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…
Were you to ask a group of clinicians (counsellors or psychotherapists) to define the purpose of therapy , you will likely get a set of quite different answers based in a large part on the lens (modality) through which each clinician views mental health and their approach. One would hope to find some degree of…
Starting a process of counselling or psychotherapy can be daunting. It is also a significant commitment. And just as we are paradoxical in other areas of our lives, we are paradoxical when it comes to therapy; part of us wants to embrace change and another part doesn’t. So how can you get the most…
“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…
It is not uncommon for individuals to come for counselling or psychotherapy with symptoms such as anxiety and depression. Whereas most people hope to stop feeling the discomfort those symptoms bring, usually relief occurs through contacting the “real” feelings underneath the presenting symptom. For instance, depression is generally associated with feelings of sadness and grief….
Dreams are both wild and fascinating. When explored in psychotherapy it can lead to a better understanding of internal conflicts, unprocessed material and offer insight on a profound level. Anything is possible in a dream; conflicting aspects and feelings can co-exist. The sense of time and boundaries is free-flowing and completely subjective. Our conscious minds…
In the latest issue of ‘The Psychotherapist’ Dr Geoff Warburton interviews Dr Harville Hendrix, co-founder of Imago relationship therapy and author of “Getting the Love you Want”. In the interview, Warburton asks Hendrix about his definition of love. Interestingly, the topic turns to anxiety. According to Hendrix, love is a sense of safety and connection,…
According to Carl Rogers’s theory of personality, the self-actualizing tendency is an inner drive to experience oneself in a way that is consistent with one’s conscious view of who one is. The therapeutic process is largely about expressing oneself in life and relationships from a place of authenticity, rather than from one of conformity and…
During periods of transition, life can feel like hard work on several levels – physically, emotionally, psychologically and intellectually. It can feel like walking into the depths of a forest, dense with trees and devoid of sunlight. In Jungian psychology this dense and dark place is called the shadow. In her book ‘The Expressive Body…
External and internal displacement Identity and belonging is something many of us struggle with, through displacement, relocation, extended periods living abroad but also through social oppression and a sense of being different and not fitting in. I used to think that the therapeutic journey was partially about finding ways of nourishing and loving oneself and…