Blog

The fear of confrontation can be stifling. Sometimes we fear confronting others because we dwell on the consequences, such as an angry response or a damaged relationship. This is usually due to our beliefs around confrontation. One belief is that confrontation has to be ugly. Sometimes we believe that when you challenge someone, the relationship will always…

Reframing isn’t ignoring problems but seeing a different point of view about how things may be. It is like seeing things from a different angle. Reframing offers people alternative ways of viewing difficult situations. It involves putting a different perspective on things that are concerning, worrying or problematic. An example could be someone saying, “I just feel anxious all the time…

Cognitive Reframing is a useful way to help challenge our negative thoughts and self defeating behaviours. The first thing to remember is that events and situations do not have inherent meaning. We assign them a meaning based on how we interpret them. This can be difficult to accept, but when something bad happens to us, it’s only…

We all have triggers for our anger, things that make us snappy or lash out aggressively such as maybe a person pushing in front of a queue or feeling we’re being ignored. Understanding what these triggers are and re-examining our thoughts around them can be the first steps to understanding and managing anger. We can begin…

Understanding one another better can help us all improve our relationships. All our beliefs have developed over the whole of our lifespan.  We learn from our significant others such as parents, teachers, clergy, friends etc. We also learn from watching others for example in the playground, adults arguing, television and movies and so on. It’s…

Thinking about setting SMART goals? SMART goals are Specific, Measured, Achievable, Realistic and Time orientated. Specific – What exactly do you want to be?  Be positive!  “I want to get fit” rather than “I tired of being fat and lazy” Measureable – Getting thinner is not measureable.  Losing 5 pounds is.  Break down the bigger objective…

The ethos of homelessness prevention, and the services that work with homelessness are gaining more support and strength as austerity hits more and more of us. However the popular phrase that we are only ever a few pay packets away from being homeless, although may be true, isn’t the biggest reason why people present as…

There was a time when relationship counselling was known as marriage guidance. Sometimes it is known as marriage counselling. Relationship counselling is now broader than just married couples, but for everyone involved in a relationship with another person. One of the things at the core of a relationship is us wanting to feel significant to someone. Quite…

‘It’s good to talk’ is a common saying. We’ve all heard it at one time or another. I tend to believe there’s a lot of truth in it. In any relationship whether it’s with a partner, a neighbour, a friend, an employer, a family member or whoever communication is important. When a relationship goes wrong…