Sidonia Stiles, BACP

Sidonia Stiles is a counsellor who aims to help people facing stress, anxiety, grief and relationship difficulties. She uses a calm, straightforward approach and offers conversation that focuses on what matters to each person. Sidonia speaks English and Portuguese and brings 27 years of experience to her work.

She trained with a Higher National Diploma in Person Centred counselling and holds a Level 5 Diploma in Relationship Therapy from CPCAB. Sidonia is registered with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy - BACP. Before qualifying as a counsellor she spent a decade working as a group worker with residential young people, which shaped her interest in family and relationship dynamics.

In sessions she pays attention to how upbringing, culture and family patterns affect current relationships. She often uses genograms as a practical way to map family patterns and see where conflicts may come from. She also draws on Gestalt ideas when helping people work through bereavement and loss, respecting each person’s unique experience of grief.

Her practice covers a wide range of concerns including intimacy-related issues, addiction, depression, caregiving stress, chronic illness, and ageing and geriatric issues. Sidonia offers relationship-focused work as well as one-to-one counselling, including support for LGBT clients in relationship contexts.

To start, prospective clients complete a short matching questionnaire and then schedule sessions according to the therapist’s availability. Sessions moved online during the Covid period, and she continues to offer remote appointments alongside her practice in Eastbourne.

How Sidonia’s approaches translate to online work

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) helps people clarify what matters most to them and take committed steps toward those values despite difficult feelings. It can be useful for stress, anxiety and coping with life changes. Attachment-Based Therapy looks at how early relationships shape current patterns and helps people understand and change those patterns in relationships with others.

Finding the right approach is part of the therapeutic process. The therapist will work together with each person to choose methods that fit their needs, goals and personal preferences. That choice is reviewed as work progresses so the plan can change if something else would be more helpful.

Her biography notes she began offering online sessions during the Covid period and continues to provide remote appointments. Please confirm the current session formats before booking so you know what is available. Online work can make it easier to fit appointments into busy lives, reduce travel time and allow shorter check-ins when needed. It also makes continuity possible for people who live further away or who need to balance sessions around work and caregiving commitments.