Case Study
James’s Story
James phoned the clinic to see if he could make an appointment for his anxiety. He was recently bereaved and struggling to cope and experienced difficulty leaving the house. His family was worried about him too. He met with one of the Atrium clinicians who helped him recognise the impact of grief and for several more sessions they explored his relationship with his late wife and the harrowing hospital visits before her death and the concerns that he could have supported her better. They discussed thinking that was helpful to him leading a fuller life and what worked against his goals.
They also planned for social gatherings by building up the steps to making them happen, particularly, preparing for difficult conversations. In his plan, James had strategies for getting back to a better sleep routine and eating better. By the fifth session, he felt that he had turned a corner- not that his grief had dissipated but that he was learning to live with it better. In his final assessment, his level of functioning had improved significantly and this gave him increased confidence in his future.
‘Thank you. I thought I’d struggle to talk and doubted it would help. My therapist was great and the combination of a problem solving approach and understanding what I am going through has meant that I feel I am in the best place I could be, given my loss’.
“Thank you. I thought I’d struggle to talk and doubted it would help. My therapist was great and the combination of a problem solving approach and understanding what I am going through has meant that I feel I am in the best place I could be, given my loss.”
– James
