It is common to hear that neurodivergent people “think differently” or that their brains are “wired differently”. Both phrases can be trying to name something real. Many autistic people, people with ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia or Tourette syndrome recognise enduring...
The Archive
Do Neurodivergent Brains Function Differently?
Why Do I Keep Pleasing People? A Gentle Introduction to Transactional Analysis
If you are just beginning therapy, some of the language can feel unfamiliar. It may sound like you are expected to understand a whole theory before you can talk about your life. You are not. Good therapy should help these ideas make sense in ordinary human terms....
Can You Break an Exam into Smaller Chunks When You Feel Anxious?
When exam anxiety rises, the difficulty is rarely only the questions on the paper. The whole occasion can arrive at once: the room, the clock, the sense of being judged, memories of previous results, worries about disappointing someone, and the frightening thought...
What If I Cannot Explain What I Feel?
A common worry about starting therapy is that you will be expected to sit down and say exactly what is wrong in articulate, emotional language. For some people, this is already manageable. They can describe feeling low, anxious, angry, or ashamed with reasonable...
What If Eye Contact Feels Too Intense?
Often eye contact is treated as a sign of attention, respect and honesty. Therapists are often trained to use it as a way of communicating presence. Yet for many people, direct eye contact does not feel neutral. It can feel intrusive, exposing, overstimulating, or...
Is My Problem Serious Enough for Therapy?
A common barrier to starting therapy is the thought: “Other people have it worse.” You may look at your life and decide that your distress is not dramatic enough, not traumatic enough, or not unusual enough to justify seeking help. This thought can be surprisingly...
When Anger Is Trying to Protect Something Tender
Anger is often spoken about as if it is mainly a difficulty to be managed. We hear about anger management, anger issues, angry outbursts, angry people. Of course anger can become harmful. It can be used to intimidate, control, punish or avoid responsibility. When...
Polyamory in the Therapeutic Space
Holding Multiple Realities A client sits across from you and says, almost in passing, “my partners and I have been talking about…” She does not pause at the plural. She does not look up to check your face. The sentence just continues, because for her this is simply...
Concerns About Gabor Maté’s Teachings Among People with ADHD
Gabor Maté continues to have a strong influence on trauma-informed psychotherapy. His work on addiction, attachment, trauma, stress, and emotional development has resonated deeply with many people seeking alternatives to purely biomedical explanations of psychological...