Kate Bethell Therapy

16/12/2025

Christmas can be stressful for so many reasons!

Some feel pressure to spend more than they can afford so as to not let down loved ones. Remember that people who truly care about you will not worry about material things as much as you think they do.

Over indulgence and lack of exercise can also mental health so taking care of yourself is very important for your mental wellbeing.

Family conflict can really impact how you’re feeling. Setting boundaries is key for healthy relationships.

Christmas is not your thing. You may not like Christmas full stop or your culture doesn’t celebrate it. If this is the case there are many other ways of making sure you are keeping mentally healthy. One way of putting a positive spin on it is thinking of the Christmas break as a relaxing and reviving winter break.

Remember what ever is happening, it’s OK not to be OK and ask for help.

Kate X

16/12/2025

09/12/2025

While Christmas is often portrayed as a season of joy and celebration, it is not a joyful time for everyone.

It’s important to remember that everyone experiences the Christmas differently, and kindness, understanding, and support can help make this time easier for those struggling.

For all those who are struggling at this time.

Kate X

04/12/2025

We talk to ourselves more than anyone else does in our thoughts, self-talk, worries, plans, and private conversations that no one ever hears. And the tone of that inner voice has a huge impact on how we feel day-to-day.

If your mind is filled with criticism, pressure, or harsh expectations, it’s understandable that life feels heavier.
But when you make small changes to how you speak to yourself, being fair, realistic, and a bit more understanding, everything becomes easier to manage.

Making your mind a “nice place to be” doesn’t mean being positive all the time. It simply means treating yourself with the same fairness and compassion you’d offer someone you care about. Noticing when you’re being hard on yourself. Challenging thoughts that aren’t true. Allowing yourself rest. Giving yourself credit for the things you handle every day.

You can’t control every thought, but you can shape the environment you live in mentally.

A kinder inner world leads to a calmer outer one.

Kate X

03/12/2025

Self-Care Reminder!

This season can be a whirlwind, and it’s easy to get caught up in the chaos. But remember, just like your phone’s battery, you also need recharging!

Don’t let your energy run low. Take a moment today to look after yourself.

👉Put your phone down, disconnect from the digital world, and enjoy some quiet time.
👉Treat yourself to a bubble bath, a good book, or a spa day at home.
👉Practise belly breathing or mindfulness to bring you to your window of tolerance and feel grounded.
👉Eat nutritious foods that fuel your body and make you feel good from the inside out.
👉Get active! Whether it’s a brisk walk, yoga, or dancing around your room, move your body.

Remember, you can’t pour from an empty cup. Take care of yourself so you can shine your brightest!

Kate X

02/12/2025

🎄Hello December!🎄

The run up to Christmas can be fun and exciting for some but for others who are suffering hardships or grieving it can be a very difficult time.

Please do check in on my page throughout December for lots of tips on how to help you get through the season if you’re struggling.

Kate x

25/11/2025

What is therapy — and how long does it take?

Therapy isn’t about having all the answers and it’s not about being “broken” or needing to be fixed.

Therapy is:
A supportive space to explore what’s happening inside
A relationship where you feel safe, heard and understood
A place to learn new ways of coping, relating and growing

And as for how long it takes? There’s no one-size-fits-all timeline. We’re all carrying different experiences, at different depths.

Some people begin to feel lighter in just a few sessions and for others, therapy maybe longer, untangling what’s been there for years, building confidence, resilience and self-trust along the way.

If you’d like to explore these questions more deeply, I’ve written a new blog all about it 👇

📖 Scan or click the QR code to read: “What is therapy? And how long does it take?”

You’re welcome here, exactly as you are.

Kate X

24/11/2025

Better Sleep, Brighter Days 🌙

Struggling to get a restful night? These are some simple steps to build a stronger sleep foundation:

I use tools like Dr David Lee’s R.E.S.T. programme (part of a cbti approach for insomnia) and follow the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (nice) guidelines for sleep health.
Whether you’re dealing with occasional restlessness or persistent insomnia, these approaches can guide you towards deeper, more restorative sleep.

