About the program: Balanced thinking
A proven Low-intensity Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (LiCBT) approach to help you manage emotional challenges.
Program:
Series of stages completed online through our Medicare Mental Health Check In platform
Duration:
Spread over about 6 weeks, with an extension option if needed
Format:
Practitioner-assisted
How this program can help
When life feels stressful or heavy, your thoughts can feel very overwhelming. This can affect your emotions, choices, relationships, and make you feel stuck.
If you often have negative thoughts, worry a lot, overthink things, or expect the worst, this program can help you think differently and feel more balanced. It guides you through 2 proven techniques – Thought Challenging and Thought Tests. These techniques can help you take small, manageable steps to manage your unhelpful thoughts.
It is based on established clinical guidelines.
Program outline
What's included
Story-based stages that teach core coping skills
Exercises designed to help you manage your wellbeing
Practical techniques to help break negative thought cycles
Email reminders to keep you on track
Questionnaires to help you monitor your wellbeing.
Skills you could gain
Identifying unhelpful thoughts and beliefs: recognising unhelpful thinking patterns that influence physical feelings, emotions, and behaviour.
Thought restructuring or reframing: understanding the link between low mood and difficult thoughts and what can help break cycles of unhelpful thinking.
Emotional regulation: managing strong emotions in healthier, more effective ways.
Coping mechanisms: using practical techniques to help you challenge difficult thoughts and find more balanced ways of thinking.
Self-awareness and self-monitoring: understanding how emotions, thoughts, feelings, and actions connect.
Practitioner-assisted versus self-guided pathways
Currently, you can only do the program with assistance from a Medicare Mental Health Check In practitioner. At the end of May, a self-guided pathway will also be available. Take a look at the differences between these pathways below.
| Practitioner-assisted | Self-guided* | |
|---|---|---|
| Program choice | Determined with your practitioner | Determined by you |
| Support | Check-ins with your practitioner | Fully self-directed |
| Who it's for | Mild symptoms, those wanting support with applying the skills in their day-to-day lives | Mild symptoms, those who would prefer to independently and gradually apply the skills in their day-to-day lives |
| Program choice | ||
| Practitioner-assisted Determined with your practitioner | ||
| Self-guided* Determined by you | ||
| Support | ||
| Practitioner-assisted Check-ins with your practitioner | ||
| Self-guided* Fully self-directed | ||
| Who it's for | ||
| Practitioner-assisted Mild symptoms, those wanting support with applying the skills in their day-to-day lives | ||
| Self-guided* Mild symptoms, those who would prefer to independently and gradually apply the skills in their day-to-day lives |
* This option will only be available towards the end of May. Updates will be shared on this website as needed.
Is this for me?
This program may be right for you if you are looking for support on your wellbeing journey and want to be in control of how and when you receive that support.
This program is suitable for people who:
- are 16 and over
- want to try a low-intensity approach to improving their mental health.
This program is not suitable for people who:
- are under 16
- require help for more acute or complex mental health needs
- are in need of urgent care.
What’s next?
Find out if this service is the right fit for you by calling Medicare Mental Health.
