What is Psychotherapy?

The approach of psychotherapy is  one based on an understanding that as individuals we are often unaware of many of the causes and  factors that influence our emotions and behaviour.  Psychotherapy is therefore,  a collaborative journey of exploration undertaken by  a patient and  a therapist with the aim to understand more clearly how the past may continue to influence  one’s life in the present in ways that may be negative or harmful.  Difficult experiences, especially in childhood, can shape how we think, feel and behave.  Because factors and influences from the past can  frequently operate at a level  that we are not consciously aware  of they can   lead to a  deep sense of unhappiness or depression, to difficulties in managing our emotions when dealing with stressors or  impair our ability either  to engage in or to  sustain healthy relationships.

Thus, psychotherapy seeks to identify and understand patterns of thinking or behaviour that may be restrictive or damaging in terms of our well-being or which prevent a sense of fulfilment or satisfying engagement with life and act as  hidden barriers to change  occurring seemingly despite our best efforts to follow guidance from family or friends or from following self help approaches to change.

Psychotherapy does not offer a quick fix but rather it is about a patient and  a therapist working together in a confidential  and consistent setting  to explore the difficulties that the patient faces  which can only be understood in the context of the patient’s life and their own experiences. Psychotherapy may involve quite  a brief therapy for specific difficulties.  However, if your problems are longstanding, psychotherapy  may require you to attend sessions regularly for a considerably longer period and therefore psychotherapy can demand a considerable commitment.

This is why I ask prospective patients to meet with me twice during a consultation.  It provides me with a chance to develop a clearer understanding of the difficulties that you are facing. It also gives you the opportunity to gain a sense of who I am and how I work which is very important if you are considering undertaking a course of therapy with me that may be extensive since the establishment and exploration of the therapeutic relationship is an important part of the therapy.

Psychotherapy  involves a deep  but gentle exploration of what lies behind a person’s difficulties  but it  aims to achieve fundamental and long lasting change and can be particularly helpful for people who want to understand themselves and their difficulties better.