Individual Adults, Adolescents, Children, Couples, Families

Focusing on managing anxiety, developing self-esteem and confidence.

Since the start of the pandemic I am experiencing more and more teens feeling anxious, less confident, questioning their mental health, scared to challenge themselves and limited to the confines of their home, reaching out online, yet not developing socially in the real world. Some teens (and adults) sadly come to a point in their life where they feel hurting themselves and ending their life is an option, this is something I work with confidently and sensitively. My workshops focus on helping younger people understand what is happening to my body? Why do I feel anxious? Is what I am feeling normal? How can I make changes that are manageable and realistic in today’s world?

I offer Continuous Professional Development Workshops to groups, this can be at your place of work or in an alternative setting (i.e. a staff Away Day). The number of recipients is dependent upon the workshop being delivered. Some workshops can be emotive and thought provoking, requiring a smaller environment to maximise impact. Any bespoke workshops focussing on a particular need your workplace has can be discussed and created.

If you're stressed or experiencing anxiety, by your job or something more personal, the first step to feeling better is to identify the cause. Doing nothing will only make things worse and life can feel unmanageable. Understanding the cause, how these things can impact your mind and body is a positive starting point to taking back your power and control of your life. These workshops are interactive, informative, thought provoking and can make a real difference to peoples’ lives.

There are lots of things parent / carers or staff in education settings can do individually to help young people feel better about themselves. For example: -

Encourage your child to face his/her fears, not run away from them.
Tell your child that it is okay to be imperfect.
Focus on the positives.
Schedule relaxing activities.
Model approachable behaviour, self-care, and positive thinking.
Reward your child's brave behaviours.
Encourage good sleep hygiene.
Develop their independence and resilience.
Challenge them to socialise or take on new hobbies.
Have time away from devices.

Workshops can be a powerful place for young people, this is a window to not feeling alone, and understanding that other young people feel similar to them and this is ok! During the workshop there will be lots of practical activities and a toolbox each person can take away to manage their stress and anxiety.

This workshop can be delivered to adults, young people or a mixture, if relevant (for a example there may be a parent information evening that your school is holding to promote positive mental health and wellbeing, or a Year 11 information evening to prepare for GCSE’s). Understanding the development process of adolescents (12-18) can open up a whole new world on how to help them manage their behaviour and understand why ‘teenagers’ behave and respond the way they do. I hear lots of people saying ‘oh, they’re a teenager’ understanding why they have changed can feel enlightening. You will leave this workshop feeling more equipped to support them through these challenging years and with more empathy towards them.

Lots of people use the term ‘Anger Management’. I would rather call this managing our emotions. Anger is a secondary emotion. Investigating our emotions can unearth lots of feelings that have been lying underneath the surface for a long time. To ‘manage’ our emotions we have to look underneath, also around us, our personal network that our life has generated. This workshop gives individuals the safe space to unpick their history and understand themselves clearer. You will leave this workshop with more knowledge and understanding of yourself and hopefully on a journey to developing your self-awareness, boundaries and opportunities.

Going through very stressful, frightening or distressing events is sometimes called trauma and this can be and feel very different for everyone. When we talk about emotional or psychological trauma, we might mean: situations or events we find traumatic, or how we have been affected by our experiences. Traumatic events can happen at any age. This workshop will help you understand trauma and the impact trauma has on our daily lives. How trauma can affect one’s beliefs about the future i.e. loss of hope, fear or limited expectations for ourselves. You will also learn how to help others work through their trauma, safely.

Working with self-harm can be really scary and overwhelming, having a better understanding of how to manage this and work empathically with the person can reduce your stress and anxiety. This workshop is aimed at anyone involved in supporting someone who self-injures, including parents, health professionals, support workers, housing staff, teachers, youth workers and volunteers. The aim is to explore attitudes and preconceptions toward self-injury. To provide insight into the dynamics, meaning and functions of self-injury. To understand causes, triggers and cycles of harm. To consider helpful responses to people who self-injure.

This is a six week basic counselling skills course I have developed for anyone who is interested in becoming a counsellor and would like a taster or is working with people and wants to develop their skills when listening and interacting. This course is based around developing self-awareness which can be challenging yet equally as rewarding. I’ve delivered this course in schools to support staff with their relationships with children and colleagues. This course will definitely benefit anyone.

Work places often ask me to deliver workshops to help people understand attitude and self-awareness and how their style and approach impacts other. This workshop is aimed at workplaces where they may be some disharmony, it can also help if there are certain personalities amongst your team who are pessimistic or ‘rock the boat’ reducing your workplace opportunity to thrive as a business or team. This workshop is challenging yet promotes change and growth for individuals or as a group.

The central theme of attachment theory is that primary caregivers who are available and responsive to an infant's needs allow the child to develop a sense of security. The infant knows that the caregiver is dependable, which creates a secure base for the child to then explore the world. Understanding attachment theory can help parents and professionals understand the behaviour of young people.