NHS counselling

[custom_fusion-lqx]

I found it didnt help infact made me more worse. I missed two appointments and they srtuck me off the first i missed by 20 mins and she said i had one warning left after just one? and i still turned up so i just quit after that as i was annoyed. The cbt techniques they use i found to not help at all and it was a very cold isolate building with doors going down a corridor. My brother kept asking me are you going to the 'crazy house?' thats what he nicknamed my therapy anyways it wasnt so good, anyone here have a better experience with NHS counselling or regular counselling?

[Mr Ploppy]

I've had group therapy which was crap, and one to one which is ok, but still waiting to see where it's going.

[schneebeli]

Not sure of the definitions, but I see counselling as different from CBT. The counselling I got was 10 1-hour sessions with a very helpful, insightful woman just talking about more or less anything I wanted. I found it hugely helpful, particularly as I didn't have anyone else to speak to at the time.

The CBT therapy I got OTOH was a contract with a freelance psychologist who I didn't get on with and which made me feel a lot worse than I did before. For CBT to be effective, you have to want it to work, at a very deep level. I suspect it's not going to work for those with a self-destructive, self-defeating or self-pitying personality, and other therapies might be better in that case...

[Littlemissteacherlady]

I'm starting NHS CBT therapy in the new year. Been having the phone sessions at points through this year but it seems I've been upgraded. She's promised to make it consistent but also said I'd have a lot of homework haha! I don't think it's the easy option by any means, a lot of it is about exposing yourself to the things you dread...but I guess if it helps, I'll try it.

If this doesn't work, I'm going to a hypnotherapist who can hopefully convince me I'm a confident person. Tradgic! Better get saving my pennies now!

[Johnni]

^How long did you do CBT for?
Unfortunately as someone said there are good and bad counsellors so if they don't conduct the CBT programme correctly it's kinda pointless. Its different to conventional counselling and not all counsellors are trained to conduct it.
This maybe controversial lol but anyone with SA who doesn't see any benefit from CBT is doing it wrong or aren't giving it enough of a go imo. I've read on here countless times members who only gave it like 2 sessions or did not want to do any exposure events and then question why it wasn't working for them

[Tom123]

I probably need to go back and try it again.

I had 3 sessions years ago and gave up because the guy was completely useless and his knowledge seemed to extend to the first page of a Google search. I was in a completely different mental state then and probably not even ready to try it properly, to be fair.

[Johnni]

Originally Posted by PaloAlto

Years. And I couldn't disagree more with this comment.

I thought you would.

[Johnni]

Originally Posted by tomtom123

I probably need to go back and try it again.

I had 3 sessions years ago and gave up because the guy was completely useless and his knowledge seemed to extend to the first page of a Google search. I was in a completely different mental state then and probably not even ready to try it properly, to be fair.

If i was to do CBT again i wouldn't do it on the NHS. From what i can remember when i asked for it you only have a limited no. of sessions which itself is wrong and you can be seen by more than one counsellor during the course of the programme.
I went private and thankful i did. The person i saw knew what she was doing. I'd recommend private to everyone, its not as expensive as you'd think plus alot of counsellors do discount rates for students/those on benefits.

[Johnni]

Originally Posted by mark101

When i made an attempt on my life two yrs ago i was sent to art class that i mentioned above but i also attended open road because i told the crisis team that i was drinking to excess.My counsellor there was learning CBT and once i opened up to her about my SA she asked if she could use me as her first case.I did find it helpfull and started making progress but no sooner did i start reporting small victory's in my day to day life,she told me that there were needier people and i'd have to carry on the good work on my own.
She told me i now had the tools to better myself but i soon stopped making the effort to do those things,just didn't feel as capable without someone to report back to with my success or failure.I guess i loved having somebody take an interest in my well being,encouraging and praising me but i kinda felt abandoned,sounds really childish but the truth.

