Group Therapy in
NW London
A guided safe space for personal growth for men and women | CrossFit for the soul
Anna Maratos BA Hons (Oxon) MSc HCPC UKCP
Welcome
Group analytic therapy empowers individuals through transformative shared experience. This is not a ‘quick-fix therapy’, rather it’s a space for lasting change.
This is a place to slow down and reflect on the challenges of everyday life with trusted group mates and a qualified group analyst. Working together to explore, to learn, to share, to listen and to be heard.
Your group is your team for personal growth
About Anna
Head of Psychotherapy at NHS with 30 years’ experience of therapy in adult mental health
Over many years, I’ve witnessed the power of individuals working together to change their lives.
My early career as a music therapist at St Mary’s hospital gave me a unique perspective into the human psyche.
As a senior leader in the NHS I promote the work of group analysts and psychotherapists throughout central and northwest London
No-one is easy to live with. The only people we think are normal are people we don’t yet know
Alain de Botton
Why join a group?
People seem to need frequent, positive interactions with the same individuals in a framework of caring and concern
Baumeister and Leary (1995) on ‘belongingness’
Group therapy is more affordable than one-to-one psychotherapy, and as effective. Small psychotherapy groups offer a way to
gain multiple perspectives on a problem
shed light on the past and free yourself from it
gain confidence and self-esteem
understand and cope with raw emotions and triggers
draw strength from being with others
Group therapy helps you make fulfilling relationships with a partner, friends and colleagues
The group is a microcosm of your world and so becomes a space to reflect on how things are
It is also a warm and supportive practice ground for change
Insight
Often the struggles we face today in relating to others have deep roots going back to our early childhood. It is popular now to try to manage through mindfulness or cognitive techniques
But the openness and safety of a psychotherapy group give us the confidence to ‘open the box’. We grow to understand and to mourn whatever happened to us, so it no longer ‘triggers’ us. In this way, group therapy helps you make deep changes that resonate far into the future
‘Talking cure’
Any cure-by-talking relies on us putting into words the most difficult aspects of our lives. Sometimes when our emotions are too raw our words ‘go on holiday’. Group therapy brings our words home
Self-confidence
People often come to group therapy feeling like they are somehow an outsider, or that they have always felt slightly on the periphery of things. Joining a group repairs this: over time members begin to feel they truly belong in the group. Then, because of the changes in the way they feel about themselves and in the way they relate to others, this translates to their lives outside
You are not alone
We all grapple with distress. Regularly. But many of us hide it, as though revealing our pain will push people away.
In a group you get to realise that the opposite is true: it’s often the hidden details of our vulnerability that allow others in
Close friendships
We all need other people in our lives but getting close to others can be complicated. Group therapy is the most helpful kind of therapy for people who struggle to feel they belong in a close network of friends, colleagues or with a partner
Relationships
Group therapy is particularly effective at setting us free from emotional burdens that other people might have placed on our shoulders. Are you always accommodating others at the expense of your own needs? Joining a group will help you find a more balanced way of connecting, so your needs are met too
