"I found the therapy too structured and inflexible"

Waiting time for a first appointment was far too long – approx. 6 months.

I had interpersonal therapy. I found the therapy too structured and inflexible. I had to work within my therapist’s framework and understanding of my depression. I had to accept the viewpoint of depression as an illness and that I was ill, even though this isn’t something I find helpful.

I found that my therapist heavily endorsed the medical approach to mental illness, something which I expect the majority of therapists working within the NHS adhere too. I found this quite difficult but was told that unless I accepted that I was suffering with an illness, I could not participate in the therapy!

Every session I had with my therapist was recorded, this made me uneasy and only served to increase my feelings of anxiety. The most important thing for therapy to work is the relationship between the therapist and the client, however, I felt that a tape recorder in the room did nothing to promote this relationship.

I also felt that everything my counsellor said was very scripted “what I hear you’re saying”. This in my opinion is the worst time of counselling!