Control about Our Mental Health
We like to think of Australia as a country without divisions. We like to think that everyone has a fair go, and that things are equal. However, there are some
The Hero Within: Seeing our Goodness
The ancient Romans revered Romulus. Their legends said that he, with his twin brother Remus, founded the city of Rome 400 years before. They assigned all sorts of worthy characteristics
How Your Beliefs Limit Your Knowledge
We all want to build new skills. We feel that if we knew more and had more skills, then we could be more effective in the world. However, we sometimes
Building Resilience: Why Failure is Essential
We would all like to live a life where we didn’t fail at anything. We can feel that it’d really be ideal if everything we turn our hand to was
Understanding your Psychological Growing Pains
When we start psychotherapy, we often do it to know more about ourselves. Even though in some ways we might know ourselves quite well, we are drawn to therapy is
Why Common Sense Often Doesn’t Work in Mental Health
When we face mental health difficulties in ourselves or another people, we can often get complex advice from professionals about how to treat the problem. That advice can feel too
Understanding Your Flexible Personality
Many people feel strong desire to concretely define themselves. We can see ourselves as having a particular personality type, having a particular star sign, cultural affiliation or supporting a certain
In a Bad Mood? This Can Help
We all have times when we are in a bad mood, and we’re not very pleasant to be around. We might not know the reason, and sometimes we don’t know
Parts of Us: Understanding Our Complexity
We are used to thinking of ourselves as having a single personality. We think: “This is who I am, this is what I believe, this is what I want”. This
Priorities: Getting It Right
Every day we have the opportunity to invest our time in a variety of ways. We try to sort through the competing demands on our time and yet it can
Alain de Botton’s Guide to Psychotherapy
Alain de Botton, author and respected philosopher, has produced this great 3 minute guide to psychotherapy. It also applies to counselling, but I’ll use the term ‘psychotherapy’ to cover both like
Your Inner Self: What Makes You ‘You’?
We have many things of our own, but not just physical possessions. We also have our thoughts and feelings, memories, body and our relationships. These are the things that we
Our Common Misconceptions About Grief and Loss
Grief is something that touches each of us, and when it does, it affects us very powerfully. Yet we don’t seem to know much about grief, so when it happens
Nature and Nurture: What Rules Us?
It can be tempting for us to develop simple explanations about why people are the way they are; we really want to understand ourselves and other people. One long-standing debate in psychology
The Other Way of Building Self-Esteem
Many of us suffer from low self-esteem, and have worked hard to try to overcome this problem. For those who’ve tried it, building self-esteem can be a long process. It
Therapy and Better Thinking
People that have experienced psychotherapy or counselling often talk about its benefits. However, we don’t always identify with the benefit they experience – because their lives are different to ours,
Overthinking It: Our Different Styles
Have you ever been told that you’re overthinking it? You might hear this from others; your partner, your friends or your colleagues. They might imply that thinking too much about
Changing Our Individual Responses to Stress
Different circumstances in our lives require us to respond in a variety of ways to meet the challenges they present. Sometimes we need to be able to push ourselves –
Depression: Recognising the Warning Signs
Recent years have seen significant and very encouraging advances in both the treatment and recognising depression. More people are able to recognise that someone is suffering from depression and to feel
How to Feel More
Sometimes we feel nothing. We can find ourselves in situations that others find quite emotional but we feel unaffected. Sometimes we can wonder what all the fuss is about. At
How to Feel Less
Things we experience stimulate our emotions. We react to this stimulation in a variety of ways – sometimes mildly, sometimes strongly. This can be very enjoyable when we are feeling
What to Do to Feel Less Shame
Sometimes we are sure our faults are blindingly obvious to everyone. We have just done something we feel is a mistake and we are sure everyone has noticed; it seems
Stigmatisation and Discrimination
The prevalence of mental health problems in Australia is high – currently, about one in four people a year experience clinical levels of anxiety and depression. Those affected often have
Resilience: Vulnerability, Stress and Coping
When we are in trouble – particularly with emotional or personal problems – there is a simple model that can help us understand our circumstances. This model is called the