What I can help with
Please note this is not an exhaustive list, so do not hesitate to get in touch if what you are experiencing is not listed here and we can discuss what would best suit you.
Depression
Depression is the experience of feeling low in mood & hopeless. Having negative thoughts about yourself, your worth and your future is common. It is usually combined with low energy, lack of motivation and a withdrawal from normal activities. Symptoms can include: Emotions - feeling low, hopeless, disconnected, numb, sad. Physically feeling tired, lethargic and/or experiencing pain. Behaviours - avoiding others, "hibernating", doing less, sleeping more or less, not feeling motivation to do things you usually enjoy. Thoughts - self-critical thoughts, hopeless thoughts about the future, self-blaming thoughts.
Panic Attacks
Panic Disorder is a difficulty in which someone becomes afraid of the symptoms of panic. This can often result in a negative cycle of anxiety about anxiety which leads to higher anxiety. Symptoms can include: Physical - heart palpitations, hyperventilation, nausea, shaking, sweating, tingling in hands and feet. Thoughts that you are having a heart attack or other health emergency. Fear that you might faint or pass out. Behaviours - avoiding places you fear a panic attack may occur. Using safety behaviours that you feel might prevent a panic attack.
OCD
OCD is characterised by obsessive, repeated and unwanted thoughts and urges that cause distress. Often followed by the need to use a compulsion to neutralise or supress the thoughts - this might take the form of checking or cleaning or saying something to yourself. OCD is a very varied difficulty and can be centred around many different issues.
Emetophobia (vomit phobia)
Vomit phobia otherwise known as Emetophobia is a fear of being sick. This is often accompanied by strict control of diet and fear of contamination
Anxiety
Anxiety is the body's natural threat response. When we feel threatened by something our fight/flight/freeze response is set off. This leads to a series of symptoms happening in our bodies. Anxiety can also be characterised by repeated worry. This could be worry about many different things like experienced in Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD) or about more specific things like the case of health anxiety. Symptoms can include: Thoughts - something bad will happen. What if thoughts. I can't cope. Emotions - worry, panic, anxiety, shame, fear. Physical - heart racing, tension, feeling sweaty, shaking, feeling sick. Behaviour - avoidance, planning to avoid worried outcome.
Social Anxiety
Social anxiety is a fear of being embarrassed or making a fool of yourself in front of others. It is usually paired with thoughts that you are not "performing" well, that you are uninteresting or will say something "wrong". People with social anxiety often go over things they've said to try to find mistakes. It can also be paired with avoiding social situations and a feeling of isolation.
Body Dysmorphia
Body Dysmorphia is experienced as having a preoccupation with how you look - usually focusing around a specific feature. Judging your appearance negatively and believing that other's do also. The sufferer may become obsessive with checking a certain feature or avoid looking at themselves altogether. They may try to conceal the feature with make-up or clothes.
Agoraphobia
Agoraphobia is simplistically a fear of going outside. This usually has a big impact on the suffers life as they feel unable to leave the house.
Trauma
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is something that can happen when someone has experienced a very distressing or traumatic life event or events. This can be anything from a road traffic accident to an attack, abuse or sexual assault. An individual can develop PTSD when their brain hasn't fully processed the event/s that have happened. Our brains can then replay these events in an attempt to process them resulting in flashbacks, nightmares and distressing intrusive memories. People with PTSD often describe feeling on high alert for threat or danger. This can continue for many years after the event if the memory remains unprocessed. Symptoms can include: Flashbacks, nightmares Feeling on edge, anxious, depressed. Thoughts of guilt, shame or responsibility.
Low Self Esteem
Low self-esteem is characterised by self-critical thoughts and feelings of worthlessness or uselessness. Low self-esteem is often an underlying cause of other difficulties like anxiety and depression.
Health Anxiety
Health anxiety (or illness anxiety disorder) is an intense, persistent worry about having or developing a serious illness, even when there's little or no medical evidence, causing significant distress and impacting daily life through excessive body checking, reassurance-seeking, or avoidance of health-related topics. It often involves misinterpreting normal body sensations (like a racing heart or headache) as signs of severe disease, creating a vicious cycle where anxiety symptoms fuel more fear. Symptoms can include: Excessive Worry: Constant preoccupation with potential illnesses like cancer, heart disease, or neurological conditions. Symptom Misinterpretation: Viewing normal bodily feelings (e.g., muscle twitches, dizziness) as serious symptoms. Body Checking: Frequently checking for lumps, rashes, or other signs of illness. Reassurance Seeking: Repeatedly asking doctors, friends, or family if they are ill. Avoidance: Avoiding doctors, hospitals, or health information due to fear of bad news, or conversely, obsessively researching illnesses online.
Needle Phobia
Needle phobia, also called trypanophobia, is an intense, overwhelming fear of medical procedures involving needles, causing severe anxiety, panic, and often avoidance of necessary care like vaccinations or blood tests. Symptoms include increased heart rate/blood pressure (sometimes followed by a rapid drop causing fainting), trembling, breathlessness, and intense urge to escape, stemming from bad memories or pain association.