I don't blame you for feeling abandoned, i probably would. I would guess your story would be similar to alot of those on the NHS in that they had their programme cut short, sometimes due to more 'severe' patients on the waiting list. Its true that after a while you do sorta learn the tools yourself and don't need someone to write out thought records with you but i think that takes time by doing CBT for a while.

[Johnni]

Originally Posted by PaloAlto

One size does not fit all. The CBT method might work well for one individual and not for another, it doesn't mean that they're not doing it right or 'aren't giving it enough of a go'. That's quite an assumption to make.

But CBT can be catered for the individual, its not that rigid however with SA the main symptoms for this type of anxiety are similar person to person therefore can be addressed accordingly as there have been numerous findings to supports the use of CBT in treating SA and other similar conditions. To say it wasn't helpful at all after yrs of doing it sounds odd imo. My only guess and it is a guess is that there are other underlying issues that need to be addressed also alongside CBT, there was in my case.

[Johnni]

As i said it was 'a guess' and 'imo' (in my opinion) not saying it was true, its a forum at the end of the day, all i got to go on is what you typed same as everyone else does on here.

[Johnni]

Originally Posted by PaloAlto

It seems like you have a hard time accepting CBT does not work for everyone, even when correctly implemented and with a committed patient. I find suggesting there are 'underlying issues' and that it's 'odd' is totally out of line.

Thankfully there are more esteemed clinical psychologists speaking out about CBT's ineffectiveness.

No, i have a hard time when it appears they haven't gave it a chance, in your case i found it odd that you hadn't seen any benefit after doing it for a few yrs thats all. And assumed (whether that was the right thing or not to do) that there must be something else that was complicating or getting in the way of the CBT cos this is what happened to myself so a valid point i thought as it was natural for me to think that i guess. I don't think it was out of line as like i said i wasn't telling you this is what happened in your case as a fact was i?

[Johnni]

Originally Posted by silver-lining

I still think some aspects of CBT will be essential for everyone to get over SA - at some point avoidance and thinking irrationally about ourselves and society will have to be dealt with. But I think CBT is more difficult for some people than others, and some people may find other types of therapy (or medication) easier to access at first.

Yeah i agree and i think tomtom made a point about being not ready to do CBT before. I went on SSRI's around the same time as CBT as i was told it would complement it and make it easier for me to do. They actually made me worse lol and i think slowed down my progress with CBT.

[Johnni]

Originally Posted by silver-lining

Other people don't seem to have that kind of thinking pattern, and so need to be shown how to think in a CBT way before they can make use of CBT - it will just take longer and they will need a bit more help, and that is often lacking. I think these people often give up before the benefits are seen, as it's not so easy and it does take some motivation and some work. And if there isn't an obvious short-term benefit from it, I can see why people give up. (That's one of the reasons why I so strongly advocate group therapy - for the motivation to keep going.)

I was like this after yrs of automatically thinking negatively. It does take time as i know first hand but i feel peoples expectations is that it will take much less time that it actually will and then not consider it again which is unfortunate.

[Saponara_Immobile]

I think I only completed 4 or 5 out of 7 sessions or something like that (of CBT). I found it too simplistic and a lot of questions/scenarios didn't seem relevant. But also I just wasn't in the mood for it some of the days it fell on, and probably was too depressed to be dealing with certain aspects of it. I do feel like I've used the general concept of it though since then, but just on my own (sporadic) terms but I am debating whether to give it another go as maybe I'd be more open to it now.

[Johnni]

Originally Posted by kramer

I think I only completed 4 or 5 out of 7 sessions or something like that (of CBT). I found it too simplistic and a lot of questions/scenarios didn't seem relevant. But also I just wasn't in the mood for it some of the days it fell on, and probably was too depressed to be dealing with certain aspects of it. I do feel like I've used the general concept of it though since then, but just on my own (sporadic) terms but I am debating whether to give it another go as maybe I'd be more open to it now.

Is 7 sessions like the average length people are being given on the NHS? As i described with regards to guiltyconscience earlier for some like me i had to basically change my thought patterns and change the way i think basically with regards to myself and when in social situations. I would have never done that in 7 sessions.

