.

Approaches that suit online counselling

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) helps people notice painful thoughts and feelings without getting stuck in them. It uses values-based steps to build a life that matters, which can help with anxiety, stress and low mood. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) focuses on the link between thoughts, feelings and behaviours and uses practical exercises to change unhelpful patterns and ease symptoms of anxiety and stress. Attachment-Based Therapy looks at how early relationships shape current ways of relating and can be useful when family dynamics or attachment worries are central to the problem.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. Melanie treats therapy as a collaboration and will help clients try different ways of working until they find what fits. Goals, preferences and what helps day-to-day shape the plan rather than a single predefined method.

Online therapy with Melanie is available by video call, phone, live chat or text-based messaging. Video is useful for a fuller face-to-face conversation, phone sessions can fit into a short break or require less bandwidth, and chat or messaging suits quick check-ins or people who prefer writing. These options make it easier to book appointments around work, caregiving or medical needs while keeping the focus on practical steps and steady progress.