Your Therapy Space

Accredited CBT and counselling Leamington Spa, Warwickshire and online

About Counselling

CBT Therapist, Warwickshire/online for help with workplace stress

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Is workplace stress a problem?

If you are busy professional in Warwickshire experiencing workplace stress, you are not alone.  High-achievers often find that constant pressure and long hours feel normal.   After a while, the stress can cause anxiety, and even burnout.  At Your Therapy Space, I offer Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) both in-person in Warwickshire and online to help professionals like you to learn how to manage stress and feel more in control of your life.

What Is CBT and how can it help?

Cognitive behavioural therapy is a collaborative approach to psychological therapy recommended by the NICE guidance for managing anxiety, depression, and stress. CBT can help you to understand how the interactions between thoughts, feelings, and behaviours.  It can help you to identify your thinking patterns and how these may be maintaining stress.

For example, you might recognise the following types of thoughts:

  • “I must work late otherwise I will let my team down.”

  • “I can’t cope.”

  • “I must not make a mistake otherwise I am a failure.”

CBT can help you to develop a more balanced perspective and develop more self-awareness.

CBT for workplace stress

If you are in a demanding role, CBT can help you:

  • Identify triggers to stress.

  • Consider realistic standards and expectations.

  • Develop awareness of and reduce overthinking and rumination.

  • Explore boundaries.

  • Develop resilience and focus .

CBT can provide a framework for making changes.

Why work with a CBT Therapist in Warwickshire or online?

I am experienced in supporting busy professionals through individual CBT sessions, available both  in-person in Warwickshire and online.

You may prefer online CBT if you:

  • Travel frequently or work long hours.

  • Want a convenient option without travel time and costs.

  • Live outside Warwickshire but want to work with an Accredited CBT Therapist experienced in working with workplace stress and perfectionism.

What to expect at Your Therapy Space

  • Collaborative approach — We define your goals together and work towards achieving them.

  • Practical strategies — You can develop alternative strategies.

  • Flexible and convenient delivery — In-person in Leamington Spa or online via secure video.

  • Confidential and professional support — From an accredited and experienced CBT Therapist.

If you’d like to understand how how CBT works, you can read more on my Individuals and Couples Therapy page. It outlines how Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and other approaches can help you. If you want to know more about online therapy, please read my Online CBT page.

Take the next step

If you want to book a session, please get in touch:

Email: info@yourtherapyspace.co.uk
Call: 07950 064 086


Your therapy space is waiting for you.

Workplace CBT and Counselling, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire

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Counselling and CBT for organisations in Warwickshire and online

If employees are suffering from psychological distress then this can impact on their wellbeing as well as their performance at work. Early intervention may prevent minor problems from becoming more serious.   I have a good understanding of how organisations work.  I have worked as a qualified Financial Controller in The City and have an MBA Degree from a leading business school.  In addition,  I have worked in the NHS and mental health organisations as well as in large businesses.  Please read more about me to learn about my credentials.

About counselling and CBT

Counselling and CBT can help people who are experiencing distress to talk through their problems, to feel supported and taken seriously and to learning some coping strategies. Timely support can help people to make changes and improve their wellbeing,  Therapy can help with the following issues:

  • Loss and bereavement.
  • Breakdown in relationships either personal or at work.
  • Stress.
  • Anxiety.
  • Depression.
  • Lack of confidence.
  • Perfectionism.

Depression and anxiety may impact on an individual’s ability to work and may result in job loss or taking time off sick. The cost to employers is significant. By supporting employees by offering counselling and CBT, the organisation is indicating that they value the employee. This can help to retain employees who may be at risk of leaving and save recruitment and training costs.

Please contact me to discuss your organisation’s needs.  Referring staff to a private Counsellor and CBT Therapist as and when needed may be a cost effective solution for your business.  Face-to-face sessions are available in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire and cover surrounding areas of Warwick, Kenilworth, Coventry and Rugby.  Many senior executives prefer the convenience of online therapy which is also available.

Other services

I have a qualification in coaching  which means I can work in a flexible way with individuals to help them to achieve their goals.  Further, I have been awarded 3 Masters Degrees as well as a Doctoral Degree.  I am experienced in making sense of complex information, formulating problems, carrying out research and proposing solutions.  I am available to carry out qualitative research projects of a sensitive nature. I am an experienced Project Manager and my research has helped to improve practice. Please contact me in confidence to discuss your needs.

Psychological therapy in Leamington Spa can help employees who are experiencing distress. If your workplace requires a Counsellor or CBT Therapist, I can help.

CBT Therapist in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire to help with depression

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Understanding Depression

Depression is more than just feeling low, sad or flat.  Depression can affect all areas of your life and make it hard to function effectively.  It can impact on work, sleep, relationships and your overall enjoyment of life.  It can make it hard to get up in the mornings and difficult to keep up with basic self-care activities.  Everything can feel like too much trouble.

Fortunately, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) may help to overcome depression and is recommended by the NHS and NICE guidelines.   CBT may help you to change patterns of thinking and behaviour over time that maintain low mood and start to live in a more fulfilling way.

How CBT Helps with Depression

CBT is concerned with the links between thoughts, behaviours and emotions.   You may recognise the following:

Experiencing negative thinking patterns (“I’m not good enough”, “I can’t change”).

