‘Online therapy helped me beat depression’

The internet can be used for a whole lot more than just checking your emails – it can boost your mental health, too. Here, Jenny Naylor, 40 from Merseyside reveals how she turned to her computer when she couldn’t get the help she needed from her GP

‘Back in August 2008 I left a stressful job working for my local authority as a community regeneration manager. The job involved implementing programmes in the community to create employment, so I was often caught up in conflicts between the community and the council. The work was very stressful and overwhelming and it was only when I left that I realised how tired, low and unmotivated I was.
I wanted to start a business running my own health regeneration consultancy but I found it tough and didn’t seem to get anywhere. I had a bit of part time work but gradually became unemployed. My GP diagnosed depression in May 2009 and put me on a waiting list for therapy, which I’m still on today. In the meantime, I was offered antidepressants, but I didn’t want to take them.
I’d heard about Beating the Blues through Advocacy, a local mental health charity. The online program teaches positive patterns of thought and behaviour by clicking through screens. Advocacy held Beating the Blues sessions in a group to work through the program with volunteer support. That was good for me because it got me up in the mornings so I joined up in June 2009. I went once a week for six weeks and then I began volunteering there, too.
The course worked for me because it gave me the tools to think positively and make things happen. One of the key aims with Beating the Blues is setting goals. Mine were towards launching my business and knowing how to sell myself and my service to customers. Just a month after finishing my course I successfully started up my business.
I still have low points but I refer back to tips I learnt, like scheduling things I enjoy in your diary such as exercise, lunch with friends and dancing, to keep me on track. If I was still waiting for therapy I don’t know what state I’d be in. Online therapy gave me the instant help I needed and enabled me to move on with my life. Without it I’d probably still be struggling.’

• Find out more about Beating the Blues at www.beatingtheblues.co.uk
• See p93 of the latest issue of Healthy (April), in Holland & Barrett stores now, to find out more about how online therapy can help you.

Interview by Jessica Powell

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