Can Bears and Meerkats be Friends?

Posted: 10/05/2022

Maybe not in the wilds of nature, but in the wild world of our feelings many unexpected things can go together. Look inside on any typical day and you may notice a swirling mix of emotions and body signals. The limitations of language mean …Read more

How to create a team self-care plan

Posted: 25/01/2022

The importance of self-care Even the most experienced and skilled professionals can feel overwhelmed and heartbroken when hearing people’s stories of trauma and loss. When you work in a role that involves supporting other people—like social work, teaching, healthcare, childcare or counselling—self-care is fundamentally …Read more

Taking a strengths approach to working with young people

Posted: 10/02/2021

Young people’s lives are in a constant state of flux. They are dealing with growth spurts, the unnerving appearance of body hair in odd places, the making and breaking of relationships, changing schools, hormones, brain restructuring (yep, there are a lot of upgrades happening …Read more

Creating a team self-care plan

Posted: 22/01/2020

In many workplaces across Australia, many of the conversations in the lunch room are about bushfires and related topics (like the impact of climate change and how we feel about government responses). While Australia manages this most recent manifestation of climate change, these issues …Read more

Helping children express emotions through art

Posted: 22/01/2020

When children return to school after the holidays, the playground is often abuzz with stories about road trips to visit grandparents, movies with friends, hanging out at the pool, bike rides, camping with family, conquering of computer games, shopping trips, BBQs or just mooching …Read more

Supporting students with the curveballs of life

Posted: 22/01/2020

In this article we talk to student counsellor, Jack Bornyan, about how he used The Nature of Strengths cards in his work with a secondary student. Jack is currently completing a Bachelor of Counselling and is on placement at a secondary college in Frankston, …Read more

Respectful Relationships at Christmas

Posted: 05/11/2019

If someone were to ask each of us what Christmas meant to us, we would probably all have a different answer. We might talk about Christmas trees covered in wonky decorations made by our children, the ‘shushed’ wrapping of presents late at night or …Read more

Respectful Relationships: What I Want More Of

Posted: 03/09/2019

Money? Happiness? Love? To be that special person in someone’s life or to have that special someone? There are lots of things we would like more of but isn’t RESPECT at the top of the list when we consider an intimate partner relationship? Intimate …Read more

Red Herrings

Posted: 22/07/2019

Red herrings throw us off the scent and distract us from what we need or want to be doing. What red herrings do you use? I picked up Inside Out: A journalling Kit and selected the card about red herrings. It made me think …Read more

Self-care is Not Self-ish

Posted: 13/05/2019

As a social worker, I have been taught I need to practise self-care as this will assist me to continue to help others. Whilst I agree that self-care does have this function, I feel like the self gets lost in this explanation since the …Read more

Picture of the Future

Posted: 06/03/2019

Picture this: You are in a room with your extended family. It might be a celebratory lunch, a special birthday, Christmas dinner, or some other festive occasion. And yet, it’s not quite as exhilarating, and definitely not like it ‘used’ to be. The children …Read more

Self-Care at Work: Giving, Receiving and Balance

Posted: 15/02/2019

In our work, regardless of the industry, we often find ourselves being pulled one way and another … both at the same time. How do we look after ourselves so that we don’t ‘snap’ in half? Maybe it’s about balance. Whilst looking through the …Read more

Hypervigilance

Posted: 23/01/2019

‘While our so-called “panic hormones” are part of our self-defence mechanism and are therefore to be celebrated, a few skills to “unpanic ourselves” and decompress are also crucial to have in our bag of tricks.’ When you think of a meerkat, what image comes …Read more

Note to Self: I am a Work in Progress

Posted: 23/01/2019

At this time of year we are often asked, ‘What is your New Year’s resolution?’ And, you know, that can often make us think that we have to change something, or that we need to ‘fix’ something about ourselves. I have chosen to believe …Read more

Body Signals®—Signposts for Feelings

Posted: 26/10/2018

Our body signals are the gateway to recognising, interpreting and managing our feelings. That is why Body Intelligence (BQ) is such a fundamental aspect of developing Emotional Intelligence (EQ). There are times when each of us, no matter how skilled we may be, has …Read more

How can optimism skills help people?

Posted: 26/09/2018

The research into the psychology of optimism is based on studies into a condition called ‘learned helplessness’. Psychologists and other researchers have discovered that people or animals show changes in behaviour when they decide they can do nothing to improve or change a situation they find themselves in. These changes include lowered …Read more

Body Signals®: Wisdom from Within

Posted: 26/09/2018

Our body communicates its wisdom to us long before our conscious mind can get a word in.  That’s why body signals are sometimes called our ‘early warning signs’, and they are an important key to staying safe, and building social and emotional wellbeing. How …Read more

Self-Care: Not Just an Optional Add-on

Posted: 30/08/2018

Self-care should be seen by practitioners and organisations alike as a fundamental part of human service work, and not just an optional add-on. People in the ‘helping’ professions—such as social workers, counsellors, teachers, carers, and health professionals—juggle many potential challenges everyday including high workloads, …Read more