Hello and welcome to Home & Soul Therapies.

The ability to self-regulate our emotions is something we learn early on in life.  Often it is modelled to us by our parents or caregivers. But if we grew up in a chaotic home with dysfunctional relational dynamics we don’t have the same opportunity to learn emotional regulation and this follows us into adulthood.

When we find ourselves as adults who are unable to self-soothe, calm ourselves down or regulate our emotions, this doesn’t boil down to a personal deficiency, it’s learned behaviour that has been hardwired into our nervous system. But this doesn’t mean we can’t take back control. The brain is plastic and hypnotherapy and mindfulness are potent tools that can help embed a sense of calm and control into our day to day lives and functioning.

Going about with daily life errands when you’re carrying depression along with you can feel like walking round with a heavy weighted jacket on or trying to walk through thick mud. It’s not easy, yet sometimes we can put on a mask, pretend it’s all ok and fool everyone around us. Often, this inadvertent deception does us no favours but we feel forced to ‘put on face’.

Life is like a piece of artwork. Whilst some of it is driven by circumstances, access to opportunity and other factors, we can have a great deal of input into the life we want to build for ourselves. Just like with a piece of art with you as the artist, you can select the colours, the vibrancy, the contours, the level of contrast and the size of the frame.

With life, to a degree, you can choose the company that accompanies you on the journey, the activities you choose to occupy your free time, the degree of effort you put into your work life, friendships and relationships, and the thoughts that inhabit your mind. But with artwork, a lot of how good the finished piece is depends on the skill and dedication of the artist. With life, we have the opportunity to hone our ability to exert the greatest level of influence possible over our lives and what it looks like.

Change can be challenging or daunting for many people. But change is a necessary medicine to enable us to grow and develop. But sometimes an unexpected change can catch us off guard and knock us sideways. Stress might build up over some time as we try to cope with the change, leaving us feeling overexerted and depleted. Hypnotherapy can help rebuild your sense of vibrancy and energy levels.

Sometimes when interpersonal conflict breaks out, the best stance we can take is a detached one, creating some distance between ourselves and the scenario at hand. This is usually easier said than done, especially when it involves people who are close to us or who we care about. Mindfulness and somatic breath work can help us hit the pause button before responding on impulse.

Preparing for an interview, presentation or sports event? Hypnotherapy can help synchronise your efforts and enable you to have greater self-belief.

Trauma literally reshapes the brain. It takes a full holistic approach to resolve wounds of old and enable you to release emotional baggage.