https://www.healthymindpsychology.co.uk/

Healthy Mind Psychology, 100 Drake Way, Reading (2025)

17/11/2025

Could the way we eat be shaping more than just our health - but our faces too? 🍞🍭

When processed foods became common, meals grew softer, sweeter, and less nutrient-dense. This not only changed our digestion and overall well-being but also our physical structure. With less need to chew, our jaws weakened, our mouths shrank, and dental problems soared. 🦷

In the space of a century, human faces literally changed shape - a striking example of how quickly environment and behaviour can sculpt biology. 🧬

🍽️ Our bodies are always adapting to what we feed them - not just in the gut, but in the bones, muscles, and even our breath.🌍

14/11/2025

Did you know that which nostril you breathe through can influence your state of mind? 🌿🧘‍♂️

James Nestor references both ancient pranayama practices and modern scientific studies in his book 'Breath - The New Science of a Lost Art'. Breathing through the left nostril connects us to the parasympathetic nervous system - the “rest and relax” response. It lowers blood pressure, cools the body, and calms the mind🩵 It even shifts blood flow to areas of the brain linked with creativity and emotional processing.🎨🧠

In contrast, right nostril breathing activates the “accelerator” - energising, stimulating, and warming the body.🔥

Our breath, it seems, is one of the few tools that lets us consciously communicate with the nervous system - a built-in way to balance both body and mind.

💭 Which side of your breath feels most natural to you today - calm or energised? 🌗

12/11/2025

👋 Meet the Team 👋

Dr Kim Kemp specialises in Clinical Psychology. She has 12 years’ experience in the management of clinical, health and pain management, blood borne virus, plastic surgery and burns, renal, cancer, dental, diabetes and injury rehabilitation services. Kim draws on a range of therapeutic approaches, including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Pain Reprocessing Therapy and Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing.

She enjoys integrating the above approaches flexibly, depending on the nature of issues that a person presents with and their treatment goals and needs. Kim is committed to providing timely and useful interventions to the people she treats.

Kim completed both her undergraduate Psychology and Clinical Psychology Doctorate degrees with the University of Edinburgh. She spent 8 years working as a Clinical Psychologist in the NHS before spending almost 5 years living and working in New Zealand for the public health service and a private injury rehabilitation company.

10/11/2025

Do you breathe through your nose or your mouth most of the time? 👃😮

It might sound like a small detail, but the difference is profound. In James Nestor's book 'Breath - The New Science of a Lost Art', he explores how mouth breathing actually changes the shape of our airways - loosening tissues, narrowing passages, and making it harder to breathe over time. Nasal breathing, on the other hand, tones and opens those same muscles, making each breath smoother and more efficient💨

Put simply: mouth breathing begets more mouth breathing, while nasal breathing begets more nasal breathing.

This quiet habit can influence our sleep, stress, focus, and even facial structure - a reminder that something as simple as how we breathe can shape how we live🧘‍♀️

🌬️ Have you noticed how your breath feels when you slow down and breathe through your nose?

07/11/2025

Have you ever wondered why our faces look the way they do? 🧠👃

In James Nestor's book 'Breath - The New Science of a Lost Art', he explains how, over time, as our brains grew and evolved, they needed more space, and nature made room by reshaping the front of our faces.
The jaw became smaller, the bones thinner, and the mouth shorter, giving rise to one of our most distinctive human features: the protruding nose.

This remarkable adaptation, unique to us, came at a cost. Smaller mouths and weaker jaws have contributed to breathing issues, dental problems, and even changes in how we speak and sleep 😴

It’s a fascinating reminder that our evolution is both ingenious and imperfect - constantly adapting, yet never without trade-offs.

✨ How often do we stop to notice the quiet ways our bodies tell the story of where we’ve come from? 🌍

05/11/2025

Have you ever thought about how you breathe? 🌬️🫁

It’s something we do over 20,000 times a day, yet most of us rarely give it a second thought.

This month’s Book of the Month - “Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art” by James Nestor - dives deep into the simple act that keeps us alive and how we might be doing it all wrong.

Nestor explores the fascinating science of breathing and how our modern habits, from processed foods to constant stress, have literally reshaped our faces, narrowed our airways, and changed the way we take in air 😮

What struck me most is how something so basic can have such profound psychological and physical effects. From anxiety and sleep, to focus and emotional regulation - the way we breathe shapes the way we feel.

Have you ever noticed how your breath changes when you’re anxious, tired, or relaxed?

03/11/2025

Who is ready for some good news!? 👏🏼✨

Here at Healthy Mind Psychology, we love to spread a sprinkling of positivity at the start of each month to balance out all those negative news stories that we're often faced with in today's modern world.

October's joyful headlines include:

→ A new free app called Wildling is helping people reconnect with nature by mapping the UK’s wild spaces - from hidden green spots to remote coastlines🌿 The app aims to boost wellbeing and tackle the mental health crisis by making it easier for people to explore the outdoors and feel part of their local environment.

