Michelle Robinson-Hayes, BACP

Michelle Robinson-Hayes is a psychotherapeutic counsellor and hypnotherapist with a decade of experience helping people manage stress, anxiety, grief, relationship strain and long-term health challenges. She works with individuals facing depression, addiction, bipolar disorder and issues around self-esteem, intimacy and parenting. Michelle also supports people coping with chronic pain, cancer, caregiving stress and major life changes.

Her approach is practical and person-centred. Sessions focus on what matters most to the client and on small, achievable steps. She uses conversational techniques alongside structured tools when helpful. Clients can expect straightforward language and an emphasis on real-life coping strategies.

Michelle trained and practises hypnotherapy alongside talking therapies. She combines client-centred care with elements of cognitive behavioural techniques, mindfulness and motivational interviewing. These tools are selected to suit each person’s situation and goals rather than applied in a fixed way.

Before founding her counselling service, Michelle spent many years in senior management roles in corporate settings. That background shaped her coaching skills and her comfort with goal setting, planning and outcomes-focused work. She has delivered training and supervision to counsellors and taught hypnotherapy up to level 5.

She is BACP (British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy) registered and has provided well over a thousand hours of counselling and several hundred hours of hypnotherapy. Michelle has volunteered with bereavement support services and acted as a mentor for students and mature learners navigating health and study challenges.

Approaches used in online therapy and what they offer

Client-centred therapy focuses on the person rather than the problem and helps people feel heard while they decide what changes to make. It suits issues such as stress, low self-esteem and coping with life changes where building understanding is the priority.

Cognitive behavioural therapy, or CBT, looks at patterns of thinking and behaviour and helps people develop practical ways to reduce anxiety, manage mood and change unhelpful habits. It often uses short exercises and clear tasks to try between sessions.

Hypnotherapy combines guided relaxation with focused attention to help with habits, anxiety and managing physical symptoms like pain or insomnia. In practice it is offered alongside talking therapies to reinforce change work.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will discuss goals, preferences and practical needs, then suggest which methods to try. This is a collaborative decision and can be adapted as therapy progresses.

Michelle has experience with telephone and video counselling, but session options can change, so please confirm current formats before booking. Online work can make it easier to fit therapy into a busy day, allow shorter check-ins when needed, and reduce travel time. It also lets people access support when local services are limited, while keeping the focus on practical strategies and recovery.