Rory Nicol, Counselling and Psychotherapy Services

10/03/2019

Happiness is one of the most popular, hopeful, yet confused words out there. A room of people might agree on a working definition, but would they agree on how we actually achieve it?

This is how philosophy and science define the word in order to better understand it's purpose and value in our lives.

There are roughly two philosophical literatures on “happiness,” each corresponding to a different sense of the term. One uses ‘happiness’ as a value term, roughly synonymous with well-being or flourishing. The other body of work uses the word as a purely descriptive psychological term, akin ...

10/02/2019

Do you sometimes feel like an imposter even though you are well regarded and there's nothing wrong?
The article also holds a few good tips on how to alleviate the experience.

Impostor syndrome, feeling as though you are a fraud even though you are capable and qualified for a position, is more common than previously believed. Reaching out to family and friends outside the situation can help to reduce feelings of impostorism.

08/22/2019

Imagination (and I would include dreams) have a much greater effect on us than science previously realized, but many therapists already understood. I often work with imagination in sessions to complete unfinished business, or to better understand oneself. I believe that a strong imagination, connected to ourselves, those around us, and the world we live in, is a hallmark of a healthy and wise person.

Imagining something into reality is probably a desire as old as imagination itself, but there might just be a slight bit more to it than mere wishful thinking.

08/07/2019

I've come to the realization on how important it is to look around us, see how we've set up our society, and understand how it contributes, or harms, our mental health.

There's a reason kids are more anxious and depressed than ever.

08/05/2019

Much of the struggle in our psychology is the person we were vs the person we want to be vs the person we actually are.

By Christian Jarrett. To the researchers’ surprise, greater derailment preceded reductions in depression.

08/02/2019

Fascinating research. The science behind the gut, and the fact that our ego sense of self isn't the only factor determining our experience.

Study finds a correlation with early infant gut microbiota composition and temperament traits in toddlers. Positive emotionality was associated with higher Streptococcus and Bifidobacterium levels, while negative and fear reactivity was associated with reduced bacterial diversity.

07/22/2019

Equine therapy seems to be one of the most powerful forms of ptsd therapy available.

A new study found that PTSD scores dropped 87 percent after just six weeks of therapeutic horsemanship sessions.

07/18/2019

There's a common belief that how many Psychotherapies work is not biological. That couldn't be farther from the truth.

Dr Robert Berezin on the biology behind psychotherapy's effectiveness.

07/15/2019

I often bring up "the myth of Sisyphus" in my sessions, in the context that life can feel as if we're pushing a heavy boulder up a hill, only to have it roll down, and for us to start over again. Stuck in this way can leave us feeling bored, numb, and disinterested. But it's important to ask ourselves questions when we realize life feels this way, such as: how does it feel to be living this way? When did life begin to feel this way? and more so, what do I need to risk with this pattern in order to experience my vitality again?

“Almost at the top, fam!”

07/11/2019

Have you heard of the Vagus nerve? We now better understand that traumatic experiences that persist after the event seem to be 'trapped' in the Vagus, which we may experience as (to name only a few) feelings of numbness, floating above ourselves, quick jerks, or tension/chronic pain. This is the reason that psychotherapies working with emotion and body awareness are key to accessing the Vagus nerve in order to heal.

“Stimulating” it leads to calmness, but how and why?

06/24/2019

I feel this is something many, many of us can relate to.

Obtaining new information may be addictive. Study finds information acquisition shares the same dopamine producing reward system pathway as food, financial rewards and drugs.

05/20/2019

Opening up to one's story of past trauma can be painful in the short-term, and life changing for the positive long term.

Opening up to past trauma is difficult but self-awareness is key to addressing issues that leave us vulnerable, says Gabor Maté

05/16/2019

This article speaks for itself.
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2019/mar/09/our-goal-is-to-halve-the-male-suicide-rate-why-no-frills-therapy-works-for-men

05/15/2019

Have you heard of attachment theory? As deeply tribal and relational beings, we all inevitably attach to others. As children, we learn about how the world works through attachment to our parents or caregivers. As adults, we relive our old attachment patterns with those around us. This helps us have happy lives, or causes us greater suffering, often not understanding why.
We are not permanently defined by our attachment patterns, even though it can feel that way. Psychotherapy has been shown to greatly help heal old attachment wounds.

