HELLO, WE’RE PLESO THERAPY.

Pleso Therapy (pleso.me) is an online therapy platform founded in Ukraine in 2021 and now operating in the United Kingdom, Poland and Romania. We match adults with verified, accredited therapists for video sessions, we accept only around 10% of the therapists who apply, and we have provided more than 400,000 sessions with a community of over 500 therapists.

The story of Pleso Therapy

Oleksandr Bondariev

Co-Founder & CEO

The idea for Pleso Therapy came to me at the end of 2020, when I was looking for a therapist myself and could not find anyone online I could trust. There was no way to check qualifications, no clear prices and no honest way to compare specialists. In 2021 we built and launched the platform with one rule: every therapist is verified before they see a single client.

I moved to Britain when I was 16. I went to school here, did my A levels, then university and a master’s degree, so in many ways I grew up in the UK and it shaped how I see the world. That is why bringing Pleso Therapy here matters so much to me. It is not about expanding a platform; it is about building online therapy in the UK that fits British culture and professional standards, and gives people a therapist they can trust within days rather than months.

Yours Sincerely,
Oleksandr

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Anna Lissova

Co-Founder & Chief Therapist

When I was first asked to help build Pleso Therapy, I expected another marketplace that lists anyone with a certificate. As a practising therapist I had seen too many clients harmed by inexperienced specialists, so my first condition was simple: I would design the selection process, and it would be strict.

Today that process is the core of Pleso Therapy. Every applicant needs a recognised qualification, at least three years of post-qualification experience with clients, and is peer-interviewed by our Therapy Leads, not by sales staff. Only around one in ten is accepted, and every therapist then takes part in regular supervision and periodic quality evaluations. That is what lets us promise clients a therapist who is competent, ethical and genuinely present.

With best wishes,
Anna

Mission of Pleso Therapy

Since our foundation in 2021 we have worked by one principle: "We solve an incredibly important client need — happiness and wellbeing. Revenue is only the outcome of that work. Every decision, every feature and every word must pass one test: ‘Will this truly improve our client’s mental state?’" That sentence still filters every product update, every pricing decision and every therapist we accept.

Every day we work to remove the stigma around asking for psychological support. Some people believe therapy is only for the weak; others believe online therapy cannot work. Neither is true. Therapy is practical, evidence-based and life-changing, and research shows that video sessions can be as effective as in-person ones for common concerns such as anxiety, depression, stress and burnout. Mental health, like physical health, is built from small, consistent steps, and we are here to help you take them.

Pleso Therapy and support for Ukrainians during the war

Even before Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, requests for help with anxiety and stress were rising sharply across Ukraine. When the invasion began we paused the service for a short time to regroup: many of our therapists had to evacuate at short notice, and some were under temporary occupation. We supported them as best we could.

As soon as some of our therapists were safe, we began offering free and low-cost therapy to anyone who needed it, and launched free therapeutic groups to reach as many people as possible. That commitment continues today. Pleso Therapy still supports Ukrainians at home and abroad, and that experience shapes how we think about access to therapy everywhere we operate.

Pleso Therapy in the United Kingdom

After launching in Ukraine in 2021, Pleso Therapy expanded to Poland and then to Romania, where we became one of the leading online therapy platforms. Along the way we joined the Google for Startups Ukraine Support Fund and the MIT Enterprise Forum CEE Poland Prize accelerator and built local teams in each country. Today the platform has provided more than 400,000 therapy sessions with a community of over 500 verified therapists.

In the UK we work with a dedicated local team and accept only therapists who are members of a recognised professional body: BACP, UKCP, HCPC, BABCP or COSRT. Every UK therapist holds an Enhanced DBS check and professional indemnity insurance, and qualifications and memberships are shown on each profile. Sessions are online by video and are never recorded, we follow UK GDPR, pricing is transparent, and you can cancel free of charge up to 24 hours before a session.