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Managing uncertainty: when not knowing is sometimes the sensible decision
In my undergraduate degree research, the ‘p-value’ was a number that came from statistical analysis. It was a long time ago now, but from my basic understanding and memory, the p-value gave an indication of how probable it was that the results were related to chance, rather than to the relationship between the conditions being…
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New publication: ‘When Healthcare Communication Makes Patients Feel Like They Do Not Matter’
Just a quick post to highlight a new publication of mine, available on Psychreg. I wrote this piece drawing from personal, professional and third-party experiences of care within healthcare services. I thought it could be helpful and interesting to speak from both perspectives: as a professional who has worked within healthcare systems for many years,…
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Deserving
I often hear people casually talk about whether they or others deserve this or that: whether we deserve a sweet treat or takeaway depending on how much exercise or dieting we have done, whether we deserve a break, rest or a holiday depending on how hard we have worked; whether we deserve something good or…
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Stories Hidden in Sayings
What a shame. Boys will be boys. She’s a drama queen. Don’t cry over spilled milk. Blood is thicker than water. Idioms and common phrases fascinate me. I’m curious about those people use amongst families and friends, those from different countries and cultures, the expressions that make a language especially difficult for non-native speakers because…
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Triangulation: When Three Really is a Crowd
In this piece, I’m using the well-known family systems concept of ‘triangulation’ to describe a particular process I’ve noticed in and outside therapy, to myself included: A relationship moment where the idea that “two’s company, but three’s a crowd” can actually ring true, especially in the context of navigating complicated group and relationship dynamics. When…
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Fear and First Impressions
On holiday in Cornwall, hanging clothes out to dry, I disturbed the flight path of several bumblebees jostling to land on the passionflowers in bloom in the courtyard. They occasionally whirred close to my face and ears, and I found myself apologising out loud for getting in their way. I realised we were simply existing…
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A Botanical Metaphor for Reciprocal Roles
Risk And then the day came, when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom. By Elizabeth Apell (commonly misquoted to Anais Nin) Of all the ideas in Cognitive Analytic Therapy, reciprocal roles (RRs), sometimes referred to as templates, are a central one that has shaped…
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A Note on “The World” and How Language Shapes Perspective
Like many people, I often use the phrase ‘the world’ generally and in my writing as a shorthand to describe the wider contextual environment within which human experiences occur. Lately, I have been wondering whether this phrase is actually appropriate or meaningful. When I use it I notice I push away a background feeling of slight embarrassment.…
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Some Thoughts on Layers and the Limits of Labels
The longer I’ve worked in mental health, the less convinced I’ve become that people’s experiences fit neatly into single stories. I’ve found myself mentally revisiting people I’ve worked with in the past, regarding whether their neurodivergence was lost beneath latter ‘layers’ as mine was. The hallmarks obscured by lifetimes of resilience and resourceful overcompensation, plastered over…
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Eight Things Humans Can Learn from Cats
Cats obviously experience the world differently and have a very different social map from ours. Yet some of their instincts and boundaries seem like they should come more naturally to us. Here are eight things I’ve noticed from living alongside them that we might learn from. One – Needs. Often, they have no shame or qualms…
A Curious Route
Finding a way through life’s ordinary, turbulent and uncertain contexts
Relational Psychological Therapy Ideas & Writing
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