Long-term physical health conditions

Living with a long-term physical health condition can have a significant impact on how you feel emotionally, and this can be just as difficult to manage as the physical symptoms of your illness. When we talk to clients, we pick up on how easily this can be overlooked. Our long-term health condition courses can help you to understand and manage the impact of health on your mental wellbeing, in particular anxiety and depression.

A new diagnosis can make us feel very anxious or depressed and this can also lead to changes in how we think, feel physically and how we behave. You might find yourself thinking about your life and asking, ‘why me?’ In fact, two thirds of clients with a long-term condition have common mental health problems. But the good news is that treating symptoms of anxiety and depression can improve physical health outcomes. Not only does it encourage your adherence to treatment, but it alleviates the stress and loneliness that you may be hiding from others.

We use Cognitive Behavioural Therapy to help you manage your physical health and we offer tailored, disorder-specific sessions where you can learn more about Diabetes, Respiratory illnesses and Cardiovascular problems.

Richmond Talking Therapies also offers Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction courses to help you cope with persistent physical symptoms like fatigue, chronic pain, recurring headaches and irritable bowel syndrome. These courses are very popular and therapeutic. Although we cannot promise to make your physical symptoms disappear, by encouraging you to focus on the present moment and what matters most to you, we can help you to live a more rewarding and fulfilling life.

We have specially trained teams of clinicians who can support you to overcome difficulties related to your struggles to adapt to, and come to terms with, the impact of a physical health condition. We work closely with local physical health teams, including community healthcare diabetes, cardiac and respiratory rehab, to ensure that every client receives the most appropriate treatment approach. Talking to a therapist can help you to understand what is going on in your life and to find new ways of coping. You will also be able to meet other people who have the same difficulties as you and if you choose you have the chance to join friendship groups outside of the therapy.