Effective therapy can help you to deal with past issues and gain new perspectives on current problems. All human beings have a set of four physical needs and nine emotional needs. It is by meeting our physical and emotional needs that we survive and develop as individuals and as a species. Without our physical needs being met we will die, and without our emotional needs being met we will survive…but we won’t thrive. Mental health issues occur when our emotional needs are not met or when our innate resources are not working properly. States such as anxiety, depression, eating disorders or addiction develop because something is being misused or is missing in our life.
Some therapists focus on a particular model or type of therapy such as cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) which focuses on thoughts. We offer a more holistic approach that is solution based and is focused on being tailored to your exact requirements. We do this by using a variety of tools and methods to help get to the root of your problem.After all, we’re all different and it’s unlikely that one mode of therapy will suit everyone.
Effective therapy checklist
Before embarking on therapy, it is a good idea to conduct some research. Think about what type of therapy you want to undertake and what you want to get out of it. There are lots of therapists out there and whilst most are good there are some who are not. It is always a good idea to follow a checklist. This will help protect you from ineffective or even harmful types of counselling and psychotherapy.
Our checklist for an effective therapist would include the following, however please feel free to do your own independent research.
Your therapist should be someone who:
- Can build rapport quickly.
- Provides a sense of ease and calmness.
- Is non-judgemental and supportive.
- Is considerate of your circumstances.
- Understands what they are talking about.
- Explains things without excessive use of jargon.
- Focuses on a solution-based approach.
- Does not require you to give an insight on your entire history.
- Will give you advice where appropriate.
- Provides you with resources and tools to support yourself long term.
- Develops your social and emotional skills.
- Encourages you to think about your problems in a new way.
- Encourages self-confidence and independence.
- Empowers you to resolve your problems.
- Has a flexible approach and uses a wide range of available techniques.
- Makes you feel better after every session
Who are we?
New Life Therapy is an established psychotherapy and counselling practice located in Leigh-on-sea in Essex. We offer a modern approach to treatment using a combination of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) techniques, hypnotherapy and mindfulness techniques.
Together, we will agree a treatment strategy that is specific and individual to you. We will provide you with a safe network at a time when you may be feeling isolated or vulnerable. The aim is to work at a pace that will gently and effectively help you move forward with your recovery. We will provide you with tools and techniques that will put you in the driving seat to establish emotional stability. The appointments offered suit you and your lifestyle and your appointments can take place either in person or via online technologies. Since there is a male and female therapist, you can choose who you would feel more comfortable talking to.
Both Russ McKenzie and Tanya Lee are experienced and highly skilled therapists. They were both awarded distinctions for the Human Givens Diploma and then went on to gain distinctions for their Post Graduate Diploma for Practitioners (HG.DIP.p.) from The Human Givens Institute. Since qualifying, they have had experience of helping people with a vast range of issues.
How can we help you?
We specialise in psychotherapy techniques that help and support people to overcome mental health issues. We have supported many people with complex issues. Our therapy explores trauma patterns and the emotions that emerge as a response to a feeling. Trauma patterns are what the emotional brain lays down when it experiences something that has threatened it emotionally or physically. The trauma pattern will be stored so the brain can recognise if it is happening again. Trauma patterns link to a need and by recognising and unlinking the pattern from that need, we can break the cycle. When the pattern is no longer being stored as a trauma, then the brain stops recognising it as a threat and this is what changes our response to situations that previously caused distress.
We will work with you to develop a plan for your treatment. Within that treatment plan we will suggest a variety of beneficial techniques that you can adapt into your life. As a solution focused therapy, we will agree goals that you can work on in between sessions to increase your progress. We will use guided imagery techniques to help you both imagine and achieve those goals.
The main areas which we specialise in are trauma and PTSD, anxiety, depression and eating disorders, so let’s look at these individually.
Effective therapy for Trauma and PTSD
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is often associated with the armed services. However, this is not exclusively the case. What is considered a trauma for one person will be different for someone else. A traumatic event can be anything which our body has deemed to be unsafe for us. As a way of protecting us, our mind will associate the trauma with patterns.
When we are reminded of the event via a similar pattern our brain will go back into survival mode. It is this action that keeps you safe. For example, as a child you may have learnt that dogs might be dangerous. As you got older you developed more reasoning and learnt only some dogs are dangerous. What deciphers which dogs are dangerous are the patterns in your brain created from your experiences. These patterns are different for everyone; hence one person will consider a Rottweiler dangerous and another person won’t.
