Brighton and Hove Psychotherapy started after Mark and I decided it was time to get our own premises. Finding the right work environment wasn’t easy. We spent years practicing from other clinics, never quite satisfied with the therapy rooms we used. Although, arguably, good therapy work can take place almost anywhere. A warm and welcoming…
My heart is racing and I feel constantly under threat, even though there is nothing to fear. Emotionally it is like I’m in a war zone, ready to defend or attack, even though it’s peaceful here. I look over my shoulder, tense up with certain sounds. I’m scared for my life and for the life…
“The person is comprehensible only within this tapestry of relationships, past and present” (Mitchell, 1988). Despite the great therapeutic benefits of psychotherapy groups, unfortunately they are sparsely offered within the therapeutic community. This may have something to do with the current focus on individual therapy, lack of will (or skill) of therapists in leading groups,…
We live in an age where increasingly our value of anything comes down to money. Even environmentalists are needing to show the value of ecosystems and specific species of animals, in order to put forward a robust case for conservation. Little wonder then that the question of the value of counselling and psychotherapy in monetary…
In February of this year, The Guardian newspaper published two articles on the dramatic rise in male suicide figures in the UK over the past 30 years. I should imagine that this makes sad and disturbing reading for many, but it particularly spoke to me as I am a man. And a psychotherapist. The statistics…
As part of our ever increasing focus on a holistic approach to psychotherapy and mental health (functional psychotherapy) at Brighton and Hove Psychotherapy, I am drawn to writing a little about the importance of sleep and what happens when we don’t get enough. As I have already written, psychotherapy is a fantastic agent of change…
This may seem like a strange article title for a psychotherapist to concoct. And a strange title to post as a blog on a site promoting psychotherapy. But there is a paradox at play here: as psychotherapists, Sam Jahara and myself believe in psychological and emotional change leading to tangible life changes. It is something…
Recently I read a piece in a newspaper on how the numbers of women being caught driving whilst over the legal limit of blood alcohol has doubled over the past 15 years. The article went on to say that 17% of female motorists believed that they may have driven whilst over the limit in the…
Most of us of a certain age will remember watching Mary Poppins as children; indeed the 1964 Disney film continues to occasionally grace our screens, usually around Christmas and at a less-than-prime viewing slot. Even for those of us whose memories of the film have faded, we probably remember the leitmotif of the film: Mary…
Anxiety is a common psychological term and one that has entered cultural lexicon of daily life: if we are anxious, we all focus on what we can do to reduce our anxiety – as if anxiety is an externally generated condition that has descended upon us. Let’s be clear: anxiety is unpleasant and uncomfortable and…
The concept of energy psychotherapy may be unfamiliar to most and easily dismissed as something ‘new age’ sounding. However, in reality, working with body energy to heal trauma is neither a new concept, nor one that is apart from mainstream clinical psychotherapy. First off, what is energy psychotherapy? In brief, it is a directive method…
A Good Year for Brighton and Hove Psychotherapy As we approach the end of another busy year it is time to look back at both the achievements and challenges of 2013. This has been our practice’s first year and a fruitful one so far. I attribute this to a close partnership of dedicated therapists who have…