Amani Counselling & Hypnotherapy

19/02/2026

Such a valuable page for parents and carers to follow. So much insight and great advice.

A Child’s Voice – I am 15

Today, we’re continuing The Inside Story of Emotional Regulation, exploring how regulation develops from ages 2 to 16.

At fifteen, I’m expected to manage complex emotions, social pressure and growing responsibility with independence.
I may look capable and self-assured, but my brain is still developing the systems that help me regulate stress, impulses and overwhelm.

When emotions build, I might shut down, lash out, or pull away — not because I don’t care, but because my nervous system is overloaded.

Big reactions at this age aren’t about attitude or a lack of effort.
They’re a sign that I still need support to regulate safely.

Understanding my developmental stage — not just my age — helps adults respond with trust rather than control.
For neurodivergent young people, emotional regulation can develop several years later, meaning fifteen-year-old bodies may still need younger nervous system support.

When adults stay steady, respectful and available, they help me build regulation skills that support real independence.

Follow for further posts in this series.
Link in comments below ⬇️ or via Linktree Shop in Bio for our Managing Big Feelings Toolkit.

17/02/2026

🤍🤍

11/02/2026

Spring is coming! It is my favourite season and should be celebrated! If anyone is thinking about making a wreath to welcome it in, Lisa offers the most wonderful workshops!
🎉🌸🌻🌼🌺🌷🪻🎉

Spring wreath making workshops 2026
🌱🌷🌱🪻🌱

Dates available below 👇🏻

Thursday 19th March 7pm (fully booked)

Friday 20th March 7pm

Saturday 21st March 10am

Saturday 21st March 2pm

Thursday 26th March 7pm

Friday 27th March 7pm

Saturday 28th March 10am

Saturday 28th March 2pm

All materials tea,coffee and treats included BYOB optional

£50 per person

Please message to arrange your booking

Lisa 🌸

13/01/2026

I definitely have had my favourite cups and songs and memories along the way. This made me smile.

For years, I used a certain mug for my morning cup of tea. One that someone bought me as a present once.
They probably forgot they’d even given it to me.

I once listened to a song on repeat for days because I fell in love with it after someone told me it was their favourite.
They probably forgot they’d even told me that.

I once had an outfit that I wore over and over after someone stopped me in the street to compliment me on it.
They probably forgot they’d even done that.

They probably forgot.
But I didn’t.

I remembered it all, to the point where the mug and the song and the outfit became little things in my life that brought me great joy.

So never underestimate the little things you do every day. The seemingly trivial, forgettable things.

Because, whilst they might be trivial and forgettable to you,
I can almost guarantee that for someone else…

they could be entirely
the opposite.

*******

Becky Hemsley 2023
Beautiful artwork by Emil Ungureanu

Once is from 'Letters from Life': https://amzn.to/49o99eq
(affiliate link)

24/10/2025

This is something that is a normal part of the grieving process, but often takes people by surprise. 🤍🕊️

That moment catches you off guard.
The jealousy.
The quiet, shameful kind that creeps in when you see someone else still living the life you lost.

You catch a glimpse — a daughter hugging her mom, a couple arguing over dinner plans, a dad laughing on the phone — and something twists in your chest.
You don’t want to feel it, but you do.
Because they still get what you don’t.

You’d never wish them harm, you’re not that kind of bitter.
But for one second, you’d trade everything just to have what they have again.
Just one more ordinary day.
Just one more chance to complain about something that doesn’t even matter.

And then the guilt hits.
Because grief messes with your heart like that —
it makes you jealous of the living,
and you hate yourself for it.

This jealousy doesn’t mean you’re bitter or cruel.
It means you loved someone so deeply that watching others live what you lost hurts like hell.
It’s grief, showing up wearing envy’s face.

14/09/2025

Life can be beautiful, challenging, sad, happy, exciting, devastating and so much more. Each experience is part of our journey and is what makes us the people we are today. Sometimes we forget the challenges we have had to overcome to just be where we are today. Some of us are in the midsts of new challenges and others have challenges ahead, but with each challenge we learn and grow, even if we don’t like the lesson at the time, somehow we remarkably survive.

Your life is like a quilt
And everybody weaves their share
Some weave huge great tapestries
And some weave tiny squares

Some squares bring you laughter
And some will bring you tears
Some are stitched and sewn by those
Who are no longer here

In places there are threads
From people choosing not to stay
And every time you touch these threads
It brings back all the pain

But every little thread
That weaves its joy and pain and fun
Has stitched a quilt together
Of the person you’ve become

And every little tiny part
Has slowly taught you how
To weave your contribution
Into the blanket you have now

So I know there are squares that comfort you
And some that you dislike
But without them all you wouldn’t have
This patchwork of your life

*******

Becky Hemsley 2020
Beautiful artwork by Lee Seung Hee

'Patchwork' is from the book Talking to the Wild
https://a.co/d/4I7vHJl

11/08/2025

For anyone curious about ways in which to support yourself through perimenopause or menopause, this event may be just what you need.

The kids are heading back to school.
The summer chaos is over.
Now… it’s your turn. 🌿

Join us on Wednesday 27th August, 7–9pm for Balance and Beyond – the perfect post-summer reset for your health and hormones.

With guest speaker Clare Nisbet from Tingle and Glow Nutritional Therapy , we’ll dive into gut health, perimenopause, menopause and how to feel your best again – with practical tips you can actually use.

