The Skill Collective

The Skill Collective We're clinical psychologists who help you build skills for a better life in all areas of your life.

We help build skills for a better life in the areas of wellbeing and mental health.

29/11/2025

For many men, finding the right words can be one of the hardest parts of looking after their mental health - not because they don’t want to talk, but because the felt experience and the spoken experience don’t always line up. 😩

Emotions don’t always show up as full sentences. Sometimes they appear as tension, uncertainty, tiredness, or a vague sense that something’s “off.” So, when things feel heavy, the first response often becomes: “I’m fine.”

For a lot of men, “I’m fine” can mean:

📎 “I don’t know how to put this into words.”
📎 “I don’t want to be a burden.”
📎 “I’m scared of the reaction.”
📎 “I’m still figuring out what I feel.”
📎 “I don’t want to start a big conversation.”

Struggling to find the right words doesn’t make you distant or difficult. It makes you human. And talking, even in small, imperfect ways, is one of the strongest things you can do.

Communication doesn’t have to be perfect to be healthy.

💙 You don’t need the “right” words straight away.
💙 You don’t need a long explanation.
💙 You’re allowed to take time.
💙 You’re allowed to speak simply.

What matters is creating space for honesty at a pace that feels manageable.

A simple, honest sentence is enough to begin:

💬 “Something feels off and I’m trying to understand it.”
💬 “I’m okay, but not fully myself today.”
💬 “I don’t have the words yet, but I want to talk.”

Communication isn’t about having a perfect emotional explanation. It’s about staying connected, even when you’re still making sense of what’s going on inside

28/11/2025

Many men are raised to respond to discomfort by solving a problem. 🛠️ So when something feels big inside, doing something outside often feels easier. And that works brilliantly for broken taps, flat tyres, and work deadlines. But emotions don’t follow the same rules! 🙅‍♂️

Sometimes you can’t “logic” your way out of stress, sadness, frustration, or worry. 😩Events outside of your control can often drive emotions (anger, helplessness, disappointment), and it's tempting to jump into fix-it mode because it gives the illusion of control.

Jumping straight into fixing mode can also hide the messages underneath - the need for rest, support, safety, connection, or reassurance.

What fixing mode looks like:

🛠️ Focusing on the practical problem instead of the uncomfortable feeling

📱 Staying busy or distracted
💬 Shutting feelings down quickly
⚡ Trying to stay logical when the situation is actually emotional

So what does “feeling” actually look like?

💭 Naming what’s happening: “I’m overwhelmed / disappointed / tense.”
🪫 Noticing where stress sits in your body
💬 Listening before problem-solving (with yourself and others)
🧠 Letting emotions rise and fall without needing to control them
🤝 Asking for support instead of carrying everything alone

When you allow yourself to ‘feel’ first, the ‘fixing’ part becomes more accurate, kinder, and actually sustainable! By understanding what’s happening on the inside, what you do on the outside becomes far more meaningful. 🫶

If you're seeking tailored support with working through feeling vs. fixing, our psychologist Tim can help - he helps men navigate this space, finding a way forward that works for them.

📞 08 6382 0355
🖱️ www.theskillcollective.com/tim

27/11/2025

Men, your mental health matters just as much as your physical health! 📣

And just like physical training, mental fitness improves through small, consistent habits that keep you steady before things break down. It’s how you move from “I’ll deal with it later” to “I’ve got tools to handle this now.” 💪

What training your mental fitness looks like:

💭 Strength work: noticing and challenging unhelpful thoughts instead of letting them run the show.

🧠 Endurance: staying grounded when things feel uncertain, rather than reacting on autopilot.

🏋️‍♂️ Flexibility: learning new coping tools, adjusting expectations, and staying open to support instead of pushing through alone.

🛠️ Recovery: rest, sleep, and slowing down aren’t signs of weakness - they’re part of the training.

Like any skill, it gets easier with consistency and the right support.
At The Skill Collective, we help men train their mental fitness through therapy that’s practical, skills-based, and grounded in everyday life - building tools you can use the same day. Ask for our psychologist Tim to help you get started. 👨

Tim has a special interest in helping men build better mental health and a stronger mindset. He offers face-to-face appointments from our rooms in Subiaco, Perth, as well as online or via phone.

