Psychologists

My wife struggles with depression and saw a psychologist about once a month back in the states. For the past year we've been here she's been the GP and they kept her on roughly the same medication she had in the states, which is good. They also referred her to what, we gather, is the UK version of a psychologist. They met once for a quick face-to-face, then only had a handful of short over the phone chats before it was all deemed done.

Shes asked a few times about talking to someone a little more meaningfully on an ongoing basis but hasn't gotten much from the GP. Do they have 'US' style psychologists over here? Are they covered on NHS, or should I start looking around off network for one?

Thanks for any help.

In my experience, NHS mental health provision is, even at best, fairly minimal.  Depending on where you live, it can be virtually non-existent.

If you have the means and the opportunity to see someone privately, it will almost certainly be your best bet.

I agree with Woadgirl.

However, it might be worth your wife making another visit to the GP to ask if there is someone she can see on a regular basis. If her GP isn't sympathetic then he/she may hold the rather old fashioned opinion that mental health isn't as important as physical health. In that case seeing another GP within the practice, or changing practices might help.

Perhaps your local trust has something similar to the Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust ?

Also it may be worth calling your local PALS to see what your options are.

But the two previous posters are right, the mental health provision varies depending where you are and sometimes on your GP. If you don't have any luck your wife's best choice may be private care.

If it is within your means, some health insurance covers visits with psychologists and/or licensed counselors.

Through my husband's BUPA plan at work we get up to 45 sessions a year covered, plus more if recommended by GP.

Also, I wouldn't ask specifically for a psychologist.  That's one specific kind of person that helps, but there are far more people who are trained to work with people who need it.  This holds true in the US too. Psychologists are only a small portion of those who are psychotherapists.  In the UK, I would ask about getting counselling, and you're more likely to find someone than if you just asked for a psychologist. 

Also tell the GP that a few telephone consultations are not helpful. Around here most offices have access to a counsellor who can see them for a limited number of times.  The waiting lists can take a while though.  I'd maybe check and see what provisions are in your area.  Also, speaking to someone at MIND might be helpful, as they support people struggling with mental health concerns and can probably help you know what's available in your local area.

Do they have 'US' style psychologists over here?

In a word, no. Training of clinical psychologists is very different between the US and the UK, and most clinical psychologists here don't specialise in long-term ongoing therapy (they are usually focused on shorter time-limited therapies, but to be honest that's the way the US is going now as well.) I can pretty confidently say your wife isn't going to get near an actual psychologist if her care is managed by her GP and not a specialist mental health team (some clinical psychologists do some private work, but the majority are employed by the NHS.)

However, there are plenty of psychotherapists and counsellors about and that's who you're looking for. Psychotherapy is not actually regulated in the UK, but there are voluntary registers- you're looking for someone who is registered with the BACP (http://www.bacp.co.uk/) or UKCP (http://www.psychotherapy.org.uk/). Since she's had some counselling through the GP and they haven't already given her a specialist referral, I very much doubt anything else will be offered to your wife on the NHS unless her condition deteriorates (in which case she'd be referred to a specialist mental health trust for more intensive support, but things need to be pretty bad for the GP to escalate it), so you will need to pay privately (£35-50 per session) if she wants more a open ended style of therapy.

You might also want to have a look and see if there are any women centers in your area.  I had pretty bad post-natal depression after my son was born, and all my GP could offer me was anti-depressants.  I found a women center in in our town, and they offered counselling (small group: there was only 4 or 5 of us) specifically for PND.  I also received 8 sessions of 1:1 counselling for a different depression-related issue.  It's not a permanent solution, but it might provide her with a bit of help and support until she can find a longer-term therapist.  Best of luck!

Thanks for the tips everyone. We're checking into each of them now. Hopefully something will pan out!