Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT)
CFT is a ‘third wave’ psychological therapy which brings together cognitive behaviour therapy with evolutionary psychology, neuroscience, attachment and models of emotion.
Our minds allow us to do incredible things and, for the most part, are hugely helpful to us. Yet minds can be ‘tricky’ and can trip us up as well. We have little control over how our brains have evolved over millions of years. Nor do we have any choice over the families and life situations we are born into, we all just ‘find ourselves here’, being shaped our biology and experiences. Sometimes, form the way purs brains develop, our minds become stuck in unhelpful loops and this can drive some of our difficulties and our distress. The different systems we have to manage our emotions can easily become out of balance which can have consequences for how we feel, act and respond. This is not our fault, we didn’t choose the design of our brains!
Through CFT you will be supported to:
- Understand your mind better
- Engage with life's difficulties and our uncomfortable feelings with courage and sensitivity
- Learn skills to allow us to develop our attention, soothing and compassionate abilities and to take action with our suffering and to reduce our distress.
CFT has been found to be particularly effective for people who have high levels of self-criticism and shame and feelings of low self-worth, which are often major features in depression, anxiety and trauma. It can be useful for clients who intellectually understand their issues, but who report that they do not necessarily feel differently as a result. A core aspect of wellbeing comes from our ability to be kind and compassionate to ourselves and others when we are suffering. CFT can help to explore what holds us back from doing this and how this has come about and help us develop this side of ourselves through specific training and guided exercises.
