The Transition Into Motherhood What Is Matrescence? Most people have heard of adolescence—the developmental transition from childhood to adulthood. Fewer people have heard of matrescence, the developmental transition into motherhood. Matrescence describes the physical, emotional, psychological, social, relational, and identity changes that occur when a woman becomes a mother. It is not a single event that happens after birth. Rather, it is an ongoing process of adaptation and

One of the reasons ADHD, OCD and Complex PTSD can be difficult to distinguish is that they often occur together. Research suggests that people with ADHD are significantly more likely to experience PTSD than those without ADHD, with some studies finding PTSD rates between 28% and 36% among adults with ADHD. Individuals with ADHD may also be more vulnerable to developing PTSD following traumatic experiences. Similarly, ADHD and OCD frequently co-occur. While ADHD is often assoc

Most people enter relationships longing to feel deeply seen, understood and emotionally safe. We want to know that our partner is in our corner.We want to feel valued, prioritised and connected. We want to feel like we matter to the person who matters most to us. Attachment is what brings people together. It creates closeness, bonding and connection. But attunement is what helps relationships feel emotionally safe and nourishing over time. Attunement is the ability to emotion

Dopamine has been dubbed “the reward chemical”. However, neuroscience shows us that the chemical activities that dopamine is involved in is actually more like the train signalling system. Here is the metaphor: In a Neurotypical Brain When a task appears, the brain sends a dopamine signal. That signal says: “This task is worth starting.” The signal turns the green light on. The passengers (AKA: your thoughts, motivation, focus, and emotional energy) get onto the train And the

What Actually Happens in Trauma-Focused Therapy? (Part 4 of 4) When people hear the words trauma therapy , they often imagine talking through painful memories in detail. But trauma-focused therapy isn’t really about retelling the story. The focus is actually about helping the brain and body finish processing experiences that were never fully processed at the time a distressing/traumatic event occurred. When something overwhelming happens, the nervous system moves into a stre

What Therapy to Have When You Don’t Want Therapy (Part 3 of 4) You may not know this- but sometimes people come to therapy knowing they want things to change…but feeling unsure about whether they actually want to talk about the past. That hesitation makes a lot of sense, and is very common. For many people, the idea of revisiting painful experiences can feel overwhelming or simply too much. Some worry it will make things worse. Others already know how intense it can feel when

Why Therapy Can Sometimes Leave You Feeling Tired or Emotional (Part 2 of 4) Another thing people sometimes notice when they begin doing deeper work in therapy is that they feel surprisingly tired, foggy, or emotional afterwards. You might find yourself thinking: "Why do I feel worse?" "Why can’t I stop thinking about what we talked about?" "I went home and fell immediately to sleep" "I don't want to do anything this week- I just want to stay at home" This can be a normal exp

Why Trauma Therapy Doesn't Always Start with the Trauma (Part 1 of 4) Many people come to therapy expecting that healing means diving straight into painful memories. But trauma-informed therapy usually moves a little differently than that. More often, we start by building "a felt sense of safety". This is process is known by lots of names; such as "psychological safety", "resourcing", and the term "pacing" is also used to describe how a psychologist might take things as slowl

I have created a booklet (PDF) to download explaining narcissism and offering education and advice on how to manage these very toxic and...