The New Year can be a great catalyst for us to take a look at what’s good and what’s not so good in our lives – ‘New Year, New Me’ kind of thing. Perhaps we want to cut down on caffeine, lose weight, spend less time on gaming apps or join a gym. As our lives become busier and busier, it’s also a good time to consider looking after our mental health too.

Changing habits to improve our mental health is not a short term fix and when you consider that 80% of New Year’s resolutions do not make it past February, if we really want to make positive life changes, we need to think about our emotional health as a longer term investment. But forming new habits can require a high level of emotional resilience to set clear, achievable goals as well as maintain the change and manage setbacks.

Mental health receives more coverage in the mainstream media than ever before and this certainly helps make us aware that we should think about techniques such as practicing mindfulness, getting outdoors, and improving our sleep. However, for some people, life has simply become too tough to know where to start with improving mental wellbeing. The NHS in England has been putting resources behind a programme called IAPT (Improving Access to Psychological Therapies) with the aim of improving adult mental health. In Surrey, DHC Talking Therapies offer a range of proven psychological therapies available on the NHS which come in many different forms, meaning there is something for everyone who needs help to kick-start a new approach to better mental health.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy

For example, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is proven to be effective for common mental health problems like low-mood, anxiety and stress. CBT therapists use a variety of techniques that help bring about lasting behaviour change such as effective goal setting and activity planning as well as finding ways to challenge those negative thoughts that can often lead to failure. Ultimately, CBT aims to help people become capable of working out their own ways of tackling problems and over time, leads to genuine habitual change. There is also evidence that CBT can be as effective as anti-depressants in many types of depression.

Online talking therapies

DHC Talking Therapies provides face to face and online CBT as part of a range of NHS psychological therapies for adults in Surrey. These services are free if you are registered with a Surrey GP and 18+ years. You can choose from 30 locations across Surrey, with the newest hub in Epsom Square. You can refer yourself in complete confidentiality by filling out the online self-referral form at dhctalkingtherapies.co.uk or you can ask your GP to refer you. As well as face to face sessions, treatment is also provided online with the support of a therapist. This can be particularly helpful for people who struggle to attend regular appointments or simply prefer to access therapy from their own space. You can specify your choice of therapy when you complete the online self referral form.

With the anxieties that have appeared in our everyday lives in 2020 , it’s good to know that if we need help to improve our mental health. There are a range of proven therapies which are free to access on the NHS in Surrey.

Dhc Talking Therapies review December 2019

‘I had a really low and horrible period in my life and even though I wasn’t sure about going to therapy I want to say that this helped me a lot. I met an amazing and wonderful therapist that changed my life in a really good way. I want to say a big thank you to all the team that made this possible.’

For further information, contact Jemma Millman, Service Manager, DHC Talking Therapies

DHC Talking Therapies
01483 906 392
dhctalkingtherapies.co.uk