Psychological therapy, tailored to you

These feelings might cause you to withdraw from family and friends or to disengage from activities

It is normal for us to feel sadness in response to certain life events such as a bereavement, relationship breakup or changes in health. However sometimes that sadness persists and worsens. It feels harder and harder to get any enjoyment from things and you might feel slowed down, stuck or numb. These feelings might cause you to withdraw from family and friends, or to disengage from activities that you previously enjoyed. Feelings of loneliness and isolation can cause the depression to worsen.

When depressed you are more likely to experience self-critical, hopeless or despairing thoughts. These thoughts can cause you to disengage from life even further. This creates a vicious cycle – the more distant you become from loved ones and activities that previously enriched your life, the more isolated and depressed you may feel.

Here at Brightside Psychology we offer a number of therapies that can be used to treat depression. These include EMDR to process earlier trauma, CBT   or   ACT   to give you the skills to change your relationship with depression-related thoughts and start re-engaging with life, or CFT to understand and manage a mind that is prone to self-criticism. For most people, a combination of therapies are offered in order to provide an individually tailored plan to target the exact causes and ongoing symptoms of depression.

If you're experiencing thoughts about harming yourself or ending your life, please see below.