📞 08 6382 0355
🖱️ www.theskillcollective.com/tim

26/11/2025

What is the Empathy Gap? 🤔

It's the gap between *how much support men need*, and *how much empathy they often receive*. 🎁

It’s the space created by silence and stereotypes, leaving men feeling unseen or unsupported. 😢

When empathy is missing, men wait longer to seek help, downplay symptoms, and carry stress quietly. ⏲️

Signs of the empathy gap include:

💬 Labelling men’s distress as “anger” or “just stress”
⚙️ Fewer check-ins when men seem “off”
💪 Prioritising physical health while ignoring emotional wellbeing
🔇 Assuming men don’t want to talk about their emotions
🍺 Normalising alcohol or distractions over genuine rest and support
💼 Praising constant productivity while ignoring signs of burnout

Closing the empathy gap means doing the simple things to change that - listening, validating, and making it safe for men to be honest. 💙

When men feel seen, they reach out sooner, cope more effectively, and connect more deeply with others. 🫂

At The Skill Collective, we see every day how stigma and a lack of empathy make it harder for men to reach out. But, we also see how much changes when they do.

Therapy, practical tools, and conversations help close that gap - building confidence, connection, and healthier definitions of strength. 💪

Ask for Tim, our psychologist with a special interest in helping men navigate the empathy gap and focus on their wellbeing.

Tim offers face-to-face appointments from our rooms in Subiaco, Perth, as well as online or via phone.

📞 08 6382 0355
🖱️ www.theskillcollective.com/tim

25/11/2025

Pregnancy and early parenthood brings a lot of change at once - to the body, identity, relationships, routines, confidence, sleep, and sense of control. 😵‍💫

Even the happiest chapters can come with big emotions, and those feelings aren’t signs of failure; they’re signs that you are adjusting to something huge! 🦣

Emotional changes during this period are common, and they’re shaped by a range of psychological risk factors that often go unnoticed. 🎢

Some factors that can increase vulnerability include:

🧠 Perfectionism and unrealistic expectations
🗓️ Past experiences of anxiety or depression
💭 Negative or self-critical thinking styles
📱Comparing yourself to others (especially online)
🔁 Difficulty adjusting to change

These aren’t personal flaws - they’re understandable, human responses shaped by past experiences, current pressures, and the significant adjustment of caring for a new baby. 🚼

If you’ve felt overwhelmed, disconnected, anxious, or unlike yourself, you’re not failing. You may simply be carrying more risk factors than you realised. Our article breaks down these factors and explains why recognising them early can help support perinatal wellbeing. (Link in bio/or hit up https://theskillcollective.com/blog/psychological-risk-factors-perinatal-depression-anxiety)

Most importantly, you don’t have to navigate this alone. Support is most effective when it meets you exactly where you are. 🤍

Reach out - there are helpful resources at



For a tailored approach to addressing your perinatal risk factors, get in touch. Some of our psychologists work to help those with perfectionism, anxiety, and depression prepare for an easier adjustment to this amazing life stage.

📞 6382 0355
🖱️ https://theskillcollective.com/

When it comes to Perinatal Mental Health, it's important to to know that support during pregnancy and early parenthood i...
24/11/2025

When it comes to Perinatal Mental Health, it's important to to know that support during pregnancy and early parenthood is NOT one-size-fits-all. 💕

Each week (and sometimes each day!) can bring new emotions, new challenges, and new needs.🎢

For many parents, this stage brings joy and excitement, but also uncertainty, overwhelm, and moments when you don’t feel like yourself. 😱

There is no “ideal timeline” for coping, adjusting, bonding, or finding your feet.

There is only what you need, when you need it. 🫶

Tune in to what you might need emotionally:

💬 Someone to listen without trying to fix things
💛 Reassurance that your emotions make sense in a period of huge change
🧠 Help naming anxiety, worry, overwhelm, or intrusive thoughts
🌿 Space to be honest about the hard parts

Tune in to what you might need practically:

🛌 More rest than you expected
🍲 Support with meals, housework, or baby care
⏸️ More time to adjust rather than rushing back to “normal”
📅 Guidance on navigating routines, sleep, feeding, or the unexpected

Tune in to what you might need socially:
🤝 Connection with people who feel safe
📣 A reminder you don’t have to do this all on your own
🧒 Support for partners, too - they’re adjusting as well

If this stage of life feels heavy, unfamiliar, or different from what you expected, you’re not alone. Asking for help doesn’t mean you’re not coping. It means you care about coping well 🤍



21/11/2025

Men, your mental health matters just as much as your physical health! 📣

And just like physical training, mental fitness improves through small, consistent habits that keep you steady before things break down. It’s how you move from “I’ll deal with it later” to “I’ve got tools to handle this now.” 💪

What training your mental fitness looks like:

💭 Strength work: noticing and challenging unhelpful thoughts instead of letting them run the show.

🧠 Endurance: staying grounded when things feel uncertain, rather than reacting on autopilot.

🏋️‍♂️ Flexibility: learning new coping tools, adjusting expectations, and staying open to support instead of pushing through alone.

🛠️ Recovery: rest, sleep, and slowing down aren’t signs of weakness - they’re part of the training.

Like any skill, it gets easier with consistency and the right support.

