All About Paranoia & How To Overcome it with CBT, Therapy & Counselling in Wolverhampton & West Midlands

What is Paranoia?
Paranoia is defined by thinking that people are somehow ‘out to get you’ or that otherwise seemingly random or innocuous events are ‘directed’ towards you personally, usually with the intent of malice or harm.
As with all problematic unhelpful thinking styles or limiting beliefs, the degree of ‘severity’ lies along a spectrum, at one end being mild thoughts and associated feelings and at the other end, severe paranoia making functioning extremely difficult.
Paranoia is most frequently associated with ‘paranoid schizophrenia’ although this is rarer than most people believe and when it is present, is generally treated with anti-psychotics.
Here at Tranceform Psychology we help people with thoughts or feelings of paranoia that are considered NOT to be as the result of psychosis.

Paranoia Symptoms
The symptoms of paranoia can include:
- Acting defensively
- Feelings of hostility from others or towards others
- Taking offence easily
- Thinking that you’re always right
- Difficulty trusting people
- Holding a grudge
- Inability to accept crticism
- Finding it difficult to compromise
- Taking other people’s remarks as personal attacks
- Worrying people are out to get you in some way
You may have some or even all of these symptoms at certain times.

Paranoia & Paranoid Thinking Test
Try answering the following 10 questions which have been designed to illuminate Paranoia related thoughts and feelings.
The higher the number of YES responses the more likely you experience bouts of paranoia and paranoid behaviour.
- Do you frequently worry that people are somehow trying to ‘use’ you?
- Do you worry about being ‘let-down’ or ‘betrayed’?
- Do you find it difficult to forgive and forget people who have mistreated you?
- Do you worry that people don’t tell you the ‘whole story’ or are trying to ‘deceive’ you?
- Do you worry that your partner may be cheating on you?
- Do you analyse people’s remarks to see if they are insulting you in some way?
- Do you find it difficult to confide in people fearing they may tell everybody?
- Do you worry that people are laughing at you ‘behind you back’?
- If you catch somebody staring at you in the street or whilst shopping do you automatically think they must be thinking something negative about YOU?
- Do you worry that friends might be meeting up without you behind your back?
(Adapted from ‘The Paranoid Thinking Style’, the Thrive Programme, Rob Kelly, 2015)
Although answering YES to each of these statements may seem perfectly reasonable to you they do indicate that paranoia is a component part of your thinking.
This notion that they are reasonable and make sense is due to what is called ‘confirmation bias‘ which is how our minds ‘twist’ the facts so that they make sense to our beliefs.

Therapy & Counselling for Paranoia
We offer a number of different types of therapy and counselling for Paranoia and related problems.
Choosing the most suitable therapy depends on a number of different considerations including factors such as:
- How long you have had the problem.
- Your personal preferences.
- How your problem is affecting you today.
You can read more about the different types of therapy for Paranoia on the following links:
Although all therapies use slightly different approaches, the one thing they all have in common is the relationship that is formed between the client and therapist.
Furthermore, research also suggests that therapy relationship may be the most important factor in achieving a good therapy outcome.

Free Initial Consultations for Paranoia
We offer all prospective clients a FREE initial consultation to discuss your Paranoia problems prior to commencing any treatment plans.
The consultation is free and lasts around 50 minutes.
During this consultation we will discuss the various therapy options that are available to you and make a considered recommendation based on your individual personal circumstances.
Initial consultations are also available as part of our online therapy service.
At Tranceform Psychology we recognise the importance of the therapeutic relationship in helping people to bring about effective change, so its important to be able to ‘meet’ to discuss any therapy treatments BEFORE proceeding.
Our policy is to help people make a fully balanced & considered decision about undertaking work with us, including both the financial and personal implications.
Overcome Your Problems with our CBT Course
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is clinically proven to be effective across a range of different mental health problems.
Using our online learning platform, it is available with 2, 5 or 10 sessions of clinical support either face-to-face in the Wombourne offices, or using Zoom video facilities.
It can also be taken as a self help CBT course that will teach you the fundamental tools and techniques used throughout the mental health profession.
Buy Your CBT Course Here
You can purchase your course of CBT in our shop by clicking on any of the links below.
Course + 2 Clinical Sessions - £299
Areas We Serve
We offer mental health services, therapy & counselling for people living in:
- Wolverhampton
- West Midlands
- Wombourne
- South Staffordshire
- Telford
- Shrewsbury
- Shropshire
For those living further afield, we also offer Online Therapy Services using Zoom.
You can also read more about psychological therapy for Paranoia on the Lee Psychology website.
During 2024 the Tranceform Psychology website will be transitioned over to Lee Psychology as part of our re-branding process.
Get in Touch With Us...
Useful Links
Practice Location
Maypole House, Yew Tree Court, Maypole Street, Wombourne, South Staffs, WV5 9JB.
what3words address: ///lakes.grain.claims
2023 Celebrating 14 Years providing mental health counselling in Wolverhampton, the West Midlands, Staffordshire & Shropshire.
© Tranceform Psychology Mental Health Services in Wolverhampton 2009 - 2023 | Website Design by Therapy Webs