Watch: Therapy patients urge others to seek early help

The films explore how therapy improves people’s lives and what can stop some people from diverse backgrounds or older generations from asking for help.

“You may be wondering if therapy is really for you,” says Rani Griffiths, a High Intensity Therapist and Cultural and Ethnic Diversity Lead with NHS Talking Therapies Berkshire.

“We’ve got a range of staff from different backgrounds and we come from a non judgemental place. Everyone can experience mental health difficulties. It can affect anyone no matter who you are or what your background is.”

She adds: “I get to see this incredible journey through therapy, and it can be difficult and painful at times. People develop in a way that helps them connect. I see people build in confidence and take on new challenges that they didn’t think possible. I see people’s world expanding.”

What they say

Diana, who has received Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), says:

“Therapy has made me see life in a different way. I never really knew if I could talk to someone it would change the way I thought life was – because I felt like I was alone in this world. But when I shared with my therapist it really made the burden to be less and less heavy on me.”

Peter says:

“Seek help sooner rather than later. I waited 40 years to get treatment for my phobias. Would you do that normally? I had a bad knee for two years. I’ve had it sorted.”

The videos

Navdeep – “Mental health issues can be quite taboo in some cultures.”

Peter – “I took 40 years to get help for my phobias.”

Marriam – “I had this big fear of being judged.”

Diane – “Therapy has made me see life in a different way. I felt like I was alone in this world. But therapy really made the burden to be less and less heavy on me.”

Amedeo – “I had the usual impressions from the media, films, movies of someone lying down on a couch.”

Mental Health Awareness Week

Talking Therapy services across Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire have teamed up to produce the videos for three county-wide NHS therapy services: NHS Buckinghamshire Talking Therapies, Oxfordshire Talking Therapies and Berkshire Talking Therapies.

The films have been released in Mental Health Awareness Week (9-15 May 2022) in partnership with Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust.

Mental Health Awareness Week takes place every May to raise awareness of mental health issues and the stigma often associated with these conditions. The theme for this year is Loneliness #IveBeenThere. Visit the Mental Health Foundation website to find out more about the Week.