Withdrawing from hobbies, work, family and friends, or responsibilities.

Losing interest in looking after yourself, for example, not eating properly, failing to maintain personal hygiene.

Struggling with sleep and appetite and concentration.

CBT may help by:

Challenging unhelpful thinking styles, for example being self-critical or having a negative filter.

Encouraging behavioural change by planning a range of necessary, routine and pleasurable activities at a manageable pace.  It is important to have a balance of activities to gain a sense of achievement, purpose and enjoyment.

Breaking the cycle of avoidance, for example, by reintroducing hobbies and social connections.

Reducing rumination.  It may be helpful to process some past experiences and learn how to be more present.

Increasing self-awareness and understanding how early experiences influence responses to triggers.  This may help you to become more self-compassionate.

Developing a relapse prevention plan to maintain wellbeing post therapy.  CBT is a collaborative short to medium-term therapy and does not encourage dependence on the therapist.  It is important to help you to learn how to deal with any problems you may encounter after therapy has ended.

How to get in touch

If you are finding it hard to improve your mood and feel stuck, maybe CBT could help you.  Please get in touch if you wish to make an appointment by emailing info@yourtherapyspace.co.uk or ringing 07950064086.  You can read more about my credentials here.

Being wrong again

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“I feel like I never get things right.  I’ll do my best but I’m always left with the feeling that I did something wrong or that I should have kept quiet or that people don’t like me.  It’s always there.  I can go for a walk and that’s the thing that swirls around the whole time.  I can go to a social situation and see how happy other people seem to be and, again, those thoughts are there.  I can be at a meeting at work and the thoughts pop up again.  The idea that other people are better than me.  The idea that everyone else knows how to ‘win’ at life and I don’t.  I do my best to disguise this and it sometimes works but it’s not working for me.  I feel sad and anxious and that I can’t tell anyone about how I feel because they would really think I’m just a loser.”

If the above resonates with you, then I am really sorry to hear this.  It sounds very painful and lonely to live this way.  It can lead to symptoms and feelings associated with depression and anxiety and create a vicious cycle which seems impossible to break.  It would be understandable that you would not want to talk about this with other people.  Imagine that you did talk to others about these thoughts and feelings.  Imagine how you would feel to discover that others sometimes feel like this too.  Imagine that you could find ways to challenge some of your thoughts and behaviours and feel more accepting and at ease with yourself.

For those who do not want to talk to family and friends about how they feel, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) can be helpful to understand what is maintaining your emotional states by developing a clear understanding of the problems you are facing and increasing your self-awareness.  This enables you to consider the choices you are making and the changes you could make to live a more fulfilled life.  If this sounds like something you would like to do, please get in touch.  Learn how to enjoy your walks, social gatherings and meetings.  Learn to value yourself.

Being real

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It’s coming up to that time of year again.  Everyone is getting excited about Christmas.  People are out and about, full of festive cheer, buying presents, attending office parties and catching up with friends.  You may have received some cards already and, possibly, some round ups of how great other people’s year has been.  Or so it seems.

We can be so talented at creating illusions.  The idea that all is well when it isn’t.  It sometimes feels like being real is not valued.  So, we sometimes slip on a mask and internalise all the niggles and worries and problems that keep us awake at night.  We start to feel lonely and misunderstood.  We can feel like running away from it all but we can’t do that either.

So we look for ways to cope.  Another drink, another mince pie, another new toy, working even more hours.  Anything to escape from our feelings.  And then the coping strategy becomes the problem.  And on and on.  People criticise us and call us weak because it’s easier than seeing our pain.

Imagine if there was another way.  Imagine being able to say ‘ I am finding things difficult and I need some support’.  Imagine being able to say ‘no’ as a full sentence.  Imagine being understood.  Imagine not having to focus on how stressed you are feeling all the time so that you could enjoy spending time with the people you care about over the festive period.  If you can’t find a way to achieve this, then talking to someone might be helpful to find a way forward.  Your therapy space is waiting, if you need it.

The Importance of friendship and feeling supported

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Mental health and friendships

There are many articles written about the importance of friendship so I would just like to focus on how friendship can help us if we are feeling down or anxious.  Feeling lonely or socially isolated can create stress and exacerbate any problems we may be facing.  Some people claim to have hundreds of friends and I often wonder about the quality of these relationships.

Friendship is hard work.  To be there for someone, to share experiences and to keep in touch takes time and energy, and these things are in short supply when we are feeling down.

Being supported by friends

When we feel low we tend to focus on ourselves and our thoughts and feelings.  It can feel like there is no space for anyone else.  Our friends can sustain and nurture us at times like this.  It can be so validating to spend time with someone who cares for us and listens to us and helps us to feel good about ourselves.

A true friend will accept how we are and allow us to voice our fears without laughing at us.  Often there is a moment in a relationship when we realise that someone is a genuine friend.  Maybe they stick up for us when everyone else stays quiet or maybe they just seem to know how we are feeling.  If you have someone like this in your life it’s great.

Explore barriers to friendship with CBT Therapy or counselling

If you don’t then maybe therapy could help you to explore ways of developing a support network or what is getting in the way of you feeling able to have friends.