💤 Good sleep matters—not just for the night, but for the day that follows.

If you’d like help building your sleep routine or winding down the mind before bed, I’m here.

Kate X
niceguidelines sleephygiene healthyhabits therapytools

21/11/2025

🌈 What if today is the day something wonderful begins? 🌈

What if the message you send reconnects you to someone you care about?
What if the courage you show opens the next door?
What if the tiniest shift you make changes everything?

We often think change has to be big and dramatic, but progress usually begins with small steps.
Possibly a single choice
Maybe a tiny thought
Perhaps a spark of curiosity
Sometimes a moment of kindness — especially to yourself
There is so much life you haven’t lived yet and so many people who haven’t met you yet. There are so many memories waiting to exist because you will be there.
Something wonderful might be starting right now. 💫

Kate X

20/11/2025

You tell yourself, “This time will be different.” You track your food, avoid anything you think you shouldn’t have, and push harder with exercise. It feels like it must be about willpower — that if you could just stick to the plan, everything would fall into place. Yet guilt still creeps in, followed by shame and the belief that one slip means you’ve failed. You swing between rigid control and overwhelm, and no matter how much you try, it never feels like enough.

If that resonates, you are not alone. Food and body image struggles are complex, influenced by biology, culture, and life experiences. For many who felt emotionally overwhelmed or unsupported growing up, these patterns around food weren’t random — they were ways to cope and feel safer when emotions felt too big.

Behaviours like restricting, bingeing, obsessing about food, or pushing yourself too hard can become attempts to manage anxiety or soothe pain. And because society praises thinness and “discipline,” these survival strategies often get praised rather than understood.

When you’ve been stuck in this cycle for a long time, the answer isn’t more pressure or perfection. It’s compassion. Trauma-informed therapy I offer gently explores what’s beneath the behaviour, what it might be protecting, and what you truly need now.

Healing isn’t about control — it’s about nurturing safety, listening to your body with kindness, and slowly creating space for new, healthier ways to feel safe in your own skin.

Kate X

19/11/2025

The hidden roots of anxiety & self-doubt:
Sometimes we tell ourselves, “That was a long time ago.” Or “I’m over that now.” Maybe we’ve even heard others say, “Just move on,” or “Man up.”

But the truth is, our childhood doesn’t always stay in the past. The things we learned — or didn’t learn — about safety, love, belonging, and worthiness can quietly shape how we respond to life today.

That child part of us might still be trying to protect us, still carrying beliefs formed long before we had the power or perspective to question them.

It can show up as anxiety, people-pleasing, perfectionism, or that familiar sense of “I’m not good enough” — without us even realising where it began.

Therapy isn’t about blaming the past; it’s about understanding it. When we start to listen with compassion to those younger parts of ourselves, healing can begin — and life starts to feel lighter, freer, and more ours.

You don’t have to ‘get over it’. You can begin to understand it — and that changes everything.

Kate X

12/11/2025

Trauma isn’t just “a big event.”

It’s anything that overwhelmed your nervous system at a time when you didn’t have the resources, the support, or the safety you needed.

Sometimes it looks like coping so well on the outside while carrying far too much inside.

Trauma shows up in different ways for different people:
• feeling “too much” or “not enough”
• shutting down when things get overwhelming
• always waiting for something to go wrong
• people-pleasing, overworking, or taking the blame
• feeling disconnected from your body or emotions
• struggling to rest, trust, or soften

These are not character flaws. They are adaptations — clever, creative, protective — formed during a time when you needed them to survive.

But, what once kept you safe doesn’t have to guide your life forever.
With the right support, your nervous system can learn safety again. Your mind can release old stories and patterns of behaviour.

Healing isn’t about “getting over it.” It’s about gently teaching your body and mind that the danger has passed…
and that you deserve a life that feels calmer, kinder, and more like you.

You are not your trauma.

Kate X