What is Compassion Focused Therapy?

Compassion is an emotion that connects us with other human beings and is believed to play an important part in our emotional wellbeing. Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT) is a form of  cognitive therapy  that encourages individuals to develop compassion towards themselves and others, when they have previously found it difficult to express these emotions.

CFT is an evidence-based therapy that aims to help people who find it challenging to display positive emotion with regards to themselves and the people around them. It is an effective treatment for those who feel a crippling sense of self-shame or are overly critical of themselves or who may have experienced abuse, neglect or bullying in their past.

These feelings of shame and self-criticism are often more common in those who are already coping with anxiety, depression or a personality disorder, but CFT can teach individuals to be kinder towards themselves and others to help them make sense of their feelings when they feel overwhelmed.

CFT: Take the first steps towards a more compassionate future

Compassion Focused Therapy helps individuals to identify their negative thoughts, sense of shame and self-criticism and address these unhelpful beliefs with kindness, understanding and compassion.

By talking to a CFT therapist in a supportive and safe environment the client can freely explore the reasons behind their perception of the self-shame and criticism they feel, and why they submit to the thoughts and become overwhelmed by them.

A professional CFT therapist will work with their client to understand their feelings of insecurity and lack of self-worth, so they can begin to soothe, heal and accept soothing from those around them to replace the negative beliefs with more realistic feelings of safety and contentment.

Compassion Focused Therapy will help a person develop coping techniques and learn the important skills of self-soothing, compassion and mindfulness, in order to help them achieve a life free from shame and self-criticism.

Choose a trusted therapist for Compassion Focused Therapy

Jamie Dempsey  is a qualified and accredited CBT practitioner with the British Association for Behavioural & Cognitive Psychologies (BABCP), with a specialist training and experience providing Compassion Focused Therapy.

He has successfully worked with a diverse range of different clients experiencing challenges with self-criticism, shame and the underlying issues of trauma, depression and anxiety that often accompany these perceptions.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Interventions  helps clients to reduce the emotional distress that their condition caused, allowing them to move beyond their problems and open the door to a more compassionate and fulfilling life.

If you would like to listen to a podcast from the British Association of Cognitive and Behavioural Psychotherapist (BABCP) providing more information on Compassion Focused Therapy please click  Podcast