PTSD and trauma
If you have PTSD or have had a deeply distressing experience of any kind, you may find you are struggling. You may be feeling anxious, angry, suffering from flashbacks, poor sleep, intrusive thoughts and images. It can feel as if you’re just treading water and there is no cure. The symptoms can make you feel out of control and have an extremely negative impact on some areas of your life.
We understand how PTSD and trauma can affect your life, your relationships and your job. Because of this, we know it can make you feel as though your life will never be the same again. We use proven techniques to remove embedded patterns of trauma which cause the symptoms. In each session we will only discuss the relevant issues connected to the traumatic event you require help with. This means we won’t dredge up the past unnecessarily, and you only need to tell us the relevant details, without reliving it over and over again.
Effective therapy for Anxiety, Panic Disorders & OCD
Anxiety is a natural reaction to a stressful event. It is the body’s way of preparing you to deal with a difficult situation. For example, you may feel anxious about an upcoming interview. The body will pump more adrenaline into you to physically prepare and psych you up. This state is called fight or flight and is a temporary state, aimed at helping us to survive a dangerous event. Whilst highly effective, we are not designed to live our life in this state.
Anxiety can become an issue when it starts to affect daily activities and can manifest in many different forms. These could be repetitive and intrusive thoughts, panic attacks, constant fear or compulsions. You may also have physical symptoms such as poor sleep, sweating, brain fog, stomach problems and headaches. Additionally, you may find you start avoiding things or places or develop compulsions to successfully achieve an activity. It may feel like you are never going to get your life back to the way it was.
We are experienced in treating anxiety by using effective techniques that get to the root of the problem quickly. The treatment works by isolating what situations are being pattern matched to, that is causing the anxious sate. As part of our treatment, we will provide you with tools to help you cope outside of your sessions. Our therapy is like a wellbeing course, giving you the information you need to understand and cope with your emotions.
Effective therapy for Depression
Depression can vary from being in a low mood for several days to completely being unable to function. Unfortunately it can often go undiagnosed. Many people will often be unaware they have depression and will just think they are stressed, or out of sorts.
But if you have been feeling in a low mood for a while and have a loss of enjoyment in the things you used to take pleasure in, it is important to seek help. You may notice that you are withdrawing from your friends and family or routine tasks. It may be that you’re finding you are constantly feeling exhausted. You may have no enjoyment from anything including your work and your hobbies. Additionally you might have a constant flurry of negative thoughts and feelings that you are not good enough. You may even feel suicidal or that life is not worth living. If any of these issues are affecting you, please seek professional help immediately.
What is depression?
Depression is a sign from the brain that something in your life is wrong. Your emotional needs are almost certainly not being well met. This is why depression can occur after major life changes, such as bereavement, break ups, childbirth, divorce or redundancy. The brain can go into panic mode, which can result in a kind of shutting down, in an attempt to protect from any further damage. Unfortunately, this shut down mode can lead to more emotional needs being compromised. This results in over-thinking, over-dreaming and the cycle of depression begins.
By dealing with the trauma of the events that triggered the depression, and rebalancing your life, getting your emotional needs met better, then we can break the cycle of depression.
Effective therapy for Eating Disorders
Up to 3.4 million people are affected by an eating disorder in the UK. Many millions more suffer from what could be termed disordered eating. If you are struggling with bulimia, anorexia, binge eating or restricting, you are probably feeling out of control. You may feel that you have an unhealthy relationship with food. Maybe you have feelings of guilt if you eat certain foods. It may be that you are using excessive exercise to control or limit the damage caused by your eating disorder. The high levels of emotion towards ‘good’ and ‘bad’ foods mean we cannot think rationally when we are feeling emotional.
We can help you get control of an eating disorder and gain a healthy relationship with food once more. You may or may not be aware of the emotional thoughts that are driving the eating disorder. There is a strong possibility that there is a trauma pattern behind it. Some things we experience mean we have emotional reactions to certain situations. Often a past experience can change our relationship with a certain type of food, creating emotions which can influence either eating or denying ourselves that food.
Trauma patterns can be connected to food
The kind of trauma patterns that can link to an eating disorder vary widely. Some examples are being criticised about weight or appearance especially in our teen years. Or sometimes having a parent with their own issues around food can influence our learned behaviours. Sometimes we can have an association of food being linked to comfort or attention. Whatever the emotion driving the behaviour, it creates barriers that stop food from being just fuel and make it loaded with promise or danger, creating high levels of emotion around them.
Find out more…
If you would like to book a free consultation to find out more about how we can help you, then head over to our website, Here you can also find useful information and downloads in the Downloads section.
We look forward to being able to help you! With warmest wishes,
Russ and Tanya