Respect your confidentiality
How Do I Make an Appointment?
People seeking help can be referred by their
GP or other concerned professional, Human Resources Department or
may you make contact PCSI directly via the website contact page or
email eddie@peoplecareservicesireland.com .Please note that a full
fee is charged if less than 48 hours notice of cancellation is given,
once an appointment has been booked for you.
Appointments
An assessment appointment will be offered, at the earliest convenient
time. Evening appointments are available. This is an introductory
meeting, lasting about 60 minutes, providing opportunity to meet the
therapist and begin to share and explore current difficulties and
concerns. It also offers the opportunity jointly to assess, whether
therapy or counselling may be appropriate at this time. or whether
some other form of help would be appropriate. Most people are somewhat
apprehensive about their first visit to see a psychologist because
they don’t know what to expect. Most people feel considerably
relieved after their first visit because an experienced psychologist
will make them feel comfortable talking about their problems.
The Session
Clients will usually arrange to attend for one session per week, this
will, if possible, be arranged for the same time each week. This regularity
may hopefully enhance the experience of emotional containment and
'holding'. The sessions last for fifty minutes.
Confidentiality
The PCSI consultant will outline issues related to confidentiality
and its limitations in the first session. PCSI consultants maintain
the strictest confidentiality subject to legal limitations. These
legal limitations are:
- if there is reason to believe a individual
presents a danger to himself /herself or others. (e.g., threats
or actions toward suicide, homicide, etc.)
- if a serious crime has been committed,
- if a child or vulnerable person is at risk
from abuse.
If PCSI becomes aware of any legal limitation they will discuss this
with the person in question and the proper authority in accordance
with the circumstances.
For individuals referred to PCSI by Human Resources Departments /
organisations, strict confidentiality in relation to the content (e.g.
matters discussed and individual’s responses) will be maintained,
subject to legal limitations outlined above. Contact with Human Resources
Departments / organisations will be for administration purposes only
(e.g. fees scheduling).
Who Can Benefit From Psychological Therapy?
Psychological therapy may be of help to you, if you have:
• Negativity and lack of energy: loss of drive, self-doubt, low
self esteem, lack of direction or purpose.
• Difficulties coping with change; in your relationship, family,
life or work place.
• Anxiety & Stress related to your everyday life: develop
mental life crisis, middle life crisis, changes to self-image and
body image.
• Anxiety & Stress related to your relationships and your
family life: relationship breakdown, separation and divorce, loss,
grief, bereavement or other family crises and changes.
• Anxiety & Stress related to changes at work: performance
difficulties, burnout, workplace changes and challenges, redundancy,
problems with self-esteem and career direction, executive stress.
• Anxiety & Stress related to your health: psychosomatic
disorders, body image problems, adjusting to illness or medical interventions.
Information About Clinical Psychology
Clinical Psychology is an exclusively postgraduate profession. In
order to receive recognition a practitioner must have both a degree
in psychology and an appropriate postgraduate training. To qualify
as a clinical psychologist can take between 6 to 7 years.
Postgraduate training leads to a Masters or Doctorate in Clinical
Psychology. The background and training of clinical psychology is
rooted in the science of psychology. Clinical Psychology is one of
the applications of this science to help solve human problems.
A clinical psychologist is an expert at helping people resolve personal,
emotional and relationship problems. You can expect a psychologist
to conduct himself or herself in an ethical, professional manner,
to show sensitivity to your feelings and to explain the issues of
privacy and confidentiality regarding your visits.
In Ireland the Psychological Society of Ireland (PSI) regulates the
practice of Clinical Psychology through the process of Registration.
The British Psychological Society (BPS) regulates the practice of
Clinical Psychology through the process of Chartering, which ensures
that those who practise have appropriate qualifications and experience
and their services are of the highest quality and integrity. Many
Clinical Psychologists in Ireland are members of both professional
societies. Both PSI & BPS regulates the profession by a Code of
Practice to which all Clinical Psychologists must adhere. You should
also feel free to ask any psychologist you consult about his or her
qualifications and experience. A well-qualified psychologist will
not be offended by such questions and will be happy to provide the
information you request.
Ethical Guidelines
All PCSI Consultants are qualified and accredited Psychologists or
Counsellors, members of reputable professionally bodies, follow the
ethical guidelines of these highly regarded bodies and have ongoing
supervision.
Dr. Eddie Murphy
Professional Bodies Memberships
Psychological Society of Ireland
British Psychological Society
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS ABOUT COGNITIVE THERAPY
Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., Director
Beck Institute for Cognitive Therapy and Research
Q: What is cognitive therapy?
A: Cognitive therapy is one of the few forms of psychotherapy that
has been scientifically tested and found to be effective in over three
hundred clinical trials for many different disorders. In contrast
to other forms of psychotherapy, cognitive therapy is usually more
focused on the present, more time-limited, and more problem-solving
oriented. Indeed, much of what the patient does is solve current problems.
In addition, patients learn specific skills that they can use for
the rest of their lives. These skills involve identifying distorted
thinking, modifying beliefs, relating to others in different ways,
and changing behaviors.
