What is Therapy?

See below to find out more…

What is ‘Therapy’?

I use the word ‘Therapy’ as an umbrella term to describe any form of talking therapy (including both counselling and psychotherapy) that addresses mental health concerns.

In a nutshell, therapy is a non-judgemental, open space to explore thoughts, feelings, behaviours or circumstances in your life that may be causing you concern. Together, we work in therapy to gain a greater understanding of these issues and what they might tell us about ourselves. With that knowledge, we are then empowered to access greater autonomy and make positive changes in our lives.

How does Therapy Work?

How therapy works is a complex question, and will also depend on the type of therapy being talked about.

In the majority of psychotherapeutic approaches, the research and theory demonstrates that the vehicle for therapeutic change is the relationship between the therapist and client.

Whether this relationship meets relational needs that may have been deficient in childhood or is psychoeducational and serves to broaden a client’s understanding of themselves, therapeutic relationships come in all shapes and sizes.

What Different Types of Therapy are there?

There are many different types and approaches (or ‘modalities’) of therapy and they each offer a different angle or perspective to treating mental health issues. It is important that the mental health practitioner you are seeing practices a modalities that suits you personally and also suits the type of mental health issue you are presenting with.

To find out more about the different types of therapy, the BACP have produced an excellent summary of the most common types on their website - https://www.bacp.co.uk/about-therapy/types-of-therapy/

What are the Different Types of Mental Health Professionals in the UK?

There are a number of mental health professionals in the UK (and may vary slightly if you see these titles referred to outside the UK). Please see below a summary of the different mental health practitioners you may come across and the different roles they play in supporting clients’ mental health.

You can also see a comparison of mental health professionals from The Counselling Directory on their website - https://www.counselling-directory.org.uk/psychiatrists-psychologists-psychotherapists-counsellors.html

  • Counsellors are mental health practitioners who support clients with a wide varity of mental health concerns by developing coping strategies and building a therapeutic alliance with their clients.

    Counsellors are more often than not at least Level 4 qualified, however the title ‘Counsellor’ is not legally protected and so anybody can legally call themselves a counsellor. For this reason, it is important to check the credentials of any counsellor you see or use a search tool that checks counsellors’ credentials for you (e.g. The Counselling Directory).

  • Psychotherapists support clients with a wide range of mental health issues, which can include complex and acute presentations. Psychotherapists will often work at a deeper level and for longer than other types of therapists and potentially look at the roots of mental health issues, stemming back to childhood.

    Psychotherapists are more often than not at least Level 6 or 7 qualified, however the title ‘Psychotherapist’ is not legally protected and so anybody can legally call themselves a psychotherapist. For this reason, it is important to check the credentials of any psychotherapist you see or use a search tool that checks counsellors’ credentials for you (e.g. The Counselling Directory).

  • Clinical Psychologists are doctors (Level 8 qualified) who have undergone training in psychology and typically non-relationally focused modalities such as CBT, DBT or EMDR. Clinical psychologists are not often required to have personal therapy as a mandatory part of their training.

  • Counselling Psychologists are doctors (Level 8 qualified) who have undergone both psychology and counselling/psychotherapy training. Counselling Psychologists often deal with more complex cases, like Clinical Psychologists, but typically have a more holistic and relational approach to therapy. Like most counsellors and psychotherapists, the majority of Counselling Psychologists are required to have undergone personal therapy themselves.

  • Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners are typically psychology graduates who have undergone training in low-intensity CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy).

  • Psychiatrists are mental health practitioners who trained first as medical doctors, before specialising in psychiatry. Psychiatrists are currently the only UK mental health professionals with the ability to prescribe medication. Some psychiatrists only prescribe and review medication, whilst others are trained in talking therapy. Psychiatrists are also the only mentalh health professionals in the UK who can make formal mental health diagnoses.