Clinical Psychology in the Lambeth Early Onset (LEO) Community Team

Transcription

1 South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust Clinical Psychology in the Lambeth Early Onset (LEO) Community Team What is it and who is it for? Page

2 What is a clinical psychologist? A clinical psychologist is trained to help people understand and cope better with many different kinds of problems. Clinical psychologists are qualified to offer assessments and evidence-based talking therapies, such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). These are "talking treatments" that help people change the interaction between how they think, feel and behave. Clinical psychologists also carry out assessments to help understand difficulties people may be experiencing, for example, with their memory or thinking abilities. What kinds of problems can a clinical psychologist help with? Seeing a psychologist does not mean you have a mental illness. Everyone has things that they want to improve in their lives, and psychology can help you do that. Clinical psychologists can help with many different kinds of problems including: hearing distressing voices unusual and distressing thoughts or experiences anxiety depression low self esteem addictions eating disorders sleeping difficulties traumatic events in childhood and as an adult problems with relationships. Page 2

3 What does seeing a clinical psychologist involve? Clinical psychologists help by talking with you about your problems. Whenever possible, he or she will agree with you the best way of dealing with your difficulties and work with you to produce a plan of action. There are many different approaches the psychologist can use to help you overcome your problems, and they all involve you and the psychologist working together to bring about change. Your first appointment will normally be an assessment to allow the psychologist to learn more about you and your problems. This may last up to an hour. Sometimes, more than one appointment may be needed to complete your assessment. This is also an opportunity for you to ask questions and find out more about what psychologists do. After your assessment, the psychologist will discuss the different treatment options available to you. These may include further psychology appointments, depending on the treatment plan agreed between yourself and the psychologist. Family work Psychologists in the LEO Service also see families for family work. We understand that it can be difficult for families to get along all the time and sometimes it can be helpful to sit down with someone and figure out how to improve things. This might be help with solving problems, helping families to communicate better or just how to get along better. Page 3

4 What other people in LEO have said about psychology "Psychology helped me to talk about my problems. I was able to share the problem and get it off my chest. With time and help from my psychologist I developed a plan to help me get better control of my thoughts and feelings" (Karim, age 37). "Psychology has helped me see that my problems do not mean the end of the world. It also helped me find coping mechanisms and distractions, taught me to manage my mood and evaluate my life and see things more clearly" (Sarah, age 26). "Psychology was a breath of fresh air for me. It was not just talking about myself but getting advice that is beneficial for the future. I could talk about anything with my psychologist and there were no barriers" (Alisha, age 24). Page 4

5 Some myths and facts about psychology MYTH: Psychology is only about sitting in a room and talking about your problems. FACT: Psychology isn't just about talking about your problems. It's really practical and is about working together with a psychologist to help you move forward in your life. MYTH: I will be forced to talk about my childhood or things I don't want to. FACT: You get to talk about what you want and if there's stuff you don't want to talk about that's totally fine. MYTH: Psychologists can read your mind and know what you are thinking. FACT: Psychologists can't read minds. They are good at understanding why people get stuck in their lives and helping them move forward again. Whilst most people find that psychology is helpful and does not cause any problems, it doesn't help everyone. It is important to be clear what you want from seeing a psychologist, and tell them if you are not happy about anything, or don't feel as if psychology is working for you. Some people find it stressful or hard work talking about issues they want to deal with, but most find it rewarding to come up with new solutions to their problems. Page 5

6 How can I see a psychologist in the LEO service? Psychology is available to everyone in the LEO Service. If you are interested, you can speak to anyone in the psychology team. Or you can speak to your care coordinator or doctor and they can help to arrange a meeting with one of the psychologists. You can meet for a one-off session to find out more about psychology or you can meet up for regular sessions. There are also psychology groups and workshops which may interest you. Page 6

7 What are the alternatives to psychology? Psychology is meant to work alongside the rest of your treatment. We may offer you medication, advice on things like housing, education or money and a range of activities. All of these things can be important to your recovery, whether or not you choose to see a psychologist as well. There may also be other organisations that can offer help and support, privately and in the voluntary sector. You can get information about these from Lambeth MIND: Address: Lambeth MIND, Unit 2a, The Co-op Centre, 11 Mowll Street, London, SW9 6BG Information helpline: Web address: Page 7

8 South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust Options available If you d like a large print, audio, Braille or a translated version of this leaflet then please ask us. Useful contact details SLaM Switchboard: SLaM 24hr Information Line - Advice on how to access SLaM Services: Contact our Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) for help, advice and information: T: W: E: pals@slam.nhs.uk Complaints If you are not happy about something but not sure if you want to make a formal complaint you can speak to a member of staff directly. Alternatively you can contact the PALS Office on freephone If you decide you want to make a formal complaint this can be done by contacting the Complaints Department: Complaints Department, Maudsley Hospital, Denmark Hill, London SE5 8AZ T: (020) /2499 E: complaints@slam.nhs.uk W: For the quickest way to plan your journey anywhere in greater London use journey planner: (24hrs) Date of Publication: Reference: 11/11/2010 lc Page 13