ANXIETY UK - support line and cheaper therapy services

[MyNameIsTerry]

Whatever you say, you're in charge

OK, if you want to keep making out I run off complaining but Nic knows the truth about why. Members on here may choose to believe what they wish, they can't see the facts afterall.

[SeaJay]

Ok now I'm slightly confused

Yesterday I joined this anxiety uk organisation: www.anxietyuk.org.uk

They have 40 years experience

I'm not aware of another Anxiety UK organisation though

[MyNameIsTerry]

Ok now I'm slightly confused

Yesterday I joined this anxiety uk organisation: www.anxietyuk.org.uk

They have 40 years experience

I'm not aware of another Anxiety UK organisation though

Thats why I'm confused as well.

The one you have joined is the one NoPoet raised the thread about and one I'm talking about all the way through. There are loads of charities out there, many are small local ones, so I'm not sure if that is what Ricardo is mentioning? Anxiety UK ran by Nikki Leadbetter is well known.

I'm a member of a local one that I used to attend before here but not any others. Let us know how it goes because there seems to be little info about things like their forum and whether it's as good as here. I don't mean that to sound like I mean to leave, it's I looked at OCD UK and the thing that bothers me is whether I would get the right support for my GAD on there but Anxiety UK might do. Since I can't access any CBT in my area now, if I have to pay, I would look at somewhhere like Anxiety UK as a way to get someone with a pre-vetted reputation and be able to make use of the sliding scale treatment options without phoning around a load. I asked one in my area and he wanted £80 per hour and I don't fancy paying that.

You might want to look at CCBT as well. NICE state they accept evidence that it is as efficient as face-to-face therapy as long as their is remote therapist support. I know of a few that do offer that, including one on here.

Something the NHS/IAPT are quite bad for is their insistence on face-to-face. Many private ones offer Skype thesedays. So, thats another reason I was interested in Anxiety UK as it could help me there with my funny daily hours and the also that I'm not limited to the local therapists.

[SeaJay]

Thats why I'm confused as well.

The one you have joined is the one NoPoet raised the thread about and one I'm talking about all the way through. There are loads of charities out there, many are small local ones, so I'm not sure if that is what Ricardo is mentioning? Anxiety UK ran by Nikki Leadbetter is well known.

I'm a member of a local one that I used to attend before here but not any others. Let us know how it goes because there seems to be little info about things like their forum and whether it's as good as here. I don't mean that to sound like I mean to leave, it's I looked at OCD UK and the thing that bothers me is whether I would get the right support for my GAD on there but Anxiety UK might do. Since I can't access any CBT in my area now, if I have to pay, I would look at somewhhere like Anxiety UK as a way to get someone with a pre-vetted reputation and be able to make use of the sliding scale treatment options without phoning around a load. I asked one in my area and he wanted £80 per hour and I don't fancy paying that.

You might want to look at CCBT as well. NICE state they accept evidence that it is as efficient as face-to-face therapy as long as their is remote therapist support. I know of a few that do offer that, including one on here.

Something the NHS/IAPT are quite bad for is their insistence on face-to-face. Many private ones offer Skype thesedays. So, thats another reason I was interested in Anxiety UK as it could help me there with my funny daily hours and the also that I'm not limited to the local therapists.

I'm going to phone them when they open at 9:30am because they asked me to. I'll find out what I can (I've a few questions for them) and I'll let you know what they say.

One thing I do know though, is that they do not have a chat forum (which for me at least is both disappointing and a little odd in this day and internet age), but, they are about to open up a Live Chat room facility for members soon, so hopefully that will go some way to resolving that little issue. At least that is what they said.

EDIT: Who is the member Davit? Is the person a therapist or someone with a lot of knowledge of how anxiety affects the mind? Reason I ask is the person seems knowledgeable but I'm wary of accepting theories from non therapists. If it is something I am quite familiar with myself then that's fine because I know the person is on the right track but if they start talking about things I don't know about then that's when I start asking how does this person know this? Sorry I don't mean to be judgemental or anything, I'm just trying to protect myself from incorrect information even if it is meant with good intent. Hope this doesn't offend anyone.

[ricardo]

Why are you both confused.The link I put up was with a similar name but a completely different web page. It's not rocket science.

You have joined the correct one SeaJay.

How many more times do I have to apologise, I have now said for the third time that because the links had very similar names I was speaking about the wrong one.Is this such a crime.In fact if anything I have pointed out an association which doesn't appear to be that professional in it's approach. Can we leave it there please.

It's my wife's birthday today so I will leave you to it.

