Good to Talk · Getting proper help · Free. Always.
Going private for therapy
If you or someone else is in danger, call 999 or go to A&E. If you need urgent mental-health help but it is not an emergency, use NHS 111 online or call 111 and select the mental-health option.
Private therapy can offer more choice or different availability.
What you need to know
Private therapy can offer more choice or different availability. Check training, appropriate professional registration or accreditation, experience, fees, confidentiality and complaints arrangements. Ask what therapy is actually being provided and how progress will be reviewed. Price and social-media following are not proof of quality.
Make it a conversation, not a test
You are allowed to ask questions, explain what matters to you and say when something is not helping. Mental-health care should be based on your needs, circumstances and appropriate clinical assessment.
Keep going
Getting proper help · Talking to your GP · NHS Talking Therapies
Sources & further reading
- NHS — mental health treatments
- NHS — talking therapies
- NHS — antidepressants
- NICE — depression in adults
Educational information only. Treatment should be based on an individual assessment with an appropriate healthcare professional.