Leyla Akaidere

Leyla Akaidere is a BACP counsellor practising in the United Kingdom with three years as an Accredited High Intensity Counselling Psychotherapist. She works with people facing relationship strain, family difficulties, grief, depression and coping with life changes. Leyla also supports work on abandonment, attachment, adoption and foster care concerns, and issues linked to chronic illness and caregiving.

She combines a psychology degree and PCE-CfD qualification with several years of earlier NHS experience. Leyla uses clear, evidence-focused techniques in sessions and helps people talk through what feels most urgent to them. She treats conversations as practical problem-solving rather than abstract theory.

In a session she will listen to the immediate problem and try small, workable steps you can try between meetings. Discussions may cover communication patterns, coping strategies for low mood, and ways to manage loss and life transitions. She will notice where past relationships influence current choices and help identify options going forward.

Leyla describes clients as the experts of their own stories and works collaboratively to build on existing strengths. She frames therapy as a place to test ideas, practise new ways of relating, and rehearse decisions before acting on them.

Sessions use a subscription model that can be cancelled at any time. International clients are not currently accepted. To start, select the See online therapy options button, complete the short matching questionnaire, and schedule a first session.

How evidence-based methods work in online sessions

Many of Leyla's sessions draw on straightforward, evidence-based techniques that focus on current problems and workable changes. One common approach is behavioural activation, which breaks down low mood into small, manageable activities to regain routine and positive interaction. This helps when depression has reduced motivation or daily structure.

Another frequent strand is relational work that looks at communication patterns and attachment influences. This involves naming repeated ways of relating, practising different responses in session, and trying them out in real life to see what shifts. It helps where relationship conflict or past losses shape current choices.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. Leyla will discuss options with each person and choose techniques based on the client's goals and preferences. This is a collaborative process that may change as needs become clearer.

If you are considering online sessions, please confirm the available formats before booking as they are not listed here. Online meetings can make it easier to fit therapy into a busy week, reduce travel time, and allow shorter check-ins when schedules are tight. They can also be useful when someone prefers not to use video, or needs a quieter setting that fits into a lunch break or day off.