Being a parent isn't easy - and it doesn't come with a manual! I think we are led to believe that parents 'should' automatically know what to do ... so is this really true? Admittedly, some people find it easier than others, but we all could do with some support when it comes to parenting our children. When we go to school, we learn essential skills to help us survive … [Read more...]
Alcohol: How much is too much?
Today I attended a half day training on alcohol use: “Identification and Brief Advice: How to deliver a brief intervention for alcohol users”. Overall, I found it to be very informative, to the point, and highly useful. Sometimes it can be hard to know where the line is between having a drinking problem or not, and how bad that drinking problem may be. And although most … [Read more...]
Is alcohol a stimulant or a depressant?
Well actually its a depressant, although it’s not quite as simple as that so read on. This blog was inspired following a recent conversation with a friend, during which it seemed apparent that some people believe alcohol to be a stimulant. There is of course an element of truth in this, as there is a biphasic element of alcohol consumption in the early stages of the … [Read more...]
Spring clean your mind
I turn my head in all directions and all I can see is paperwork. How and when did I decide to tackle the huge stack of my entire collection (or should that be hoard?) of psychotherapy course notes, handouts, essays and presentations? And at what moment of madness did I give up a beautiful spring day to bury myself in paper, folders, labels and little clear plastic … [Read more...]
Punch bags, boxing gloves, & psychotherapy – anger work
In our last post ‘Punch bags, boxing gloves, and psychotherapy – setting the scene‘ we looked at setting the scene for any bag work to take place, mainly exploring three safety rules: no harm to self; no harm to other; no harm to environment. We also briefly explored some of the ways a therapist can start to gather some information about the client by observing the client on … [Read more...]