Living with a respiratory or cardiac condition can lead to many difficult feelings.
While everyone will have a different set of challenges, many of these issues may be similar. This might include feeling low in mood, or feeling anxious, angry or fearful. Some people find it hard to cope and may become overwhelmed by these feelings. How you are feeling can also impact upon your physical health condition and how you manage it.
The respiratory and cardiology psychology service offers the opportunity to talk with someone who is trained in emotional wellbeing. Together, you can think about different ways of coping with the impact of your health condition(s). This can help you identify what changes are achievable and meaningful to you.
Some examples of problems that we can help with include:
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Adjusting to and coping with a diagnosis of a respiratory or cardiac condition
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Ways to manage anxiety or panic around breathlessness
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Feeling low in mood or overwhelmed with your health condition
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Ways to manage difficulties with fatigue, which may be associated with your health condition
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Coping with adjustment, change and loss
Our service works alongside other members of the respiratory team, including doctors, nurses, speech and language therapists, and physiotherapists.
General information on what psychology can help with and how psychology can help can be found back on the main page.
Dr Kerry Ferguson, clinical psychologist
I completed my clinical psychology training and have worked in health psychology settings since qualifying. I joined the respiratory psychology service at Northumbria Healthcare in 2022.
My therapeutic approach is integrative and I work collaboratively with each individual to consider the most appropriate form of psychological support for them. This may include drawing on ACT, CFT, CBT and EMDR (more information here).
Outside of work, I enjoy exploring the countryside and coastlines around the North East.
Dr Agnieszka Jazdzyk, counselling psychologist
I am a counselling psychologist, and I have worked within health psychology settings since 2016 – that’s when I also joined the respiratory psychology service at Northumbria Healthcare.
My aim is to provide my patients with therapy that’s tailored to their needs. My therapeutic approach is integrative; it consists of elements of CBT, psychodynamic therapy and ACT (more information here), with a focus on psychoeducation around patients’ mental health issues, followed by helping patients with adjustment, acceptance, feelings of grief, low self-esteem etc. in connection to their respiratory issues.
Outside of work, I enjoy reading and travelling.
Dr Lin Stevenson, clinical psychologist 
I joined the NHS in 2016 as an assistant psychologist, moving to the North East for clinical psychology training in 2020. I first joined the health psychology department at Northumbria Healthcare as a trainee clinical psychologist and returned after finishing the course.
Working within a physical health setting, I find it is important to understand the interplay between mental and physical wellbeing, aiming to enhance patients' overall health outcomes with a holistic approach to their care.
My therapeutic approach is intergrative, often incorporating elements from ACT, CFT attachment theory, and systemic family therapy models (more information here).
I spend a lot of my free time close to, or in, the sea or walking (very slowly) with my elderly dog, Summer.
You can be referred by a member of your respiratory or cardiology care team. If you feel that you would benefit from psychological support, please discuss this with your care team.
Following your referral, we will contact you to carry out a telephone screening appointment. This will be within about four weeks of your referral. We will find out more information and decide what support is most suitable. If further input from our service is appropriate, we will arrange this with you.
We can offer appointments either face to face or by telephone or video consultation. We offer individual or group-based interventions.
Appointments will be arranged directly with you or by telephone or letter. If, for any reason, you cannot attend, please let us know as soon as possible. If we don’t hear from you, we may presume that you no longer want psychological support and may discharge you from the service.