So I've created several pages of information that I hope you'll find useful if you want to understand what some of these things are, and how they might be helpful to you.I realise all the different names, labels and types of therapy can seem confusing to anyone who isn't a trained therapist!
Of course, you don't really need to know all about the different modalities of therapy (that's my job), but it's perfectly natural to be curious so I hope you'll find these pages useful. And if not, please let me know how they might be changed to make them more helpful.
Psychotherapy
'Psychotherapy' is an umbrella term covering a variety of approaches to therapy, often described as 'talking therapies', which can create the misleading impression that it’s all about sitting and talking. In fact, many of the developments in psychotherapy models over the last 50 years involve an element of skills training, and things to do or practice during or between sessions (as well as talking!).
Broadly speaking, the aim is to help people gain insight into their problems or distress, then to develop skills and resources to cope, to become motivated, and to bring about desired changes. And of course, this can include working out what those desired changes might look like. During sessions, clients can explore their thoughts, feelings and life events within a safe, confidential environment, facilitated with the help of a trained psychotherapist.
The links in the navigation panel will provide more specific information for each of the following approaches that I work with:
ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy)
- A mindfulness-based behaviour therapy with a strong evidence base
- The core processes in the ACT model
- Frequently asked questions
Mindfulness
- Mindfulness in a secular context
- The benefits arising from practicing mindfulness
- Mindfulness-based therapies for individuals and groups
- Frequently asked questions
Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT)
- Background information on CFT
- What we mean by compassion, and how it differs from pity
- How neuroscience, evolutionary psychology, and social psychology are fundamental to the CFT model
Hypnosis and Hypnotherapy
- Information on hypnosis, and the difficulty in defining it
- Hypnosis as a tool in therapy
- The hypnotherapy description provided by the CNHC
- Frequently asked questions
Image Transformation Therapy (ImTT)
- Information about ImTT and its uses
- The origins and development of ImTT
Online Therapy
- Qualification and training
- Requirements for sessions
- Further considerations
Frequently Asked Questions:
Can Psychotherapy help me?
Psychotherapy has helped people deal with many difficulties and problems in life, including: Anxiety, stress, low self-esteem, lack of confidence, depression and sadness, mood swings, relationship problems (making, sustaining, or destructive relationship patterns), grief and bereavement, eating disorders, obsessive behaviour, phobias and fears, panic attacks, addiction, sexual problems, difficulty coping with life changes, trauma symptoms, etc.
You don’t need to be in crisis or have any kind of mental health diagnosis when seeking help from a psychotherapist
The quality of the relationship between the therapist and client is a major factor in successful therapy, so choosing a therapist you can trust and feel confident to work with is important.
What is the difference between psychotherapy and counselling?
Historically, psychotherapy was long-term, as was the training required for qualification, it was also generally considered to be able to help with a wider range of problems. However, the boundaries have become blurred, to the extent that the words are often used interchangeably: The same theoretical models may be employed, and the same problems may be alleviated. As a result, sometimes the most obvious distinction may come from the qualification that the practitioner has gained. Currently, several of the professional bodies in the UK are working to produce clear guidelines on the roles of psychotherapists and counsellors, which may create more clearly defined boundaries in the future.
Is psychotherapy confidential?
Yes, client confidentiality is taken very seriously. Everything within the psychotherapy relationship is considered to be confidential, although there are a few specific legal and health-related exceptions to this. Professional bodies require psychotherapists to work with supervision throughout their careers, and their supervisors are also bound by the same rules of confidentiality. The need for confidentiality is one of the reasons why professional bodies for psychotherapists will usually prohibit the use of client testimonials. (More information on confidentiality and disclosure can be found under 'Client Information').
How does psychotherapy work?
There’s no simple answer to this question; every client is unique and every relationship between a client and their therapist will also be unique, and the changes that come from psychotherapy are partly about the quality of that relationship, and of course the specific needs of that client, and the approach to therapy that the psychotherapist is utilising.
There’s plenty of research that shows that psychotherapy works, and also research that shows certain factors are closely related to successful outcomes, such as the quality of the relationship between therapist and client.
Aspects of the therapeutic relationship that help to bring about change include; the creation of a safe space and a consistent relationship with well-maintained boundaries (particularly when clients have not been experiencing this in other relationships); gaining new perspectives and insights; the processing of traumatic experiences; developing new skills to better handle difficult thoughts and feelings; reconnecting with values and meaning; developing and rehearsing new patterns of behaviours.