Sanah Younis, BABCP-Accredited Cognitive Behavioural Therapist

What can be discussed before deciding whether an assessment may be useful?

Sanah Younis is a BABCP-accredited CBT therapist and clinical lead at The Lyceum Clinic. This page provides general information about her professional role and the clinic’s published arrangements. It cannot diagnose a condition, determine why someone is struggling or decide whether CBT, or a particular way of working, will be suitable for an individual. People may consider a conversation with a therapist for many reasons, including worry, panic, intrusive thoughts, low mood, self-criticism, burnout, health concerns, trauma, neurodivergence or a difficult transition. These are reasons to explore what is happening, not labels or predictions about a treatment outcome. An individual assessment can consider current safety, relevant health information, previous support, personal circumstances and the priorities that matter to the person seeking help. Sanah’s work is grounded in CBT. A collaborative discussion may consider patterns in thoughts, emotions, behaviour, routines and physical sensations. If CBT-informed ideas are relevant, the focus, pace and any between-session reflection are agreed together and can be reviewed as more becomes clear. Approaches such as behavioural experiments, exposure-informed work, behavioural activation, acceptance-based ideas or compassion-focused ideas may be discussed when appropriate. No webpage prescribes a technique or a fixed course of therapy. BABCP accreditation reflects professional CBT training and ongoing standards. It does not guarantee a particular approach, number of sessions or outcome. Research and clinical guidance can inform an assessment, but findings from groups of people cannot identify the best route or likely result for one individual. The person seeking support remains the expert on their own experience, needs and circumstances. Sanah’s clinical guides and reflective blog posts have different purposes. The guides provide carefully sourced general information, while the blog offers reflections on themes that can arise around therapy. Neither replaces individual assessment, medical advice or urgent support. The therapy and approach pages explain the clinic’s published service and method information in more detail. It can be useful to bring the questions you have now, rather than trying to decide everything before making contact. You may be comparing online and face-to-face arrangements, wondering how support could fit around work or caring responsibilities, or unsure whether your experience is something to raise in therapy. An assessment can make room for those uncertainties. You do not need a diagnosis, a complete history or a treatment decision before making an enquiry. If another professional, service or source of support is already involved, that context can be discussed where relevant. The purpose is to understand what support is in place and what practical boundaries need consideration, not to make assumptions about existing care. Any next step should be agreed in light of the individual’s circumstances and current needs. Choosing a therapist can involve practical as well as clinical questions. You may want to ask about the format of an initial conversation, confidentiality, how information is handled, fees, location arrangements, current availability and what a fuller assessment could involve. Clear answers to those questions can help someone decide whether it is the right time to explore the next step. Information gathered during an assessment is used to build a shared understanding, not to reduce a person to a checklist. The conversation can return to what matters most, what has already been tried, what feels manageable and what would need to be different for support to be worthwhile. The questions may change as circumstances change, and that is one reason an assessment is a conversation rather than a single fixed decision. It is also reasonable to decide that now is not the right time, or that another form of support may be more appropriate. Clear information helps make that decision without pressure. The aim is to leave room for a considered choice that reflects the person’s own circumstances. If you decide to enquire, you can use the conversation simply to understand practical options before deciding whether any further step is useful. Face-to-face arrangements can be discussed in Chiswick, Ealing and Richmond, and online appointments can be discussed where appropriate. Current availability, accessibility, practical format and suitability should be checked directly. An initial conversation can be used to ask practical questions and consider whether a fuller assessment may be useful. It does not commit anyone to a particular route, duration or outcome. If you are in immediate danger or need urgent support, use an appropriate emergency or urgent service rather than relying on this page.