Shame can be a crippling and limiting experience. Yet it is part of the human condition and has understandable roots. I found this article particularly helpful. If this article strikes a nerve, contact Joy to find support in working through the issues.
“I’ve been having therapy over Zoom for a month and it’s completely changed my perspective”
This article gives a flavour of how counselling remotely might work for you and those you care about.
Since the Covid-19 crisis started, I’ve been trained in ways of providing online counselling to maintain social distancing. As a result, I have developed a way of delivering therapy to adults, young people and children using video conferencing, such as Zoom.
I have found that I can still provide effective opportunities for talking therapies and creative approaches to counselling.
Being cooped-up together can lead to an intensifying of difficulties in family life, so I’m pleased that I can also continue to offer support for family issues, for instance, providing space for exploring and strengthening the parent-child bond.
Please contact me for support.
Mindfulness is a very popular practise for mental health and wellbeing. While some people might be suspicious of its roots in organised religion, it actually has a very strong, clinical evidence-base. A great place to start is the Headspace app or website which teaches you the basics for free.
Mindfulness is excellent for maintaining wellbeing but counselling is sometimes required to achieve a reasonable level of wellbeing in the first place. I am a counsellor approved by the Police Firearms Officers Association and have supported some officers sponsored through their welfare programme. I also live and work less than a mile from Hampshire Constabulary’s Basingstoke Police Investigation Centre.
If you are in any of the uniformed public services and need support, not just about your duties but domestically as well, please call Joy for a free, initial appointment.
Stress affects our physical bodies, though most of us don’t realise just how much. I came across this excellent article examining this link and explaining it in everyday language. What is your body trying to tell you? Counselling is a great way of exploring life and relationships so that you can reduce the stress in your life. Contact Joy for a free initial consultation.
I came across this inspirational family who are showing how children (and adults!) can use the written word and drawing to express their feelings.
Information and advice about bullying, including cyber bullying, bullying at work and how a counsellor can help you.
Continue reading Bullying. Young or old, it happens to us all.
Talking to your child about your concerns is really important because it shows you care.
The Archers: What effect has the Rob and Helen domestic abuse story had?
Source: BBC The Archers: What effect has the Rob and Helen story had?
This Archer’s story has been timed and sensitively crafted to fit in with new legislation on controlling or coercive behaviour which came into effect in December 2015. Many news organisations have been reporting on the story’s significance, particularly recently when it reached a climax as desperate Helen sought to escape from her abusive husband Rob.
The powerful dynamics of relationships like these are often secret. Stigma, shame, fear and loyalty hold people like Helen in a powerful vice. And it’s not just women and it’s not just heterosexual relationships.
If all this feels painfully familiar ask yourself: “Who am I in this scenario? The victim, the perpetrator, the child of an abusive relationship, the friend or relative of someone struggling?” Sometimes we even have more than one role. As sufferers of abuse, we can then go onto abuse others.
With courage, your second question could be: “How am I going to break this vicious cycle?”
See the support agencies listed in the BBC article and contact Joy to get support with making sense of what is happening in your life and how you can find a way to safe and healthy relationships.
There are many reasons people need help – and there’s no shame in seeking it out.
Source: People Open Up About Why They’ve Been To A Counsellor
Everyone talks of “Father issues” but how was Mothers’ Day for you this year? For some mothers, it can be a wonderful time of being appreciated ‘for once’, or there can be disappointment that there isn’t the connection there that you would long for with your offspring. Alternatively, it can be an incredibly sad time, if you’ve lost a child or not been able to have children. At times like this, the flowers the rest of the world are buying and receiving are just excruciating reminders. Continue reading Happy Mothers’ Day?
