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Thinking about starting CBT?

Starting therapy can feel daunting, especially if you’ve never had CBT before. You might be wondering what you’ll be asked, what you’ll need to talk about, or whether you’ll even know what to say.

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You don’t need to have everything worked out before you start.

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At a glance

Sessions: 1 hour
Frequency: Usually weekly to begin with
Location: Online or face-to-face
Who I work with: Adults, children and young people

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Your first session

Your first session is about getting to know you and understanding what has brought you to therapy.  We’ll talk about what’s been happening, how things are affecting you and what you’d like to be different. We’ll start to make sense of the difficulties you’re experiencing and think about what might be helpful.  You don’t have to tell me everything straight away. We’ll go at a pace that feels manageable, and you can decide what you’re comfortable talking about.  You don’t need to prepare anything complicated. Just come as you are.

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Making sense of things

CBT is about understanding the patterns that can keep difficulties going.  Together, we’ll look at how your thoughts, feelings, physical responses and behaviours can interact, and how your experiences may have shaped the way you respond to things now.  Understanding what is happening gives us a starting point for deciding what needs to change.

 

Working together

CBT is a collaborative therapy. We’ll agree what would be most helpful and set goals that are relevant to you.  Depending on what you’re experiencing, this might include changing behaviours, gradually facing things you’ve been avoiding, trying different ways of responding to thoughts and feelings, or testing out some of the predictions your anxiety is making.  Therapy isn’t about me telling you what to do. We work things out together.

 

Between sessions

CBT isn't just about what happens during our sessions.  You may have things to try, practise or notice between appointments. This gives you the opportunity to take what we discuss in therapy into everyday life.  Sometimes the most useful learning happens when you try something for yourself and discover what actually happens, rather than what you were expecting.

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How long will therapy take?

There’s no set number of sessions that works for everyone.  Some people may benefit from a relatively short course of CBT, while others may need longer-term support. This will depend on what you’re experiencing, what you want to achieve and how therapy progresses.  We’ll regularly review how things are going and make sure your sessions continue to be useful.

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Children and young people

CBT with children and young people is adapted to their age, development and individual needs.  Sessions may be more practical, creative or activity-based, depending on the child or young person and what they’re experiencing.  Parents will usually be involved to some degree, but the way this works will depend on the young person, their age and what is appropriate and helpful.

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When therapy finishes

As therapy comes to an end, we’ll look back at the progress you’ve made, what you’ve learned and what has helped.  We’ll think about how you can continue using this understanding and the skills you’ve developed in everyday life.

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Not sure whether CBT is right for you?

That’s okay.

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You don’t need to know exactly what is wrong, what type of therapy you need or what you want to work on before getting in touch.

We can start with a conversation about what’s been happening and whether CBT could be helpful.