Category Archives: friendship

Thich Nhat Hanh on those who harm others

“When another person makes you suffer, it is because he suffers deeply within himself, and his suffering is spilling over. He does not need punishment; he needs help. That’s the message he is sending.”  Thich Nhat Hanh  This feels wholly … Continue reading

Posted in 'evil', communication, compassion, conflict, congruence, core conditions, cultural questions, Disconnection, emotions, empathy, encounter, fear, friendship, growth, healing, human condition, interconnection & belonging, love, person centred, person centred theory, presence, relationship, sadness & pain, Thích Nhất Hạnh, therapeutic growth, therapeutic relationship, transformation, trauma, trust, vulnerability, working with clients | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

I’m a Therapist, But I’m Not Your Therapist – Kathleen Smith

https://www.thecut.com/2017/12/therapist-friends-ask-for-advice.html?utm_campaign=sou&utm_source=fb&utm_medium=s1 Click on the link above for Kathleen’s thoughtful and perceptive piece…. Palace Gate Counselling Service, Exeter Counselling in Exeter since 1994

Posted in boundaries, communication, community, conditions of worth, congruence, core conditions, cultural questions, empathy, empowerment, encounter, ethics, friendship, growth, healing, interconnection & belonging, internal locus of evaluation, non-directive counselling, power and powerlessness, presence, relationship, resilience, sadness & pain, therapeutic growth, therapeutic relationship, vulnerability | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Touch of Madness – David Dobbs

https://psmag.com/magazine/the-touch-of-madness-mental-health-schizophrenia Click on the link above for this wonderful (lengthy – and well worth the time investment) piece. Nev’s perspective aligns with how we see ‘madness’ at this service. Thank you, David – and Nev. Also thanks to Jason Hine, … Continue reading

Posted in anti-psychotics, civil rights, community, consciousness, cultural questions, cultural taboos, diagnoses of bipolar, Disconnection, diversity, empathy, empowerment, equality, ethics, external locus, friendship, healing, hearing voices, identity, interconnection & belonging, internal locus of evaluation, loneliness, loss, medical model, meditation, neuroscience, Nev Jones, non-conforming, organismic experiencing, perception, political, power and powerlessness, presence, psychiatric abuse, psychiatric drugs, psychiatry, psychosis, reality, sacred illness, schizophrenia, self, self concept, transformation, trauma, trust, violence, vulnerability | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Oriah Mountain Dreamer – The Invitation

‘It doesn’t interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart’s longing. It doesn’t interest me how old you are. I want to … Continue reading

Posted in acceptance, awakening, beauty, compassion, congruence, consciousness, core conditions, creativity, Dance, embodiment, emotions, empathy, encounter, fear, flow, friendship, gratitude, grief, human condition, internal locus of evaluation, kindness & compassion, love, meaning, mindfulness, natural world, Oriah Mountain Dreamer, perception, poetry, power and powerlessness, presence, reality, relationship, resilience, risk, sadness & pain, self, self concept, surrender, transformation, vulnerability, wonder | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Paulo Coelho on Awakening love

“Love is not to be found in someone else, but in ourselves; we simply awaken it. But in order to do that, we need the other person. The universe only makes sense when we have someone to share our feelings … Continue reading

Posted in awakening, consciousness, encounter, friendship, interconnection & belonging, love, relationship | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Suzanne Moore on Leonard Cohen, death & Marianne

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/aug/08/leonard-cohen-letter-to-marianne-ihlen-was-poetic-and-candid?utm_term=Autofeed&CMP=fb_cif#link_time=1470654768 Click on the link for this article by Suzanne Moore about Leonard Cohen’s beautiful letter sent to Marianne Ihlen, his erstwhile partner and muse, as she lay dying at 81. The writer of this blog post cried considerably when … Continue reading

Posted in acceptance, beauty, communication, compassion, congruence, core conditions, creativity, cultural questions, cultural taboos, dying, emotions, encounter, friendship, gratitude, grief, humour, interconnection & belonging, loss, love, meaning, poetry, presence, relationship, surrender, tears, vulnerability | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Anne Lamott – Love is sovereign here

We have a bit of a theme this week around how helpfully to respond to the violence and craziness in our world, our fear and sense of powerlessness in the face of all that, and our own more difficult feelings. Follow … Continue reading

Posted in 'evil', Anne Lamott, compassion, conflict, consciousness, core conditions, criminal justice model, cultural questions, Disconnection, empathy, empowerment, encounter, equality, ethics, fear, forgiveness, friendship, good, healing, human condition, interconnection & belonging, kindness & compassion, love, meaning, perception, power and powerlessness, presence, resilience, sadness & pain, shadow, trauma, violence, vulnerability | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Belonging: Be the Longing – Toko-pa

Click on the link at the end of this piece for Toko-pa’s wonderful post. ‘The ache to belong in friendship and community can be so pervasive that it colours everything we do.‘ The writer stumbled across these words yesterday, and … Continue reading

Posted in acceptance, actualizing tendency, beauty, consciousness, core conditions, creativity, cultural questions, Disconnection, fear, friendship, grief, identity, immanence, interconnection & belonging, John O'Donohue, kindness & compassion, loneliness, loss, love, meaning, non-conforming, perception, presence, relationship, sadness & pain, self, spirituality, surrender, Toko-pa, transformation, trust, vulnerability | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Henri Nouwen on friendship & shadow

“There is a twilight zone in our hearts that we ourselves cannot see. Even when we know quite a lot about ourselves – our gifts and weaknesses, our ambitions and aspirations, our motives and our drives – large parts of … Continue reading

Posted in acceptance, consciousness, core conditions, encounter, friendship, Henri Nouwen, identity, interconnection & belonging, love, perception, relationship, self, self concept, shadow | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Life of Death – Marsha Onderstijn

Extraordinarily resonant and tender animated film, about relationship, love, loss and letting go. Five minutes of beauty and heartswell. The writer sobbed, and felt softer and more loving afterwards. Gorgeous music too by Ramon de Wilde. Palace Gate Counselling Service, Exeter Counselling … Continue reading

Posted in acceptance, beauty, compassion, creativity, cultural taboos, dying, emotions, empathy, encounter, friendship, grief, immanence, interconnection & belonging, kindness & compassion, love, metaphor & dream, power and powerlessness, presence, relationship, sadness & pain, surrender, tears, touch, transformation, trust, vulnerability | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment