"My symptoms started after my COVID infection. I struggle with various cognitive symptoms including difficulty remembering words, memory loss... I also suffer from fatigue, low mood and anxiety. It is difficult to find the motivation given how hard it has all been. I keep working full-time, sometimes from home. My main issues are me not being able to perform at the level I wanted to because I feel I currently lack the skills/ability to. I check in my mind endless times for all the possibilities and I am definitely more aware of the mistakes I make. I wonder if I am worthy people's time and effort. Before I never used to make mistakes, now I make excuses to avoid failing. I realise that there are ups and downs and I know that some things can make the symptoms worse, such as having a disagreement with someone at work. I took care of my mum with dementia until she died, so obviously that is a concern in my mind.

To me, this treatment has been very helpful in identifying negative automatic thoughts that make my symptms worse. I used to anticipate 'I can't do it' and if I failed anytime I would think that 'I shouldn't have tried'. When I make it I never think I deserve praise or automatically think I only succeeded because it was too easy. Now I identify that many of my symptoms are linked to my emotions on that day. I first reflect on my thoughts. I identified that I selectively retain the negatives in my life but never congratulate myself for my positive achievements. I have also been working on my other symptoms, my sleep, my diet, my mood and obsessive traits. I learned to accept myself as I am. Motivation is not always easy but I know that I critise myself too often for not achieving things, and this is not helpful. I also learned that it is unnecessary giving myself anxiety for things that might or might not happen. So, instead of imagining scenarios in my mind, I now live in the here and now."