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Monday 11am - 8pm Tuesday 11am - 8pm Wednesday 11am - 5pm Thursday 11am - 5pm Friday 11am - 5pm

https://ramblingpsychotherapist.co.uk/, https://ramblingpsychotherapist.co.uk/index.php/courses/

The Rambling Psychotherapist, Leeds (2026)

29/03/2026

It is the start of BST, which means that the clocks have changed again 🌜🌑🌛

Evidence is showing that this means so much more than just an hour less in bed. Recent studies suggest that this twice-yearly schedule shift can have a detrimental impact on our health.

We all have a body clock inside of us which follows a natural rhythm (our circadian rhythm). This rhythm shapes physical, mental and behavioural changes in us that follow a 24-hour cycle, and it regulates things like alertness, sleepiness, appetite and mood.

Shifting our sleep/wake times by as little as one hour on an ongoing basis, can have a dramatic impact on our circadian rhythm, and can result in low energy levels, disrupted sleep, dysregulated appetite, and wildly fluctuating or low mood.

To top it all off, recent studies show that disruption to habitual sleep patterns also has a profound effect on cardiovascular health.

What can you do if you find yourself impacted by the clock change?

🌞 The main thing you can do is make sure you get some exposure to natural light every day. Our circadian rhythms are highly influenced by this. Try to get outside every morning, as early as you can after you get up and aim to get 20-30 mins of light exposure. For an even more impactful light prescription, try to get out for a similar period of time as dusk approaches too.

🌜 Establishing a standard sleep and wake time and sticking to it can help you to adjust more quickly to the change. Avoiding caffeine and other stimulants past midday, and avoiding electronic light stimulation in the evening can all help you to drop off more easily and get a more restful night.

🌞 Consider layering in some extra self-care strategies for the next few weeks as you adjust to help you regulate your mood more effectively and get better sleep. Breathwork would always be my primary go to for this, because it's simple and easy to incorporate into your schedule.

On the plus side, at least at this time of the year, we get the benefit of increasing daylight hours, which supports our mental health positively.

26/03/2026

Why am I showing you a photo of my arm (and one of my tattoos)?

I am banging the nervous system regulation drum again today.

'Dod yn ộl at fy nghoed!' It's a beautiful Welsh phrase - it translates loosely as return to my trees, and means to return to a peaceful state of mind.

It's not necessarily easy to retrain a nervous system that has got stuck in an activated state, but it's not rocket science either!

Small, repeated action wears a new groove in your nervous system programming over time. You just need to trust that the interventions you are implementing have a cumulative impact. It's not about feeling great immediately, the whole point is to interrupt the existing program when you notice it running, and offer up a new option that becomes familiar and safe when repeated regularly.

I was working with someone the other day who identifies anxiety as their primary issue. They wanted to know what to do when they find themselves spiralling into unhelpful thinking patterns.

I reminded them that in the beginning, interrupting the cycle is key, so any strategy that brings them out of their heads and provides some sensory input which confirms safety, is useful. We tried an experiment...

The strategy we used in that moment was a brief system scan.

The instruction: do a quick scan of your body and tell me about an area of your body that feels particularly pleasant right now. The client picked their arm and described the sensations they were experiencing.

"It's like magic!" they exclaimed. "When I focussed in on that one part of my body, the anxiety switch got flipped off immediately."

Is this an instant cure for anxiety? No.

But it can help your nervous system to feel safer in the world in any given moment, and over time, teach your nervous system that the world is a safer place than it currently thinks it is.

Try it yourself and see what impact it has.

Please be aware though, this alone is not a solution. It's just one strategy that can provide a cue of safety to your nervous system. It's helpful, but on its own will only take you so far.

23/03/2026

I'm doing an awful lot of nervous system work with people recently, and honestly, I'm not surprised. The world seems to be on fire at the moment, and people are wondering why their resilience is being challenged.

I keep reminding people that the basics are simple. Regulation does not require complicated strategies or fancy equipment; it just needs small, repeated actions.

The nervous system needs sensory input to let it know it is safe.

Breath is always high up on my recommended list for people to try as a strategy, as it offers a direct line of communication with the nervous system. Personally though, I find movement-based practices are waaaay more immediately effective, and breath adds an extra layer on top, the icing on the cake if you will.

