Jess Johnson Counselling

04/03/2026

Today in Art in Therapy we explored the idea of turning the page. 🌸

Each person created an open book across their page to represent the chapters of their life.

On one side we reflected on what may be coming to an end. Patterns we are outgrowing, things we have survived, habits we might be ready to change, and experiences that have shaped us.

On the other side we focused on what we might be stepping into. A new chapter doesn’t have to be dramatic or perfect. Sometimes it is simply choosing a slightly different direction, allowing ourselves to grow, or making one small change that moves us forward.

Spring often reminds us that change is possible. After long periods that may have felt heavy or uncertain, new shoots appear quietly and gently.

Art can create a safe space to pause and reflect on where we have been, and where we might want to go next.

Sometimes turning the page begins with something very small. Awareness, intention, and the courage to start again. 🌱

04/03/2026

04/03/2026

03/03/2026

Maslow Housing Cooperative Ltd 🤍
Hastings Therapy Collective 🤍

03/03/2026

Devastating world events can trigger feelings of fear, worry and generational trauma.

If you’re finding things overwhelming, you’re not alone.

Find advice on managing news anxiety 👉 https://bit.ly/3pQBLa9

03/03/2026

Credit: Hesed Place - Complex Trauma Recovery 🤍

03/03/2026

Come and join us tomorrow at Maslow Housing Cooperative Ltd 🤍

03/03/2026

Recent Client Testimonial 🤍

03/03/2026

03/03/2026

Empathy isn’t about fixing someone or rushing them towards a solution. It isn’t offering quick advice, silver linings, or telling someone it could be worse. Real empathy is being willing to sit with someone exactly where they are, even when it’s uncomfortable.

Many of us learned to minimise our feelings. We learned to be the strong one, to get on with it, to tell ourselves we’re overreacting or that other people have it harder. Over time, that can disconnect us from our own emotional experience. We become very good at coping and very disconnected from what we actually feel.

When someone responds to us with genuine empathy, something shifts. Our body often softens. Our breathing steadies. We feel less alone. That sense of being understood can be deeply regulating for the nervous system. It sends a quiet message that we are safe enough to feel what we feel.

What’s interesting is that most of us are far more skilled at offering empathy to others than we are at offering it to ourselves. We can hold space for friends, children, colleagues or clients, yet internally we can be critical and impatient. Self-empathy is not self-indulgence; it is the foundation of emotional resilience.

Empathy is not weakness. It is the courage to stay present with pain, without trying to erase it. And often, that presence is where healing begins.

Jess Johnson Counselling 🤍

02/03/2026

What a sunshine start to the week, practicing being grateful for world around us today. Grateful for our community, the grass, the trees, and the beautiful sea.

Its a worrying time in the global world right now, and this brings alot of mixed feelings for us all as humans. If you need someone to talk to or you are in need of connection and positive healing, the team here at the Hastings Therapy Collective are here.

We are building a wonderful community down at Maslow Studios - one of understanding and support.

As spring comes into view its the perfect time to be grateful for all that we have and all that is yet to bloom.

Here is our wonderful therapists for the week, we have a few changes coming in the next month or so - and im excited to celebrate our 6 month anniversary!

Have the most wonderful week, enjoy the sunshine ☀️💛

02/03/2026

Don’t things feel a little lighter when the sun comes out?

Today I really noticed it. The first real signs of spring. Softer air, brighter skies, and that quiet sense of something beginning to shift.

In between sessions, I gave myself ten minutes. Just ten. I walked down to the sea and let myself pause.

Regulation doesn’t always have to be big or dramatic. Sometimes it’s simply stepping outside, feeling the air on your face, noticing the light, and allowing your nervous system a moment to catch up.

Spring gently reminds us that things move. Even when winter has felt long. Even when we’ve felt tired. Even when life has felt heavy.

Nature doesn’t force change. It softens into it. It returns in its own time. And it begins again.

If you’re feeling stretched or overwhelmed right now, maybe today is about a small reset. A short walk. A cup of tea in the sun. Five quiet minutes of breathing space.

Tiny moments outside can create subtle shifts inside.