There are a number of reasons that might drive you to seeking counselling or psychotherapy. If you are experiencing any number of difficult and distressing events in your life then counselling may provide you a really helpful solution.

Life events that may result in you looking at Counselling or Psychotherapy:

Bereavement • divorce • health issues • employment concerns • debt issues

Sometimes there is no specific one “reason” but you might just be suffering with underlying feelings of anxiety or dissatisfaction with life.

You may feel isolated and have no one else to talk to. Even if you have supportive family and friends you might find it difficult to talk to them. Perhaps you will just find it easier to talk about personal, family or relationship issues with a professional therapist.

Counsellors and psychotherapists play a crucial role in improving the health and wellbeing of our society. They can help you to talk about your feelings, think about your choices or behaviour. They can help you to make positive changes in their lives.

What happens in Therapy?

Counselling involves a series of formal sessions. The therapist will help you to talk about the your issues and feelings. Even short term therapy typically involves six to 12 sessions. The sessions take place at a regular, agreed time. Therapy takes place in a ‘safe’ private area where you will not be overheard or interrupted.

Therapy may involve talking about life events, feelings, emotions, relationships, ways of thinking and patterns of behaviour. The therapist will listen, encourage and empathise, but will also challenge to help you to see your issues more clearly. When necessary you may be asked to look at things in a different way.

Counselling is not about giving advice or opinions, nor is it a friendly chat with a friend. Your therapist will help you to understand yourself better and find your own solutions to resolve or cope with their situation.

All information sourced from www.bacp.co.uk

The British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy’s (BACP) primary purpose is to support counsellors and help them better serve their clients. The Association was formed nearly 40 years ago by a group of counsellors. They are passionate about the value of counselling and its potential to improve the lives of individuals and communities.

Is Counselling available via Health Insurance and related policies?

It is possible to claim back payments for counselling if you have a Cash Plan in place. Providers such as Healthshield offers great cover for counselling and therapy . If you are a business and have an employee assistance programme in place for your staff, you will have an element of counselling cover included. Some Health Insurance providers will offer an add-on for EAP’s including telephone counselling. There are a number of low cost solutions that will offer counselling services.

The team here at SMP Healthcare Ltd would be happy to help you find a cash plan that offers benefits of this type.

You can contact us on 01245 929129 or by email enquiries@smphealthcare.com