Meet your therapist

Paula Fitzsimon
Cognitive Behavioural Therapist

Hello, I'm Paula - a CBT therapist with 20 years' experience, including over a decade working within the NHS.

Many of the people I work with are used to holding things together - for their team, their family, everyone but themselves. If you're feeling overwhelmed, anxious, low, or just not quite yourself, and it's starting to affect your work or day to day life, I can help.

I'm accredited by the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP), a Fellow of Advance HE (FHEA), and currently serve as a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Chester, a role I've held for six years. This academic experience keeps me closely connected to the latest research and developments in CBT, so you can be confident you're working with someone who stays current with the evidence behind what actually works.

Therapy with me is collaborative and tailored to you - not a one size fits all programme. Together, we'll identify what's really going on and build practical, evidence-based strategies to help you feel more like yourself again.

I offer private therapy and also work with a number of healthcare and insurance providers, including Bupa, Vita Health, AXA and Aviva.

Whatever's brought you here, I'm here to support you, one step at a time.

Learn more about Paula

What is Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)?

CBT is a type of talking therapy that helps you explore how your thoughts and behaviours can affect the way you feel—both emotionally and physically. It’s all about helping you spot unhelpful patterns and giving you practical tools to shift them, so you can start feeling better and carry those changes with you long after therapy ends.

There are different styles of CBT, and we can tailor the approach to suit your specific needs and goals—so the support you get is personal and relevant to you.

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Our sessions will be

  • Personalised

    Our sessions will be dedicated to assessing your wellbeing and working to a personalised plan to fit your unique needs and goals.

  • Targeted

    CBT is focused on dealing with the issues at hand, proving you with specific techniques and insights that can help you to move forward at each and every session.

  • Compassionate

    What you bring to each session will be met with compassion, empathy and understanding, whilst helping you to navigate challenges you’re facing understanding.

What we can achieve

in collaboration

I offer evidence-based CBT talking therapy that can help you with the following issues:

  • Anxiety and worry

  • Panic Attacks

  • Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

  • Posttraumatic Stress

  • Phobias

  • Health Anxiety

  • Social Anxiety

  • Low self esteem

  • Depression

  • Feeling low and hopeless

  • Struggling with nightmares or flashbacks about things from your past

  • Fear of things like spiders, heights, flying

  • Habit Disorders

  • Body Dysmorphia

Sessions are offered remotely, either by phone or video call, so you can get support from the comfort of your own home - or anywhere else you feel safe and comfortable. This flexible approach makes it easier to fit therapy into your life and helps remove some of the barriers to getting the support you need.

By the end of our sessions, you’ll have a clearer understanding of what your triggers are and how to manage those moments more effectively. You’ll also get self-guided materials to work through between sessions, helping you keep up the momentum and stay on track with your goals.

I view therapy as a genuine collaboration between therapist and client, and I look forward to working with you.

How you’ll feel…..

more confident, clearheaded and ready to face the road ahead

Services

  • The aim of the assessment is to get a clear understanding of your current difficulties and needs. You will be asked a variety of questions relating to key information about what you're struggling with, what you've tried so far to help, and your goals for treatment. This information helps determine whether CBT is suitable for the difficulties you're presenting with, and is used to inform your proposed treatment plan.

    Following your assessment, I’ll talk to you about treatment options so you can make an informed decision about the next steps.

  • Treatment appointments are usually 60 minutes long, with the aim of making positive progress towards your goals each week.

    Most courses of treatment last between 8–16 sessions, sometimes up to 20, depending on your needs. The exact number of sessions will be decided collaboratively at the end of the assessment process.

  • Towards the end of your course of treatment, we'll work together to create a personalised Therapy Blueprint — a plan designed to help you maintain the progress you've made and continue building on it after therapy ends. Your Blueprint will include:

    • A summary of what you've learnt

    • Skills and techniques to keep practicing

    • Your personal triggers for relapse, and how to recognise them

    • An action plan for overcoming setbacks or relapses

    • Key techniques and worksheets from your sessions, for you to keep

  • If you've completed a course of therapy and find yourself struggling in the weeks or months afterwards, you can request Booster Sessions to help get you back on track. I'll carry out a brief assessment to understand what you're facing, then we'll agree a targeted approach together to help you overcome it.

  • Sessions: All sessions are charged at £100 per hour.

    If you have a budget in mind for your treatment, please let me know so this can be taken into account when planning your number of sessions.

    Letters & Reports

    Where needed, a standard GP feedback letter can be provided free of charge.

    If you need a report, please note that there will be a charge for this service. Please discuss the details of this with me.

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FAQs

how long are sessions?

60 minutes

how many sessions will I need?

This will depend on the outcome of your assessment. Most people need somewhere between 8-12 sessions, however a course of treatment can be up to 20 sessions. During your assessment, we will talk about what you want to work on and agree a therapy plan together which will include an estimated number of sessions.

How often will sessions be?

Sessions are usually weekly to help you achieve consistent momentum and progress towards your goals.

Are sessions confidential?

Yes, your sessions will be confidential. There are some legal and ethical limits to confidentiality, but don’t worry, this will be discussed with you in full at your first appointment.

How will I access my therapy sessions?

You can access your sessions from wherever you feel comfortable and safe. Just make sure you're somewhere you can talk confidentially, without anyone else present. I'll either contact you by phone at the time of your appointment, or send you a video call link in advance - whichever you feel most comfortable with. Video links don't require any additional software; you'll simply click the link and the meeting will open.

How much will it cost?

Please see the information on pricing. If you have an idea of how much you want to spend on sessions, please make your therapist aware of this during the assessment so your plan can be tailored to take this into account.

If your sessions are being covered by your private healthcare insurance, you will need to speak directly with your provider to determine what your session allowance is.

Are there any additional costs?

For your sessions, all you will need is something you can use to take notes. If you require a report, please let me know. Depending on what you need, please note an additional fee may be charged (see information on pricing for further details).

What age do I have to be to access therapy?

The therapy I offer is suitable for adults aged 18 and over. If you are looking for someone to assist with anyone under this age, you can find a list of fully qualified and accredited practitioners on the BABCP Register who specialise in working with children.

What if I need urgent help?

If you are in urgent need of help, please contact your GP or 111 in the first instance and let them know you’re struggling. You can also attend your local A&E should you feel you are at risk. If you need someone to talk to, you can contact Samaritans 24 hours a day.