How Does Psychotherapy Help?

Psychotherapy helps people to increase their understanding about why they may be feeling or behaving in ways that worry them. This may be as an individual or in a relationship. It is an opportunity to think about underlying problems as well as the more obvious issues. Emotional difficulties often arise as a response to problematic situations, and trauma experienced in childhood as well as adulthood.

It may be that you are detecting patterns in your life and relationship which are not working out. Or it may be that you are feeling basically empty and unhappy and do not know why.

You may be feeling unhappy and unsure why, depressed, anxious, stuck or feeling empty and lonely. Or you may have memories or recent experience of difficult or traumatic events. It may be that you feel, generally, dissatisfied with life. Understanding the meaning of these symptoms and the emotional patterns behind them helps to reduce the power of past and present hurts, disappointments and traumas and to find new ways of relating and fulfilments in personal, family and work relationships.

Why Seek Help?

Psychotherapy provides another set of eyes and ears. It is a time to look afresh at matters that are important to you whether it be with, or about, your partner, children, work or just yourself.

Many people believe that needing help is a sign of weakness, or that people should and ought to solve their own problems. Perhaps you are worried about confidentiality? The regularity and confidentiality of appointments helps create a safe space for you to think. Matters you thought were in the past may be more relevant than you imagined. Every behaviour and feeling has a meaning to be understood as you work with the therapist to sort things out. Sometimes you may discover things about yourself ‘that were always there’, that feel familiar to you. You somehow knew these but had not thought of them. For couples, the presence of a third person can shed new light on old problems.