Belfast CT Centre Blog

During the ‘’Troubles’ we went out to a Victim group to talk. Most had had a family member murdered and all lived in politically traumatised and disadvantaged areas. We asked what symptoms they had noticed. Most reported that they had few or none – apart … Continue reading POST TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER: WHAT IS IT? →

Recently I received an email from a distraught wife. Her husband had an affair six months ago and she found out only when the other woman texted her. He wants to stay in the marriage, but she says she can no longer trust him. The … Continue reading Communication and Affairs →

Do you remember, the 13 symptoms of panic in last month’s blog and how they make us catastrophise (make something catastrophic out of something minor?) Well, when we get some of the frightening symptoms of panic what we might do is begin to breathe more … Continue reading PANIC ATTACKS 2 – WHAT WE DO THAT MAKES PANIC WORSE →

When we come along to Cognitive Behaviour Therapy the words themselves are a bit off putting – what is it? Yet good CBT should be simple. It just means that we learn to change how we think and behave. Today we’ll look at how we … Continue reading PANIC AND CBT – HOW TO REDUCE PANIC SYMPTOMS – SIMPLY →

This can be a particularly difficult time of year for students studying towards exams. For too long the myth that school days are the happiest in our lives as been held up as a universal truth but for far too many students this is unfortunately … Continue reading Exam Pressure and Mental Health →

  The ways in which we speak about mental ill health are crucial. It is only in recent decades that conversations about mental health have really begun to open up for the public.   Stigma There are many ways in which the language of mental … Continue reading Reflections from the Therapy Room – The Words We Use →

“The right to the highest attainable standard of both physical and mental health is a fundamental human right.” World Health Organisation As an independent cognitive behavioural therapy centre, we are all too aware of the need for GP practices to have mental health expertise available … Continue reading The #123GP Campaign →

As new research into the prevalence of mental health difficulties is published, we are seeing a common trend – that across many types of problem, including depression, anxiety disorders, trauma and eating disorders, the gender gap is narrowing. In older research, we used to see … Continue reading The Impact of Gender Perception in Seeking Help →

‘We were crying out for help and support for a very very long time and she shouldn’t have deteriorated to this level’ Claire – Mother of Jess, BBC Panorama It was hard to hear this heart wrenching plea issued by a mother on last week’s … Continue reading Why are we neglecting the mental health epidemic facing children and young people? →

‘The humanity we share is more important than the mental illnesses we may not.’ Elyn Saks After viewing the inspirational TED talk ‘A Tale of Mental Illness – From the Inside’ by Elyn Saks, a woman with schizophrenia, these words have resonated profoundly.   ‘What’s … Continue reading Reflections from the Therapy Room – ‘The Humanity We Share’ →