CBT For Social Anxiety

I didn’t really know whether counselling would help when I first went to see Maggie. All I knew was that I was feeling increasingly isolated and unhappy, anxious about the future and fed up with the way my life was going. All that changed over the next few months as Maggie helped me on my journey towards understanding myself and why I reacted to people and situations in the way I did. Eventually, as I began to feel reconnected to people again, I learned to value myself, be proud of my achievements and even feel excited about the future! I saw that it was possible to be alone but not be lonely, to be sad without being depressed, and discovered that many people feel afraid, they just deal with their fear in different ways.

Maggie was patient, perceptive and incredibly supportive throughout and each week I grew stronger, more empowered and liberated thanks to her skill and expertise. She has made a big difference to my life and for that I will always be grateful.

I found my sessions with Maggie immensely helpful. Maggie’s approach is not the least bit intimidating and immensely practical in nature. She helped me to identify the issues which cause me anxiety and to find techniques which enabled me to deal with them as they arose. I now feel I have the tools necessary to deal with the various stresses in my life and that I can adapt these tools to suit any situation I am presented with in the future.

This Financial Analyst and working mother had to deal with redundancy, a difficult new job, relationship challenges, child rearing and her own history of being unsupported and bullied in the past. Here’s what she says:

I started to see Maggie for ways to help me deal with old patterns of thoughts which lead to increased levels of stress and low confidence. She really helped me understand the roots of my thinking, how things had changed through time and ways in which I could shape my thoughts differently and break free of my old patterns. As a result, my stress levels have vastly improved and I have a very different outlook on life. I have also been able to break away from old patterns of thoughts which has been very positive in helping me deal with new situations. Maggie has a great ability to be empathetic. She is a great listener and can tailor therapy sessions to your needs and how you can best work through your sessions.

I found my time in therapy with Judy a very positive experience. I had therapy with Judy for about a year and a half. I suffer from generalised anxiety, social anxiety, depression and porn addiction. I tried therapy about ten years ago and it helped me considerably, but I had fallen back into old thinking patterns and forgotten many of the tools I learned.

I tried other therapists a couple of times for several months which didn’t help, but I could tell in the first session Judy was likely to be able to help me. It’s important to find the right therapist for you.

The things I found most helpful about therapy with Judy were:

I felt comfortable talking about very personal things without feeling judged. Talking about my thoughts made me more conscious of them and enabled me to figure out why I felt anxious and/or depressed. With Judy’s help and a different perspective, I was able to challenge negative thoughts and break down problems or issues I faced and come up with a wide range of possible solutions. This process made me feel like a weight was lifted, helped me make much better life decisions and gave me more confidence to go through with things I wanted to do instead of being too scared.

I learned many techniques I could draw upon if I started to feel down or anxious. Having these tools made my emotions feel more manageable. I started to feel more in control and self-sufficient when dealing with negative thoughts and emotions, though this took time and practice.
Learning about the nervous system and how anxiety works helped me understand how I could interrupt the vicious cycle of anxiety. The extra support therapy gave me helped me to feel less isolated and alone with my problems.

The changes I’ve made in my life since starting therapy have made me feel more aligned with myself and significantly increased my levels of happiness. In addition to therapy, I’ve tried medication (sertraline) which I think has made a big difference too. The combination of these two approaches has worked well for me.

It’s not that everything is amazing all the time, I still have anxiety issues but nowhere near as intensely and when I do experience anxiety, it doesn’t bother me as much. I also don’t get the catastrophic lows that I frequently used to experience. I’m happier, more positive and optimistic, I have closer relationships with my family, my feelings of loneliness have almost gone entirely and I’m pursuing a career I feel passionate about. I’m able to look forward to things again and enjoy social situations with good friends. For these reasons, I would recommend therapy with Judy.

I’m still a work in progress but I’ve noticed a big improvement in my life and how I feel.

