Tag Archives: Handling Painful Emotions

Noticing How Desire Can Pull You Away From Your Values

Posted on February 26, 2013 by

When does desire pull you away from your values? It might be the impulse to buy more stuff that you don’t really need; watch TV instead of doing some exercise; let work dominate your  life; make poor choices that change your … Continue reading →

Posted in Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT), Decision making, Mindfulness, Values | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

How Moments of Joy and Pain Can Help You Work Out What Really Matters To You

Posted on December 11, 2012 by

In this noisy world, where we are bombarded with messages telling us what to think and do, it can be hard to work out what is really important to us. In this Big Think Interview, Steve Hayes gives two suggestions for … Continue reading →

Posted in Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT), Psychological Flexibility, Values | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Tackling Our Culture of Cruelty

Posted on December 6, 2012 by

A recent Panorama investigation found systematic abuse of elderly residents going on in a UK care home.  Some of the most vulnerable people in our society were being ritually abused by their so-called carers: On the top floor of a … Continue reading →

Posted in Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT), Behaviour change, Psychological Flexibility, Stress and resilience, Values, Work | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

What To Do With Feelings of Shame

Posted on October 11, 2012 by

Do you think it is bad to feel ashamed? In this interview, Maarten Aalberse suggests that we have a tendency to feel ashamed about feeling shame and that this causes us problems. He suggests responding to those feelings with empathy … Continue reading →

Posted in Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT), Mindfulness | Tagged , , , | 9 Comments

Why I Am Not As Empathic As I Want to Be

Posted on August 29, 2012 by

Last year, my daughter Ellie, had her wisdom teeth out. It was horrible. It is a painful and unpleasant procedure and, to make matters worse, Ellie has a needle phobia. Ellie felt terrified but she hid it well and looked completely calm. … Continue reading →

Posted in Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT), Psychological Flexibility, Stress and resilience | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

On Holding Our Feelings Gently

Posted on June 8, 2012 by

This post is based on some writing by Dr Hank Robb. Hank is a deeply wise psychologist based in Oregon. You can see a video of him here. Sometimes, when we act to make something important in our lives, we experience painful … Continue reading →

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The Benefits of Accepting Your Emotions and Treating Yourself Like A Child

Posted on May 2, 2012 by

Recently I was a bit upset. I was feeling sad, anxious and angry about a challenging situation in my life. I am not good with anger. My natural tendency is to fight it. I try to fix the feeling. My … Continue reading →

Posted in Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT), Stress and resilience | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Successful People Often Feel Bad Too

Posted on March 28, 2012 by

For most of my adult life I have worked in roles where people told me the truth about how they felt. This privilege has meant that I know an important secret. The secret is that most of us have good … Continue reading →

Posted in Meaning, Mindfulness, Stress and resilience | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

If You Knew You Would Succeed, You Could Enjoy The Journey

Posted on March 22, 2012 by

For many years I had this quote on my wall. It was a reminder that I have a tendency to waste the current moment worrying about the future. I would have enjoyed medical school much more, if I had known … Continue reading →

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How to Pitch an Idea (or, How ‘Dragon’s Den’ Relates to ACT)

Posted on March 5, 2012 by

Dragon’s Den is a show where budding entrepreneurs pitch their ideas to a group of successful business people in the hope of winning some investment. The show fascinates me. I love spotting academic theories about influence and negotiation being played … Continue reading →

Posted in Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT), Behaviour change, Decision making, Values, Work | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments