Sidonia Stiles, BACP

Sidonia Stiles (Sonia for short) helps people who are feeling overwhelmed by stress, anxiety, grief or relationship difficulties. She offers straightforward, empathetic counselling and focuses on what matters to each person. Sessions are available in English and Portuguese and she accepts international clients. Sidonia draws on 27 years of experience supporting people through depression, addiction, intimacy concerns and life changes. She works with issues such as parenting strain, bereavement, self-esteem, career stress and compassion fatigue. Her practice also includes support around attachment and adoption matters, chronic illness, body image and communication problems. Her background includes ten years as a group worker with residential young people for the local council. That role involved family work and handling difficult relationship dynamics. She later trained in counselling and relationship therapy and now runs a independent practice based in Eastbourne. Sidonia holds a HND Diploma in Person Centred counselling and a Level 5 Diploma in Relationship Therapy from CPCAB. She is a registered counsellor with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP). In sessions she uses practical tools such as genograms to map family patterns and help people understand recurring conflict. She also draws on Gestalt ideas when working with grief, focusing on each person’s experience. Sidonia aims for clear, respectful conversations that identify what the client wants to change and how to get there. To start, the site asks people to complete a short matching questionnaire and then schedule appointments according to the therapist's availability. Costs vary with location and the service uses a cancellable subscription model.

How Sidonia’s approaches work online

Sidonia uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to help people notice painful thoughts and choose values-led action. ACT is practical and focuses on what matters most, which suits clients facing anxiety, depression or life transitions.

She also draws on Attachment-Based Therapy when relationship patterns and early bonds shape current difficulties. This approach helps people make sense of closeness, trust and repeating cycles in relationships.

Finding the right approach is part of the work together. The therapist will discuss goals, past experiences and preferences and then agree which methods to try. That choice can change as therapy progresses and is reviewed collaboratively.

If you are considering online sessions, check which specific formats the therapist currently offers before booking. Online work can make it easier to fit counselling into busy days, reduce travel time and allow shorter check-ins when schedules demand. It can also make it simpler to continue sessions if someone has moved or lives abroad. Registered and accredited professionals can adapt ACT and attachment-focused tools to work well in an online setting, keeping the focus on practical steps and clearer communication.