NHS Talking Therapies – Help Us Help You

The NHS is encouraging anyone struggling with feelings of depression, or anxiety such as excessive worry, panic attacks, social anxiety, post-traumatic stress, or obsessions and compulsions, to seek help through NHS Talking Therapies services. These are effective, confidential, and free treatments delivered by trained clinicians, online, on the phone, or in person.

NHS Talking Therapies can help provide support and treatment for common mental health problems, such as:

• feeling anxious.
• feeling low and hopeless.
• having panic attacks.
• finding it hard to cope with work, life or relationships.
• struggling with flashbacks or nightmares about upsetting events from your past.
• feeling stressed.
• worrying a lot.
• obsessive thoughts or behaviours.
• fear of social situations.
• being afraid of things, such as spiders, flying or heights (phobias).

If you’re struggling with feelings of depression or anxiety, seeking help through an NHS Talking Therapies service can be one of the best steps you can take to overcome mental health issues and get back on track. You do not need to have a diagnosed mental health problem to refer yourself to an NHS Talking Therapies service. Getting support as soon as you start having difficulties can help to reduce their impact. Your NHS is here to see you, safely. Help Us Help You.

NHS Talking Therapies are available for anyone 18 or over who is registered with a GP. In some areas the service is available for 16 and 17 year olds. Talking Therapies can help if you have mental health problems resulting from physical health conditions. They also provide employment advice in many areas of England, to support people to reach their employment goals.

For those whose first language is not English, talking therapies can be delivered through multi-lingual therapists or through confidential interpreters, and in British Sign Language (BSL) through SignHealth’s NHS Therapies for Deaf People service.

NHS Talking Therapies provide effective, confidential and free treatments delivered by trained clinicians, online, on the phone or in person. Your GP can refer you for NHS Talking Therapies, or you can refer yourself online at nhs.uk/talk

When you self-refer online, the following will happen:

• Someone from the service will get in touch, usually within a few weeks
• They’ll ask for more details about the problems you’re having. This is known as an assessment.
• If the service thinks they can help you, they’ll recommend a therapy for you. This is based on your symptoms and how severe they are.

Waiting times for the first session vary. The service will tell you what to expect.

The type of therapy you are offered depends on symptoms being experienced and can include:

• Guided self-help – where a therapist coaches you as you work through a self-help course in your own time, either using a workbook or an online course.
• Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) – this works to help you notice and challenge patterns of thoughts or behaviours so you can feel better.
• Counselling for depression –a type of counselling developed for people with depression.
• Interpersonal therapy (IPT) or dynamic interpersonal therapy (DIT) – therapies that look at the link between your depression and your relationships.
• Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy – which uses meditation to tackle depression and reduce the risk of relapse.

NHS Talking Therapies are delivered by trained clinicians and offered in different ways, including:

• Using a self-help workbook with the support of a therapist.
• As an online course (via the internet or digital app).
• In person, over the phone or through video consultation.
• In a group.