What is Psychological Therapy? 

Psychological therapy is not the mystical enigma that people can mistakenly think it is! To put it simply, it is a process of breaking down what has happened in our lives, or parts of it, and working out what might have contributed to some of our current negative experiences such as post-trauma responses, anxiety and low mood/depression. Once we’ve joined the dots, I will work with you and/or your child using a range of therapeutic approaches to find ways to process and manage the difficulties that we have identified so that they are no longer dominating your, or your child’s life. 

You may have heard of some types of therapy before. Individual or a combination of the following therapies might be used. Specific neuro-rehabilitation strategies will be used alongside therapies where applicable.

Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) is a type of psychological therapy, which explores patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving, and how certain styles of thinking and behaviour can lead to difficulties within our lives and well-being. CBT explores how our experiences might have shaped some of our current thoughts, feelings and behaviours, and helps us to make sense of these. With this understanding, we can use different techniques to help manage our thoughts and behaviours, which in turn can help manage our emotions and physical responses. We work together to understand these patterns. 

Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a type of therapy most typically used for processing traumatic events, but it is also being increasingly used for many other difficulties. EMDR helps you to process traumatic events using bilateral (side to side) stimulation (such as eye movements, tapping etc), whilst focusing on a troubling event. The therapy can allow the mind to process memories that haven’t been stored correctly at the time of a traumatic event, which is what can lead to PTSD. EMDR can help to process negative memories, images, thoughts and feelings associated with a traumatic event that have become stuck.

EMDR can also be a very effective therapy with children, and we can work creatively in EMDR with children to process troubling events.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a type of mindfulness-based therapy, with some links to cognitive therapies. The primary goal of ACT is to create a rich and meaningful life, whilst accepting and living alongside some of the challenges that go with it. An understanding of our sense of identity is key in ACT, based on our experiences in life, including both negative and positive experiences. When we become stuck on the idea of a certain versions of ourselves, this can lead to more negative emotions and repeating cycles which we, ourselves, find unhelpful. ACT helps us to find ways to manage our challenges and barriers, whilst working towards the life we want to lead.