Q: What is the theory behind cognitive therapy?
A: Cognitive therapy is based on the cognitive model, which is, simply
that the way we perceive situations influences how we feel emotionally.
For example, one person reading this pamphlet might think, "Wow!
This sounds good, it's just what I've always been looking for!"
and feels happy. Another person reading this information might think,
"Well, this sounds good but I don't think I can do it."
This person feels sad and discouraged. So it is not a situation which
directly affects how a person feels emotionally, but rather, his or
her thoughts in that situation. When people are in distress, they
often do not think clearly and their thoughts are distorted in some
way. Cognitive therapy helps people to identify their distressing
thoughts and to evaluate how realistic the thoughts are. Then they
learn to change their distorted thinking. When they think more realistically,
they feel better. The emphasis is also consistently on solving problems
and initiating behavioral change.
Q: What can I do to get ready for therapy?
A: An important first step is to set goals. Ask yourself, "How
would I like to be different by the end of therapy?" Think specifically
about changes you'd like to make at work, at home, in your relationships
with family, friends, co-workers, and others. Think about what symptoms
have been bothering you and which you'd like to decrease or eliminate.
Think about other areas that would improve your life: pursuing spiritual/intellectual/cultural
interests, increasing exercise, decreasing bad habits, learning new
interpersonal skills, improving management skills at work or at home.
The therapist will help you evaluate and refine these goals and help
you determine which goals you might be able to work at on your own
and which ones you might want to work on in therapy.
Q: What happens during a typical therapy session?
A: Even before your therapy session begins, your therapist may have
you fill out certain forms to assess your mood. Depression, Anxiety
and Hopelessness Inventories help give you and the therapist an objective
way of assessing your progress. One of the first things your therapist
will do in the therapy session is to determine how you've been feeling
this week, compared to other weeks. This is what we call a mood check.
The therapist will ask you what problem you'd like to put on the agenda
for that session and what happened during the previous week that was
important. Then the therapist will make a bridge between the previous
therapy session and this week's therapy session by asking you what
seemed important that you discussed during the past session, what
self-help assignments you were able to do during the week, and whether
there is anything about the therapy that you would like to see changed.
Next, you and the therapist will discuss the problem or problems you
put on the agenda and do a combination of problem-solving and assessing
the accuracy of your thoughts and beliefs in that problematic situation.
You will also learn new skills. You and the therapist will discuss
how you can make best use of what you've learned during the session
in the coming week and the therapist will summarize the important
points of the session and ask you for feedback: what was helpful about
the session, what was not, anything that bothered you, anything the
therapist didn't get right, anything you'd like to see changed. As
you will see, both therapist and patient are quite active in this
form of treatment.
Q: How long does therapy last?
A: Unless there are practical constraints, the decision about length
of treatment is made cooperatively between therapist and patient.
Often the therapist will have a rough idea after a session or two
of how long it might take for you to reach the goals that you set
at the first session. Some patients remain in therapy for just a brief
time, six to eight sessions. Other patients who have had long-standing
problems may choose to stay in therapy for many months. Initially,
patients are seen once a week, unless they are in crisis. As soon
as they are feeling better and seem ready to start tapering therapy,
patient and therapist might agree to try therapy once every two weeks,
then once every three weeks. This more gradual tapering of sessions
allows you to practice the skills you've learned while still in therapy.
Booster sessions are recommended three, six and twelve months after
therapy has ended.
Q: What about medication?
A: Cognitive therapists, being both practical and collaborative, can
discuss the advantages and disadvantages of medication with you. Many
patients are treated without medication at all. Some disorders, however,
respond better to a combination of medication and cognitive therapy.
If you are on medication, or would like to be on medication, you might
want to discuss with your therapist whether you should have a psychiatric
consultation with a specialist to ensure that you are on the right
kind and dosage of medication. If you are not on medication and do
not want to be on medication, you and your therapist might assess,
after four to six weeks, how much you've progressed and determine
whether you might want a psychiatric consultation at that time to
obtain more information about medication.
Q: How can I make the best use of therapy?
A: One way is to ask your therapist how you might be able to supplement
your psychotherapy with cognitive therapy readings, workbooks, client
pamphlets, etc. A second way is to prepare carefully for each session,
thinking about what you learned in the previous session and jotting
down what you want to discuss in the next session.
A third way to maximize therapy is to make sure that you try to bring
the therapy session into your everyday life. A good way of doing this
is by taking notes at the end of each session or recording the session
or a summary of the session on audiotape. Make sure that you and the
therapist leave enough time in the therapy session to discuss what
would be helpful for you to do during the coming week and try to predict
what difficulties you might have in doing these assignments so your
therapist can help you before you leave the session.
Q: How will I know if therapy is working?
A: Most patients notice a decrease in their symptoms within three
to four weeks of therapy if they have been faithfully attending sessions
and doing the suggested assignments between sessions on a daily basis.
They also see the scores on their objective tests begin to drop within
several weeks.
