Grief is often spoken about as though it follows a neat path. Something happens, you feel devastated, you go through “stages”, and eventually you come out the other side feeling better. If only it were that simple. The truth is, grief is rarely tidy. It doesn’t follow a straight line, and it certainly doesn’t stick to a timeline. You can feel like you are coping one day and completely floored the next. You can laugh, function, go to work, meet friends, and still be carrying a

Burnout doesn’t always arrive with a dramatic crash. More often, it creeps in quietly — a bit more exhaustion here, a bit less patience there — until one day everything feels too much. As it’s Mental Health Awareness Week, it feels like a good time to talk about burnout in a clear, practical way. (In an older post I shared “Top 10 tips for managing anxiety” during Mental Health Awareness Week too — sometimes we all need the reminders.) Burnout can affect anyone, but it can be

If bright lights, background noise, strong smells, or busy places leave you feeling snappy, foggy, or completely wiped out — you’re not being “too sensitive”. Your nervous system is doing its best to cope with a lot of input all at once. Sensory overload is incredibly common for autistic people, ADHDers, and AuDHDers — and it can also show up during anxiety, burnout, trauma stress, menopause, pregnancy, grief, or simply when life is full-on. This post is here to help you und

“Trauma-informed” is a phrase that’s used more and more in counselling spaces — and that can be reassuring. But it can also feel a bit vague. What does it actually mean in practice? And how is it different from “trauma therapy”? If you’re considering counselling and you’ve had difficult experiences (or you’re not even sure if what you went through “counts” as trauma), understanding this approach can help you feel safer and more in control from the very beginning. First: traum

Masking, burnout, and the power of self-compassion for neurodivergent adults

For some people, the New Year feels exciting – a clean slate, fresh starts, big plans. For others, it can bring a tight chest, racing thoughts, and a sense of dread you can’t quite explain. If that’s you, you’re not alone… and you’re not “doing it wrong”. The turn of the year can press on lots of tender places: expectations, comparison, money worries after Christmas, family dynamics, loneliness, grief, burnout, or that nagging feeling of “I should have my life together by now

Christmastime is often described as joyful, but for many people it can feel anything but. If you’re living with anxiety, grieving a loss, or navigating sensory overload, December’s noise and pressure can be exhausting. You are not alone—and you’re not failing if the season feels heavy. This post offers gentle ideas to help you move through the holidays with more steadiness, along with how counselling can support you in Chorley (PR6) and online. Why can this time of year feel

Change is a natural part of life, but that doesn’t mean it always feels easy. Even when change is something you’ve chosen or looked forward to – a new job, a move, a relationship, a child leaving home – it can still stir up anxiety, self-doubt, and a sense of being completely overwhelmed. You might notice yourself thinking, “I should be coping better than this,” or “Everyone else seems to manage, why can’t I?” If that feels familiar, you’re not alone. In this blog, I’ll e

As the days shorten, the air turns colder, and the evenings feel longer, many of us notice a subtle shift in our mood, energy, or sense...

I realised today that I haven't written a blog yet this year! Where has the time gone??!! So I decided to use the fact it is Mental...

Christmas is often portrayed as a time of joy, togetherness, and celebration, however, for many people, it also brings heightened anxiety...

With the new school year beginning it has, as it always does, got me thinking about new beginnings. New beginnings often evoke a mix of...

Whether you're struggling with work, school, or personal projects, low motivation can creep in making tasks seem insurmountable

The location of therapy sessions has changed, more so since covid, no more does a therapy session have to be held in a therapy office. ...

What is EFT? EFT is acupuncture but without the needles. By tapping on acupuncture points on your body while thinking about a...

In life there are things that can be controlled and things that cannot. meeting something that cannot be controlled can result in...

This week is Mental Health Awareness week 2023 and this year the theme is Anxiety. I work a lot with anxiety, it can become so...

Following on from my last post talking about guilt v's regret in grief this part of the blog will focus on different ways of dealing with...

Guilt in grief is ‘normal’ a lot of people feel guilty for something when they are grieving, you are not alone in this, as hard as it...

(This is a re-write of a blog written in 2020) 2 years I wrote a blog post about Blue Monday, the 3rd Monday of January and supposably...