Kate, 38
Sugar ‘addiction’, relationship issues, phobia
At the initial consultation Kate said that she wanted to end her addiction to sugar, to forgive people and move on with her life. She also had needle phobia, which had a profound effect on family life as she has a child with a chronic medical condition.
Kate’s goal at the first session was to clean the top of her dressing table, so that ‘the last thing I see at night, and the first thing I see in the morning are neat and tidy’.
Over the course of therapy, Kate became motivated to declutter her house.
Through the therapeutic process, Kate realised that she needed to take daily exercise in nature as a way of addressing her work/life balance.
Kate set goals which helped her to change her daily routine to allow her to practise yoga and return to running.
Once Kate was feeling back to her old self, we addressed her needle phobia.
Immediately after the phobia sessions, Kate registered as a blood donor. This is something that she had wanted to do for years, as a way of thanking the NHS for the care of her child.
Eve, 18
health anxiety, phobia
Eve had been suffering from anxiety about Covid-19 and had been unable to go to college, to work, or to mix with people, as a result. She did not want to go outside at all and was fearful of strangers.
Eve had panic attacks coupled with periods of vomiting and was restricting her food intake as a result. She had lost a considerable amount of weight. Her sleep was disturbed.
After her first therapy session Eve went grocery shopping.
After session two she baked a cake and started couch-to-5k.
After session four Eve went back to college.
After six sessions Eve went back to work with enthusiasm.
Eve had a further two therapy sessions to consolidate her progress, then two phobia sessions (needle and blood phobia).
Eve ended therapy feeling better than she had ever felt before. She was sleeping well and had a healthy relationship with food.
Her positive outlook was noticed and valued by her family, friends and colleagues.
Honey, 40
social anxiety, intrusive thoughts
Honey was experiencing extreme social anxiety and persistent intrusive thoughts about harms coming to her toddler. She said she was ‘worrying 24/7’.
After just two sessions Honey was thinking more positively and her fears about her child began to go.
Honey was learning new ways of interrogating her intrusive thoughts. This helped to develop her self-belief.
Over the next few weeks, Honey found ways of speaking up in family discussions. She began to look forward to online networking events, and finalised her plans to launch a new business.
Weekly therapy ended after nine sessions. Honey said that she felt like her old self - full of joy and optimism. She was enjoying motherhood at last and was unafraid of the challenges ahead.
Honey’s anxiety was completely gone.
Through the therapy process, Honey had lost weight. She invested in new outfits that reflected her positive view of herself, and found the confidence to launch her new business.
Honey moved to monthly ‘checking in’ appointments for a little while to hold herself accountable and keep herself on track.
Louisa helped me so much and changed everything for the better! I have gone from being an anxious mess, thinking negatively, struggling to leave the house…to wanting to interact with people as much as I can. I have changed my mindset with the new habits Louisa taught me. I’m back to my happy self again!
-Niamh, 19