Question 1

Are you qualified and how do I know you are?

Accepted Answer

Yes I am qualified.  I started off my career as an NMC registered mental health nurse after completing my degree at Kings College in London.  I later went on and did my specialist CBT training at the Institute of Psychiatry, also at Kings which qualified me to become a fully BABCP accredited CBT Therapist (considered the gold standard).  I have undertaken a lot of training since and am qualified to offer multiple therapies such as CFT (Compassion Focussed Therapy), Solution Focussed Therapy and mindfulness, amongst others.

Unfortunately, therapy is what we call an unregulated profession.  My take on that is that anyone can call themselves a therapist and offer therapy. Shocking, isn't it?  And so the BABCP is an independent regulatory authority that sets down strict regulations about education, ethics and ongoing training, supervision (all of which is audited by the BABCP) to stay up to date to be able to say you are regulated by them. This is entirely voluntary but in my opinion, essential for public protection.

I therefore choose to be accredited so that you can be assured I am suitably qualified and continue to be, year on year.

Question 2

What is the difference between coaching and therapy, which should I choose?

Accepted Answer

This is a highly contested question at the moment.

I can only answer from my point of view.

Coaching tends to focus on how to reach goals in the current moment.  Coaches have not, in general (unless they are trained therapists), undertaken enough training to keep you safe about talking about the past, in my opinion.  Not all coaches undertake supervision to keep their practice safe.

I also think that it depends what you want help with.  I have two business coaches I work with and I find them so helpful.  But I know where that line is for me, where I need to go and talk to my therapist as well.  With a therapist I will talk about how the past influences now and how I can work with that in the current moment.

I work with my clients in the ways that they need and want to.  Some will want to look at how the past impacts them now and resolve that.  In that process we are working in the current moment to reach goals in the present.

I have also worked with clients who only want to work in the present moment.

Whichever you want to do, you can be reassured that I can do both.  I am trained in many types of therapy as well, so we can approach things in the way that suits you best be that Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) or other ways like Compassion Focussed Therapy (CFT), Mindfulness, Solution Focussed Therapy and more.

I am also accredited with the BABCP and work withing ethical and legal guidelines, am insured and engage in monthly supervision to ensure I am practising safely and in your best interests.

Question 3

How long does a session last?

Accepted Answer

Each session is one hour in length.

Question 4

Can I run my situation by you to see if you think you can help me?

Accepted Answer

Of course, I offer every new client a free, 20 minute consultation by phone so that you can ask me any questions you have.  Please come prepared, the 20 minutes goes very quickly!

Question 5

Do you offer a sliding scale of fees?

Accepted Answer

I understand that times are difficult at the moment.  My costs for running the practice have more than doubled in the last couple of years.  I am therefore not able to offer reduced fee work at the current time.

Question 6

How do I make an appointment?

Accepted Answer

If you go to the contact me page, on the top toolbar,  you can find my phone number, email address or a form that you can send me if you prefer.

Question 7

How much do sessions cost?

Accepted Answer

Sessions cost £100 each.  Please check out the pricing page for cancellation policy and payment methods.

Question 8

How confidential is therapy with you?

Accepted Answer

Totally confidential.  The only time I would breach confidentiality is if I felt worried about your safety of the safety of someone you tell me about.  I would talk to you first (unless I felt the risk would be increased in some way), should this arise.

Apart from that I hold only basic information about you to facilitate sessions and notes.  This is all stored on a highly encrypted electronic system.  I do not share information with anyone else or any outside agencies.

Question 9

How many sessions will I need?

Accepted Answer

This is almost impossible to answer.  Most of my clients are with me for about 3 months but some will need less or more.

Question 10

What age of clients do you see?

Accepted Answer

From 14 years up to adult.  The oldest client I have had the privilege of working with was 88 years young!

Question 11

Can I see you in person?

Accepted Answer

Yes of course, if you live locally, happy to see you in person.

Question 12

Does remote therapy work?

Accepted Answer

Most definitely.  There has always been research into the efficacy of remote therapy and the evidence suggests that video bases therapy has the same outcomes as face to face.  Most of my clients tell me they forget it is a video call after the first few minutes.  Since COVID, we know so much more about remote therapy of course and it worked so well for most people then and continues to do so.

There is also the convenience of it as you don't have to travel, can fit it in between other commitments more easily and feel comfortable in your own space.

Question 13

Do you do telephone therapy?

Accepted Answer

I don't do telephone therapy.  I will speak to you on the phone initially to make sure I think I can help thought.   The research suggests that telephone therapy does not work as well as via video or face to face.  We lose so much in terms of body language that we use so much in our day to day communications with each other.

Question 14

How often should I see you?

Accepted Answer

Particularly at the start I have found that weekly sessions work the best, we get a good momentum going.  Later on in therapy we can spread sessions out.  I do realise that there are financial considerations as well and so please do talk to me if this is the case for you and we can work it out together.

Question 15

Do we have to look at the past?

Accepted Answer

No.  As I have said in other answers, we will according to your choice.   We can work in the present moment if you prefer.   We will discuss this together to reach the best answer for you.

Question 16

How do I pay?

Accepted Answer

By BACs transfer, 48 hours in advance our session.  Because I am spending so much time chasing clients for their fees, I will not start a session now until payment has been made.

Question 17

Will I need therapy for OCD for the rest of my life?

Accepted Answer

No, weekly therapy for life is not required.  Usually, my clients will have a block of sessions to initially address their OCD.  After this some clients do not need to come back.  But a larger proportion of my clients will come back for a top up session or two from time to time.  A lot of my clients like to have check in sessions to keep them focussed on managing their OCD from between every 6 weeks to 3 months as suits them best.

Question 18

Which clients do you think have the best outcome in therapy?

Accepted Answer

This is another tough question to answer!

In very general terms, those clients who do some work between sessions, adapt ideas we talk about to suit them, try things out, have an open mind and willingness to think about things differently, do the best.

Jane Watkins, CBT Therapist
Based in Bristol

FAQ

Frequently Asked Therapy Questions

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Jane Watkins, CBT Therapist Based in Bristol

FAQ

Frequently Asked Therapy Questions

Address

Jane Watkins, CBT Therapist
Based in Bristol