Happiness
Posted by on March 18, 2016
Are you swinging from feeling anxious, scared or on guard to thinking quick I must ‘do’ something, only then to swing back to anxiety and then doing again? Sometimes we think if we could just do this one thing, or change this one part of our lives we will be happy.
For me happiness occurs when we can nurture and create an environment both within us and outside of us for happiness to thrive.
Often striving to achieve the one thing that we think will change our lives makes us frustrated, unhappy, stressed and agitated as we try to grapple - Read More
Rage and Shame – two ‘happy’ bedfellows
Posted by on March 11, 2016
Trauma manifests itself in many ways. Two signals or symptoms of trauma that often go hand in hand are rage and shame – phenomena’s that create enormous feelings of isolation and loneliness.
Pierre Janet’s simple definition of trauma is ‘there was nobody there.’ meaning there was literally no-one there, or there was no-one there who wasn’t themselves traumatised and therefore unable to help or no-one was there because the other person was an abuser.
Experiencing feelings of rage and shame can often occur when an individual hasn’t been able to come to terms with the hostile and attacking environment of the traumatic - Read More
Self Care
Posted by on February 29, 2016
‘Self care is never a selfish act – it is simply good stewardship of the only gift I have, the gift I was put on earth to offer to others. Anytime we can listen to our true self and give the care it requires, we do it not only for ourselves, but for the many others whose lives we touch’ (Parker Palmer).
What does self-care mean to you and how do you make time for you every day?
We are not meant to be islands…
Posted by on February 10, 2016
A few months ago I was in a shop that was playing some music and without really thinking I began to hum and then sing those odd words that you know (or at least you think you know!) As I mooched around the aisles I began to notice I was not alone in my mumbled warbling’s and as I reached down for a bag of flour, a voice from behind me said “keep going girl”.
Temporarily confused but also mildly amused at being called a girl (THANKYOU!) I stood up, flour in hand, and met the eyes of a lady in her - Read More
Depression – Sharing with you one person’s story
Posted by on February 6, 2016
Beating Depression – Sharing with you one clients personal story of recovery- please read to the end if you feel able to
“For years I thought why me, why do I feel as though it’s always my fault, why is it always like this, why does nothing change, people give me all this help and advice and i just don’t seem to be able to do anything with it.
And then I realised, the only person blocking my recovery was me – but I had my reasons …right? That old chestnut, never fails to keep you stuck…
I had the choice to feel - Read More
Why did I just do that?!
Posted by on February 6, 2016
“Behaviour is the product of relational experiences” Margot Sutherland.
In addressing behaviour we need to understand what is trying to be communicated. Sometimes we find ourselves acting or saying something and wondering why did i just say/do that?! Behaviour expresses a part of our inner world. It communicates a part of us we may or may not be aware of and draws on our experienced expectations …of self and other.
In understanding our behaviour we need to ask why we are communicating and relating in this way. What result am i expecting/predicting based on my experiences from the past in relating - Read More
Which step have you reached today?
Posted by on February 5, 2016
Taking each day step by step together helps make the mountains more manageable and the molehills just molehills 🙂
Selective listening and the impact on relating
Posted by on February 5, 2016
Are you a selective internal listener? Always listening to the doubtful, critical sides of ourselves stops us seeing ourselves and others for who we/they are in our/their entirety. By accepting all parts of ourselves, warts and all, we promote a way of relating which can bring out the best in ourselves and others and relate in a loving accepting, non-selective way.
No one is perfect, we all make mistakes and we all do things we might regret – but love can repair and accepting that we have strengths as well as weaknesses and actively embracing those strengths brings us closer - Read More
Angry – do you really know why?
Posted by on February 5, 2016
Anger, when expressed well, can get things done, invigorate movement and provoke change. Whilst it’s an emotion that we can also misuse, anger tells us to look at what’s really bothering us and needs to be listened to or changed.
Listening to the meaning in your anger rather than simply reacting can be incredibly empowering and enabling – next time you feel angry perhaps try to take a moment to wonder what it is that you feel in your body…are you scared, anxious, worried, feeling unsafe – once you know then you can act if you need to or not.
Counselling - Read More
Telephone