I guess like most people, I was very nervous about starting therapy. This was the first time I had tried it and to be honest, I didn’t know where to start or what to expect. Before I even started my sessions, the Klearminds Team were extremely welcoming and made me feel at ease immediately. I didn’t feel pushed to make decisions and it was made clear to me that finding the right therapist was a 2-way decision; if I didn’t feel comfortable then that was ok and we’d explore other therapists. After and initial chat, I ended up having sessions with Maggie…which is where my outlook changed. I struggled with anxiety around eating. I immediately felt at ease with Maggie and although change didn’t happen in that moment, the gradual progression I was making was clearly evident. I am in a much better space now and couldn’t have done that without Maggie. Not only did she help me sort through my thoughts but has equipped me going forward, in all aspects of my life. For anybody thinking about starting therapy, I would say that only good things can come from it and taking those first steps with the team at Klearminds will be one of the best decisions you make.

I had sessions with Paul throughout the pandemic which was an extremely challenging time for me. I struggled to cope with the negative emotions that arose from the end of a long-term relationship as well as the feelings of anxiety, isolation and loneliness being in lockdown by myself.

Paul was so easy to talk to and provided me with the kind, caring and empathetic ear
that I needed during significant life changes and the intense emotions that came with it. Initially, I felt quite anxious being so emotionally vulnerable with a man, but Paul helped me work through that fear and anxiety, and I soon felt safe opening up during our sessions.

Paul is incredibly kind, supportive, patient and empathetic. He’s also sharp and alert which was helpful during my many rants and tangents – he really helped keep me on course. Our sessions had a huge impact on my life; I quit smoking, I take better care of myself, I am more emotionally and financially stable, and I am in a secure relationship. Paul would give me full credit for all of that, but I owe a great deal to our sessions.

I highly recommend working with Paul and I have his contact details neatly stored if I need a little extra emotional support in the future. Thank you Paul.

I have struggled with anxiety for my entire life and when I first met with Judy I thought she would help me manage it but I would never be able to overcome it. With Judy’s help I would no longer consider myself an anxious person. I do not experience anxiety on a daily basis like I used to when I first started therapy, and even more than that I now go months on end without even having the most minimal symptoms of anxiety. The way that I describe the effect that therapy has had on me is that it has allowed me to finally be myself, without anxiety preventing me from doing things or making me act in ways that I am ashamed of or regret afterwards. I am able to be fully present in my relationships and experiences, without worrying about the future or the past while talking to people or doing things.

For anyone who experiences anxiety on a day to day basis, or if anxiety is preventing you from working, attending social events, or just being able to be present in your own life, I could not recommend therapy with Judy more. Without her I would still be living under a cloud of worry, and I feel grateful that I was able to find Judy so early in my life, because I really feel I would not have been able to get to where I am now without her help. Therapy is much more than talking to someone – if you have anxiety it is a mental illness and you need a good doctor to help you through it. I am thankful to Judy for helping me through it, and could not recommend her more to anyone who is struggling with anxiety. It is not something that you have to live with!

I came to Judy when I found myself with increasing anxiety, problems with sleeping and lack of appetite. I felt like my head was a muddle of negative thoughts and while this hadn’t been triggered by one particular event, I knew that it was being antagonised by workplace stress and conflict, as well as a lifelong lack of self-confidence. I immediately connected with Judy who listened patiently. I knew I wanted to understand why I think like this, but ultimately I wanted to move forward with practical techniques to help me cope better. Judy helped me firstly understand my anxiety, she also made me realise that I wasn’t alone in the way I think. We recognised my triggers and my responses to situations, but also talked through some previous experiences which had shaped my mindset. We developed techniques to help me cope better, rebuilt my confidence and I can honestly say I have felt like a different person ever since. If like me, you are reading these reviews and recognise your own thoughts and feelings, go ahead and start a course of therapy, I couldn’t recommend Judy more highly.

Amanda was able to help me think through a lot of thoughts that made me feel extremely stuck and hopeless at the time. It’s not a quick fix but with the will to put in mechanisms that Amanda gave me and realisations that I was able to have through therapy, I am doing much better and am able to cope with my anxiety and OCD a lot better. 

I believe the whole experience was a process but one that I will continue with confidence. Amanda was extremely understanding throughout and approached my issues in a way that made me feel heard as she understood the mechanics of my thought process. I will definitely contact KlearMinds again in the future if I feel I need to reach out again. Thank you.

