Health Psychology: Managing Chronic Ill-health & Complex Conditions

Living your best life… While this phrase may seem light-hearted, it describes perhaps the most challenging of goals.  Health Psychology is concerned specifically with this challenge, and involves life circumstances where health, physical conditions and emotional wellbeing intersect.

At Rest in Essence, we understand that living with chronic conditions, ill-health, and/ or pain can place unique impacts on emotional coping.  Though complex and personal, the experience of ill-health and disability does not necessarily diminish a person’s expectation for autonomy, independence and purpose.

Our team has a wealth of professional and lived experience in understanding the interactions between mind-body, and holistic health. We provide person-centred and recovery-based psychological support, which emphasises personal choice, quality of life and dignity.

Our experience also involves supporting those with comorbid mental health and general health issues, including chronic illness, pain, eating disorders and weight concerns. As we all exist in a family/ social system, those that love and support you may wish to seek their own support too.

Areas of health psychology:

• Chronic illness and pain
• Pain management
• Fatigue based illness
• Terminal illness
• Body image concerns and eating disorders
• Sexual dysfunction
• Support for loved ones and carers

Treatment approaches and modes:

Health Psychology places the whole person at the centre of our work. In practice, we take time to listen to your experience and work collaboratively on values-based planning and goal setting. Driven by your choice, this collaboration and treatment planning, may involve communication with your health care team.

Health Psychology covers a range of personal circumstances as unique as you are.  Therefore, there is no single psychological treatment or modality to be used. Common areas of support include grief, loss and distress counselling; promoting adjustment to changed limits and circumstances; pain, fatigue and symptom management; daily-living and capacity building; and relationships, intimacy and sexual function.

Among the many evidence-based approaches that may be drawn upon include:

• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
• Adaptive Pacing Therapy (APT)
• Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
• Social Rhythm Therapy (SRT)
• Brief Solution Focussed Therapy (BSFT)
• Schema Therapy (ST)
• Mindfulness and breathwork