“I’m so grateful there are people like you helping people like me”

Adults with complex mental health needs in Northamptonshire say Teamwork Trust’s new emotional support service is continuing to give them hope during these uncertain times.

We have been running a community counselling service for over 15 years alongside programmes for adults with learning and physical disabilities, and had already made the decision to launch our over-the-phone support a week before social distancing measures came into play in the UK.

The quick-thinking and fast response meant that by the time our three centres in Corby, Kettering and Wellingborough officially closed in mid-April, the 63 people who were already receiving face-to-face counselling, were still able to access essential support during regular phone calls. 

Some of the comments from anonymous service-users…

 “The phone calls are what keep my mental health stable.”

 “I always feel different on the days I know Teamwork are going to phone me.”

 “I can see me making progress even during this lockdown.”

 “I’m so grateful there are people like you helping people like me”

“Without these phone calls I would be lost.”

 “I would be a lot worse without regular phone calls.”

 Jackie Sawford, Head of Counselling at Teamwork said: “To go from delivering therapy in person to running a telephone-only service was a challenge for our counselling team initially, but we didn’t have time to worry about how it might work, we just had to pull all our resources together to make sure we could still support those who were already participating in regular sessions.

 “There is a great deal of trauma and grief at the moment for the loss of our usual routines and way of life, whether you have complex mental health needs or not. Our focus has been on helping people find new coping mechanisms so that they don’t hit rock bottom, calling them once a week to talk about their anxieties, depression, relationship issues and feelings. Hearing from our service-users about how our support has been helping them is just amazing.”

Teamwork Trust’s telephone emotional support is currently only available to those already on the programme, however, the counselling team is looking to develop a new virtual counselling service in the near future.

Jackie added: “We are still unsure when we will be able to offer face-to-face support but we are committed to finding alternative ways during this difficult period of helping those who are most susceptible to poor mental health.”

More on Teamwork Trust's counselling services HERE.