At The Skill Collective, we help men train their mental fitness through therapy that’s practical, skills-based, and grounded in everyday life - building tools you can use the same day. Ask for our psychologist Tim to help you get started. 👨

Tim has a special interest in helping men build better mental health and a stronger mindset. He offers face-to-face appointments from our rooms in Subiaco, Perth, as well as online or via phone.
📞 08 6382 0355
🖱️ www.theskillcollective.com/tim

17/11/2025

Hey men 👋

Let’s talk about stigma, and the rigid rules about “being a man” that STILL get in the way of good mental health.

Boys are taught to stay tough, push through, and keep emotions to themselves.

“Don’t cry.”
“Man up.”

These ideas teach boys emotion equals weakness, and that silence equals strength.

They harden over time into stigma, shaping how men see themselves and respond to stress.

What stigma looks like in men:
💬 Brushing things off instead of speaking up
⚙️ Keeping busy to avoid feeling
💪 Ignoring early signs of stress or burnout
🤐 Feeling embarrassed or “weak” for needing support

Why those ideas are unhelpful (and wrong):

🧠 They ignore biology. Emotions are signals from your nervous system, not flaws. They tell you what matters and what needs care.

🧯 Suppression backfires.

Emotions don’t vanish - they move into the body (tension, gut issues, sleep problems), or show up as stress, anger, or burnout.

💬 They confuse coping with character.

Struggling doesn’t mean you’re weak; it means you’re human. Getting support is a skill, not a failure.

🤝 They isolate men, cutting off connections that protect mental health
⏳ They delay help until they reach crisis point.

If the rule is “stay tough,” partners and families often get the anger or shutdown instead of the truth underneath.

🎯 Masculinity isn’t the problem.

Narrow rules about it are. Healthy masculinity includes honesty, boundaries, courage, and care.

Silence just makes them heavier. Talking, reaching out, doesn’t take away your strength. It proves it.

Breaking stigma starts small:

💭 Checking in with yourself instead of brushing feelings aside
☕️ Asking a mate how they’re really doing
🧠 Learn (and use) healthy coping tools that work for you
❤️ Remember that everyone struggles (even those who ‘seem’ fine).

The more we speak openly, the less power stigma has. Choosing honesty doesn’t make you less of a man - it makes you human.

10/11/2025

Lest we forget

07/11/2025

Hey! No, it's not Easter, but a hot cross bun is a handy way to think about the links between thoughts, feelings, behaviours, and physical signs when it comes to men's mental health.

You see, mental health often shows up differently in men, for example:

👨 Bottling up unhelpful thoughts can mean that men experience self-blame and frustration

👨 Men feel deeply... but they've been taught to hide it. Instead, what you might see is irritability, frustration, or numbness.

👨 When feelings are buried, unhelpful coping behaviours often emerge. Longer hours at work, social isolation, snapping at others, and using drugs or alcohol might be observed.

👨 Ignoring self-care can mean that the psychological spills into the physical - feeling drained, aches and pains, sleep issues, and appetite changes might emerge. Don't ignore these signs - it's time to focus on you.

Take the time to look after yourself - prioritise your wellbeing, look after your health, feel the feels, and shift unhelpful thoughts.

And if you're seeking a tailored approach you can speak with our psychologist Tim, who holds a special interest in men's health, helping in the areas of:

💙 Burnout, depression + anxiety
💙 Navigating ADHD and its impact on work, studies, and relationships
💙 Juggling roles + responsibilities
💙 Navigating stigma and ideas about masculinity

You can see Tim via:

🗣️ Face-to-face appointments (in Subiaco, Perth)
💻 Telehealth appointments
📞 Phone appointments

Book in - visit us at www.theskillcollective.com/contact-us or give us a call 6382 0355


Are you looking for support for men's health issues?Reach out to speak with our psychologist Tim, who holds a special in...
05/11/2025

Are you looking for support for men's health issues?

Reach out to speak with our psychologist Tim, who holds a special interest in men's health.

Tim has a calming, non-judgemental nature and is keen to help men navigate their roles and relationships to enhance their wellbeing. Particular areas he can assist in include:

💙 Helping young males understand their emerging identities and to build respectful relationships
💙 Burnout, depression + anxiety
💙 Navigating ADHD and its impact on work, studies, and relationships
💙 Juggling roles + responsibilities
💙 Navigating stigma and ideas about masculinity
💙 Relationships + communication (Tim also does couples counselling).

You can see Tim via:

🗣️ Face-to-face appointments (in Subiaco, Perth)
💻 Telehealth appointments
📞 Phone appointments

Book in - visit us at www.theskillcollective.com/contact-us or give us a call 6382 0355


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Unit 5b/1 Station St
Subiaco, WA
6008

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