Counselling for Depression
Counselling for Depression (CfD) is an evidence based and NICE (National
Institute for Health and Care Excellence) approved form of person-centred
psychological therapy for the treatment of depression. As a qualified practitioner
I am licensed to work within the government's Mental Health Programme as
well as treat people privately. CfD targets the emotions underlying depression
along with issues such as low self-esteem and excessive self-criticism,
which often maintain depressed mood. It aims to help clients contact underlying
feelings, make sense of them and reflect on the new meanings which emerge.
CfD is a psychological therapy as recommended by NICE (NICE, 2009) for the
treatment of depression. It is based on a person-centred, experiential model
and is particularly appropriate for people with persistent sub-threshold
depressive symptoms or mild to moderate depression. Clinical trials have
shown this type of counselling to be effective when 6 - 10 sessions are
offered. However, it is recognised that in more complex cases which show
benefit in the initial sessions, further improvement may be observed with
additional sessions up to the maximum number suggested for other NICE recommended
therapies such as CBT, that is, 20 sessions.
If at any point you have any questions on counselling and psychotherapy, do ask me and I will do my best to answer them for you.