Out in the Open Therapy

08/10/2022

Sitting in the middle of a field, watching the world go by. Immersed in mother nature's beauty and my favourite time of year.

08/09/2022

Rest in peace now.
Thank you for all your years of service.

I'm sharing these words from Betsy de Thierry: Author, Trainer, Trauma Recovery Specialist. as they reflect what I'd like to say but can't find the right words.

This is so sad. What an incredible, caring and hard working Queen she was.

Grief touches lives deeply and even when most people may not have known the Queen personally or specifically had their lives touched by her, the loss of someone we admire can trigger other grief to be felt again too. Let’s make space for people to grieve and not ask questions why but hold space to cry and feel and be gentle with each other as we process the loss and more change. And let’s remember the family who have lost their granny and mum….

24/05/2022

Ok so this is me 5 weeks into taking part in the couch to 5k running training. Today I ran a total of 16 mins which probably doesn't sound a lot but to me it's massive. At the beginning I struggled to run 90 secs but gradually and gently we have increased the time each week.
I have always told myself I can't run, I'm too heavy and I have no stamina.

However, in allowing myself to put these messages to one side and offer myself no pressure or expectation, it has enabled me to 'enjoy', if that's the right word, this experience and say to myself, I can run, I'm not too heavy and I do have the stamina to carry me through. I had no idea that talking whilst running actually helps as it distracts your brain from thinking too much about your breathing too.

By breaking the task down into manageable and achievable blocks and taking away the pressure it has enabled me to feel a sense of achievement each time I run. Dont get me wrong, its not easy and today I found that I needed to walk a bit but then carried on running.

In my therapy sessions, if something seems too big or overwhelming we look at how it can be broken down into steps that you can manage. That you can then see the progress you are making, that you can feel a sense of achievement.

So my message from this post is that
No matter how big something feels, break it down and say 'I can do this. See what happens, and feel the difference in challenging your thoughts and beliefs.

28/04/2022

Self Care - a longish post

I've had some really interesting conversations lately about self care and what it means from a range of men, women and young people, boys and girls.

Discussions centering around the pressures of knowing self care is needed but that the thought of doing it can be seen as a pressure in itself. So it then becomes a vicious circle.

Others looked at the different types of self care from physical to emotional, environmental to spiritual to name a few. How self care isn't just about nice baths and sitting reading a bòok. It can be about switching the news off or cleaning out that one cupboard you've been talking about doing. How to self care around exam time has been a hot topic too.

Self care is very individual, what it means and looks like to you isn't necessarily how it looks to me. However, I would offer you an invitation to be compassionate, gentle and kind to yourself. Ask yourself what do I need right now.

If self care is something that has been lacking then jumping straight in at the deep end is potentially going to be too much and too overwhelming. You wouldn't give yourself a huge meal if you hadn't eaten for a while because you may not feel very well afterwards. So little and often would be the suggestion. One way of describing that in one conversation was to drip feed yourself small amounts of self care.

To give you some examples of my own self care recently have included -

My allotment - over the winter it's become very overgrown and I'd been putting it off tackling it. So the task has become a little overwhelming. However, it's important to me, I enjoy being outside and I quite like digging and growing. So I've begun to tackle it in small chunks. Not pressurising myself to get the whole lot done in one go. Just little and often and I've found beetroot and potatoes growing in amongst the weeds, bonus!

My fitness - I used to be really fit and have wanted to regain some of that back, but a fear of looking silly and not being able to keep up has stopped me. But those thoughts have been thrown to oneside, I've put on my lycra and joined a local jogging club. I can't run for toffee but it was a great laugh with a group of women who were also beginners. It feels good even if I do ache!!

So I guess the message I'm trying to convey here is that self care is just that - care of Self, yourself. Focus on what it means to you because you are absolutely worth it. Notice the feeling it gives you, and take time for you. 😊

27/04/2022

Some recent training that I've done includes becoming a Youth Mental Health First Aider, completing a 5 month certificate in Nature based practice ensuring my work as an outdoor therapist is up to date, and taking part in a live webinar by Steve Haines about Anxiety.

It's an important part of my work that I keep up with CPD or continuous professional development and sometimes this can be doing new courses or repeating courses to update my knowledge. It can be taking part in webinars, reading a book or watching a film.

Being in this profession means continually learning and keeping up to date with the latest information and research. Sometimes it does feel like we never switch off, but thats also an important part of our work, that we do switch off. For me lighting the fire or running a bath or taking Haŕry for a walk are just some of things I do to step away from work.
Which is what I'm going to do now! 😊

27/03/2022

Mothers Day can be a difficult day for all sorts of reasons. Whatever your situation, my invitation to you is, take time for you today because
You are important
You are worthy
You are loved

24/03/2022

It was an absolute honour to meet Julia Samuel tonight and listen to her talk about her latest book 'Every Family has a Story' exploring how we inherit love and loss from the generations before us.

Thank you Julia.

21/03/2022

https://www.neurodiversityweek.com/

Lots of great resources and webinars here

Neurodiversity Celebration Week aims to bring about worldwide neurodiversity acceptance, equality and inclusion in schools and workplaces.

08/02/2022

Lots of useful information and resources for young people 11-18 from the organisation Mind.

If you're struggling with how you're feeling, it can be really scary and upsetting. Our information will help you find the support you deserve for your mental health.

02/02/2022

Time to talk day 3/2/22

Coffee, chat, connection.

I live in a small town that just so happens to have a number of amazing coffee shops. Each one offers something slightly different, but what they have in common apart from the coffee is their unique ability to offer a place for people to meet up, chat and connect with one another.
They offer the community a safe space to enter into knowing that once inside you never feel alone. Someone will always notice and strike up a conversation and a connection is made. They provide the perfect meeting place for people to come together and check in on one another, a space to laugh or cry to celebrate or just to communicate with one another.
In my mind they are invaluable community assets that I have a great deal of gratitude for.

So on this time to talk day, where will you go to meet up?

Shout out goes to

20/01/2022

What does your support system look like? Who's on your side, your team, your tribe. Who are your go to people.

You are not alone