Long before mental health became a hot topic, desperate souls were said to be going through the dark night of the soul.
Stuck in the Dark Night of the Soul
Somatic experiencing changed my life (or how I learned to be at home in my body)
It's 7:30 at night, and this all too familiar unease sets in again. A restlessness, a feeling that whatever it is, I'm not doing what I'm supposed to be doing. Yet I stay slouched on the couch. And that's where somatic experiencing comes in. Over the years, I've turned from an avid novel-reader to an... Continue Reading →
I’m so terrified of being a bad mother, I’d rather not be a mum at all sometimes
I was watching a mother-daughter duo on the tube today, how carefully the mum would adjust her daughter's woollen hat, and started welling up with tears. She was clutching her little one's hand tightly even sat down, as if she was terrified of loosing her amid the rush hour madness. I sympathised, thinking "if I... Continue Reading →
The healing effects of pointless, tangible art – stop procrastinating, create your own therapy!
Hobbies should be something that allow you to lose yourself in the activity, something that brings you pure joy and has no other other purpose entirely.
How to never practise self-abandonment again
Children of dysfunctional homes often end up repeating the same relationship patterns they learned early on, first of all with themselves. This is what feels safe and known; our nervous system and brain is still stuck in fight-or-flight mode and cannot distinguish toxic patterns from healthy ones. We practise self-abandonment before others do.Did you have... Continue Reading →
Depression taught me to live again
Last summer, my 2-year depression came to a head. I took myself to A&E and refused to leave, knowing that if I did, I would be all out of options with my suicidal depression. Previously, therapists had sent me away, stating that my problems were above their pay grade. Yoga had been helpful to the... Continue Reading →
Gratitude is an action – or how to do a gratitude journal properly
A friend of mine recently shared in my fellowship her discovery: gratitude is an action, not a feeling. Denominating it as a mere emotion degrades gratitude, and it changed the way I write out my daily (well, weekly) gratitude journal. No longer is it enough to be grateful for my home, my friends, and my... Continue Reading →
Emotional sobriety – the holy grail of any recovery
In my own journey of processing childhood trauma and addiction I've come across the term 'emotional sobriety' multiple times, and its poetry struck me. In all the meetings I've been to recently, I have not met a single addict with a happy upbringing. So after all, being sober isn't enough anymore, now I've got to... Continue Reading →
How to stop outsourcing your wellbeing
At the fragile 26 year mark of my life, I finally found what adulthood truly means to me (whether I want it to or not): Stop outsourcing your personal responsibilities and wellbeing That means my career is no longer my employer’s job, my health no longer my GP’s and my happiness no longer my friend’s.... Continue Reading →
Taking Christmas off people (or a good idea with bad timing)
For starters, I am working today. In a hospitality job no less, so people can not be avoided (not five guys but I liked the photo I took there after work). I made sure to get a job in time for the holidays, because for the first time, I was not going to make a... Continue Reading →
Reparent Your Soul 