Latest articles on counselling and therapy

Most people have felt anxious at some point during their lifetime. For some, anxiety can be a new feeling, and for others it is something they have experienced since they were very young. Occasionally, anxiety can become acute and debilitating, impacting how a person functions in their everyday life. Some people find that the best treatment for anxiety is medication, and this is something that can be discussed further with a medical professional. However, there are some things that you can do...

Recent reports by HSE (Health and Safety Executive) show that a staggering 12.5 million days were lost due to depression, anxiety or work-related stress from 2016 -2017.

Just like our physical health, mental health and well-being are equally important, particularly in the workplace. But, due to increased pressures in the workplace, which may include strict deadlines, lack of management, unclear guidelines, and even bullying, it’s no surprise that stress is now becoming the largest cause...

Stress in the workplace is not necessarily a bad thing. Stress is part of what motivates us and what helps us to achieve. Stress in the workplace becomes a problem when it is excessive or continuous. It then becomes something that has a negative impact on both our productivity and our mental health.  Often we feel powerless when our stress levels build. Overcoming this chronic stress problem is about taking small steps to tackle how you feel, what you are thinking and looking at what you...

It's a 24/7 world, or so the media tells us. Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are a few of the social media platforms that demand our attention - both day and night. How many of you reading this article actually turn off your mobile phone at night? Or is your sleep disturbed by the pings of incoming messages? What is so urgent? Is it really so important that you can't deal with it tomorrow, once you have rested and recharged your batteries? How many of us have 'tools' from our employers such as...

Individuals working in the high octane world of financial risk taking are often at risk of anxiety based conditions and active addictions. The intense pressure to meet sales targets and to be successful in such a competitive environment as the city can generate a breeding ground for addiction. Such a climate can fuel an indulgent culture that can see endemic abuse of substances. Work addiction effectively gets rewarded by some financial institutions in sectors such as...

Healing Complex Trauma through the Wisdom of the Body When we think of healing, the general picture which arises tends to be that we are healing to become whole or moving towards health or wholeness. There is another understanding which is that we are healing to understand our wholeness; our health, which is present at the beginning of our lives; when it comes to trauma and chronic stress, in particular. The neuroscience which explains these concepts shows we are born with an innate sense of...

When things aren’t ok at work, it can be difficult. Tension and anxiety which are common components of most of our lives to some extent, may increase to uncomfortable levels. The stresses and fault lines existent in our personal lives and relationships may be exposed to greater threat and pressure than before. Under the heading of ‘things not ok at work’, come a multitude of scenarios, feelings, possibilities, symptoms and conflicts. Many of these will be known to us, if...

Recently, there has been a steady increase in line managers, managers and owners in small to medium size businesses coming for therapy. Being faced with increasingly onerous responsibilities relating to the guidance, support, development, discipline and performance of employees, as well as holding shared responsibility for ensuring the employer’s duty of care for the welfare of their staff is delivered, is leaving them feeling overwhelmed and anxious. The increasing recognition of the...

Time. Lack of it, the dragging of it, the passing of it, is a theme that is often present in my consulting room. Human beings are drawn almost fatalistically to go to battle with the concept of time. Often, we talk about wanting time to stand still or a desire to go back in time and sometimes we speak of wanting to jump forward in time. Clients that are regularly late will spend much of their sessions fixated with a sense that time is running out, that there isn’t enough of it. They are...