Sessions are usually structured, practical, and very collaborative. In the early sessions, we spend time building a shared picture of what’s been going on for you — how your thoughts, feelings, and behaviours interact and sometimes keep the problem going. Once we understand that pattern together, it often becomes much clearer where small, manageable changes can start to make a real difference.

My role is to support you in understanding how the problem continues and to offer strategies and skills that can help you shift unhelpful patterns that leave you feeling stuck. Your role is to be open to trying out new approaches and behaviours, so we can see whether they help you feel better and move you closer to your goals.

In Detail

For example, a standard CBT session might be like this: 

1. A brief check‑in 

You’ll talk about how you’ve been since the last session — mood, stress levels, any situations that stood out, and how any homework or practice went. It’s not a deep emotional unpacking; it’s more like taking stock. I will also ask you if there is any risk that needs our attention. 

2. Agreeing an agenda 

CBT is structured and collaborative, so you and I decide what to focus on for the session. For example: a difficult situation, a specific thought pattern, or a skill you want to practise.

3. Exploring thoughts, feelings, and behaviours 

You’ll look at a recent situation and break it down:

What happened

What you thought in the moment

How that made you feel

What you did next 

This helps identify patterns like catastrophising, self‑criticism, avoidance, or assumptions that keep the cycle going.

4. Learning and practising new skills 

Depending on your goals, this might include:

Challenging unhelpful thoughts and replacing them with more balanced ones

Behavioural experiments (testing out predictions in real life)

Exposure work for anxiety

Problem‑solving strategies

Grounding or relaxation techniques

Planning small, achievable actions to shift behaviour

5. Summarising the session 

You and the I recap what you covered and what felt most useful. This helps consolidate learning and keeps things focused.

6. Setting and practicing new skills between sessions

The success of CBT relies on practising skills between sessions. These might be:

A thought record

Trying a new behaviour

Noticing triggers

Testing a belief in a real‑world situation. 

It’s always collaborative — not a school assignment.

Coaching sessions will be quite similar to this. Counselling sessions may be less structured. 

If you would like to know more about what sessions involved please feel free to contact me.