Understanding Different Psychological Therapies

There are several core aspects to the ways in which we work with clients regardless of the therapeutic approach. We aim to work in partnership with people as experts in themselves, while we bring knowledge of a broad range of therapies and applied psychological strategies. Our starting point is always the research evidence on ‘what works for whom’, as well as our own clinical experience. We are trained in the following therapeutic approaches, variously recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) for different mental health and wellbeing issues. We have specialisms in particular areas and work flexibly to create an integrated therapy experience that meets an individual’s needs and preferences.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

There is an argument that all therapies are cognitive-behavioural therapies, in that they work with what people think, how they act and how this relates to how they feel. However, CBT typically refers to a specific range of structured and targeted therapies for common mental health conditions, including depression, insomnia, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), phobias, generalised anxiety disorder (GAD), health anxiety, social anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), as well as psychosis and bipolarity. NICE recommended CBT approaches have strong evidence to support each of the various concepts, components and skills included. In standard CBT approaches, a therapist and client typically work together on clear and defined targets to reduce distressing experiences, for example, by finding new ways of understanding and overcoming challenging situations.

Compassion Focussed Therapy (CFT)

At its core, Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT) was developed specifically as a therapy for self-criticism and to help with depression and self esteem. CFT understands emotional distress from the perspective of evolutionary and social psychology. Mental processes are seen as arising from evolved reactions that are motivated by survival and safety, with aspects that don’t always serve us well. This understanding can help us to deal with some of life’s excruciating struggles, while treating ourselves with care, in the way that we might help a friend. CFT was initially developed for people who reported high levels of shame and self-criticism, although like most therapies it has broader applications. Practices include mindfulness and physiological body calming techniques, as well as memory and imagery rehearsals. These exercises are linked to the generation of a felt sense of deep compassion towards ourselves and others. The continued practice of compassion is found to promote wellbeing, self-care and resilience.

Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT)

DBT was developed by a professor of psychology with lived experience of mental health problems for people who experience very intense or heightened emotions that can affect their relationships with others and their sense of self. It has been shown to be particularly effective in helping people with managing emotions and reducing impulsive, self-harming or suicidal behaviours which may be associated with distress. DBT is a highly flexible, skills based therapy which incorporates mindfulness strategies with Buddhist origins and cognitive-behavioural techniques to understand and work with emotions, navigate relationships to meet our needs and reduce overall distress.

Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR)

EMDR is a trauma-focused therapy, which is recommended for people experiencing post-traumatic stress (PTSD) symptoms such as flashbacks and nightmares. In EMDR, like other psychological models, trauma memories are understood as not having been properly processed by the brain, due to fear or distress at the time of the event. Memories that have not been stored in the usual way might appear or intrude unwanted in someone’s experience when they are reminded of the trauma, accompanied by strong feelings. EMDR uses side-to-side sensory stimulation, for example eye movements or physical tapping, to help the brain to re-process trauma memories in a safe way and to reduce the distress linked to them.

Mindfulness

Mindfulness is a term used to refer to a broad range of practices that focus on developing our awareness of bodily and mental experiences. You may have come across mindfulness through physical exercise classes like yoga or through religious disciplines like Buddhism, Hinduism or Suffism, from which many variants are derived. In therapy, mindfulness practices often involve moving and focusing our attention on our present moment experiences, without judgement. Mindfulness can help to reduce distress by changing our relationship to difficult thoughts and feelings. We might feel more able to step away from cyclical patterns of thought, and to focus more on the present or on a wider perspective. Mindfulness is recommended by NICE for people with recurrent depression, but is also used across different mental health conditions and to support general wellbeing and personal development.

Systemic therapy

Systemic therapy is founded on the position that human problems do not originate within individuals, but emerge from interactions between people and within groups, cultures, organisations and societies. Difficulties can be understood as functions of interactive human systems, where feedback occurs back and forth, with individuals responding to one another within the contexts of social expectations, pressures and assumptions. Systemic therapy works with reciprocal mental and behavioural processes in relationships, and is therefore often used as an approach in couples or family therapy.

Narrative therapy

Narrative therapy originates in systemic theory, and is rooted in the observation that much personal distress can be transmitted by the stories that we are able to tell about our lives. The ways in which these stories develop mean they are selective by necessity and privilege certain meanings. Problem narratives can become magnified by re-tellings that may neglect other important stories, such as those of strength and resistance. Narrative therapy seeks to understand our lives and problems in full historical context, unearthing neglected perspectives and resources to re-write the ways in which we talk to ourselves and others, with beneficial effects to how we think and feel.