Therapy for low self-esteem in Nottingham

I'm Mandy van Zwam, a psychotherapeutic counsellor, and I offer counselling and psychotherapy for adults who carry a quiet sense of not being good enough, in Beeston, Nottingham, and online across the UK. Together we look at where that belief came from, so it stops passing itself off as the truth about you.

My private practice opens in early 2027. Sessions cost £80 for 50 minutes, in person or online, and we start with a free 20-minute discovery call. Until then, your GP can help, or you can refer yourself to NHS talking therapies.

What does low self-esteem feel like?

Often it doesn't feel like anything in particular. It feels like the way things are. You assume people are putting up with you. You apologise for asking. You explain a compliment away before it lands. You stay in jobs or relationships that treat you badly, because part of you thinks that is about right. Mistakes feel like proof; successes feel like luck.

Low self-esteem sits underneath many other difficulties: anxiety, low mood, people-pleasing, perfectionism, trouble with food, relationships that keep going the same way. You may come to therapy for one of those and find that this is what it is about.

How can therapy help with self-esteem?

You rarely reason your way into a belief like "I'm not enough". You learn it, usually early, from how people treated you and what you made of that as a child. Because you learned it in relationships, it tends to shift in one. That is also why positive affirmations so rarely reach it.

My training is in transactional analysis, which looks at the conclusions we drew about ourselves as children and still live by without noticing. We find yours, test them against your life now, and notice how they show up in the room with me: whether you expect me to judge you, or hold back what you really think. Being taken seriously, week after week, by someone paying close attention is part of how the belief loosens.

Is this the right help for me?

Therapy with me suits people who want to understand how they came to see themselves this way. It is not a quick confidence course, and there are no worksheets. If you would prefer something short and structured, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) through NHS talking therapies may suit you better. If low self-worth has turned into thoughts of harming yourself, or a sense that people would be better off without you, please tell your GP. If you are having thoughts of ending your life, please don't wait: call Samaritans on 116 123 at any hour, or 999 if you are in danger now.

What happens next?

My private practice opens in early 2027, and you can join the waitlist now. When a place comes up, we start with a free 20-minute discovery call to talk about what is happening for you and whether working together feels right. If it does, we meet weekly for 50 minutes, in person in Beeston or by video from anywhere in the UK. You don't have to make a case for yourself to get in touch.

You can read more about me and my training, see what therapy costs, or read common questions about sessions and confidentiality.

Common questions

Is low self-esteem the same as low confidence?

Not quite. You can be confident in what you do, at work or on a stage, and still feel worthless underneath. Self-esteem is how you judge your own worth, and that is what we work with.

Can we work in Dutch?

Yes. Therapy in Dutch.

Where I see clients in and around Nottingham

In person at Highfields Therapy in Beeston (NG9), a short tram, train or bus ride from Chilwell, Attenborough, Bramcote, Stapleford, Wollaton, Lenton and West Bridgford. Online by video anywhere in the UK.