[Johnni]

Originally Posted by PaloAlto

The 'odd' and 'underlying' comments sounded fairly presumptuous, especially along with the rest of what you wrote. The only thing that complicated the CBT was it's futileness and inability to address issues. Anyhow, fair enough it works for some others, but plenty of self-motivated people try it and it does very little/nothing for them (as documented in psychological research). I think different therapy options should be more readily available to those folks.

Well that was kinda something i referred to in a earlier comment about other underlying issues. Wasn't saying you definately had them but that i did and that impacted my CBT progress and merely suggested that might be the same in your case, was more asking if you had them rather than saying you did but wasn't worded right i guess.
I think other therapy options should be considered maybe to address certain issues if they feel CBT is not addressing them. If those issues are still persistant CBT may not be able to work against them so therapy to understand those issues may required before someone starts CBT.

[Johnni]

Yeah i meant issues anxiety related.

[Ajax Amsterdam]

Originally Posted by PaloAlto

... I've already stated why it did not work for me. A more comprehensive form of psychotherapy that addresses an individual's earlier issues may be more helpful for a lot of folks instead of the default CBT or medication options.

This is the problem with the current obsession with CBT. Like all therapies, CBT has its limitations. It simply does not suit everyone. I've had clients who have previously had CBT and hated it, finding it useless for them personally. They have then responded far better to our Person-Centred Counselling sessions.

CBT is not interested in issues. It isn't interested in feelings and emotions. It is simply interested in solutions. Many people want and need something a bit deeper though. Horses for courses and all that. If you want to talk over your issues and your feelings, avoid CBT.

This is not a criticism of CBT at all. I know CBT is very effective with clients who respond to that method. We just have to look at different approaches and work out which model of therapy best suits our needs.

[Medea]

I'm afraid I had little luck with NHS counselling. I was never able to see someone for more than 6-8 sessions. I've had to resort to private counselling, costing £25 a week. This is a huge sum for someone on benefits but it does help, been going on 2 years now.

[The Third Policeman]

NHS counseling is based around one idea.
That the patient is defective, and that CBT can stop them being so.
Most psyciatric services provided by the NHS are defective and most staff need the CBT.

I pay a reduced fee for private therapy and thank god I do, if I listened to the mind control rubbish coming from the NHS I would be in trouble.

[custom_fusion-lqx]

CBT really seems to not work for me the only good thing about the therapy i got was the women who worked there were pretty attractive and my therapist was not too bad looking. but no it didnt work and they struck me off... for not showing.

[zxcvbn21]

Originally Posted by WickedCool

CBT really seems to not work for me the only good thing about the therapy i got was the women who worked there were pretty attractive and my therapist was not too bad looking. but no it didnt work and they struck me off... for not showing.

One key word i learnt from CBT is persistence. Just keep going. You may not see results for weeks even months, remember you are changing thinking patterns that you have been believing for the past 5, 10, 15 years. CBT is no miracle cure, you won't just wake up tomorrow anxiety free, which I used to think thus CBT never worked for me. Just keep going and you will see results, sometimes you feel like you are taking 1 step forward and 2 steps back but none the less you are getting better. It is hard work, you have to keep doing it and doing it, but if you put in the hours with CBT you will start to see light at the end of that tunnel.

[custom_fusion-lqx]

Originally Posted by zxcvbn21

One key word i learnt from CBT is persistence. Just keep going. You may not see results for weeks even months, remember you are changing thinking patterns that you have been believing for the past 5, 10, 15 years. CBT is no miracle cure, you won't just wake up tomorrow anxiety free, which I used to think thus CBT never worked for me. Just keep going and you will see results, sometimes you feel like you are taking 1 step forward and 2 steps back but none the less you are getting better. It is hard work, you have to keep doing it and doing it, but if you put in the hours with CBT you will start to see light at the end of that tunnel.

i guess im the most impatient person ever though everything has to happen instantly or i give up