The Value of Therapy

Why do people seek therapy? For some it is the only time in an otherwise hectic week, when a person can pause for reflection. It's an opportunity to look at life as it really is, with the help of a trusted person, within a safe environment. It can be a selected time to view and question what a person is really feeling and thinking in his/her life and to discover more about why he/she feels any of the following states: confused, panicked, stressed, sad, lonely, anxious, angry or lost.

Hopefully therapy, in whatever approach that a person selects, is democratic, in that no matter what walk of life a person is from, they can come to the sessions and be treated with the same genuineness, positive regard and acceptance.

Therapists occupy a unique place in people's lives i.e. individuals will share much of who they are and yet know little if anything, about the person that they spend 50 minutes with each week. Hopefully a close alliance will be created, yet there is an end point, even if that is unknown at the start of the work. Being able to establish and maintain these boundaries in a genuinely caring way is an essential part of the therapist's role and responsibility towards his/her client.

One of the things that people tell me they most value about the therapeutic process is the space to be who they are without dread, without embarrassment or shame. For many people in whatever crisis they are facing, there is more pressure or distress in 'burdening' their loved ones and choosing a therapist can feel like a better option.  There can be something quite liberating about a consistent space in which to be oneself and to make sense of one's life in a supportive environment.

It can be very difficult for any individual facing a crisis in their life, to gain clarity and perspective. When thoughts are confused, and feelings are overwhelming, relaxation techniques and cognitive exercises can go a long way in empowering a person to gain the clarity he/she needs to feel stronger and more self assured. Despite it still being something of a taboo in the Uk (unlike the USA) more and more people are acknowledging the benefits of therapy and organisations are realising this necessity for staff. In an ever-increasing anxious world it would seem to be an essential part of maintaining mental and emotional well being.

Beating The Winter Blues - A CBT Approach

For many of us this Winter has been posing new challenges. With the darkening mood of the recession in the Uk and Europe most people are struggling to stay positive as this year rolls to an end. Added to this is the recollection of last year's severe weather and its impact on business and health. With some anticipation we are all keeping an eye on weather reports and hoping for the best! On a positive note we have experienced the mildest Autumn on record and so far most of us are still enjoying a relatively mild Winter. Yet, potentially all of the above has created anxious thoughts which in turn can lead to a drop in mood. This is where CBT can be effective.

Developed in the 1960s by  therapists Beck and Ellis, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy looks at how thoughts, perceptions and interpretations can affect mood, emotions and behaviour. This is particularly beneficial where we become stuck in unhelpful cycles of negative and anxious thinking. An understanding of this process can enable individuals to become more aware and learn how to identify where negative thought patterns work against them. In a warm, collaborative and creative way, CBT can facilitate change in most areas of life.

A simple thought log which requires an individual to record negative or anxious thoughts can be revealing when the emotional impact of such thoughts is identified - from here new and challenging counter thoughts can be generated, giving a person a sense of how to affect change in his or her life. A positive data list can help an individual collect a reference list of all positive changes, resources and challenges, which can otherwise go unnoticed. A simple lifestyle checklist can enable a person to do a quick run through of specific lifestyle aspects which go some way to maintaining good mental, emotional and physical wellbeing i.e. work, social life, diet and nutrition, exercise, rest and relaxation, hobbies, making time for relationships and taking on new challenges.

Given all of the current challenges that we face, CBT makes a lot of sense.

Looking at the news footage this past week, it is easy for us to look at the scenes of looting and chaos and feel outraged. Yet, as the authorities start to get things under control, and people start to feel a sense of safety on the street, I wonder how much time we will spend in sorting out what underpins the rage displayed by all these young people, and how we as a society intend to deal with that rage. It seems to me that the behaviour is symptomatic of disaffected youth, the roots of which will go much deeper than getting a prison sentence or being fined. Maybe we need Pyschologists, Counsellors, Youth Workers, Teachers Politicians and Parents, to work together on these issues. The rage displayed shows a total lack of empathy or respect for other people and other people's livelihood, but we have to ask why? How is it happening that these kids don't have a sense of right and wrong? Poverty, deprivation, unemployment, the future is bleak for many young people yet there is always a choice to demonstrate and deal with these issues through non-violent means. Perhaps if we can accept collective responsibility rather than demonise and right these kids off, we have a chance to create positive change.