Zul Virani

I currently have availability for new clients.

You carry a lot.

Work. Family. Responsibility. Expectations.

From the outside, you look steady.

Inside, it can feel flat, tense, or disconnected.

You can’t switch off. You don’t really know who you are beyond what you provide.

Many of the people I work with aren’t falling apart. They’re functioning. They’re capable. But something feels absent. They describe feeling numb, over-responsible, or unable to say out loud what’s actually going on.

A lot of my work is with men in midlife who have spent years being the reliable one. Over time, that role can quietly take over. Your identity narrows. Your emotional range shrinks. You keep going, but you feel less connected to yourself.

Therapy gives you space to slow down and look at what’s underneath all that. Not to dismantle your responsibilities, but to understand how you relate to them.

Alongside this, I work with university students dealing with academic pressure, anxiety, impostor feelings and identity questions. Higher education can intensify old patterns; fear of failure, self-criticism, attachment insecurity. Pushing harder doesn’t always solve it. Understanding it usually helps more.

I also support people facing serious illness, anticipatory grief, or bereavement. These conversations are often avoided elsewhere. They don’t need to be avoided here.

In the room, I’m calm and steady. I won’t rush you.

I will also challenge you when it’s useful.

My approach is integrative and relational, informed by humanistic, psychodynamic and transpersonal perspectives. We might work in a focused, short-term way, or we might go deeper over time. We pay attention to responsibility, attachment, identity and how they shape the way you live now.

You don’t need to perform here.

You don’t need to protect anyone else in the room.

I hold a Foundation Degree in Integrative Counselling (BACP accredited) and am a Registered Member of the BACP.

I practice in Frimley, Surrey, in a private and professional setting with ample parking. I offer face-to-face, online and telephone sessions.

I work with adults (18+), including students and older adults.

Clients commonly come to me with anxiety, stress, depression, identity concerns, work-related pressure, relationship difficulties, and illness-related distress.

I volunteer with The Brain Tumour Charity and at the University of Surrey Wellbeing Centre, supporting individuals affected by illness, loss and significant transition.

Before training as a therapist, I worked for many years in technical and property-based roles. I know what it’s like to retrain later in life and to question who you are after decades of responsibility.

Sessions are 50 minutes and usually weekly. I offer both short-term and longer-term work. Frequency can be adjusted where appropriate, and we review progress regularly.

Fees are from £60 per session. Concessions and student rates are available. I offer flexible daytime and evening appointments.

I am DBS checked, fully insured, and work in line with the BACP Ethical Framework. I engage in regular clinical supervision to support safe and ethical practice.

A 48-hour cancellation policy applies to booked sessions.

I offer a free introductory assessment session in person, by phone, or online.

This isn’t therapy. It’s a chance for us to talk through what’s bringing you here, see whether I’m the right fit, and think about how we might work together.

There’s no obligation to continue after that first meeting.