The post celebrates International Dawn Chorus Day, encouraging mindfulness through birdwatching and listening to birdsong. It highlights the significance of this annual event, where people enjoy the morning symphony of birds worldwide, even suggesting a virtual playlist to recreate the experience for those unable to participate outdoors. Richard Bostock’s art complements the theme. Continue reading Watching Birds – The Dawn Chorus
Personally I have used a few different browsers while surfing the internet and I am always looking out for a browser that can offer a better experience, whether that is one of greater security or a faster more user-friendly one. If I am honest, it would be good to have a browser that was more relaxing to use. While not wishing on AI to take over, I often get more stressed trying to navigate the interface, finding the ‘print’ or ‘download’ icon, or staring at the screen which shows screensavers that are dull and boring. Oh, how I wish for … Continue reading Mindful Browsing
The post is about the jackdaw, a sociable and agile bird found in diverse environments. Known for its unique eye communication and acrobatic skills, it thrives in windy conditions. The author shares insights on the bird’s playful nature and social interactions, emphasizing its impressive evening displays and mindful observation experiences. Continue reading Watching Birds – The Jackdaw
National Robin Day on December 21 raises awareness for garden birds and wildlife in winter. Initiated by Songbird Survival in 2016, it highlights the robin, Britain’s national bird. With connections to Christmas cards and Victorian postmen, the robin symbolizes companionship and mindfulness, evoking a deeper connection to nature. Continue reading Watching Birds – The Robin
This piece explores the therapeutic benefits of birdwatching, particularly focusing on starlings. It highlights how observing birds fosters a connection to nature and alleviates stress, serving as a complementary practice to mental health care. The article celebrates starlings’ beauty, especially their winter aerial displays known as murmurations, encouraging outdoor engagement. Continue reading Watching Birds – The Starling
How electronic focussed are you? We live in a world that revolves around devices like smartphones, tablets and laptops. Having access to electronic devices that stream information to you 24/7 is not healthy for your Mental Health and Wellbeing as a whole. At the touch of a button, you have access to enormous amounts of data on every conceivable subject, including video, photos and audio to reinforce that knowledge. Perhaps it is the attraction of instant updates to your favourite person or event, and the need to be ‘in the know’, to stay on par with your peers which means … Continue reading Take a Device-Free break
The author reflects on the mindfulness of birdwatching, recalling childhood moments of joy spent observing birds. This activity serves as a reprieve from daily chaos, encouraging appreciation for the present. Birdwatching can be done anywhere and offers mental well-being benefits, reminding adults of the natural mindfulness often inherent in childhood. Continue reading Mindful Birdwatching
This particular Talking therapy focusses on altering thought and behaviour patterns and is called Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, or CBT. Although it can be helpful for various mental and physical health issues, it is most frequently used to treat anxiety and depression. It is used by mental health specialists, such as Psychologists, Psychotherapists, and Counsellors, to treat or manage emotional problems and mental health illnesses. CBT is founded on a number of fundamental ideas, such as: Psychological problems can have several root causes. These include unhelpful or problematic thought patterns, learnt patterns of unhelpful behaviour, and problematic core beliefs, such as … Continue reading Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
My favourite part of the day is the Morning, the earlier the better. It is usually anywhere from 6am to 7.30am, before the neighbourhood starts to get busy getting ready for their day ahead. There is a calm around my property, with the noise of the birds still singing their songs, and somehow the weather fronts feel far away; almost like there is a kind of bubble surrounding this particular part of my world. This feeling of security comes about through my daily practices of Meditation, two or three at different times of the day. I would like to share … Continue reading Morning routine
The work I do every day makes a difference to others – mostly, I hope, for the better. Take a break from your routine and practice slowing down during this unique Guided Mindfulness Session. I was the first therapist to offer Mindfulness Walks in this part of the UK and many others continue to follow my lead in this field, which began around the start of the 2003. There is a difference having someone who is a highly qualified Psychotherapist and Counsellor by your side. I have a Bachelor of Science degree, with Honours, in Psychology and Counselling, and I … Continue reading Mindfulness Walks
Personally, I used to find the experience of having a blood test quite uncomfortable, and at times found that the journey there could be unsettling to say the least. It has only been through using distraction techniques, like playing music or mindfulness meditation that have got me over the fear, and over time, it is became much easier. Blood tests at your medical practice can be quite uncomfortable to some, neither here nor there to others, but to around 20% of the population, a very nervy experience. It is the latter category that concerns me, and I include some suggestions … Continue reading Blood Test Phobia
