What is Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)?

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is a talking therapy that can help you manage your problems by changing the way you think and behave. It's most commonly used to treat anxiety and depression, but can be useful for other mental and physical health problems.


How CBT works

CBT is based on the concept that your thoughts, feelings, physical sensations and actions are interconnected, and that negative thoughts and feelings can trap you in a vicious cycle. CBT aims to help you deal with overwhelming problems in a more positive way by breaking them down into smaller parts. You're shown how to change these negative patterns to improve the way you feel. It looks for practical ways to improve your state of mind on a daily basis.


What happens during CBT sessions

You will usually have a session with a therapist once a week or once every 2 weeks.

The course of treatment usually lasts for between 5 and 20 sessions, with each session lasting 50minutes.

During the sessions, you'll work with your therapist to break down your problems into their separate parts, such as your thoughts, physical feelings and actions.

You and your therapist will analyse these areas to work out if they're unrealistic or unhelpful, and to determine the effect they have on each other and on you.


Your therapist will then be able to help you work out how to change unhelpful thoughts and behaviours.

After working out what you can change, your therapist will ask you to practise these changes in your daily life and you'll discuss how you got on during the next session.

The eventual aim of therapy is to teach you to apply the skills you have learnt during treatment to your daily life.


This should help you manage your problems and stop them having a negative impact on your life, even after your course of treatment finishes.

Source - NHS 2021.


Get in touch


Feel free to contact me if you have any questions about my counselling or training sessions. I provide a free no-obligation initial 30 minute session, where I can provide information on counselling and training, how it works and answer any questions you may have. This enables us to discuss the reasons you are thinking of coming to therapy, whether it could be helpful for you and whether I am the right therapist to help.

All enquires are usually answered within 24 hours, and all contact is strictly confidential and uses secure email services.

I strive to continually improve my service, if for some reason you are not 100% happy with the service you have received, please do let me know and I will do my best to resolve this with you. If in the event you would like to make a complaint, please refer to the COSCA complaints procedure here.

“This has been truly life changing! Pamela made me feel at ease from our first session together.”

S.S. 2020

“Pamela has helped me a great deal to understand a lot more about myself, I now feel better equipped for any future challenges, thank you!”

C.D. 2021

“Attending Therapy has opened up my eyes to a whole new world, I really wish I had attended sooner.”

M.O'R 2021

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C.McG 2022


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