If you’re not sure what to expect from counselling, you’d like to explore what other options are available to you, you fancy trying a self-help book or you simply need someone to talk to right now, you may find the following organisations, websites and books useful.
Organisations:
The British Association for Counselling Professionals (BACP) www.bacp.co.uk
This is the professional association for members of the counselling professions in the UK. The website includes useful information about what therapy can help with, the different types of therapy available and what to expect from counselling sessions.
Cruse Bereavement Care www.cruse.org.uk
Cruse Bereavement Care is the leading national charity for bereaved people in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. They offer support, advice and information to children, young people and adults when someone dies. Cruse also has a Freephone national helpline which is staffed by trained bereavement volunteers who offer emotional support to anyone affected by bereavement. The helpline is open Monday-Friday 9.30-5pm (excluding bank holidays), with extended hours on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings, when they’re open until 8pm. Tel: 0808 808 1677.
The Samaritans www.samaritans.org
The Samaritans offer a safe place for you to talk any time you like, in your own way – about whatever’s getting to you. You don’t have to be suicidal. They are open 24/7, every day of the year, and you can call free on 116 123 (UK).
Be Mindful www.bemindful.co.uk
This site, from the Mental Health Foundation, offers information about mindfulness, an online mindfulness course, and a directory so you can find a mindfulness class or teacher in your area.
Reading Well ‘Books on Prescription’ Scheme www.reading-well.org.uk
The Reading Well ‘Books on Prescription’ Scheme promotes the benefits of reading for health and wellbeing and offers a selection of books to help you to understand and manage your health and wellbeing using self-help reading. There are currently four book lists available which cover mental health, dementia, young people and long-term conditions. The books have all been recommended and endorsed by health professionals and have been tried and tested by people with experience of living with the conditions. You can be recommended a title by your GP or another health professional, and you can visit your local library and take the book out for free. The scheme is supported by NHS England through its Improving Access to Psychological Therapies Programme (IAPT), as well as many other leading organisations.
The British Association for Counselling Professionals (BACP) www.bacp.co.uk
This is the professional association for members of the counselling professions in the UK. The website includes useful information about what therapy can help with, the different types of therapy available and what to expect from counselling sessions.
Cruse Bereavement Care www.cruse.org.uk
Cruse Bereavement Care is the leading national charity for bereaved people in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. They offer support, advice and information to children, young people and adults when someone dies. Cruse also has a Freephone national helpline which is staffed by trained bereavement volunteers who offer emotional support to anyone affected by bereavement. The helpline is open Monday-Friday 9.30-5pm (excluding bank holidays), with extended hours on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings, when they’re open until 8pm. Tel: 0808 808 1677.
The Samaritans www.samaritans.org
The Samaritans offer a safe place for you to talk any time you like, in your own way – about whatever’s getting to you. You don’t have to be suicidal. They are open 24/7, every day of the year, and you can call free on 116 123 (UK).
Be Mindful www.bemindful.co.uk
This site, from the Mental Health Foundation, offers information about mindfulness, an online mindfulness course, and a directory so you can find a mindfulness class or teacher in your area.
Reading Well ‘Books on Prescription’ Scheme www.reading-well.org.uk
The Reading Well ‘Books on Prescription’ Scheme promotes the benefits of reading for health and wellbeing and offers a selection of books to help you to understand and manage your health and wellbeing using self-help reading. There are currently four book lists available which cover mental health, dementia, young people and long-term conditions. The books have all been recommended and endorsed by health professionals and have been tried and tested by people with experience of living with the conditions. You can be recommended a title by your GP or another health professional, and you can visit your local library and take the book out for free. The scheme is supported by NHS England through its Improving Access to Psychological Therapies Programme (IAPT), as well as many other leading organisations.
Self-Help Books:
Here is a handful of the books that I have found helpful and which you may like to explore for yourself. I’m always happy to make suitable recommendations.
Grief Works: Stories of Life, Death and Surviving, Julia Samuel (Penguin)
Written by a grief psychotherapist with over 25 years’ experience, this book will help you understand the complex emotions around death and shows how grief, if approached correctly, can heal you.
The Courage to Grieve: Creative Living, Recovery and Growth through Grief, Judy Tatelbaum (Vermilion).
This book explores how you can deal with every kind of grief. It offers spiritual, optimistic, creative and practical guidance and shows how it is possible to live with courage, not fearing death.
Motherless Daughters: The Legacy of Loss, Hope Edelman (Da Capo)
Including interviews with hundreds of mother-loss survivors, the author's personal story of losing her mother, recent research in grief and psychology, Motherless Daughters reveals the shared experiences and core identity issues of motherless daughters.
With the End in Mind: Dying, Death and Wisdom in an Age of Denial, Kathryn Mannix (William Collins)
Told through a series of beautifully crafted stories taken from nearly four decades of clinical practice, Kathryn Mannix's book answers the most intimate questions about the process of dying with honesty and humanity. She makes a compelling case for the therapeutic power of approaching death not with trepidation, but with openness, clarity and understanding.
The Worry Cure: Stop Worrying and Start Living, Dr Robert L. Leahy (Piatkus)
Dr Leahy offers insight into the causes of worry and practical ways in which you can reduce it, based on a cognitive behavioural approach. Recommended by the Reading Well ‘Books on Prescription’ Scheme.
Daring Greatly: How Courage to be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent and Lead, Brené Brown (Penguin)
In this insightful book, Brené Brown argues that vulnerability is in fact a strength, and when you shut yourself off from revealing your true self, you can grow distanced from the things that bring purpose and meaning to your life.
Mindfulness: A Practical Guide to Finding Peace in a Frantic World, Professor Mark Williams and Dr Danny Penman (Piatkus)
This book reveals a set of simple yet powerful practices that you can incorporate into daily life to help break the cycle of anxiety, stress, unhappiness and exhaustion. It is based on mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) which is recommended by the UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Also recommended by The Reading Well ‘Books on Prescription’ Scheme.
Love’s Executioner and Other Tales of Psychotherapy, Irvin D. Yalom (Piatkus)
A valuable insight into the delicate process of therapy. The case histories that Dr Yalom shares make it clear that it is only by facing anxieties head on that you can hope to come to terms with them and develop. This book offers a rare glimpse into the consulting room of a master therapist.
The Book You Wish Your Parents Had Read, Philippa Perry (Penguin Life)
Whether you are interested in exploring how your upbringing has shaped you, looking to understand your child's feelings or wishing to support your partner, this book is an invaluable resource. It's a compassionate, sage and judgement-free guide to having the best possible relationships with the people you love.