2024 · 07. March 2024

In times of crisis, emotions can be overwhelming. My latest Southern Star column explains why it can be very helpful to use the TIPP (Temperature, Intense exercise, Paced breathing, and Progressive muscle relaxation) technique to manage overwhelming emotions.

2021 · 02. December 2021

Sometimes, our emotions cause us to do things that aren’t good for us. However, you don’t have to be a prisoner to your emotions. In this article, I examine the opposite action strategy – that is, do the opposite of what your emotions are telling you to do.

2021 · 17. June 2021

Good mental health requires that you be both self-compassionate and honest with yourself. The latter point is important because as humans, we are gifted when it comes to codding ourselves. We often rationalise our behaviour and tell ourselves that we’re being “gentle” and “kind” with ourselves when we’re really being avoidant and fearful. My latest column gives some hypothetical examples and explains why it's so important to be honest with ourselves.

2021 · 11. February 2021

Dr Marsha Linehan, who founded DBT and is one of the most celebrated psychologists in the world today, spent two years in a psychiatric hospital when she was 17. Marsha eventually found a way out of her own personal hell and resolved to ‘help people find the path to getting out of hell’ themselves. In this column, I explore Marsha's invalidating relationship with her mother, her intense self-loathing, and her advice for people who hate themselves and who try to be someone they're not.

2021 · 14. January 2021

People sometimes recoil when the word “acceptance” is used, because they think acceptance equates to approval. However, accepting the reality of a situation doesn’t mean you approve of it. This article explores the importance of what DBT founder Dr Marsha Linehan calls radical acceptance – 'complete and total openness to the facts of reality as they are, without throwing a tantrum and growing angry’.