Joseph Parkins
PGDip Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
BA (Hons) Counselling
Accredited Member of the British Association for Behavioural & Cognitive Psychotherapists (BABCP)
Hi there, my name is Joe. I’m a BABCP Accredited Psychotherapist and former panic disorder & agoraphobia sufferer.
When I was 15, I suddenly began experiencing panic attacks. They became worse and more persistent, until eventually I stopped going out due to a fear that I would experience a panic attack in a place where I couldn’t cope.
My life quickly became limited to being completely housebound, occupying my time by playing video games and trying to do everything I could to avoid a panic attack. Meanwhile, my anxiety continued to get worse and I became increasingly depressed. This went on for years.
During this time I saw a counsellor, a psychiatrist, and a psychologist. Ultimately, none of them were able to give me the help I needed. When I turned 19, I began pushing back at my anxiety, and through years of trial and error, I was eventually able to overcome it.
Inspired by my own experience of overcoming anxiety, I went on to train as a psychotherapist, achieving a Bachelor’s Degree in Counselling from The University of Sunderland and a Postgraduate Diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy from Teesside University. It was during this time where I studied the exact treatment frameworks and interventions that would have massively benefitted me whilst I was suffering.
In 2023, I began working for the British National Health Service (NHS), treating a large number of agoraphobic clients. By combining the knowledge gained from my personal experience of living with this disorder with my understanding of cognitive and behavioural interventions, I was able to help most of these clients recover after just a few therapy sessions.
This made me realise that recovery from this disorder doesn’t have to be overly complex or require long-term treatment and can, in fact, be made relatively simple and be achieved by understanding a few key psychological concepts and following a specific framework. I then decided to create Freedom From Panic as a way to make efficient and effective recovery from panic disorder & agoraphobia accessible to everyone.