Does your relationship with your partner impact on your mental well-being? Do you find that you are having difficulties in communicating your thoughts and feelings with your partner?
Has there been a broken trust issue? Are other party’s involvements in your relationship with your partner putting a strain on your relationship? If any of these issues or others not mentioned here have led to you developing mental health issues (depression or anxiety related) or, these issues are actually having a debilitating impact on your recovery from pre-existing depression or anxiety then Couple Therapy with Greenwich Time to Talk may help you.
Couple therapy refers to psychotherapy aimed at improving relationship and involves both partners of a committed relationship. In this regard, we work with all couples: married, co-habiting, same sex or gender reassigned individuals.
At Greenwich Time to talk, we recognise that while there may not be always be a sole reason for mental distress of some people, certain events or situations could contribute to the cause of mental distress. Major life events like relationship breakdowns can precipitate mental and physical health problems. In some cases, a relationship may add to the maintenance of certain mental health issues particularly where avoidance is an issue as with people who suffer from specific phobia or obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD).
The psychological approach we use is Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) which helps in identifying behaviours, understand the triggers, expectations, beliefs and attitudes that keep or fuel conflict, identify and practise healthy and realistic choices/alternatives. We always aim to help couples learn how to share their thoughts and feelings in a loving and safe way thereby improving communications.
We have dedicated therapists who have been trained by world renowned experts in couple’s therapy and these trained GTTT (Greenwich Time to Talk) therapists have been working with couples for the past 2 years within the IAPT service protocol.
To gain access to this service you need to be a resident of the London Borough of Greenwich or a have a GP within the borough, you can self-refer or be referred by your GP. You will have an initial assessment (over the phone or face-to-face) to identify the main mental health difficulty. As GTTT is an NHS service, one or both members of the couple will need to meet criteria for intervention i.e. presenting with depression or anxiety which meets the clinical guideline for our intervention.
For couple’s therapy to be identified as the appropriate intervention, you will need to tell us how your relationship is impacting on your mood. Both members of the couple must be willing to accept Couple Therapy as an intervention, and both need to refer themselves into the service.
If you are not eligible for the service then we would advise that you try other relationship services such as Relate.
Remember, seeking help to improve your relationship with your partner is not a sign of weakness. We believe it is an indication of commitment and a clear inclination to change.
If you find yourself suffering from symptoms of depression or anxiety, Greenwich Time to Talk offers talking treatment options based on evidence based treatments to help you through this. Have a look at our website and use the self-referral form to refer yourself for an assessment or call us on 020 8298 9677 (Mon – Thurs 8am – 8pm, Fridays 8am – 5pm) to make a self-referral.
Florence Ejemai
Accredited CBT Therapist
Greenwich Time To Talk