Self-Help Clinics
Self-help clinics are run for adults between 16 and 65 years old suffering from common mental health problems, such as depression or anxiety. They are managed by graduate primary care mental health workers.
Your needs will be assessed during an assessment clinic and, if you and the mental health worker decide self-help is suitable for you, you will be referred to the self-help clinic. The self-help clinics are not suitable for people who are using drugs or alcohol, or who have made plans to or engage in self harm or suicidal behaviours.
After referral to the self-help clinic, you will be offered three to four sessions, each half an hour long. During your first session, the graduate primary care mental health worker will discuss with you how regularly you would like to see them.
The clinics use the book prescription scheme and other materials (like activity planning charts) to aid you in working out how to change the way you are thinking, feeling and coping with your situation. You can decide for yourself which materials you feel happiest working with.
Self-help involves reading and completing some activities on your own. In order for it to help you, it’s important that you are able to find the time and feel motivated enough to do this work. If you feel this would be difficult, self-help may not be right for you, but you can discuss this.
There is lots of evidence that self-help, based on cognitive behavioural therapy, works well for depression and anxiety. The self-help clinic is different from the talking therapies like counselling, as the role of the graduate primary care mental health worker is to help ensure that you are using suitable materials and are progressing through them without problems, rather than to explore your problems and their possible solutions.