Long Term Conditions Team
Mental health and wellbeing support for those living with long-term health conditions
Living with a long-term health condition can be demanding – not just physically, but emotionally too. Managing ongoing symptoms, adjusting to changes in daily routines and coping with treatment demands can understandably lead to feelings of anxiety, low mood or frustration.
Our service provides talking therapies for adults who are experiencing health-related distress linked to a long-term health condition. We aim to help people to feel more able to manage their health, improve their emotional wellbeing, and maintain a better quality of life.
Our team is primarily made up of trained psychological professionals, including Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners, Cognitive Behavioural Therapists / Psychological Therapists and Psychologists, who are experienced in providing psychological assessment and therapies. There is also a Consultant Clinical Psychologist and a Clinical Pharmacist who offer involvement where appropriate.
We work collaboratively with clients, carers, GPs and other healthcare professionals to ensure that care is joined-up and tailored to each person’s needs. Whether someone is seeking support for themselves or being referred by a professional, our service is here to provide accessible and person-centred mental health and wellbeing support.
What types of health-related distress does our service work with?
Our service provides goal-focused, time-limited talking therapies adapted for people with long-term health conditions. Common concerns we can help with include:
- Low mood and depression – feeling persistently sad, hopeless, or losing interest in activities that would usually be enjoyable
- Panic, anxiety and excessive worry – ongoing feelings of nervousness or tension, often related to health uncertainty
- Stress and adjustment difficulties – struggling to cope with changes in health, routines or lifestyle
- Grief – emotional responses to loss of health, roles or future plans
- Loss of identity and difficulties with self-acceptance – feeling disconnected or struggling with changes in identity
- Social withdrawal or isolation – avoiding contact or feeling cut off from others
- Health-related trauma or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) – severe or intense distress linked to medical experiences or sudden health events
Who is our service for?
We accept self-referrals and professional referrals across our footprint. We provide a service when the following criteria is met:
- The person is experiencing significant health-related distress linked to a long-term health condition. The conditions that currently fall within the remit of the service include:
- Post-COVID Syndrome or Long COVID
- Respiratory conditions
- Asthma
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
- Other chronic lung diseases
- Cancer (internal Talking Therapies referrals only)
- The person is able to attend for regular therapy appointments
- The presenting needs can appropriately be met in a primary care setting
- The person is over the age of 18 years
- They are registered with a GP in Manchester, Salford, Trafford, Bolton or Wigan
Depending on need, the service may recommend onward referral or signposting to other services. This might include referral to embedded psychological services within physical health settings; secondary care mental health services; drug and alcohol services; or urgent care services.
If you have any queries, then please contact us.
As a service user, relative or carer using our services, sometimes you may need to turn to someone for help, advice, and support.
Find resources for carers and service users Contact the Trust