The French have it down to a fine art - they do it anywhere, and no matter the circumstance or valence, it sounds classy.  The Americans love it, and can often be pretty loud when they're doing it.  But the Brits?  Well that's another story.

Whilst the merits of dialogue, of sharing thoughts and feelings are widely accepted in the West, the Brits had conveniently bypassed it, jumping from stiff upper lip to 'Hrt brkn but OK - txt U l8tr'.

But stirring in the undergrowth of societal disillusionment is the quiet but steady rumbling of the merits of 'talking therapies'  As stigma shrinks to the size of a 5mg Diazepam tab, people are venturing out of their comfort zone to the relative comfort of the Therapy room.

And funding is being made available to ensure that potential clients are not drawing their pension by the time their name comes top of the waiting list (apologies to retirees).  £400 million apparently.  That's a lot of tissues.

Train them and they will come...

So what's the plan?  It would seem to be to train up therapists in CBT to help them ameliorate the emotional mess borne of a financially unstable climate and a culture where extended families and other support mechanisms have long gone.  Or something along those lines. 

I'd say that's a pretty exciting challenge, and one which all potential therapists should meet head on.  Where to start?  Well,  my guess is that the benefits will lie with those Therapists who are self-employed: potential clients will actively seek out reputable therapists enabling them to bypass a doctor's surgery of coughing clients and fastrack straight to the source.  Ahem, if you are a Therapist; be ready :)