✨ Real talk, expert advice, and a supportive space with brilliant local women.

🎟 Secure your spot now and make this the night you start feeling like you again. ➡️ https://shorturl.at/pK4gO

17/07/2025

So true. Grief is so individual and unpredictable. 💕

Grief reshapes you in ways even the closest friends can’t always see. One day, you might show up with what looks like strength, answering calls, making jokes, doing your best impression of ‘okay.’ The next, the smallest thing, an empty chair, a song, a scent, can knock the breath from your lungs.

And it confuses people. They start to think you're unpredictable, inconsistent, maybe even unfair, offering comfort to one person but withdrawing from another, showing up for one event but skipping the next. They don’t see the quiet math behind every choice, what little energy you had, what emotional toll you could afford, what it cost just to get out of bed.

It’s not hypocrisy. It’s survival. When you’re grieving, you’re not living by double standards, you’re living without a map, trying to carry a weight that changes shape every day. And sometimes, it’s not that you don’t care. It’s that you simply can’t.

And the truth is, it doesn’t resolve quickly. Grief takes years, YEARS, and even after two, everything can still feel tangled and raw. The calendar moves on, but your heart doesn’t always follow. You find yourself still stumbling, still suddenly overwhelmed, still wondering when the world will feel solid under your feet again. And it doesn’t just change you, it ripples through the whole family, shifting dynamics in ways no one expected. Unspoken tension, distance, roles that used to make sense now fractured by loss.

Sometimes, in the fog of your own pain, you become less attuned to the feelings of others, not because you’re selfish, but because your system is overloaded. The emotional bandwidth shrinks. You miss cues, you forget to ask, you pull away when someone else needed closeness. It can look like neglect, like disinterest, even like coldness. But it’s not the same as cruelty or abuse. It’s not rooted in harm, it’s rooted in exhaustion.

But slowly, gently, the weight begins to shift. The days don’t always get easier, but you get stronger. And though healing doesn’t mean forgetting, one day you’ll find yourself breathing a little deeper, laughing without guilt, reaching out without fear. Not because the grief is gone, but because you’ve learned how to carry it with grace.

Writer: Grieving Healing

Artist: Unknown

Source: https://ie.pinterest.com/pin/20618110781565323/

💛💛💛

16/07/2025

25/04/2025

A beautiful poem💕

The Mountain

If the mountain seems too big today, then climb a hill instead;
If morning brings you sadness
it’s okay to stay in bed.
If the day ahead feels heavy and your plans feel like a curse,
There’s no shame in rearranging,
don’t make yourself feel worse.

If a shower stings like needles
and a bath feels like you’ll drown;
If you haven’t washed your hair for days, don’t throw away your crown!
A day is not a lifetime.
A rest is not defeat.
Don’t think of it as failure,
Just a quiet, kind retreat.

It’s okay to take a moment
From an anxious, fractured mind.
The world will not stop turning
While you get realigned!
The mountain will still be there
When you want to try again
You can climb it in your own time,
Just love yourself till then!

Laura Ding-Edwards

24/04/2025

I'm delighted to be offering Single Session Therapy.

Sometimes, one focused conversation is all it takes to gain clarity and get unstuck.
Single Session Therapy is a one-off, stand-alone appointment designed to help you explore a specific issue in a meaningful and practical way. It’s ideal if you're:
✔ Facing a difficult decision
✔ Feeling overwhelmed or unsure where to start
✔ Struggling with something that keeps coming up
✔ Looking for a fresh perspective or new tools to move forward

In our session, we’ll work together to understand what’s going on, explore what’s holding you back, and come up with clear, practical steps you can take away and start using straight away. It’s a chance to pause, reflect, and reset — without the need to commit to ongoing sessions.

Many people find that one session is enough to make a real difference. But if the strategies we explore together don’t quite resolve things over time, or new challenges arise, you’re always welcome to return for more support.
This is a flexible, empowering way of working — and I’m really looking forward to sharing it with you.
If you're ready to move forward, even just a little, let's have that conversation.

Email: amanihypnotherapy@gmail.com
www.amanitherapies.com

13/04/2025

Today marks 4 years since my mum died.

As so many of you will know grief takes time. Some of us have walked this path for a while, adjusting through the process of grief to a point where we are able to meet occasions such as birthdays, religious events, milestone moments and even the day of the person’s death with an enduring bond. This connection helps us to carry our loved one into our present and our future with a love that is sweet and melancholic, rather than a pain that is brutal and sharp.

For others the journey will have been longer and harder, never really having been able to process the pain of their grief and the magnitude of loss. For them they are unable to adjust to a world without their loved one. There is a feeling of being “stuck” in the moment their loved one died, as if time stopped.

Finally, there are people who are at the start of their journey, where the pain of the loss is still so sharp it takes your breath away, your mind can’t grasp the fact that they are gone and you keep wanting to pick up the phone to tell them something or expect them to walk into the room or perhaps you are still waiting for them to come home from work. The stage where you can’t begin to imagine there could ever be an end to this pain.

If any of these resonate with you, I am sending love and support to you all and hope that in time you will find the peace that can come with loss. If you are “stuck” in prolonged grief I encourage you to look for support to help you adjust, helping you to find your light that has been dulled for so long. For those of you at the beginning of your journey, allow yourself the time you need for your grief. Make room for it and it will over time, become more bearable as gradually life grows around it and you are able to adjust to a new normal with them safely tucked into your heart.