An English-speaking counsellor for women in Paris

If you live in Paris and want an English-speaking counsellor, I offer person-centred sessions online by secure video, from the UK. You book directly for £45 a session, with no GP letter and no French paperwork. I'm a trainee counsellor and BACP student member who works under supervision, and I'm not part of the French health system. This is private counselling, not French psychological care.

Why look for an English-speaking therapist in Paris?

You might speak good French. You might have passed the B2 exam, argued with your landlord and sorted out your carte Vitale without help. And still, when you try to say what is actually wrong, the words come out flat, careful and slightly beside the point.

It's one reason some people in Paris look for an English-speaking therapist even when their French is strong. It can feel as though feelings live in the language you first had them in. Talking about grief, shame or a difficult mother in French can feel like describing someone else's life.

Paris has long drawn people from abroad. France as a whole had about 7.97 million immigrants in 2025, 11.6% of the population, according to provisional INSEE figures. An earlier INSEE study, based on the 2012 census, found that 38% of all immigrants in France lived in the Paris urban area, compared with 17% of everyone else. You're in good company. That doesn't automatically make it easier to find someone to talk to.

Finding a therapist in Paris through the French system

France changed one of its routes into talking therapy in 2025. Under the Mon soutien psy scheme, since 16 May 2025 you can book directly with a partner psychologist, without being referred by a doctor, and the Assurance maladie reimburses up to 12 sessions a year. According to ameli.fr, it's meant for mild to moderate psychological distress, the first assessment session is in person at the psychologist's practice, and later sessions can be held by video case by case. It isn't meant for people at suicidal risk or who need a psychiatric opinion first.

That's real progress. In practice, the questions for an English speaker are whether a partner psychologist near you works in English, and whether the scheme's limits fit what you need. You can search the official partner directory on the Mon soutien psy website, and my guide on how to find a therapist abroad has questions worth asking any practice before you start.

Outside the scheme, private sessions in Paris are paid out of pocket, and your mutuelle may or may not cover part of them.

I'm not a French psychologue and I don't use that title. I'm a counsellor, trained in the UK, offering online sessions from there.

Being a woman from elsewhere in Paris

Paris has a reputation, and it isn't always fair. Still, you might find the first years socially hard. Friendships can take a long time. Neighbours may stay neighbours. Admin can feel like a test you didn't know you were sitting.

Imagine a few versions of this. You moved for a job in finance or fashion and found the hours longer than anyone said. You came for love and now spend your weekends with his family, keeping up with a conversation that moves faster than you can. You're raising a child here, and the school, the doctor and the other parents all speak a French you're still learning. Your mother calls on Sundays and asks when you're coming home.

None of these is a disorder. They are the ordinary weight of building a life somewhere new, and they can still be heavy. If the main feeling is isolation, the page on expat loneliness may help. If you're torn between what your family expects and what you want, have a look at family duty and self. The three-question loneliness test is a free, private way to notice how you are doing.

How online counselling in English works from Paris

Paris is one hour ahead of the UK all year round. A 12pm UK session is 1pm in Paris, which works for some people as a lunch hour with the door shut.

We meet by secure video for 50 minutes. Paris flats can be small and the walls thin, so think about where you'll be private. Headphones help. Some people walk to a quiet spot or sit in a parked car.

The fee is £45 per session, charged in pounds. I keep a limited number of lower-cost places for students, trainees and people on a low income. The cancellation policy is 48 hours. Details are on the fees page, and you can book online when you're ready. If you have questions first, write to hello@michellefernando.com and I'll reply within 48 hours.

More about how I work with people abroad is on the page about online therapy for expats. If this would be your first time, read what to expect in your first counselling session, and my checked list of free mental health resources for expats and migrants is there if you'd like to read in English first.

You don't have to choose between French help and English help. If you're already seeing a psychologist through Mon soutien psy, or you're on a waiting list, you can still talk to me, as long as we're both clear about what each one is for. Some people find it useful to have one place where nothing needs translating, and where they don't have to keep track of the words for things.

Who I am: a trainee counsellor under supervision

I'm Michelle Fernando, a trainee person-centred counsellor and BACP student member. I'm studying for an MSc in Counselling and Psychotherapy at Keele University, I work as a placement counsellor in Shrewsbury, and I have regular clinical supervision. I hold a postgraduate diploma in counselling from the University of Colombo and a psychology degree from Coventry University.

Person-centred counselling means I won't interpret you from the outside or tell you what to do. I'll listen carefully and try to understand how things are for you, and I'll be honest. You can read more on the about page.

I work from the UK. I'm not registered in France, I can't diagnose or prescribe, and you shouldn't expect the Assurance maladie or a mutuelle to reimburse my sessions. Because I'm still training, my fee is lower than a qualified counsellor's.

When you need local help in Paris instead

If your life is in danger, call 112.

If you're thinking about suicide, call 3114, free and open 24 hours a day across France. In English, SOS Help answers on 01 46 21 46 46 between 3pm and 11pm. SOS Amitié takes calls in French around the clock on 09 72 39 40 50. My page of verified mental health and women's support services in Paris adds the psychiatric emergency service at Sainte-Anne and support for women affected by violence, and the national numbers are on mental health helplines in France.

I don't work with psychosis, eating disorders, addiction, specialist trauma treatment, couples or children. For any of these, your médecin traitant is the right first step. For more on France in general, see English-speaking counselling in France.