2024 · 22. August 2024
Consider your daily worries – deadlines, exams, relationships, finances. Briefly acknowledging them is natural. But dwell on them for a while, and they start to gnaw at your energy. Let them dominate your thoughts all day, and you risk feeling overwhelmed and paralysed, unable to function effectively. My latest Southern Star column explores how to lighten your mental load.
2018 · 01. November 2018
In last week's Southern Star, I noted that while it's only right and proper to complain when you've been wronged, complaining can also become a bad habit, negatively impacting on your mood and on the moods of others. The column is now online. Lots of people really like to complain – about the weather, about the boss, about the politicians, about the neighbour up the road who borrowed your corkscrew and who has yet to return it. How much complaining is too much? Now, there are many good...
2018 · 04. October 2018
In last week's Southern Star, I noted that while it's only right and proper to complain when you've been wronged, complaining can also become a bad habit, negatively impacting on your mood and on the moods of others. The column is reproduced below. Lots of people really like to complain – about the weather, about the boss, about the politicians, about the neighbour up the road who borrowed your corkscrew and who has yet to return it. How much complaining is too much? Now, there are many good...
2018 · 17. May 2018
In last week's Southern Star, I discussed how cultivating a compassionate mindset can help people to better manage the daily stresses of life. The column is reproduced below. Some people go “ugh” when they hear the word compassion, associating it with what they perceive as touchy-feely do-gooderism. But what if I suggested that cultivating a compassionate outlook could help you better manage the day-to-day stresses of life? Consider the following true story, told by psychologist and...
2017 · 21. December 2017
It’s great to invest in Christmas, but the holiday season also brings its own pressures, not least the pressure to be happy. Last week's Your Mental Health column in the Southern Star offered some tips on how to cope with Christmas stress. The column is reproduced below. The old song says Christmas is “the most wonderful time of the year”, but it can also be a stressful period where a combination of pressures – financial, familial, psychological – mean many people approach the holiday...