What is a Therapy appointment like?

A question I am sometimes asked is ‘What happens in a therapy appointment?’. Unfortunately, this is in fact quite a tricky question to answer…. at least succinctly! This is because, much depends on the therapy model offered, and also the personal style of a therapist.

There are many different models of therapy. Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is probably the most well-known, but there are also side streams of CBT (often termed ‘3rd-wave CBT approaches’) like Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Mindfulness based CBT (MBCBT). There’s also other completely different types of therapy such as Psychoanalytic therapy (think Freud…), family therapy, eye-movement desensitisation and reprocessing (EMDR), Hypnotherapy, person-centred counselling to name just a few. Each of these models of therapy have different approaches. For example, in person centred counselling, often the therapist adopts more a reflective stance, whereas in CBT a therapist may be more questioning about certain beliefs. In ACT, it is more about sitting with difficult thoughts, whereas in CBT it is about stepping back and challenging them. This is a very loose distinction though and one could argue too general a distinction.

Some things are constant across therapies though. A safe, non judgmental space is key to therapy. A place where a client feels they can express their views and be treated with curiosity. Where they can be open.

In both my online and in-person sessions in Guildford and Basingstoke, psychology appointments can vary depending on what type of therapy suits the client best. I am though a big believer in being genuine though. Therefore, I am always open to discussions about what would work best for the client and whether this is an approach I can adopt.

Any questions, as always, please do not hesitate to ask.