You Listen to Your Child’s Story but Who Listens to Yours?

Supporting adoptive parents - not just the child - because parents’ mental health matters too

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Being an adoptive parent can bring a mix of complex feelings, emotional challenges, and experiences that are unique to your journey.

Do you ask yourself ‘Am I allowed to need support too?’ The answer is very clearly: yes.

Support for adoptive families often focuses on the child but many adoptive parents come into parenting with pre-existing worries, self-doubt, or a tendency to carry responsibility quietly. Adoption can intensify these patterns — leading to constant worry, guilt, overthinking, or a sense of never quite being “good enough”. I support adoptive parents who are doing their very best, yet feel exhausted by the pressure they place on themselves.

Feeling struggle doesn’t mean you are failing

A mum and adopted daughter holding hands, with one wearing a teal knitted sweater and the other wearing a blue jacket. The background shows an outdoor setting.

It just means you’re human. Becoming an adoptive parent changes what “normal” looks like, and that’s okay. Adoption training helps, but it can’t fully prepare you for the real, lived experience of adoption.

Finding yourself here now means that you have the self awareness to know you need some support and the courage to find it. See you’re already smashing it.

Ready to smash it some more?

EXPLORE ONLINE THERAPY

“Becoming an adoptive parent can bring more than just positive new experiences — it can also awaken old stories, fears, and challenges you didn’t anticipate.”

- SOPHIE LONGDEN

A therapist sitting in her office, beside her laptop, looking out of the window wearing a navy blue top.

Hi, I’m Sophie

A CBT and EMDR Therapist based in the North West of England.

I specialise in supporting adoptive parents who are finding the transition into parenthood more challenging than expected. If you’re experiencing feelings of anxiety, grief, depression, or overwhelm, I’m here to help you make sense of those emotions.

Together, we’ll explore the new and the old, uncovering how past patterns and present coping strategies might be shaping how you feel today.

My approach is calm and honest, and here you can speak openly, without fear or holding back, so that you can begin to find peace, strength, and joy in your unique family story.

MEET SOPHIE

How we can work together

A therapist sitting at her desk with a laptop, about to do a client therapy session, with a bookshelf in the background.

Using Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and EMDR Therapy, I support you in understanding your own story - with compassion - so you can move from the stress and struggle to greater self confidence and strength.

LEARN HOW

  • Gratitude Notes from Clients

    “I just wanted to really thank you for the work that you have done with me. You have helped me immensely to change my thoughts, my feelings and my life and to see things in a much more positive way. Thank you so much!”

    — 1:1 THERAPY CLIENT

  • Gratitude Notes from Clients

    “This has been the best therapy I have had - extremely useful. You have been brilliant and everything has been highly relevant to what I needed.”

    — 1:1 THERAPY CLIENT

  • Gratitude Notes from Clients

    “I feel the therapy I received was excellent and I am more happy in myself than I have been for a long time. Sophie instantly made me feel comfortable and her hard work is very much appreciated.”

    — 1:1 THERAPY CLIENT

Resources for learning and growth

Here you’ll find practical tools, reflections, and exercises to help you learn and grow from the inside out. Each resource is designed to build your confidence, strengthen your self-trust and give you a boost of kindness.