How to build self esteem
What causes low self-esteem? Low self-esteem is often part of a current problem. For example, if you’re depressed you may feel negatively about yourself, or find it difficult to think positively about anything you do and have done before. It can also be the result of other problems, eg stressful situations, work difficulties, bullying, family […]
What’s eating you? Do you feed your feelings?
We eat for many reasons – and most of them are nothing to do with hunger. Do you eat when you are lonely, bored, tired or upset? Or do you eat because it’s time to eat, whether you are hungry or not? Some people use food and drink to medicate themselves – coffee to get […]
The wagging finger words
Imagine you were told that you must eat a slice of cake every day this year. Notice how suddenly cake doesn’t seem so appealing? We are all prone to ‘demanding thinking’, using the words, ‘should’, ‘ought’ and ‘must’, to some extent. However, the more we use these words, either in our thinking or when we […]
What is CBT?
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is a short-term psychological therapy, suited to specific problems such as: stress, bullying, depression, anxiety, panic attacks, phobias, post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), eating disorders, addiction, relationship problems, self-esteem, anger management and assertiveness. Faulty thinking patterns impact your mood, your emotional wellbeing and cause ‘bad’ behaviour. They can seriously affect your ability to work, sustain good relationships and enjoy life. CBT can help you to improve your mood, feel better and change your behaviour. * CBT is a structured therapy which examines individual thoughts, attitudes and beliefs and focuses on your behaviour in response to these thoughts. * It’s based on the principle that feelings, negative thoughts and subsequent actions are caused by how we think about and interpret what life events mean to us. * CBT encourages you to challenge old ways of thinking and behaving – and to create alternatives. * It takes account of the complex interaction between what is happening in the body, thoughts, feelings and behaviour. * You and the counsellor work together to establish goals to focus on. * The counsellor will agree tasks with you to be practised in and between sessions so that you will learn to change your own thinking patterns and behaviour and manage painful feelings. * Examples of tasks may include relaxation exercises to reduce anxiety; keeping diaries to monitor thoughts, feelings and behaviours, or completing activity schedules to increase awareness of how you spend your time and how this impacts on mood.
Can you change your mind?
Would you like to become a more positive thinker, feel calmer and less anxious? Did you see the recent Horizon documentary presented by Michael Mosley on The Truth about Personality – and whether it could be changed? It’s well worth a watch. It’s now off BBC iPlayer, so try this link instead: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rs046iOPlqM I have […]
Time for change
Sometimes in life we know that it’s time for a big change, whether it’s your home, your relationship, your status, or your occupation. Sometimes it’s about changing lifestage, say from partner to parent, parent to empty nester or worker to retiree. It’s best if we plan and build these changes into our lives and decide […]
Control and controllers
It is impossible to control life, including most of what happens to you and how people will react to you. If you can give up the need to always control situations, outcomes and other people, you will be much more content, balanced and happier in yourself. If you have been described as a perfectionist, then you […]
Who dares wins
‘Life shrinks or expands according to one’s courage’ according to Anais Nin, and I agree. Why do we let fear hold us back? And what is the fear? Is it fear of failure? Yes, sometimes we over-estimate the cost of getting things wrong before we start, which stops us getting going and taking the good […]
Carl Jung said…
Seldom, or perhaps never, does a marriage develop into an individual relationship smoothly and without crises Nothing has a stronger influence psychologically on their environment and especially on their children, than the unlived life of the parent The shoe that fits one person pinches another; there is no recipe for living that suits all cases […]
Loss
Loss comes in many guises and is one of the most difficult emotional pains that we all have to bear at some point in our lives. Feelings of utter grief and despair follow such experiences as the death of a loved one, the end of a relationship, a redundancy, or the permanent loss of good […]