[SeaJay]

Why are you both confused.The link I put up was with a similar name but a completely different web page. It's not rocket science.

You have joined the correct one SeaJay.

Ok cool, thank you for confirming that for me

Hope you and your wife both have a great day

[dally]

So.. Can someone clarify?
Which organisation has the vetted counsellors?

This is similar to ...
no more panic. And. No panic. Web sites.

[MyNameIsTerry]

It's no biggie, Ricardo, I was just confused as both of your posts went to Anxiety UK so I was wondering what I was getting wrong. What are the others called out of interest so we know who to avoid?

I hope you wife has a nice birthday.

[SeaJay]

Couple of things

You have to pay for 3 therapy sessions up front before starting therapy. I asked if I could use the service on a 'as and when needed' basis and they said yes if the therapist is ok with that (I assume some might and some might not)

I raised concerns about the brouchure they sent me because the qualifications required didn't seem to be that high. I was directed to a page on their website and I saw this

Cognitive behavioural therapists (CBT): Applicants must hold a qualification from a course accredited by the British Association for Behavioural & Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP) or be on a CBT Diploma course recognised by the BABCP, or hold individual accreditation with the BABCP.

The red doesn't tell me much and the blue mentions a diploma which isn't quite a degree.

Counsellors: Applicants must hold a Diploma in Counselling from a British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy (BACP) or British Psychological Society (BPS) accredited course, or be working towards a Diploma in Counselling on a course that is accredited either by the BACP or the BPS, or hold individual accreditation with the BACP.

The above says you don't even need a diploma; that you only need to be working toward one? It seems a risky proposition to expose someone with mental health issues to a therapist who hasn't even got a diploma. It's very probable that I am missing something here, and that everything is taken care of.

Clinical hypnotherapists: Applicants must be registered with one of the following professional bodies the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council ,the British Society of Clinical Hypnosis or be registered with the General Hypnotherapy Register, National Council for Hypnotherapy and/or be registered with the UK Council for Psychotherapy and or The Hypnotherapy Society.

The above doesn't tell me anything about their qualifications.

Clinical psychologists: Applicants must hold a BPS approved Doctorate in Clinical Psychology and be registered with HCPC with experience of delivering CBT based therapy. Membership and /or individual accreditation with the BABCP would be welcomed.[/I]

This sounds much more like it. A Doctorate in Clinical Psychology. But how do you know you'll have this therapist?

They do not have a chat forum but agreed it would be a good idea. The site is changing all the time they said, so they could implement one in the future.

[MyNameIsTerry]

Diplomas can be at various levels e.g. 3 (A Level), 4 or 5 (the first & second year of a foundation degree). BUT when it comes to BACP & BABCP, it means the a professional standard including supervised hours, client hours, etc. The difference is that there are many online colleges (and proper uni's) offering diplomas with no client contact hence BACP & BABCP don't recognise them as as enough experience to work with clients.

You don't need a degree to work as a CBT therapist for IAPT (the NHS) and be a member of BABCP. So, whilst it would be nice, you won't find many like that because if you go the degree route, why would you become a therapist when you can become a psychologist working on a multiskilled basis? CBT therapists are just trained in that.

One of the criticisms of IAPT is that it's therapists are not as well trained. Some are good, some are not so good. But with a private one you can ask more about them to understand their background whereas with the IAPT route our GP's send us to, you get what you are given.

Have a look at what BABCP say http://www.babcp.com/Accreditation/Accreditation.aspx

BUT a word of caution. Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners (PWP) in the IAPT structure do not do CBT, they tend to work on the level below (Level 2) giving Guided Self Help. So, some could be these that are students of a CBT course so they can become High Intensity Therapists. Thats what I found when I went through IAPT anyway.

To understand about the hypnotherapists, have a look at the members pages of those societies. It will tell you the expected levels to be doing that.

BPS are the original people you would see, the BSC+MSC people HOWEVER does a degree mean you are any good. Not from my experience in business. Do they spend time working with clients or just studying? I've worked with law grads who were quite thick (but I have worked with many who were the opposite). So, again whilst it looks good, it doesn't mean they have a pedigree in a clinical setting.

I would expect they will tell you who the therapist will be. Then Google them as they will likely have a private practice or be a partner in someone elses.

Thats strange, it said they had a members forum. Charities like OCD Uk & OCD Action have them.

Bare in mind that this sector is full of people who didn't train through these routes, some of them could have been therapists in successful practices for decades. To become members they can do conversions or likely just let BACP/BABCP look at their CV's to determine whether they have the experience already. (it works like this in other industries)