As a Solution Focused Therapist I use a combination of collaborative therapies to help you make significant, positive changes in a relatively short period of time. At our first consultation we can usually determine which combination is likely to provide the best results for you, but you can be assured I will always take into account your thoughts and feelings to ensure you are comfortable with the therapy direction.

BA (Behavioural Activation) As a treatment for depression and other mood disorders, Behavioural Activation is based on the theory that as individuals become depressed, they tend to increase avoidance and isolation behaviour, which in turn maintains or worsens their symptoms. The goal of BA treatment is to gradually increase your engagement in activities that you enjoyed before becoming depressed, activities that improve your mood. We also examine sleep routines and eating habits and work toward normalizing these, as sleep and diet often change when individuals become depressed.

CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) is a type of talking treatment that focuses on how your thoughts, beliefs and attitudes affect your feelings and behaviour, and teaches you coping skills for dealing with different problems. It combines cognitive therapy (examining the things you think) and behaviour therapy (examining the things you do) and is based on the idea that the way we think about situations can affect the way we feel and behave. For example, if you interpret a situation negatively then you might experience negative emotions as a result, and those unhelpful feelings might then lead you to behave in a certain way. CBT aims to stop negative cycles by breaking down things that make you feel unhappy, anxious or scared. By making your problems more manageable, CBT can help you change your negative thought patterns and improve the way you feel.

SFBT (Solution-focused brief therapy) places the focus on a person’s future goals rather than past experiences. Together we look at where you want to be and determine the skills, resources, and abilities needed to achieve this. SFBT is grounded in the belief that you may already have the skills needed to create changes in your life but simply need help identifying and developing those skills.

Similar to SFBT therapy Solution Focused Hypnotherapy focuses on the present and future and not on the past. Through relaxation and visualisation, hypnosis allows you to focus on the positive aspects of your life, encouraging and enabling a shift in perspective. Solution Focused Hypnotherapy can be particularly helpful with confidence and self esteem problems and can also be useful in the treatment of anxiety and panic attacks. Using the Rewind technique, phobias such as spiders, flying and public speaking can also be minimised.