Have you noticed the increase in the use of the words ‘Wellbeing, Good Mental Health and Wellness’ in the community? If improving our health means that we can have a more content life while living longer, and having less pain, I am all for it. There are exceptions however, to the use of these words or similar to describe what we must do to achieve our goals. Apparently, as demonstrated by some well-known companies below, the use of Wellbeing is taken out of context to sell their products. These companies and many more worldwide, are saying ‘If you do this … Continue reading Wellbeing Dimensions
“Mindfulness is about being fully awake in our lives. It is about perceiving the exquisite vividness of each moment. We also gain immediate access to our own powerful inner resources for insight, transformation and healing” – Jon Kabat-Zinn. Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction comes under the umbrella of Mindfulness Based Interventions (MBI’s) which are intended on helping people improve their health and wellbeing. Change Therapy delivers MBSR Certification courses – get in touch for more information, using this link. Intended to increase consciousness and encourage the connection between your body and mind, MBSR uses techniques that target negative subconscious thoughts, behaviours … Continue reading Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction
It’s Not Happiness That Brings Us Gratitude, It’s Gratitude That Brings Us Happiness. If you have food in your fridge, clothes on your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep, you are richer than 75% of this world. If you woke up this morning with more health than illness, you are more blessed that the million who will not survive this week. If you have money in the bank, in your wallet and spare change in a dish, or moneybox somewhere, you are among the top 8% of the world’s wealthy. If you can attend a church meeting … Continue reading Gratitude
Every so often I come across a gem of a story or poem that I want to share, in the hope that it will help someone to change their life for the better. This particular poem is timeless, and one that has helped many people that I know over the years. I hope that you enjoy this too. “Autobiography In Five Short Chapters” Chapter One I walk down the street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I fall in. I am lost … I am hopeless. It isn’t my fault. It takes forever to find a way out. … Continue reading Autobiography In 5 Short Chapters.
As we come out of Spring here in Scotland, it is very noticeable to see the changes in our natural surroundings; the beauty of trees blossoming, as they stretch their branches out and upwards to the sky. The flowers and plants contributing to the variety of colours which brighten up the concrete roads and walls of a typical semi-rural village. As a Psychotherapist, I plan my typical Walk and Talk sessions with individuals in different locations around Eastern Scotland, where we will not be recognised, which protects the identity of my client. We are just two people going for a … Continue reading Natural Beauty
Amisfield Walled Garden was our destination for my Walk and Talk therapy for groups. The garden and grounds of are part of the Amisfield House Estate, with the mansion built by the Earl of Wemyss in the 1750s. The garden is tended to by volunteers with the charity Amisfield Preservation Trust and is open to the public. It is early morning, and the sun is out, with a soft glow that is neither warm nor inviting, yet the world always seems more cheerier with this great solar giant so prominent in the sky. It is the anticipation of when the … Continue reading Walk & Talk March 2023
Body shaming is the action of making negative comments about one’s own or another person’s attractiveness or appearance. Body shaming leads to withdrawal, isolation, and is associated with depression, anxiety and a whole host of negative emotions, which have a serious impact on a person’s wellbeing. Why do people make critical comments about the shape or size of someone else’s body? This behaviour is witnessed in the playgrounds of schools and continues through time into the adult environments of work and leisure, where sarcastic remarks are still seen as ‘a bit of fun’, by many, including those in responsible positions … Continue reading Body Shaming
Why not take 6 minutes out of your day, to try out some Mindful Breathing? Make yourself comfortable sitting or lying down, close your eyes and listen to my audio track. If you don’t have time right now, the contents of the audio go along these lines: When you breath air in, you feel and sense the oxygen entering your body, then you breath out the used air. This process of breathing is natural, and one we never really stop to think about. When was the last time you fully concentrated on your breathing? Breathe in through your nose and … Continue reading Breathing – Mindfully
A Mindfulness strategy called “Anchoring” can assist us in focusing our attention on the here and now. We may become unaware of our surroundings when we our feelings are overtaken by our emotions and thoughts. “Anchoring” involves pausing for a second to check in with ourselves. If you think of a boat that throws its anchor over the side, this stops the boat from floating away. Similarly with Mindfulness, we ‘Anchor our Awareness’, maintaining concentration on the present time. This is done by accepting these ‘other’ thoughts and allowing them to pass, and re-focus on our breathing. If we focus … Continue reading Anchoring
