NHS Northamptonshire Talking Therapies

Guided self-help is suggested as a treatment for some types of depression, anxiety, panic disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

Treatment is typically offered online, as a webinar, SilverCloud programme or group, with regular contact with a therapist.  The aim is to give you helpful tools and techniques, you can carry on using after the treatment sessions have finished.

The types of treatments available are listed here.

Do you find it difficult to attend appointments during the hours of 9am to 5pm?

Would you prefer an online, flexible approach or are you looking for peer support in a confidential way?

NHS Northamptonshire Talking Therapies offer wellbeing webinars which are online groups presented weekly over a period of 6 or 7 weeks and take place in the evening.

The sessions are informed by cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and mindfulness to provide tools, education and guidance to help you overcome low mood, stress or anxiety.

Some of these tools include:

• Relaxation exercises
• Techniques to manage worry
• Meditation
• Recognising and connecting to what is important to you
• Thought challenging
• Ways to improve your sleep

All our webinars are presented by trained psychological wellbeing practitioners and therapists and the sessions are live and interactive.

When you join, your microphone and camera will be switched off, but you will be able to type in questions to the therapist while remaining completely anonymous to other participants. The therapist will provide advice and support in response to your questions, to help you personalise and apply the tools you learn.

Most of the information you receive regarding the webinars will be via email, including links to register for the sessions and to join the sessions.

The day after each online session you will receive a recording so if for any reason you cannot make the live session you can always catch up.

Our weekly webinars have helped hundreds of patients across Northamptonshire to overcome depression, manage anxiety and stress and live well.

NHS Northamptonshire Talking Therapies offer a range of groups designed to help if you are feeling low, anxious or stressed. All our groups are facilitated by 2 or 3 therapists, who are there to help guide you in making positive changes and learn strategies to improve how you are feeling.

In the group we keep the discussions based on the strategies we are learning rather than personal experience. You will never be put on the spot to contribute and if you do not wish to take part in group discussions that is ok.

The groups will typically be around 2 hours long, lasting for 6-8 weeks and have around 10-15 people joining.

Many people feel anxious about attending a group for the first time. However, people who do attend our groups often feel reassured and relieved to meet others and hear that they are not alone in how they are feeling. One of the biggest benefits of attending a group is learning from the experience of others.

A previous patient who has accessed groups said:

"I found the group I attended transformative in understanding my negative thoughts and link to my persistent low mood; the way I had been speaking to myself in my thoughts for years. Before I went to the group, I had attended other therapies and I felt like trying to change my thoughts was an attempt to convince me to lie to myself, by telling myself something different. 

"It was in the group setting that I saw for the first time that there was a different possibility, a new perspective from and within the group and so I opened myself up to changing a little at a time something that continued from that day It allowed a new hope and new opportunity."

If you are looking for extra support with your mental health you can log on to SilverCloud - a free and secure online self-help programme that is proven to help with anxiety, stress and depression. This guided self-help programme takes you through the same techniques you would learn with a therapist. The programme has online written information, videos and interactive tools, which you can complete at your own pace and revisit as many times as you like.

SilverCloud mental health programmes have already helped over 1 million people globally to feel better. In fact, most people in their research have shown improvements in just three months.

You can access the SilverCloud programme at any time of day and from any device, including a tablet or your mobile phone. Because every person's situation is unique, each programme can be personalised. If after your assessment it is agreed that SilverCloud would be a good option for you, we will send you a direct link which you can then use to create your account free of charge. You can discuss in your assessment whether you would like someone to support you to use this programme. Once you have signed up, you will have access to the programme for up to 1 year.

Watch this short video about the Silvercloud programme:

We work with people experiencing the following:

• Depression (excluding Bipolar Affective Disorder)
• Anxiety Disorders: Including:Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
• Panic Disorder
• Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
• Social Anxiety
• Health Anxiety
• Specific Phobia
• Agoraphobia: with or without panic
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Body Dysmorphia
• 'Mixed Anxiety and Depression' condition
• 'Adjustment Reaction' adjusting to specific life events, for example, such as loss.
• Stress management
• Menopausal symptoms

We also have a specific service for people living with certain long-term physical health conditions, who are experiencing depression and anxiety:

• Cardiac conditions
• Diabetes
• Respiratory conditions, such as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
• Cancer

We deliver NICE (Nationals Institute for Health and Care Excellence) recommended Talking Therapies, which include:

• Guided Self-Help (delivered by telephone or video)
• Psychoeducational courses
• Computerized Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) based programmes  
• Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT)
• Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) for depression
• Behavioural Activation (BA) for depression
• Couples Therapy for Depression (CTFD)
• Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) for trauma
• Counselling For depression (CFD)
• Dynamic Interpersonal Therapy (DIT) for depression.
• Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)
• Trauma Focussed CBT

NHS Northamptonshire Talking Therapies also provides optional support to people, who are accessing the clinical service, around employment and volunteering opportunities. 

NHS Northamptonshire Talking Therapies is unable to meet the needs of the following:

• People currently experiencing a mental health crisis, who are at risk to themselves or others, or who have recently been so, for example:
  • Expressing a current intent and / or plan to end life
  • Engaging in high-risk self-harm
  • Active risk of harm to others

Crisis support can be found here.

• People currently being seen in, or who have recently dropped out of, specialist mental health teams, such as Specialist Perinatal Service, N'Step, Eating Disorders Service, Community Mental Health Teams (CMHT) and Complex Trauma Service.
• People whose main need for support is connected to bipolar disorder, psychosis, personality disorder, dementia or eating disorder

If you are not sure who you need contact, please call the 24/7 Mental Health Number on 0800 448 0828 and they will be able to find you the right support.

It is common to experience negative emotions, difficult thoughts and distressing physical symptoms when living with a long-term condition. This can make it more difficult to cope with self-care needs and daily demands.
Common difficulties include feeling low in mood, anxious, frustrated, hopeless, having a sense of loss and struggling to adjust to a physical health diagnosis and lifestyle changes.

We are a team of psychological practitioners who have knowledge and understanding of the challenges experienced by people living with a long-term condition.

We offer treatments by video-call, telephone and face-to-face sessions. These could be 1-to-1 sessions, groups or webinars.

We use a stepped-care approach, which means that you receive the most effective treatment for your needs. This will be low-intensity or high-intensity treatment. We tailor the treatments we offer to your needs so you can achieve your therapy goals.

We are here to support you if your physical health condition has resulted in difficulties such as depression, panic, phobias, anxiety disorders, obsessive compulsive behaviour (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), diabetes distress, fear of cancer returning, low self-esteem or other difficulties.

You can ask your GP or healthcare professional to make a referral on your behalf.

Or you can sign up yourself by phone, email or post:

Call: 03000 270 584 (8am - 4pm)

Email: talkinghealthnorthants@nhft.nhs.uk

Postal address: NHS Northamptonshire Talking Therapies Health, Lotus House, Victoria Street, Northampton, NN1 3NR.

Please note: we are not an emergency service. If you need urgent help, please call NHS 111, The Samaritans on 116 123 or the mental health number 0800 448 0828.

What happens next?
When we receive your referral, we will contact you for an initial assessment to find out about your needs. If we are the best service to support you, we will send you an appointment outcome letter about our discussion and any treatment plans. We will only share this information with your referrer or GP if you give consent.