Hammersmith and Fulham Talking Therapies

Talking Therapies help people with common problems like stress, anxiety, and depression.

How can it help me? We can help people with mild to moderate mental health issues. Our support can help you to:

• Work out what you want to change

• Recognise why you feel like this

• Learn new ways of coping

• Better manage your difficulties

Is talking therapies for me? We use a range of psychological therapies to treat anxiety, low mood, and depression.

Anxiety: This might feel like some or all of these:

• Feeling worried about things all the time

• Finding it hard to sleep or waking up with anxious thoughts racing through your mind

• Avoiding situations or things you’d like to do because you feel anxious

• Exhausted because you feel on edge all the time

• Upsetting thoughts that you can’t seem to get rid of

• Intense fear of specific objects, situations, or activities

• Sudden, overwhelming feelings of panic.

Low mood or depression: This might feel like some or all of these:

• Feeling sad a lot of the time

• Not enjoying things like you used to

• Not having any energy

• Changes in your appetite.

Who is this service not suitable for? Service users need to be motivated to attend and engage in regular psychological therapy. Those with the following mental health conditions are unlikely to benefit from the brief, structured help we provide. We can't see people where there is:

• Active risk of harm to self, current suicidal intent, a recent suicide attempt, or if still in crisis

• A diagnosed personality disorder or personality traits that would make engagement in a brief psychological intervention likely to be ineffective, unhelpful, and contravene NICE guidance

• Complex needs requiring multi-disciplinary input or longer-term psychological input. Examples include severe OCD, chronic agoraphobia, complex PTSD, such as following repeated/ongoing trauma or victims of significant torture

• Drug and alcohol misuse as a primary problem or level of misuse likely to prevent engagement in regular psychological therapy

• Significant psychosocial or physical health factors that prevent engagement in regular psychological therapy or require input from a multi-disciplinary team. For example, where there are ongoing physical health investigations or legal cases

• Where ongoing home visits are required.

​​​​​​​The service can also work with younger people (aged 16 to 17 years), but only if they are referred by their general practitioner (GP) or the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) team. Self-referrals are only accepted for adults (age 18+).

We use a range of talking therapies to help you feel better. Our approaches use evidence-based therapies. This means there's proof they are likely to make you feel better. Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is one we use a lot. Here are some examples of the services we offer:

CBT for individuals: Using Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT)-based approaches we work with you to identify unhelpful patterns of thinking and behaviours that may be keeping your difficulties going. You’ll then learn strategies to break out of negative cycles and begin on your path to recovery.

BCT for couples: Behavioural Couples Therapy (BCT) is an evidence based treatment for depression. It is suitable for couples where low mood or depression affects one or both partners and leads to distress within the relationship.

Guided self-help: Using workbooks and working through defined tasks you learn ways of coping with stress and feelings of low mood to help you manage your difficulties.

Counselling for depression: We talk about struggles experienced in the past and the present including exploring feelings to better understand your concerns and the impact key moments have had on you.

Group sessions and workshops: Join group sessions and learn to control stress and improve general wellbeing, focus on mindfulness, better cope with long-term conditions, improve self-esteem and assertiveness, and ease sleep problems.

Signposting and other services: After speaking with you, we may refer you to other better-suited local NHS or charitable services to help you plan next steps to improving your mental wellbeing.

Making a referral: There are two easy ways to access talking therapies:

1. Refer yourself: You can self-refer to Talking Therapies. You should be over 18 and be registered with a GP in the borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. To self-refer, you can either fill out an online form, call our freephone number or email us.

Online form: Visit our website to fill in the self-referral form.

Call (freephone number): 0300 123 1156

Email: [email protected]

2. Request your GP to refer you: Your doctor, social worker, employment advisor, or any other professional can make a referral for you. If you are aged 16 or 17 and would like to be referred, please speak to your GP or Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) worker if you are meeting with someone from a CAMHS team.

What next? After we receive your referral, we will contact you within 7–14 days to book an assessment. Assessments are usually over the phone lasting between 30 to 60 minutes. All our calls are from a withheld number. During the assessment, the therapist will ask you about your difficulties and then suggest a treatment option.

Our sessions are structured and take place over a short time, usually about 8 weeks to 10 weeks. If we are not the most appropriate service for you, we will explain the reason and suggest alternative services, where possible. You can expect to wait between 2 to 5 months to start treatment, depending on the type of treatment you need and your availability.

What to expect during therapy: Your therapist will recommend a treatment that is most suited to you and you can access therapy in different ways. It can be face-to-face, in groups, or using video on your mobile phone, tablet, or computer.

Conversations are with non-judgemental professional therapists who will keep your information confidential. _We routinely share general information with your GP and other health professionals involved in your care to help them look after you. _This might include information like the fact you have chosen to access a talking therapy and the type of treatment you are receiving. More detailed information may be shared but we would always try and discuss that with you first. We are part of the NHS and all services are offered free of charge.

Languages: We currently have therapists who can offer assessments and therapy in a range of languages, which can be discussed when booking your appointment. If we can’t provide a therapist who speaks your language, we’ll organise for an interpreter to be present for your therapy sessions.