NHS Talking Therapies Services
If you live in Sussex, are over 18 and are struggling with common mental health problems such as feelings of depression, excessive worry, social anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), you can refer yourself to your local NHS Talking Therapies service.
Services are free, confidential and provide a wide range of support, including courses, online programmes and one-to-one sessions. They aim to help you understand your symptoms and take practical steps to improve your mental health.
NHS Talking Therapies is unable to provide urgent mental health help or support to people experiencing more severe difficulties with their mental health. Instead, please see a GP who can refer you to the appropriate service.
You can access Talking Therapies for free on the NHS.
The quickest and easiest way to access NHS Talking Therapies is to complete a self-referral.
You can refer yourself directly, without a referral being made from a GP, or alternatively a GP or other health professional can refer you.
If you are feeling anxious or overwhelmed about making a referral but would like to access help, you can ask your GP, health visitor, a friend or a family member to help you complete your referral form. The confidential referral form contains questions to help the service better understand you and your situation and help us work out who might be best to help.
Help is available in person, by video, over the phone or as an online course.
You can self-refer direct on the service websites listed below
Brighton & Hove
- Brighton & Hove Talking Therapies Service
- Call 0300 002 0060 (8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday)
- Email BrightonWellbeing
@spft.nhs.uk
East Sussex
- East Sussex Talking Therapies Service - Health in Mind
- Call 0300 003 0130 (9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday excluding bank holidays)
- Email spnt.
healthinmind @nhs.net
West Sussex
- West Sussex Talking Therapies Service - Time to Talk
- Call 01273 666480 (9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday)
- Email sc-tr.
LTCreferrals @nhs.net
You do not need to have a diagnosed mental health problem to refer yourself to an NHS talking therapies service.
Getting support as soon as you start having difficulties can help to reduce their impact.
You may be:
- feeling anxious
- feeling low and hopeless
- having panic attacks
- finding it hard to cope with day-to-day life
- struggling with flashbacks and nightmares
- feeling stressed
- perhaps you're finding it hard to cope with work, life or relationships.
Other things that talking therapies can help with include:
- worrying
- obsessive thoughts or behaviours
- fear of social situations
- trouble sleeping
- phobias
If you've already been diagnosed with a mental health condition you can still refer yourself to an NHS Talking Therapies service, or a GP can refer you.
Talking therapies can also help if you have mental health problems resulting from other physical health conditions, such as diabetes, cancer, long-term pain or respiratory conditions.
NHS Talking Therapies services provide short-term therapies which are tailored to your needs and help you better understand you and your situation. Throughout the course of therapy offered, you will learn about tools and techniques which can improve your emotional health and that you can continue to use in the future.
Which therapy you are offered depends on which one has been shown to be most helpful for your symptoms.
Here are a few examples:
- Guided self-help – where a therapist coaches you as you work through a self-help course in your own time, either using a workbook or an online course.
- Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) – based on the idea that thoughts, feelings, what we do, and how our bodies feel physically, are all connected. CBT works to help us notice and challenge patterns of thoughts or behaviours so we can feel better.
- Counselling for depression – a type of counselling developed for people with depression.
Talking therapies are offered in different ways, including:
- using a self-help workbook with the support of a therapist
- as an online course
- one-to-one in person, over the phone or through video consultation
- in a group
Once your referral to your local service has been received, your referral will be processed in a few days and you will be contacted to arrange a time to speak to one of the therapists.
This initial appointment will be booked as soon as possible and is often over the phone.
The first appointment is a conversation to find out about your current difficulties. This helps us decide how we can best help you.
At the end of the appointment, we will discuss the support options available and agree a plan.
All NHS Talking Therapies Services aim to be flexible to make it as easy as possible for you to get the help you need.