I explored the idea of regulation and building mindfulness skills through movement in a blog I wrote a couple of years ago. If you're interested in finding out more, grab yourself a cuppa and settle in for a read here https://ramblingpsychotherapist.co.uk/index.php/2024/09/11/watch-where-you-step/

21/03/2026

The Forest

One day, when you wake up, you will find you’ve become a forest.
You’ve grown roots and found strength in them that no one thought you had.
You have become stronger and full of life giving qualities.
You have learned to take all the negativity around you and turn it into oxygen for easy breathing.
A host of wild creatures live inside you and you call them stories.
A variety of beautiful birds nest inside your mind and you call them memories.
You have become an incredible self-sustaining thing of epic proportions.
And you should be so proud of yourself, of how far you have come from the seeds of who you used to be.

~ Nikita Gill

Today is World Poetry Day and International Day of Forests. I think these beautiful words from Nikita Gill could be a celebration of either and give a little insight into how therapy can support you to change your experience.

20/03/2026

Spring equinox / Ostara is upon us.

I love this time of year because the world is literally bursting into life around us, and our energy is bubbling up in line with that, too.

It can be intense, though, because our energy builds but, for a while, stays tightly wrapped up like the buds on the trees. It is usually a massive relief when we start to open up and our creativity starts to pour out into the world again.

This year I could feel my creative well starting to bubble and spring into life a little earlier than usual, and I have actually had an outlet for the past three weekends, as I have joined a storytelling project.

Over the course of the next year, I will be learning the art of professional storytelling and honing my skills with the support of the fabulous Dragon Storytellers at The Dragon Theatre in Barmouth (Theatr Y Ddraig - Bermo).

I'm hoping this brings together my love of story and my joy in writing, and brings something new to my work with people, as well as it being an opportunity to play an active role in my community and be a part of a movement which I believe is really valuable in the world (I'll spare you another excited explanation of why stories are so important and powerful on this occasion).

I'll keep you posted on when my first performance is happening, eek 😆

How is your energy feeling? Has inspiration and forward movement set in for you yet? Or are you feeling the tension still building?

14/03/2026

Mother's Day. A joyous celebration for some, but less so for others.

Can we talk about the challenges that a nationwide celebration of mothers presents when you have a challenging relationship with your mum?

When people enter therapy, many already know, or realise through our exploration, that the challenges they face are often born in their early caregiving relationships.

These explorations often provoke a desire to better understand and redefine the boundaries of your relationship with the parent.

When the world around you bombards you with messages of parental love, this can land you face to face with your sense of loss and grief at not having had the relationship you both wanted and needed with your parent. And it can be really f**king painful!

The narrative that unconditional love and parenting are firmly entwined seems to be stronger when speaking about mothers than fathers, as shown by the vast array of cards in the supermarket shelves that contain gushy messages of love that are not always reflective of how you feel towards your mum.

To add to all of this, the world doesn't seem to want to hear that you might have a different experience, so people often feel alone in their pain and grief. I've lost count of the amount of times I've heard "I don't want to bring the vibe down" from a client when I've asked them who can they share this with.

But pain and grief need a witness in order to heal, so there is a real dilemma here.

What can you do?

💚 Give yourself time and space to feel what you are feeling, and offer yourself comfort. No-one ever felt better by telling themselves to suck it up and get on with things.

💚 Identify your people that you can share this with (those who will offer you comfort). These may be people already in your inner circle, or perhaps you can tap in to a new network. Remember you are not alone in experiencing this.

💚 Remember, the narrative "others have got it much worse than me" has never been helpful. You are feeling what you are feeling and this needs to be attended to.

12/03/2026

In this fast paced society that we live in, where we are encouraged to be permanently switched on and productive, it is common for sleep to take a bit of a back seat when it comes to priorities. What we don't necessarily realise though, is that by doing this, we are training ourselves out of the habit of sleeping well.

We still don't know enough about sleep and the role it plays in our health, but what we are learning is that it plays a massive role in helping us to maintain healthy function, and is not just about getting a little rest to recharge our batteries.

There is evidence to suggest that it plays a pivotal role in helping us maintain good mental and emotional health, heart health and immune function.

So, on World Sleep Day, here's a reminder of what steps you can take towards getting better quality sleep:

💤Sleep hygiene starts the moment you wake up in the morning. Getting outside for a dose of natural light (10mins full sun / 20 mins cloudy) first thing in the morning supports your body to produce melatonin later in the day, and it is melatonin that induces sleep. Try to do this before 10am if you can.