The attachment theory argues that a strong emotional and physical bond to one primary caregiver in our first years of life, is critical to our development. I...

05/13/2019

Learn about it and get support if you find yourself in it. Or learn about it to support those around you. It could happen spontaneously, through recreational drug use, or through meditation.

One in 50 of us is a victim, left feeling like a robot – and yet even doctors have to Google it. Now one sufferer is intent on helping millions out of their torment

04/25/2019

From the Gestalt approach, we see this as a result of an inner polarity, when two internal personalities struggle against each other causing other painful symptoms to appear.
One approach to the work is to bring those polarized parts back into communication with each other, to have them support each other, rather than battle, which can ease or alleviates the symptoms (of OCD and anxiety in this case).

Study finds a correlation between the construct of personal responsibility and an increased risk of developing OCD and generalized anxiety disorder.

04/07/2019

On intergenerational trauma:
“The son needs to remember what the father wishes to forget.”
– Yiddish Proverb

In psychotherapy, we are not only doing our own work, but likely also the work that has been the elephant in the room for our family.

04/03/2019

What is mindfulness? And more importantly, what it isn't.

Meditation and other mindfulness practices are not a way to relax or escape from your problems.

03/04/2019

Have you ever experienced boredom and wondered what was going on?
https://buff.ly/2GYG2DC

02/28/2019

In some ways, I feel our European Western approach is still catching up on what it means to be a good person living a wise life. In other ways, through philosophy and science, we are bringing fundamental understanding and changes that can deepen our experience of development and wisdom. But if we miss important pieces, for example, reducing our meaning fulfillment through consumption, we will devastate ourselves.

Traditional methods of healing trauma could hold the key to helping us release our suffering and connect with each other again.

02/27/2019

The brain, like our body's muscles, gets strengthened in specific ways depending on how we use it.
https://buff.ly/2tAfdNx

A new study provides compelling evidence that different forms of meditation can change the brain in measurable ways.

02/25/2019

The research is in, time to get dancin'!

When we dance our brain releases endorphins, neurotransmitters that create a feeling of comfort, relaxation, fun and power, so dancing makes us happy.

02/18/2019

A short piece on what we know regarding the inheritance of trauma, as seen through the lens of Holocaust survivors.

Meeting Eva Fogelman, a worldclass authority on the psychological effects of the Holocaust on survivors and their children, in the aftermath of the Pittsburgh massacre might have been a somber affa…

02/14/2019

Is social media making you depressed?

Over the past decade, social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter have become a central part of everyday life. Despite their massive popularity, however, controversy abounds regarding their impact on mental health and wellbeing. A new research study by the University of Amsterdam (UvA) has now....

02/13/2019

Always been curious about couples therapy? Watch this video.

Belgian psychotherapist and relationship expert Esther Perel talks about why and how couples fight in this episode of Scandinavian talk show Skavlan. More Sk...

01/24/2019

Having a kid had changed my worldview significantly, more so than I could have previously imagined. My son asks me to exist more in the present moment and to be responsible of my actions more so than I've ever had to in my life.
This year, I'll be training in therapy approaches to help parents raise their young kids while supporting parents towards healing their own pasts to minimize the impact of sharing inter-generational trauma.

9. Recognize that connection, fun, and creativity are the best ways to promote positive behaviors and a cooperative attitude.

01/23/2019

Helping and giving to others has been shown many times to increase better self care as well (I always think of Bernie Glassman and his New York cheesecake factory as a massive example of the power of altruism) but it's also important to note that care for others is a path best travelled in the middle. Care for others, without losing yourself.

The benefits of giving rather than receiving are more than just spiritual

01/21/2019

There is something important about us dwelling on positive times in our past. What is it about bad weather that can bring about better mood and self esteem?
One idea that comes to my mind is that we so easily fall prey to our need for survival, which can trap us in negative, fearful feeling. Nostalgia can help break that cycle by reminding us that our lives have also, at different points, been lived with love. Bad weather slows us down, maybe in more ways we can realize, and reminds us to feel the caring moments, rather than present moment survival.

Research shows how adverse weather increases nostalgia, with positive effects.

01/11/2019

On the connection between your physical heart and your emotions.

The heart may not be the origin of our feelings, but it is affected by them.

12/12/2018

Introverts struggle with self-worth when they compare themselves against the social backdrop of extrovert idealization.

New research shows how introverts can learn to become happier with themselves.