False Certainty

It’s interesting how we develop this false certainty in life that we are immune to things such as diseases, accidents, dying… and the list could go on. If I asked people they would say, of course we are not immune — but still most of us live under that false certainty umbrella, some of us even […]

Denial

We all use denial as a defence mechanism and on a short term it does work. It helps us postpone different emotions, even try to bury them. It gives us a false impression that we don’t have to attend to what is going on, we can just put it aside and hopefully it will go […]

Ready for therapy?

Have you ever thought that you have to be ready to go into therapy? It’s a big step and it’s also a process which takes time and effort to open up and sort things out. As easy as it may sound, it is not. Imagine you’ve done the same things over and over again. Now, […]

Coping Strategies For Anxiety

We talked last week about anxiety and the cycle of this disorder which gets stronger and stronger over time and it affects your social and work life. Most people with anxiety choose to avoid situations or people that might trigger their anxiety, and in doing so they only reinforce that cycle because next time it […]

Restructuring Our Inner World

I am reflecting today upon the great influence our families have on us and on our development. We become a part of a system and the first thing we do is observe how things are done. We are not able to make any decisions in the beginning because we’re being taken care of, but we do get […]

Vulnerability in the room

In the therapy room being vulnerable is one of the key aspects of the work between the therapist and the client. Too often clients come in with a surface issue because they’re either unsure of what is troubling them or they want to “test the waters”, meaning they want to see if the therapist would […]

Learning

There is always something you can learn from everyone. No matter how good or bad it is, it’s still a lesson and it’s also a part of our nature as individuals to learn. I’ve found time and time again that working with people puts me in a situation where I have to meditate on my own behaviour, […]

Growing

Working with people and offering counselling definitely brings challenges to every therapist, in different ways, of course. Every person is different even though sometimes you do notice similarities between them. As a therapist I find myself, over and over again, feeling a mixture of emotions whenever clients come into the therapy room. I am happy […]

Complaining Is Terrible for You, According to Science

Steeping yourself in negativity has seriously terrible consequences for your mental and physical health. Why do people complain? Not to torture others with their negativity, surely. When most of us indulge in a bit of a moan, the idea is to “vent.” By getting our emotions out, we reason, we’ll feel better. But science suggests there […]