All About the CORE Programme and how it can help you overcome Mental Health Problems Through a New Understanding of Subjective Reality

What is the CORE Programme?
The CORE Programme is a comprehensive programme of applied psychology which has been specifically designed to help you make fundamental changes to the way that you experience life by challenging & changing your existing perceptions of reality.
Many of the philosophical principles used in the programme build upon Dr. William Glasser’s Reality Therapy and his related work on Choice Theory, in particular, the positive values of taking personal responsibility compared to looking for external factors on which to attribute blame.
In this sense, it is more akin to a psychological training programme than it is a type of psychotherapy which, to the detriment of many people, is often based on the idea that there is something ‘wrong’ that needs to be corrected.
Also sharing many aspects of modern stoic philosophy, the CORE programme helps you to understand that your day-to-day experience of life is governed by the way that you make sense of what happens around you, rather than those events determining what your experience is.
Furthermore, the way that you make sense of your experiences is, in turn, governed by your CORE beliefs and values – factors derived from the world you inhabit, the people around you and your own personal evaluations.
These three CORE factors come together to form the basis of your own, unique inner-working model of reality.
(The CORE programme runs on it’s own dedicated online teaching platform which you can visit on this link.)

Because the vast majority of mental health problems are the result of our internal perceptions (and NOT the product of faulty biology as proposed in the biomedical models of mental illness), the CORE programme can be highly effective in relieving the emotional distress commonly associated with psychological problems.
The author and psychologist Paul Lee BSc. MSc. has been actively developing the programme over the last 14 years and has combined many of the principles of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Self-Determination Theory with the proven scientific principles described in the Transtheoretical Model of Behaviour Change.
Why the CORE Programme?
We decided to call it the CORE programme because it deals with a number of core psychological concepts, including the ideas that:
- It is the meanings that you attribute to your experiences that determine the way that you feel. These meanings are derived from your CORE Beliefs.
- You can change the meanings that you have attributed to previous experiences through Cognitive Reconstruction, a central mechanism of CBT.
- You use a range of core cultural values to make sense of your social interactions within your cultural setting.
Much of the way you experience your day-to-day life is determined by your own unique core values and beliefs.
Therefore, if you want to change the way you experience life (and the way that you feel) then start with the core elements.

Following the CORE Programme
The CORE programme can be followed with various levels of clinical support and pre-paid purchase options:
- 12 months online course access £149 (May be used as a self-help programme or with further clinical support sessions during the 12 month period)
- 1 hour single support sessions £90 Only available if you have purchased the online course (above) or either of the pre-paid course options below.
- CORE-5 Pre-paid course 5 x 1 hour clinical sessions / 12 months programme access £499
- CORE-10 Pre-paid course 10 x 1 hour clincal sessions / 12 months programme access £799
In each case, the online course is the same – 10 in-depth modules – and is expected to take around 10 -12 weeks to complete in keeping with the Behaviour Change Framework which stipulates that it takes around 90 days to implement effective change.
Rushing through the course faster than the recommended 12 week schedule is likely to result in a less than satisfactory outcome.
Sustainable behavioural change takes time and hard work.

CORE Programme Contents
The CORE programme deals with the following concepts in an incremental way, each module building on the previous:
- The nature of personal change in therapeutic & coaching settings.
- Beliefs, Values and Worldviews.
- Autonomy, Control and Causal Attribution.
- The Self and the Construction of Identities.
- Social Beliefs, Social Constructs & Cultural Influences.
- Safety Behaviours & Avoidance.
- Language, Linguistic Coding and how they link to Experience.
- Anxiety, Depression and Stress as Normal Responses.
- Tools for making changes.
- Consolidating your changes.
Each module incorporates 2 to 4 hours of reading, self-assessment tests and quizzes as well as practical tips and exercises to help you use the knowledge it contains in a practical way.

Arrange your FREE initial consultation here.
If you’d like to find out more about the CORE programme or recovering from any of your mental health problems then why not arrange a free initial consultation with us.
During this consultation we will discuss your particular issues and the different types of mental health counselling we offer (including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy – CBT) without you having to commit to any counselling going forward.
The consultation lasts around 50 minutes and is a great opportunity to meet with either Paul or Joan and decide if you would like to proceed with any support.
Counselling Locations
We offer the CORE programme for mental health problems in:
- Wombourne
- Wolverhampton
- West Midlands
- Shropshire
- South Staffordshire
- Telford
- Shrewsbury
You can also access our services around the World using online therapy with Paul.