With almost 25 years experience in Health Care the banners of Health Promotion, Early Intervention, Education are timeless and always relevant to my practice, specifically in assisting individuals negotiate and maintain their independence.

As a psychoanalytic psychotherapist with a special interest in the addictions/dependence, I have been practicing and studying in this field for the past seven years. My experience and reflections on emotional and psychological difficulties and dependence draws my approach to treatment in harmony with current treatment provision in Primary Care, and extends the depth, penetration and effectiveness of care through individual psychotherapy.

Which form of psychotherapy is better than the other when tackling low mood, phobias, anxiety and over reliance on eating, drinking or spending for example?

The answer to this question depends on individual needs, personal resources and choice. I think it is also relevant to acknowledge, based on personal experience and current thinking around dependence, that talking therapies may not be the first choice of some individuals. In recognition we offer a range of therapies at our practice to address the diversity of personal choice.

What do I mean by... Dependence?

By dependence, I mean individuals who experience a growing reliance or preoccupation with one activity or thought to the detriment of other activities or thinking. From a cognitive perspective another name for dependence is addiction and if we take a moment to reflect (think again); being dependent according to many theorists and therapists is inherent in our very nature i.e. in our biological make up. That is not the same as saying that alcohol dependence or gambling for example is a genetic condition and something out of a person's control.

Psychoanalytic theorists suggest that dependence is the fundamental condition or basic state of man and woman. Our personal, emotional and psychological development involves learning from an early age how to be independent; to be an adult in our own right and a valued contributor to the community in which we live.

Remaining independent can be a struggle at times. Simply managing our household, our life at work and "doing the right thing" by all others with so many competing and at times contradictory urgency and demands can cause even the strongest to run into problems. This may mean personal adjustments are required to accommodate change in our lives.

Never has it been more relevant for us as individuals to be open to change. To change means to adopt different lifestyles or change comfortable habits. This invariably causes physical, psychological and emotional disturbances or stress and strain. How we negotiate these stages in our lives will depend on how we think and reflect on the challenges we face.

Our ability to i) recognise problems or potential problems and ii) address change in our lives with success, may require thinking and reflecting anew.