I undertook 6 months of therapy with Judy and its 6 months I believe has changed my life forever. Judy was professional, eloquent, and non-judgmental. I sought out therapy primarily to help tackle my anxiety and to find someone who can help me understand my thought processes in a more coherent way. I suffered daily from anxiety and my negative thought processes were holding me back a great deal in my relationships with others and above all, myself.

During the first 4-5 sessions, Judy educated me on the impact anxiety has on your body, where it comes from, the scientific understanding of it and techniques to help manage it. This I believe was crucial to my healing. Once I had physical control over my anxiety, we were then able to delve deeper into the triggers. Judy helped me understand things about myself that I would have never been able to achieve alone. Her knowledge and experience really shone through in every aspect of my sessions.

Even during lockdown when i was put at risk of redundancy, Judy adapted our sessions to some career coaching to help me get back on track. Again, I was blown away with her abundance of experience and fast thinking adaptivity to cater for the unpredictable times we have been living in (for the past 3 months especially).

Now that my sessions have temporarily come to a close, I feel that I know myself in a much more clear and coherent way. I understand where my triggers lie when it comes to my anxiety and how to manage them. My relationships, especially with my family are stronger and I have, with Judy’s help, managed to set my own boundaries and stick to them.

During my time with Judy, I never felt that I was holding anything back and that is rare. I saw 3 different therapists before this, none of which really understood and helped me articulate my thoughts like Judy did, this i believe comes from her years of experience and naturally calm and caring demeanor.

I couldn’t recommend Judy enough to anyone suffering from any form of anxiety, depression, family/relationship conflicts or career coaching. Her rationality and sheer understanding of the way our minds work is a rare find and I believe anyone can benefit from this.

After a number of false starts with therapists, I can only say that I wish I had found Maggie sooner! Over a period of 15 years I had seen multiple therapists and psychiatrists to address issues relating to anxiety, depression and workplace stress. With invariably unsatisfying results, I was extremely skeptical about seeing another therapist: more fundamentally I was utterly pessimistic about the possibility of being happy. My skepticism proved unfounded.

Maggie really helped me to elucidate and articulate the origins of deeply embedded patterns of negative and self defeating thinking, which proved essential in enabling her to then work with me to develop practical strategies for loosening their grip. She is patient and compassionate while being proactive and constructively challenging when she needs to be. I found this combination of empathy and robust testing of my negative perceptions immensely helpful.

The process resulted in my feeling much better at work, building up the confidence to successfully apply for a new job (which would have been unimaginable before I started therapy) and to take important strides forward in my relationship.

Whether you are considering therapy for the first time or feeling like therapy is a dead end, I believe you have nothing to lose and plenty gain by seeking out an introductory session with Maggie.

When my partner proposed and all was meant to be rosy and wonderful, I hit a complete crisis of confidence and was left wondering whether I was making the biggest mistake of my life. After much emotional confusion I decided to find someone to talk to who could provide professional and detached advice.

My time with Maggie was extremely helpful in untangling firstly what all of my conflicting feelings actually were and then getting a real understanding of what was driving them. We ended up looking at a great deal more than the just my fears about getting married and in doing so I was able to gain real clarity not only regarding my engagement but many other aspects of my life.

Without Maggie’s help I think I’d either still be floundering in unhappy confliction, or I’d have come to some very different, rash decisions I’d have had to live with ever after. Most importantly I’ve been left with excellent tools and strategies to help me handle problems that may arise in the future. Thanks Maggie!

I had never thought I was someone who would need counselling or therapy, as I had always been very strong. However when my career wasn’t going quite as I had planned it, I found I was becoming very negative and mentally spiralling out of control – in fact turning myself into a victim.

Maggie’s structured, logical, evidence based approach to my mental state was something I could easily understand and work with. It meant that I was very quickly (in about 5 sessions) back to having control over my life and feeling so much more positive and happy about everything.

Now I realise that sometimes we need a little help. Maggie was outstanding at providing me with what I needed, not as a “quick fix” but by giving me the tools to use whenever I may need them in the future. Thank you Maggie, I am so very grateful to you.