I was quoted in an article that appeared in the Independent (attached, by clicking on the image) about grief, and specifically the death of a work colleague. This story followed the news that Stephen Colbert, the Late Show host on CBS in the USA, was mourning the loss during a show of his long-time colleague […]
Have you been watching Netflix’s new game show adaptation of the hit Korean dystopian drama? Apparently it has been breaking all records in every Netflix region. I am usually someone who avoids such annoying publicity seeking self obsessed contestants on television screens but this one caught my attention. Yes, the irritating repeated exclaims of “oh
Now that we have passed Black Friday, we are increasingly being bombarded by shopping adverts about even more special shopping windows, including for Christmas. This period is when retailers make a sizable proportion of their yearly profits and there are numerous subconscious consumer decision-making processes that companies seek to exploit when we are shopping. In
In this post you will learn more about how gambling addiction is defined, how and why it manifests and the most effective treatment models. Gambling addiction can also be called problem gambling, compulsive gambling or gambling disorder. What is problem gambling? Problem gamblers often refer to their zone of emotional comfort, where nothing else seems
When we operate in autopilot mode we may be prone to responding to instinctive desires in order to gain pleasure and thus avoid any kind of emotional pain. This may be okay in the present moment if we need to stay safe and to avoid danger. However, when we opt for the psychologically comfortable and
I am quoted in the attached article in Woman and Home about codependency: How to stop being codependent: 7 tips from psychotherapists to help you find independence again. “What do you want to do in life, with your plans, aims, and dreams?” asks Bell. “Codependent people often become overly attentive to the needs of others, and
Recent changes to accreditation standards in some parts of the world now include the need for trainee therapists to understand the neurobiological basis of behaviour. This will be challenging for some who might have leaned towards a learning bias centred on right mode processing in their teaching environment. For example, the institution where I initially trained in London
I was recently interviewed by Lucy Donoughue from Happiful Magazine as part of the I am I have podcast series. We started our chat with an explanation about what a gambling addiction might look like and how it could impact the person living through it, or those closest to them. We also talked about the scenario about someone who
Having low self-esteem can be a common presenting issue that motivates people to seek therapy. Self-esteem is how we value and perceive ourselves. However, in popular self-help literature self-esteem is often viewed as synonymous with self-confidence. I like to think of the distinction between self-esteem and self-confidence as this: you may have the confidence to
Do you struggle with sibling rivalry and wonder whether your early life holds pointers to understanding your current relationship dynamics? Children often feel that they are in receipt of unequal amounts of parental attention, discipline, and responsiveness. Some studies have shown that sibling abuse is more common that parental-child abuse. Adult siblings more commonly re-enact