CBT for Tinnitus, Stress and Anxiety (Individual)
Individual therapy with Psychotherapist & Hearing Therapist Debbie Featherstone comprises up to 15 hours of 1-1 individual therapy and support. The 15 hours of support is based on 10 x 90 minute appointments using Zoom. There may be some shorter appointments, and if this happens, you can “bank” the time. In addition to our appointments, there is supporting content you’ll have access to, relaxation logs to complete, and a weekly SITREP to send, particularly for the weeks that we don’t have a 1-1 appointment.
Before you commit to individual therapy
Begin by sending in your initial measures. These comprise the following:
- Tinnitus Functional Index (TFI)
- Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI) as a secondary tinnitus measure for tinnitus distress
- GAD-7 anxiety measure
- Perceived Stress Scale (PSS)
- Measure for anxiety symptoms experienced, their intensity and frequency
When a first appointment is used as an "assessment", most of the appointment is taken up completing measures and finding out about your history. By completing these online before a first appointment is a much better use of time, rather than using up an appointment to do them.
Before committing to individual therapy
- Please consider enrolling on the CBT for Tinnitus E-Programme. You can read the reviews
- 40% of Users start with category 5 TFI (73-100%); 40% of Users start with category 4 TFI (54-72%); 80% of Users start with moderate-high stress and/or anxiety
- On completing the programme, TFI is reduced to category 2 or less; both stress and anxiety are low on completion - see TFI Outcomes
- Visit the course site: https://courses.tinnituseprogram.org
- The cost is SIGNIFICANTLY LESS than 1-1 individual therapy because of significantly LESS therapist face-to-face time
- Enrolment is with either one, two or three 1-1 appointments face-to-face using Zoom, the first of which is once you reach Stage 4
Typical clinical measures for the person requesting individual therapy
- Tinnitus Functional Index (TFI) is Category 5 - 73-100% very big problem
- Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI) is Category 5 - 78-100% very severe tinnitus distress
- Perceived Stress Score (PSS) is in the top tier - 27-40 high stress
- General Anxiety (GAD-7) is in the top tier - 15-21 severe anxiety
- Anxiety Symptoms Q (ASQ) is in the top tier - 61-100%
Your first appointment
I will email you a link to pay securely using Stripe. There are two options:
- Book a Consultation (£175) allowing a decision to commit to individual therapy until after your first appointment. Payment should be made no later than 24 hours before your arranged appointment.
- Pay for your programme (£1495) and use one of the ten appointments. Payment should be made no later than 24 hours before your arranged appointment. You will be sent a link to access CBT for Tinnitus & Anxiety (Ind) 1 - the first block of supporting content.
Subsequent appointments
Your ten appointments need to be used wisely and will be at different intervals for different people, depending on need. Most commonly, they are 2 weeks apart at the beginning. In the weeks between appointments, you still report in weekly with a SITREP – a pre-agreed day where you email how you are, and the progress you have made that week.
Supporting content
The supporting content is invaluable. It is provided in blocks of content, accessed through the same platform that hosts the CBT for Tinnitus E-Programme. When you receive access to it, pertains to where you are in the process at any given time.
What happens if I run out of appointments?
The aim is to complete your programme in 18-24 weeks when you start out with a category 4 or 5 Tinnitus Functional Index. Appointments are likely to be at 2 week intervals to begin with, extended to being at 3 and then 4 week intervals. Provided you have your appointments at the recommended intervals, use the logs, CBT tools and weekly reports by email, it is unlikely that you will exceed the 15 hours of individual 1-1 time. If you request additional appointments, these can be arranged.
Limited places
Places on the individual programme are necessarily limited, and I do not run a “waiting list”. After nearly 20 years of witnessing the aftermath of patients being on long waiting lists when I was working in the NHS, it is my view that waiting lists are soul destroying for people who are highly distressed, and time-served on a waiting list only exacerbates anxiety, stress and distress. When I am unable to take on new patients to the individual programme, I urge anyone to re-consider the CBT for Tinnitus E-Programme: https://courses.tinnituseprogram.org
Debbie Featherstone MSc
Hearing Therapy | Psychotherapy | CBT Specialist in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy & Tinnitus
April 2024