EVIDENCE-BASED THERAPY
Following assessment, your Psychologist will have recommended an evidence-based therapy, and indicated an estimate treatment length. We use therapies grounded in research to address your specific needs.
Therapy provides an open and non-judgemental space to make sense of your difficulties, including how they developed and what keeps them going. Sessions are collaborative and guided by your individual personal goals.
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WHAT CAN THERAPY HELP WITH?
At the Lotus Psychology Practice, we offer a compassionate therapeutic space to help you navigate all of life's challenges. In particular, we are able to treat a range of mental health difficulties. Some of the conditions and difficulties we work with include: ​​
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Depression
Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
Health Anxiety
Emetophobia
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
Panic Disorder
Phobias
Social Anxiety
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (CPTSD)
Gender Based Violence & Domestic Abuse
Military-related Trauma
Bipolar Disorder
Personality Disorders
Peri-natal or post-natal difficulties such as post-natal depression, anxiety or OCD
Childhood Trauma ​
Stress
Perfectionism
Low Self-Esteem
Relationship difficulties
Attachment difficulties
Unhelpful ways of coping with difficult feelings, such as the use of alcohol or binge eating.
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We are also able to support people through life transitions, whether that is a new career, relationship challenges, divorce or the transition to parenthood.
APPROACHES TO THERAPY
Psychologists are trained across multiple therapeutic modalities, and the approaches are often integrated based on an individuals unique needs. The suitability of the therapeutic approach is informed by assessment and individual goals. All therapeutic interventions are informed by scientific research and are and in line with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.​
Below are some of the approaches used within the practice.
COGNITIVE BEHAVIOURAL THERAPY (CBT)
CBT is based on the concept that your thoughts, feelings, physical sensations and what we do are all connected. CBT aims to identify and modify unhelpful thinking patterns and behaviours that maintain a persons difficulty. CBT has an extensive evidence base for effectiveness in treating depression, anxiety related problems (including panic attacks and OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder and many more.
COMPASSION FOCUSED THERAPY (CFT)
CFT helps those who struggle with shame and self-criticism. Shame and self-criticism often arise from difficult early experiences such as abuse, neglect, and bullying. CFT supports people to cultivate skills in compassion and self-compassion, which can help regulate mood and lead to self-acceptance. The evidence base for CFT is transdiagnostic, with improvements across many disorders and difficulties.
BEHAVIOUR SUPPORT
Supporting parents in developing new ways to respond to challenging behaviour or anxiety to promote positive behaviours and family cohesion.
SYSTEMIC THERAPY
This approach focuses on relationships between a group of people, rather than solely on an individual’s thoughts and feelings. It is designed for families and couples with the relationship being the key focus. However, it often incorporates larger systems around an individual, such as school. Systemic therapy seeks to identify unhelpful patterns within relationships to improve communication.
PSYCHODYNAMIC PSYCHOTHERAPY
Psychodynamic psychotherapy helps you to understand how your current feelings and behaviour are shaped by your unconscious mind and past experiences and relationships. Through the therapeutic relationship, psychodynamic approaches aim to bring unconscious thoughts and unresolved conflicts to the individual's awareness. It further aims to develop an understanding of past and present relationship patterns, to facilitate change. Psychodynamic psychotherapy has a substantial evidence base supporting its effectiveness for a range of mental health conditions.
COGNITIVE ANALYTIC THERAPY (CAT)
CAT is a type of psychotherapy that focuses on relationship patterns.
It is based on the idea that our early life experiences influence the way we relate to other people and how we treat ourselves. This means that sometimes patterns of our own behaviour, or our expectations of other people’s behaviour, can develop into unhealthy or unhelpful repeating patterns. CAT helps you to identify these patterns, understand how your past life experiences have shaped the current and change how you think, feel and behave. CAT has a significant evidence base and is particularly helpful in cases of anxiety, depression, and inter-personal or relationship challenges.
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MINDFULNESS BASED THERAPIES
The primary goal of mindfulness therapy is to move away from an "autopilot" state of mind where one might get lost in thoughts about the past or future. Mindfulness therapy is an approach that uses meditation and present-moment awareness to help individuals manage their thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations in a non-judgmental way. ​
ACCEPTANCE & COMMITMENT THERAPY
ACT aims to change your relationship with your thoughts and feelings, to what is out of your personal control. ACT incorporates acceptance strategies, mindfulness and behavioural approaches to encourage committed action in line with your values and what is important to you in life. ACT has been shown to be effective for a broad range of difficulties, including anxiety disorders, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance misuse and chronic pain.
DIALECTIC BEHAVIOUR THERAPY (DBT)
DBT is a type of psychotherapy, adapted from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), that teaches skills to manage intense emotions, improve relationships, and reduce harmful behaviours by balancing acceptance with change. It focuses on four core skill modules: Mindfulness (staying present), Distress Tolerance (handling crises), Emotion Regulation (changing intense feelings), and Interpersonal Effectiveness (assertiveness and healthy relationships). DBT helps individuals accept their current reality while also learning to make positive changes for a more balanced life. DBT was developed for Borderline Personality Disorder, and has an evidence-base for PTSD, Depression, Anxiety and Emotional Dysregulation.
NARRATIVE THERAPY
Stories and personal narratives we carry with us through life are central in NT. As you experience events and interactions, you give meaning to those experiences, which provide us with a framework to understand and make sense of the world, ourselves and others. These personal narratives guide the way in which we live and how we feel. The dominant stories we hold are shaped by our context and personal identities relating to social, cultural and political contexts. NT focuses on deconstructing dominant narratives and developing an alternative narrative that separates the persons identity from the problem.
EYE MOVEMENT DESENSITISATION AND REPROCESSING (EMDR)
EMDR is a type of psychotherapy that can help people process upsetting memories, thoughts, and feelings related to trauma. It's a recommended treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and can help people heal from other distressing life experiences.
During EMDR therapy, patients recall a traumatic incident in detail while making eye movements, usually following the movement of their therapist's finger. Trauma memories are 'unprocessed' in the brains memory system, and the goal is to help patients briefly focus on the trauma memory while simultaneously experiencing bilateral stimulation. This rhythm keeps the patient grounded in their body and focused on the present while accessing things that happened in the past.
MENTALISATION BASED THERAPY (MBT)
Mentalisation-Based Therapy (MBT) is a structured, evidence-based type of talk therapy that helps individuals improve their capacity to mentalise—the ability to understand and interpret their own and others' thoughts, feelings, and intentions that drive behaviour. Originally developed for Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), MBT aims to enhance emotional regulation and interpersonal relationships and has a significant evidence base for anxiety, trauma and depression.
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