Counsellor recommendation for resolving stress issues Post Reply

[stressedout]

Hi i am posting under a different user name to normal. I am hoping someone can recommend a counsellor or other professional to me.

I recently had a health scare which resulted in me going for an MRI on my brain for tests. Fortunately all is well but the consultant has advised that the underlying cause of my health issues is stress. I have a full time job and two kids, so of course I am very busy. My job can be very difficult at times and while my husband is a great dad he needs to be asked to do things and most of the 'house admin' currently falls to me. However I recognise that I am also a complete perfectionist and I think that a lot of my issues can be resolved by me trying to change this. My husband has said that he is very willing to take on more around the house but that I don't let him because if it takes him a while to do things I will just do it myself and if he doesn't do things perfectly I will redo them. Likewise at work I recognise that I need to delegate better.

I would like to try and sort myself out but I don't know who I should see. One option is for me to stop working but I would like to see if there are other things I can do, and I also don't know if giving up work will resolve the problem completely. Does anyone have any recommendations or advice please?

Thank you

[supermummy]

Two recommendations for you:

Jane major who practices at The awareness centre, Abbeville Road. She is a psychologist and also bupa registered (I managed to get it on work policy). She has a very easy manner, it's a bit like talking to a good friend but more strategic than that (cbt and mindfulness techniques). She was a brilliant help to me in terms of processing some traumatic experiences and finding a different perspective on life and day to day stresses. I was very wary of seeing someone tbh but this didn't feel like anything too weird! It was more bigger picture type therapy I'd say and has made me a much more content and chilled out person. Can't recommend her highly enough.

Shaun Hammond - Harley street. My friend's husband (stressed city partner) and my friend (stressed wife) highly recommend him. This is more like hypnosis/specific stress relief techniques I think. She swears it massively helped her husband and he now has specific relaxation strategies he uses when he starts to feel stress. Hypnosis might sound a bit dodgy but I did look into it and he is very well regarded and also part of a stress management practice.

Depends if you are thinking you want a specific technique to deal with a stressful situation or do you want more bigger picture/lifestyle/talking solutions, or a bit of both?

Good luck!

[stressedout]

Thanks so much for taking the time to reply. The first one sounds perfect for me and I will investigate whether I can get it on my insurance X

[Mac]

Sorry to hear about your problems -- it hit home, as I wound up at the A&E because of a headache so bad I could hardly believe it. First doctor said migraine, when it was still going on despite migraine meds, GP said it was a tension headache. i.e., stress-induced.
One thing that has helped is the calm app on the iPhone. (Calm.com is the website). It's a meditation app with a free 7 day program of directed meditation.
I liked it so much I bought the 30 day course, though of course have been "too busy" to use it...
Nothing beats a therapist though. I'm suggesting this just as a little break for your day. (and I'm not affiliated with them. I just like the scenes (a beach, a lake, ocean waves, etc) and it's a reminder to breathe deeply.

[fulhammum]

Hi there
Sorry to hear about this challenging time that you're going through. Stress can be so debilitating & affect our lives in so many ways, I know how hard it is.
Melanie Glanville is a fantastic Reiki practitioner based out of the Re Centre in Balham & her home in Clapham. She gives treatments, which are so relaxing & stress reducing & also teaches so that you can treat yourself if you ever feel drawn to that. Reiki changed my life 4 years ago, I've completely transformed & have been able to deal with my stress & anxiety in a hugely practical, holistic way. I now treat & teach but am based in Sussex, I know Mel who I assume is closer to you, here's her website http://www.melanieglanville.co.uk
Feel free to pm for any further info. Take care x

[namaste1702]

Hi stressedout, sorry to hear about your health scare. I can very much relate to the pressure of juggling a job and a family and suffered from stress and health issues myself when I was working in the city in a demanding job, while raising 2 children (teenagers at the time!) as a single mother. I personally found yoga and meditation helped me tremendously, but I also did some counselling to deal with some of the underlying aspects of my behaviours. You seem to already have some good recommendations for therapists on this thread but maybe look into some gentle yoga, breathing and meditation to help balance the nervous system? There are many meditation and mindfulness apps that you can download to start dipping your toes into it. Best of luck with it all!

[KatherineHepburn]

I would definitely recommend hypnotherapy.
Locate a good local clinical hypnotherapist and then ensure that they are also familiar with CBT and possibly Mindfulness.

I can probably PM you with some great recommendations if you'd like.

They will be able to teach you self-hypnosis which will be excellent in controlling stress and having a calmer more relaxed day to day.

x

[foodeditorjo]

Therapy probably would help, but I do also find there are lots of self-help things you can do. Talk to a friend, treat yourself to small things, go for a walk outside, add more exercise (even a brisk walk) into your life, yoga, meditation, reiki... all good.

As to your husband, I related to what you wrote. He must feel frustrated if he helps and then it's not 'good enough' so maybe you need to work on that and ask him to do things that he does do well. Good luck!

[florencebristow]

Hi,

I'm a Trainee Clinical Psychologist. It sounds like you're having a really tough time and speaking to someone to give you some strategies to help manage things might be helpful. My advice would be to make sure they are HCPC registered. If you go down the CBT route you could look to see if they are BABCP accredited. Your GP could refer you on the NHS to a local IAPT service (psychology service) but the waiting lists can be really long. Vivamus Psychologists is an independent company with a practice on St John's Hill and they have some excellent psychologists working for them.

Hope that's helpful (sorry for the acronyms).

Best wishes,
Florence