Chris Hutchins-Joss: Specialist Therapist for Chronic Illness & Health Anxiety
I support people navigating life when illness changes everything.
If you’re exhausted from being told “it’s just stress” while trying to manage work and relationships alongside a health condition, you’ve found the right place. As a BABCP-accredited therapist with 15 years’ experience, I specialise in supporting working professionals whose chronic conditions are disrupting their daily lives. I understand that your health concerns are real and valid – my job isn’t to challenge them, but to help you manage their impact so your condition becomes just one aspect of life rather than consuming your entire existence.
Chris Hutchins-Joss | BABCP Accredited CBT Therapist
Feel like you’re “not the old you” since your health changed?
When your condition is affecting your work, relationships, and daily life, you don’t have to navigate this transformation alone.
My Specialised Approach: Bridging the Gap Between Physical and Mental Health
If you feel like you’re “banging your head against a wall” trying to get support for how your health condition is affecting your daily life, you’re not alone. Healthcare naturally focuses on diagnosing and treating physical symptoms, but there’s often a gap when it comes to the emotional and psychological impact of living with a chronic condition.
I’ve Seen This Story Too Many Times
Through my work developing psychological support programmes with organizations like the British Heart Foundation, Diabetes UK, and pioneering Long Covid therapy in the NHS, I’ve witnessed the same pattern repeatedly:
- You’re told your symptoms are stress-related when you know there’s more to it
- Healthcare focuses on symptoms while you’re struggling with work, relationships, and losing yourself
- You end up feeling like “nobody is taking me seriously”
- Your quality of life and mental health are suffering, but that’s not being addressed
That’s exactly why I specialise in the space between physical health and mental wellbeing – because that’s where you’re stuck, and that’s where you need support.
You know your body. I use evidence-based approaches that work alongside your medical care to address the psychological impact:
- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) – To help you manage the anxiety and frustration when you’re told your symptoms are stress-related but you know there’s more to it
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) – To help your condition become just one aspect of life rather than consuming your entire existence
- Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) – To process difficult medical experiences, health scares, or the trauma of feeling unheard or misunderstood
I Work with People Whose Conditions Are Affecting Their Daily Lives:
Chronic Pain
When you’re “in daily pain” and feel like you “just cannot go on living like this” – processing the exhaustion, identity changes, and impact on everything you used to enjoy
IBS & Digestive Conditions
Breaking the exhausting cycle where symptoms create anxiety, anxiety worsens symptoms, and both are disrupting your professional and social life
ME/CFS & Chronic Fatigue
Managing the grief when you’re “not the old you” while learning to pace yourself and maintain identity when energy is unpredictable
Long Covid
Navigating the uncertainty and life disruption when you feel “overwhelmed and none the wiser” about your condition and its impact
Health Anxiety
When you’re constantly worried something is being missed, and you feel like you’re “going crazy” with the uncertainty and fear
Living with Undiagnosed Symptoms
Supporting you when you feel “undiagnosable” and healthcare hasn’t found answers, but your daily reality is far from normal
My approach is flexible because I understand that chronic conditions are unpredictable. Bad symptom days happen. We’ll work at your pace, online from wherever you’re most comfortable, adjusting our approach based on your energy levels and needs.
What to Expect: Finally, Someone Who Gets It
If you’re exhausted from being told “it’s just stress” while your condition disrupts your work and relationships, this process is designed around understanding your reality – not challenging it.
Free Initial Consultation (No Pressure, Just Understanding)
A genuine 15-minute conversation to see if we’re a good fit. You’ll tell me what’s been happening for you, and I’ll explain how I work with people when illness changes everything. No obligation, no judgment – just two people having an honest conversation about whether this approach might help.
Understanding Your Reality (Not Questioning It)
We’ll explore how your condition is affecting your daily life, work, and relationships. I won’t challenge your health concerns or suggest they’re “all in your head.” Instead, we’ll identify the exhausting patterns – like when symptoms create worry, and worry amplifies symptoms – so we can work on breaking those cycles.
Tailored Support That Actually Makes Sense
Based on your specific situation, we’ll use the most helpful approaches:
- • CBT – Not to challenge your concerns, but to manage the anxiety and frustration when you feel dismissed or unheard
- • ACT – To help your condition become just one aspect of life rather than consuming your entire existence
- • EMDR – To process the trauma of being dismissed, frightening medical experiences, or the grief of “not being the old you”
Tools That Work in the Real World
Develop practical strategies for your specific challenges:
- • Managing the anxiety-symptom cycle that keeps you stuck
- • Pacing strategies that actually work with unpredictable symptoms
- • How to advocate for yourself when you feel like “nobody is taking me seriously”
Reclaiming Your Life (On Your Terms)
As we work together, you’ll develop the skills to:
- • Navigate healthcare conversations more effectively when you need to advocate for yourself
- • Reconnect with work and relationships despite ongoing health challenges
- • Develop resilience for managing the unpredictability that chronic conditions bring
Many clients say they finally feel heard and understood, with practical tools to manage both their symptoms and the emotional toll they take.
Built Around Your Reality, Not Against It
I understand that chronic conditions are unpredictable. All sessions are online, and I’m experienced in working with:
- • Bad symptom days that affect your energy and concentration
- • The need to reschedule when your condition flares up
- • Working around medical appointments and treatment schedules
15 minutes to see if we’re a good fit – no pressure, just understanding
My Professional Qualifications
- ✓ BABCP Accredited CBT Therapist with training in physical health conditions
- ✓ Postgraduate Diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
- ✓ Advanced training in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for chronic conditions
- ✓ EMDR therapy training for trauma related to health experiences
- ✓ Clinical Supervision qualification
I’m passionate about supporting future therapists to work effectively with health conditions and currently supervise trainee therapists at Canterbury Christ Church University (CCCU), sharing my knowledge to help shape the next generation of mental health professionals.