💤Regular breathing/mindfulness breaks throughout the day can support you to stay regulated and relaxed, and help you process the things that the day is throwing at you, in the moment, which can lead to a more relaxing evening.

💤Reducing your caffeine intake, and trying to avoid it after midday will give you a better chance of getting a quiet night.

💤You are less likely to get restful sleep if you eat too close to bedtime because your body will be all kinds of busy trying to digest the food. Try to eat your last full meal at least two hours before hitting the sack.

💤Screen time and light stimulation are one of the biggest interrupters of sleep rhythms in the modern age. Try to avoid any screen time for at least an hour before bed, pref longer.

💤A cool and inviting bedroom can help you relax and drift off to sleep much more quickly. Def no screens in the bedroom.

💤Calculate set bed and waking times based on the amount of sleep you want to get (7.5-9hrs is recommended), and stick to these timings, even on weekends.

11/03/2026

A gap has opened up in my diary. I now have one fortnightly 1-2-1 therapy session available on a Monday at 3pm.

If you have been thinking about working with me, now is your opportunity.

Email me at rachel@ramblingpsychotherapist.co.uk to book in a discovery chat.

09/03/2026

There is no one way to heal.

There is benefit to be found by listening to the experience of others who have walked the path of healing before you, but there is no substitute for seeing what works best for you. Give yourself permission to experiment.

05/03/2026

Reading is something I was encouraged to do as a kid, and I am eternally grateful for this. It's one thing that my parents did which has really served me well.

I still read now, in fact, it rates as one of my favourite ways to occupy my spare time. In the past, my primary focus would have been non-fiction. A book was a little place of sanctuary to retreat to when I wanted downtime from the real world.

Now, however, I indulge my permanently curious brain with all sorts of interesting reads.

Over the last eighteen months, there have been three stand-out books that I have read that I recommend regularly to people on a healing journey:

📘For the people pleasers out there - Too Much by Terri Cole is a must read. Aimed primarily at women, but lots of relevant info for men too, if you can gloss over the female-oriented language.

📙For anyone who finds that talking hasn't fixed anything, or indeed finds it has made it a bit worse - Body First Healing by Brittany Piper. This book is a really accessible introduction to a somatic approach which can be really supportive as part of your healing journey.

📗And finally, last but by no means least, for anyone that finds themselves thinking "I don't know why I feel this way, it's not like I was beaten as a child" and for those that experienced more obvious abuse and neglect during their developmental years - Complex PTSD from surviving to thriving by Pete Walker his choc full of great insights, information and strategies to try that can be really supportive.

What self-help books have you read and would recommend?

Join me in the comments to share 🔽

03/03/2026

World Wildlife Day (WWD) is marked on 3rd March and recognises the unique roles and contributions of wildlife (plants & animals) to people and the planet.

When we talk about wildlife, most people's minds turn immediately to animals, and the other forms of wild-life that we are surrounded by in this world rarely get a look in.

But this year, WWD is focused on plants and their contribution to life on Earth.

When we recognise that we live in an interconnected world, we can start to see the relationships we have with other beings around us.

When we breathe out, we exhale carbon dioxide, which plants use and, in return, supply us with fresh oxygen to fill our lungs (this is a very simplified version of what actually happens). The chemicals that plants emit also support us with our mental and physical wellbeing as well as acting as a form of communication with other plants and animals. Some plants are food, and some medicine, so our relationship with them is of huge importance.

When a plant or an animal stops being an object and becomes something with which we are in relationship, our attitude towards it changes. We treat them better. And that is why WWD is so important.

How well do you know the plants that support your life?

If the answer is 'not very well' spring is a great opportunity to change that.

Take a walk every day and see what you notice; see if you can identify the different shoots, buds, and flowers that start to emerge at a rate of knots at this time of year. The time spent outside and the exercise will be beneficial, and you will also start to establish a better relationship with the world around you. You will be able to greet these beings year after year, like welcoming an old friend back into your life. It's a very rewarding feeling.

I have recently moved, so I am starting this process anew in my Welsh surroundings. So far, I have met snowdrop, daisy, nettle, cleavers, cherry, daffodil, bluebell and ramsons. And, there are new connections to be made each and every day. I greet them, and I thank them for the role they play in my life. This feeling of gratitude reminds me that the world can be a wonderful place to be.

The Rambling Psychotherapist

29/03/2026

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Monday	11am - 8pm
Tuesday	11am - 8pm
Wednesday	11am - 5pm
Thursday	11am - 5pm
Friday	11am - 5pm