An important part of my life when I practice Positive Psychology, is showing gratitude or thanks for everything I am in touch with; my emotions, my being and social world that I am part of. Gratitude is something we can overlook and yet it offers such powerful benefits to our mental health. There are many benefits of expressing gratitude ranging from better physical health to improved mental alertness. Let me explain further. The word gratitude comes from the Latin word gratia, which means grace, graciousness or gratefulness (depending on the context). In some ways gratitude encompasses all of these meanings. … Continue reading A positive start to 2023
Anxiety. A word that I hear more and more of as each week passes by. Some people have common anxieties about the cost of living or the plethora of viruses circulating in the community. Some have anxieties concerning their own lives and how they can deal with things troubling them. There are self-help books, websites and experts all over the place that promise to help you deal with your anxiety, but what if you do not have ready access to a book, website or a professional to talk you through what to do in the moment that anxious thoughts appear … Continue reading Calming anxiety quickly
Following on from the last Mindfulness Walk in collaboration with Get2gether, we chose Edinburgh’s Botanic Gardens as the ideal location for our Walk in September 2022. This fabulous place is very popular for locals and tourists alike, and has so much space to walk around in, with plenty of benches for the weary traveller too. The massive greenhouses that hold hundreds of species of plants from around the world were closed for maintenance when we visited, yet we found that everything around us in nature was plentiful and free. Some fortunate couples choose this location to get married at, and … Continue reading Botanic Gardens
Optimism is about having a positive outlook for the future. Optimism is having the belief that this future will be positive. Optimism reflects hope and faith which in turn promotes a perception that world is and can be a better place to live in. If we focus on what is good about a situation and how to do things better, having this optimism releases stress from within our body. The release of stresses associated with negativity, enables us to live a more manageable existence, confident that the future will be positively good. Are people naturally optimistic or pessimistic and can … Continue reading Optimism and Wellbeing
If you have had a Heart attack or similar cardio event, recovery can be slow and frustrating to many people. You can change your life around and become more optimistic about the future. I am walking breathing testimony that this is possible with some guidance and a determination to succeed! When I first created Change Therapy many years ago, the aim was to provide extra support to survivors of cardio events by introducing gentle therapies that we could work through together, to benefit your overall wellbeing. This includes altering your outlook on life, and learning how to be more positive … Continue reading Post Cardio Therapies
For autistic persons, masking is a complicated and costly survival strategy. It usually entails learning neurotypical behaviours and then imitating them in social circumstances. Masking can sometimes be used to hide activities that people believe will not be approved. People may hide their autism symptoms or traits for a variety of reasons, including advancing their jobs, connecting with others, or avoiding being stigmatised by others. While masking can be helpful at times, doing so on a frequent basis can have negative consequences for one’s mental and physical health. Anxiety, depression, tiredness, a loss of identity, and negative thoughts are some … Continue reading Autistic Masking
Assertiveness is a positive communication style. It’s the ability to stand up for ourselves in an open, courteous manner. Here’s what assertiveness entails: You have the option of expressing your thoughts or feelings. You have the option of requesting what you want or require. You can respectfully disagree. You have the ability to speak up for someone else. You are welcome to provide your thoughts and suggestions. You don’t have to feel bad about saying no. How to become more Assertive takes practice and committment. Sometimes assertive and aggressive behaviours get mixed up. The main difference between assertive and aggressive … Continue reading Being Assertive
The subject of Child Development was one of my favourite parts of learning while studying Psychology, and to this day, I continue to seek out different ideas from Therapists around the world to continue my development in this field. I believe that our childhood interaction with parents/carers contributes to the way in which we behave as an adult. As children are growing up, positive parenting improves their cognitive, social, and problem-solving skills. Positive parenting also influences the child’s reactions and helps them become more self aware adults. Therefore, in my opinion, positive interaction and stimulation are essential in the early … Continue reading Children learn what they live
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