We’ve all experienced that anxious feeling in the stomach, and the worried thoughts that run through your mind ahead of an upcoming presentation or exam. But when feelings of worry, fear, doubt, and possibly even dread become excessive and pervasive, interfering with your day-to-day life, it can be both exhausting and debilitating. Anxiety can look like excessive worry about something that has already happened; what may happen as a result; and excessive worry about something that may happen in the future.  The good news is that once your recognise you are experiencing anxiety, you c ..read more

How the coaching model works. When most people think of a coach, they think of a sports coach, standing on the side lines, directing, and giving feedback and advice on performance.  And whilst many who call themselves life coaches may adopt this approach, there is much more to the coaching process if it is to be effective in helping you create change. If you are considering coaching, it’s helpful to have a good understanding of the process and what to expect ahead of your sessions. Many claiming to be coaches are more like mentors, teachers and guides. In this blog, I’m going to clar ..read more

It takes a lot of courage to acknowledge that part of what causes our stress, pain and suffering is as much about others and their behaviour, as it is about our own inner conditioning, values, wounds, and expectations. It’s the mix of difficult feelings like frustration, disappointment, anxiety, sadness, and anger that bring most people to counselling or coaching in the first place.  But what keeps people returning is the progress that’s made through taking ownership of what they are feeling and thinking so they can evolve into experiencing greater levels of emotional intelligence, p ..read more

In 2017, I was in Chiang Mai, Thailand where I engaged a retired monk to take me to the temples and walk me through the daily routine of monastic life.  What transpired was a day of exploration and discovery, a highlight of which was being taught the practice of mindfulness walking.  Not only did it change my definition of meditation, but it changed the way I moved about my daily life and the way I shared mindfulness with my clients. So, what is mindfulness walking? First, let’s explore Mindfulness, the practice of being present in the moment.  It’s cultivated by bring ..read more

It’s a common story –  Mary gets home, the house is a mess and she feels a mix of disappointment and frustration. Before she’s even had a chance to say, “Hi, I’m home, how was everyone’s day?, she’s shouting at the family for leaving their stuff everywhere… Dave is managing his business from home and he’s juggling some casual work on the side. He’s worried about the rising interest rates and to let off steam, a couple of times a week, he likes to head out for a ride. His partner hears him leaving the house and says with a judgy tone “another ride” and before he knows it he’s feeling defen ..read more

You’re not alone if you enjoy being the main influencer of your life. Most of us develop a sense of certainty from taking control, mitigating risk and driving outcomes and results we want to see, often with time frames attached. For some, our ability to take control not only determines our efficacy, but our sense of self. For a huge majority then, increased restrictions inevitably mean less control: less control over everyday structures such as socialising, earning a living or getting an education and this can lead to a feeling of powerless over the whims of an ever-changing world. So how do ..read more

Feeding the Gut-Brain Connection: The Best (and Worst) Foods for a Healthy Gut You will have heard the saying ‘listen to your gut’ thrown around in any number of situations involving a difficult or uncertain decision. On one hand it is a metaphor best translated to ‘listen to your instincts’, instincts we tend to think of as being derived from cognitive processes occurring in the brain. But the expression also happens to be a very apt reflection of an increasingly examined health focus: how the brain does indeed listen to the gut. The idea of our diet impacting our body is not in itself a new ..read more

A series of questions and answers to help prioritise your wellbeing. Self-care has become a popular term in mental health circles over recent years, and with good reason.  In the midst of life’s seemingly relentless demands, it’s easy to become preoccupied with tending to others’ needs and forgetting about your own. It can mean that in the process of working tirelessly to get ‘everything’ done, you skip the basics of sleep, nutrition and activities deemed pleasurable and rewarding, but also replenishing. Self-care though, is not to be confused with self -indulgence. Self-care is the neces ..read more

Months of lockdown in Sydney & Melbourne have led to reports of declining mental health:  Being disconnected from loved ones, challenged by the solitude of working from home, attending endless zoom meetings, home schooling and a multitude of other adjustments, its been a tough gig for the majority. However there’s been little reported about the improved mental health for those who’ve found comfort during lockdown and possibly even thrived at home with external demands from the outside world considerably reduced. Lockdown enforced a non-negotiable boundary which created the perfect ex ..read more

Who Am I:  What’s my potential? Why do I sabotage myself? How can I create the changes that I dream of in myself and my life? Why do others think, feel & behave so differently and how do I relate despite our differences? Millions of individuals are grappling with these questions, in the face of conflicting messages about who we should be, how we should behave and what’s important in life.  We know we need to grow and evolve, but often the journey takes us away from where we want to go and it’s difficult to know when to go with it, and when to take control. What is the Enneagram ..read more