→ The Maldives has become the first country in the world to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B, according to the WHO - a major global health milestone.

→ A new King’s College London study has found that singing can be more effective than standard treatments for postnatal depression 🎶 Mothers who took part in Breathe Melodies for Mums singing groups experienced faster recovery and more days of full health compared to other activity groups.

And a positive piece from me...

This month I have shared with you some of my photos and insights from an incredible retreat with Richard Schwartz and Jeanne Catanzaro, along with other inspiring colleagues, professionals, and now new friends. I'm taking this moment to reflect on the experience of engaging with an academic hero and to find new focus with how I want my work to enter the world around me. It was a time of personal growth and healing also- something I wasn't expecting to encounter, yet when allowing myself the space and openness, there it was. I'm so grateful for this week, in this month, and I'm grateful for practicing skills that allow me to stop and appreciate!

What went right for you in October? I'd love to hear about your happiest moments or personal wins. Or... what was it like when you met a personal hero?

31/10/2025

❓ Have you ever noticed how getting a diagnosis changes how you see yourself? 🩺🔍

In The Age of Diagnosis, O'Sullivan describes how labels can become self-fulfilling. Once we know what to “watch for,” we start scanning. A headache feels like “another symptom.” Feeling tired? “Yep, that’s part of it.” Suddenly a bad night's sleep is down to the diagnosis rather than the wine and coffee we had with dinner the night before. Without meaning to, we can end up living more inside the diagnosis than inside ourselves.

For some, that diagnosis is a relief, a community, a compass. For others, it can quietly narrow who they believe they are.

It’s not about saying labels are “bad” – they’re often vital. But maybe it’s worth asking: do we hold the label, or does the label start holding us?

Has a diagnosis ever changed the way you related to your own body?

29/10/2025

❓ Are we looking too hard at the brain – and not hard enough at life? 🧬🌍

O'Sullivan argues in The Age of Diagnosis that while biology is key, it’s only part of the story. Trauma, neglect, violence, poverty – these shape brains and behaviour as much as any gene does.

Take ADHD. Yes, biology plays a role. But childhood experiences – abuse, instability, alcohol exposure – all raise risk. The problem? We often focus on what can’t be changed (biology) and overlook what can (social and environmental support).

It’s a call to widen the lens. Brains matter. But so do lives. Lives shape brains.

Do you think mental health care today balances biology and environment well enough?

27/10/2025

❓ Do you ever feel unsure where your sources of support really are? 🧩💭

Sometimes we forget just how many people, places, and practices help hold us up – until we see them on paper. That’s why we’ve created a brand new free resource: The Support Map.

This simple two-page worksheet gives you space to:
→ Map out the people, spaces, and daily practices that support your wellbeing ✍️
→ Notice where your strengths are – and where you might like to invite more support 💛
→ Reflect gently on how you use your current network of care 🫂

It’s not about doing more – it’s about seeing clearly what’s already there, and where you might want to build.

This isn’t about labelling yourself - it’s about self-awareness, self-compassion, and giving yourself space to reflect.

✨ You can download it for free here 👉 [insert link]

Do you ever catch yourself wondering what’s “normal” when it comes to your own wellbeing?

24/10/2025

❓ Is social media the villain of modern mental health – or does it sometimes save the day? 📱🦸‍♀️

The story isn’t as simple as we’re often told. In The Age of Diagnosis, O'Sullivan highlights research showing social media can increase anxiety and depression – but also improve self-esteem, reduce stress, and create connection.

During the pandemic, many found humour and solidarity online when the world felt bleak. For young people, it can be both a lifeline and a landmine. The truth? It’s complicated.

Maybe it’s less about whether social media is “good” or “bad,” and more about how we use it – and whether it’s serving us or draining us. There are ways we use social media that can create emotional distress, comparison culture, addictive tendencies, narrowing algorithms, consumerism and disruption with sleep or lifestyle factors. But there are also many benefits to having exposure to new ideas, normalisation of challenges, maintaining connections, and intentional entertainment. Like all things, we must beware of being reductionistic in thinking that something must fall into the camp of either a helpful thing or an unhelpful thing. Moderation, intention of use, and awareness of when something has a negative effect on us are all key to healthy scrolling.

How do you feel after a day online – better, worse, or a mix of both?

22/10/2025

❓ Have we medicalised being human? 😔➡️🩺

In The Age of Diagnosis, O'Sullivan points out how sadness – a completely normal part of life – is increasingly treated like a symptom to “fix.” We’ve come to expect constant happiness, and when life doesn’t play along, we often reach for a medical label.

The problem? It risks turning the inevitable – grief, ageing, disappointment – into pathology. It can fuel shame, or even ageism, when what we’re really experiencing is just… life.

That doesn’t mean depression isn’t real or worthy of treatment. It just means not all sadness needs a diagnosis. Sometimes it needs time, support, connection or simply being named for what it is.

Do you think our culture has made sadness harder to accept?

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