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
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
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
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, 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
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
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
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
Many of us suffer from low self-esteem, and have worked hard to try to overcome this situation. For those who’ve tried it, building self-esteem can be a long process. Self-esteem
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,
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
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 –
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
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
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
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
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
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
When we have something bad happen to us or another we tend to say – half seriously – that it is character building; as if having building character is an
In this short post I highlight some writings of a friend of mine who writes about her experience of living with bipolar. I think what she says is very interesting
The number one question I get asked is, “Can you help me?” It’s a fair enough question too; you can be unsure about what you’re getting into, and successful counselling
Most of us are familiar with feeling that things are under control. This means that we know what’s going on, our finger is on the pulse and we are actively managing.
It’s a commonly held view that we want too much as adults because we were too spoiled when we were young. More particularly, as adults we focus excessively on compulsive
Many of us are aware of the damage that an atmosphere of constant criticism can have on a child. This type of environment destroys self-confidence, increases anxiety and decreases their