Stress

We all know what it’s like to feel stressed, but it’s not easy to pin down exactly what stress means. When we say things like “this is stressful” or “I’m stressed”, we might be talking about:

• Situations or events that put pressure on us – for example, times where we have lots to do and think about, or don’t have much control over what happens.
• Our reaction to being placed under pressure – the feelings we get when we have demands placed on us that we find difficult to cope with.

Being under pressure is a normal part of life. It can be a useful drive that helps you take action, feel more energised and get results. But if you often become overwhelmed by stress, these feelings could start to be a problem for you.

Stress isn’t a psychiatric diagnosis, but it’s closely linked to your mental health in two important ways:

• Stress can cause mental health problems, and make existing problems worse. For example, if you often struggle to manage feelings of stress, you might develop a mental health problem like anxiety or depression.
• Mental health problems can cause stress. You might find coping with the day-to-day symptoms of your mental health problem, as well as potentially needing to manage medication, heath care appointments or treatments, can become extra sources of stress.
  

This can start to feel like a vicious circle, and it might be hard to see where stress ends and your mental health problem begins.

What’s The Solution?

We take a holistic approach to stress management – often blending therapies together – so that each client receives what works best for them. This is called integrative counselling.

With stress management, it is important that the client realises that there are coping strategies and psychological techniques to improve wellbeing.

With stress management counselling, each person will have different levels of stress and different feelings about stress, but there will be different stress management guidelines and solutions that can be put in place for each client.

We always work collaboratively with our clients to provide the best results to therapy. Our service is confidential and we aim to foster a safe environment where you can feel positive and empowered.