Getting support was vital for many of the people we spoke to. People who had had ECT, and those who cared for them, could easily experience very difficult and isolated episodes. Many felt they needed support desperately at these times in their lives. Mandie researched how mental health is dealt with in other countries and […]

Some people had experience of a telephone consultation (a GP appointment over the phone), which could be a quicker and easier alternative to a face to face consultation as long as the doctor doesn’t need to examine the person. It was also helpful for people who couldn’t get to the surgery easily. When Aaron had […]

What is the Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS)? Gender identity care for children and young people under 18 is provided within the NHS by the Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS). GIDS is a highly specialised clinic for young people who experience difficulties with their gender identity. It is based at the Tavistock and Portman NHS […]

GPs have an important role to play in supporting trans and gender diverse young people and their families. For some parents and carers, the GP was their first point of contact about their child’s gender identity. In our interviews, people shared their experiences of seeing the GP with their child to talk about getting a […]

Psychotherapy, often referred to just as therapy, is a general term used to describe treatment that occurs through communicating (usually by talking) with a trained mental health professional. There are many different approaches to therapy, each with its own techniques and strategies. Generally, though, therapy tries to educate a person more about their condition, how […]

Some trials involved only a one-off or fairly short commitment from patients and had little impact on their lives. In Caroline’s case, for example, the trial was testing the effect of a computerised decision-aid and required only minor practical commitment. The trial involved a home visit from a researcher and a follow-up questionnaire. Age at […]

Research suggests that various factors may interact and cause or contribute to the development of mental health problems, including physical, social, environmental and psychological factors. Here, people talk about what they believe caused their mental health problems. This summary focuses on individual factors; social and environmental factors are discussed elsewhere (see ‘Views about causes of […]

Losing weight is rarely easy, but many things can help. We spoke to people about what had worked for them. Having the right mind-set Being in the right place emotionally and having the right mind-set was a prerequisite for losing weight according to some of the people we spoke with. ‘Being in the right place’ […]

Own work and career Most people who talked to us had given up work, but some were still working and many had continued working for some time after diagnosis. Many of them talked about how important work was for them, both emotionally and financially. He wants to continue working – it makes him feel useful […]

Money can be a source of worry if you become ill. We talked to people who had pancreatic cancer about their experiences of getting support from work, claiming benefits and the extra costs they had because they were unwell. Getting support from work Some people told us that their employer had kept paying their wages […]