Elsie Owen

You may agree to take on more at work when you're already stretched too thin, replay a conversation at 11pm, wondering if you said the wrong thing, or feel guilty for cancelling plans, even when you're exhausted.

I specialise in people-pleasing and boundaries, working with people who say yes when they mean no, feel responsible for other people's feelings, and go over and above because they don't want to let anyone down.

This pattern often goes unrecognised for a long time, because it looks a lot like just being kind, capable and easy to have around. Many of the people I work with are thoughtful, high-achieving and the person everyone else relies on, but are exhausted by how much they hold together, with very little left over for themselves.

At the root of this is often a lack of boundaries and a difficulty with knowing where you end, and someone else begins. Having boundaries means recognising that you have needs and limits, and that being kind to everyone else sometimes has a cost to you. Without this, there’s no end to what you give, meaning you carry the emotional mood of your relationships, feel responsible when someone else is upset, and believe your own needs matter less than theirs.

Left unaddressed, people-pleasing has a huge personal cost. It’s common to feel more worried and anxious than you seem, and to carry a sense of resentment that’s hard to name or acknowledge. To everyone else you seem fine, when in reality, a lifetime of people-pleasing is also a lifetime of self-abandonment, where you’ve become a version of yourself that suits everyone else, but doesn’t actually feel authentic or fulfilling for you.

How I can support you

A big part of the work is reconnecting with yourself and who you are underneath everything you do for others, strengthening your boundaries, and building the language and confidence to say no, communicate what you need, and hold your ground in the relationships where it's hardest to do so - often with family and the people closest to you.

Our work may include:

• Understanding where your people-pleasing comes from, and why it's a pattern that can change
• Reconnecting with your own needs and feelings
• Building boundaries that protect your time, energy and capacity
• Managing the guilt and anxious overthinking that comes with prioritising yourself
• Finding healthy emotional separation from other people's feelings
• Communicating what you need and holding your ground in difficult relationships

Change often shows up as: making plans for yourself without needing to explain or apologise for them, trusting your own judgement instead of seeking reassurance, and no longer being the first to put your hand up for things nobody else wants to do. It's less about becoming a different person, and more about finally having room to be the person you already are, underneath everyone else's expectations.

My approach 

I'm an integrative therapist, which means I don't work to a single fixed model - I draw on psychodynamic, transactional analysis, trauma-informed and attachment-based approaches, adapted to who you are and what you want from our work together. 

I have almost a decade of experience supporting clients to overcome people-pleasing, manage social and generalised anxiety, build self-esteem, strengthen their boundaries and manage the discomfort that comes with stepping forward to advocate for yourself, so you can create what you actually want from you life. You can explore my work in these areas in more detail through my website or instagram.

You can expect sessions with me to be intentional, collaborative and gentle, but I will also challenge you, share direct feedback, and introduce tools and resources when they feel helpful.

I believe that a therapist who shows up as a real person creates a safer, more meaningful space. I like to bring my own experiences and personality to the work I do, as much as my clinical knowledge. You can trust that I won’t just sit there and nod during our sessions.

The practicalities 

I offer individual psychotherapy to adults both in-person and online.

In-person sessions take place on Wednesdays from my therapy room in King’s Cross, Central London.

Online sessions are held Tuesday - Thursday on Zoom and offer effective therapy from the convenience and safety of your own space.

We can also meet in a hybrid way, where we mix between meeting online and in-person.

Early morning appointments are available.

Fees & frequency 

Therapy is typically held weekly or bi-weekly, depending on clinical need and capacity, for as long as it continues to be helpful. This involves reviewing often, revisiting your reasons for coming and checking in about the progress we both feel we’re making.

The fee is £95 - £125 per 50-minute session, and you select what works for you within this bracket.

Next steps

If you're considering getting in touch, I offer a complimentary exploration call that gives us an opportunity to have a brief initial conversation and establish whether we feel we’ll work well together.

If we decide to progress, we’ll arrange a consultation session before moving into meeting regularly. You can reach out via email or my website to get started.

Boundaries, codependency and people-pleasing:

My practice has become increasingly focused on the areas of people-pleasing, codependency and boundaries, and I have a real interest in how these themes show up for women especially.

I have developed frameworks for letting go of the guilt we feel for putting ourselves first, models for setting healthy boundaries, and written numerous courses, run groups, and hold workshops around these topics, too.

You can explore my work in these areas via my Instagram or my website linked above.

Those impacted by someone else's alcoholism/drinking or other addiction:

I have many years of experience supporting people impacted by someone else’s drinking/alcoholism, where patterns of people-pleasing and difficulties with boundaries are incredibly common.

Other areas of experience:

Anxiety, Burnout, Bereavement, Family issues, Generalised anxiety disorder, High sensitivity, Jealousy, Loneliness, Low self-confidence, Low self-esteem, Narcissistic abuse, Panic attacks, Perfectionism, Redundancy, Relationship problems, Separation and divorce, Separation anxiety, Social anxiety, Stress, Trauma, Work-related stress.

For Therapists:

I mentor fellow therapists through what I call ‘business supervision’, supporting them with the practical things that clinical supervision doesn’t cover, from managing finances to marketing on Instagram and creating digital products. (More info: www.elsieowen.com/for-therapists).

I’m also a visiting tutor on the Homa therapy training in Central London. 

The session fee is £95 - £125 for 50 minutes (you will be invited to self-select a fee that is affordable for you within this bracket). 

I offer a complimentary exploration call that gives us an opportunity to have a brief initial conversation and establish whether we feel we’ll work well together. 

Previous client feedback:

"I began therapy with Elsie 12 months ago to work on my people-pleasing patterns, and it's been one of the best decisions I've ever made. Before starting this journey, I found conflict incredibly difficult to navigate and struggled to be open and honest about my feelings or assert what I wanted. I was so focused on keeping everyone else happy that I'd completely lost touch with my own needs.

Through working with Elsie, I've developed real confidence in myself and my ability to communicate authentically. The mental load has significantly lifted, and there's so much less noise in my head now. I can express my thoughts, set healthy boundaries, and value my own feelings without the anxiety and overthinking that used to dominate my days.

The positive impact has been felt across every area of my life, and I'm calmer, clearer, and genuinely more content. I couldn't be more grateful for her support and guidance." - October 2025

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"I first came to therapy to access some support for my family dynamics. I was hoping to feel more in control of my boundaries and to feel less overwhelmed and affected by others around me.

​I have found therapy with Elsie extremely meaningful. I feel very grateful to have been given a space to explore my authentic feelings and develop practical strategies and skills that truly help me in my day-to-day life. The support I've received and the work I have been able to do has been life-changing for me. Elsie's support after losing my dad gave me a safe space to explore and face it. She was unbelievably kind, patient, and supportive.

Life looks very different now - I feel much more able to express my own needs, feelings and boundaries. I understand my relationships and myself far better, and I feel much more able to advocate for myself. I feel so grateful for Elsie's support. My therapy sessions are extremely meaningful to me, and they have had a profound impact on my life and my experience of the world." - November 2025

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"I’ve met myself properly for the first time since first exploring Elsie’s boundaries course, and following on to one-to-one therapy. Elsie is highly skilled in creating a gentle, informed space to explore your own needs, identify and trial new behaviours, tenderly acknowledge how the past has shaped you, and learn to hear your own voice. Thank you, Elsie. Your practice is life-changing." - February 2026