Naturally, as you start to feel better, you and your therapist discuss bringing treatment to an end.  There may be a little twang of uncertainty as you prepare for the time ahead.  However, you have probably learned the tools to cope along the way to help you maintain your goals.  But just to make sure, you should keep the following in mind...

At the moment, the words are used interchangeably, as there is no legal distinction between a Counsellor and a Therapist. Many people typically shy away from the word 'Psychotherapist' as it semantically has a closer connection to professionals such as psychiatrists and psychologists.

Below is a rough guide to some approaches and what types of therapy may be appropriate for certain situations or personalities. This is only intended as a helpful tool to give you a brief overview of how some of mainstream therapies work.

We are very good at avoiding situations we don't like. In fact, we can be so good at it, we don't realise we're doing it! Understanding why it happens, and what we can do about it, is a good place to start.

Avoiding the 'bad thing'

Avoidance is a type of coping mechanism - stay away from the 'bad thing' and you don't have to deal with it. But if left unchecked, we can go to greater and greater lengths to avoid feeling fear.

We know that the brain affects behaviour - but what about the effect of behaviour on the brain?

In the first instance, all information perceived through the eyes and ears goes to the thalamus - the seat of the brain. From there the information is passed to the frontal cortex (responsible for organisational thought) and the amygdala. As the emotional centre of the brain, LeDoux (1996) believed that it was the chief decision maker, with all decisions being emotional prior to becoming rational.

The Government have endorsed it, doctors regularly refer their clients onto a specialist in it - so what's so special about CBT?

It is typically a short treatment

This can be good news for everyone all round - it is an economical solution to helping individuals get back on track, as the NHS will be able to budget around six sessions per client. Those who are paying for their treatment, again, are unlikely to have more than 6 - 12 treatments.

Are you a couple in trouble? If you've made it through Christmas, hang on in there - Springtime is the busiest time for couples counselling, according to recent surveys.

In comparison with the number of divorces filed in January, following a two week stint of partners living in close proximity with one another, it seems that the springtime weather and lighter days brings about a sense of hope, as the busiest period for couples counselling begins just after the Easter Holidays.

So if you're wondering how you're going to get through this Bank Holiday Weekend, it's probably a good time to check out your local couples counsellor...:)

The first words which came to me were 'act normal' as I sat down uncomfortably, back poker straight.

All that I was going to tell her, she assured me, was in the strictest confidence.  'Really?' I asked her 'Is that really the case?' Damn - only moments in and I had already come across as paranoid.  She smiled warmly as though she heard that every time.

Your idea of happiness may be standing on top of a hilltop singing 'The Hills are Alive' with gusto and a small group of bemused children in ascending height. For others, it may be an ice-cold coke and an obscenely large slice of chocolate cake. So how do we know what really makes us happy?