A Held Space

29/07/2025

Highly recommend this episode of Between Us podcast - a perfect mix of personal experience, clinical experience and research on the topic of trauma.

Trauma shatters the illusion of everyday life, of safety, of our being as continuous - of the absolutes we share and take for granted, such as 'see you later' or
'See you in the morning'.

After trauma we need a 'relational home' to take our experiences of this shattering, to meet us there in the depths of it. Our relational home needs to take the depths of our despair, not shy away from it.

And a reframing of trauma 'recovery' as 'integration' into our lives. We are changed after trauma and we can't recover this sense of innocence about the world that we have lost. But we can work to integrate this loss / existential anxiety with a freedom in living our daily lives.

22/07/2025

I have published my Grasmere journals over on Substack - a three part series of stream-of-consciousness style reflective writing on my trip to grasmere earlier in the year.

With some watercolour art sprinkled in. If this sounds up your street, the link to part one is in my insta bio :)

21/06/2025

A fusion of community art and music therapy in our Summer Solstice celebrations with Women Centre Hudds this week 🪻🌷🌼💐

Group mandala making at the allotment using found objects followed by song writing and singing around themes that came up during the gathering 💖

19/06/2025

This Summer I'm hiking the yorkshire 3 peaks to raise money for Women Centre- please help me support them!

I offer group and one-to-one art therapy for women at the centre and it's totally free, it would be great for this to continue!

Women Centre provide a whole range of support for women across the region including:

💜Domestic Violence support

💜Support after sexual exploitation

💜Women Apart from their children groups

💜Women in Exile groups

💜1125 support for young women and girls

💜Creative therapies

💜Music/singing groups and events

💜Low cost and free counselling

💜A range of mental health support courses

💜Sexual health advice and guidance

Link in my bio, anything would be appreciated - or share if you can! 😋

04/06/2025

A week of endings as my work with community art groups finishes and I prepare to begin a new art therapy role next week.

These groups have been such a blessing, inspiring, deeply enjoyable, and I've met some of the most incredible attendees. Nothing inspires my work more than hearing that attending the art groups has helped people build their own, independent art practice at home. 🧡

13/05/2025

Beautiful early morning in Saltaire for a meeting about a new project in schools this Autumn - all around improving conversations around loss, death, and dying through art, with influence from Archeology.

09/05/2025

For the past 3 months, I've been hosting a community arts group from community room, and in our final session we were treat to a tour of the museum! I hadn't realised how much art and creativity was exhibited throughout the museum, either weaved in or explicitly through exhibitions.

23/04/2025

Creativity serves as a double-edged coin in the workplace: creative employees offer a whole host of benefits to the successful running of organisations, as well as improving their own well-being through confidence, emotional regulation, and providing an active form of mindfulness.

In the fallout of COVID-19, mental health difficulties rose sharply, and yet may workplaces are yet to address the impact on their employees.

Company away days and team building activities can be stale and uninspiring... making employees cringe at the prospect of awkward ice breakers that force each other to socialise.

Creative wellbeing workshops offer dedicated time for teams to connect in meaningful ways, giving staff much needed headspace to unwind and rest in a creative space.

What's best is workshops are tailored to you and the needs of your workplace, offering a bespoke experience.

Sparked any interest? Get in touch and let's talk 😊

20/04/2025

New blog post over my substack reflecting on loosening our grip on meticulously planning our lives, and holding onto hope. I link my experience with Alice Neel's 1934 Citscape painting with the idea of holding hope in the face of scary unknowns that life throws at us. (Link in bio)

18/04/2025

Watercolour journaling on my new table ☺️

16/04/2025

14/04/2025

I'm excited to begin promoting art therapy research here, summarised in an easy to read format with no jargon or complicated terms to make it as accessible to everyone as possible.

There have been many new baby boys born to friends and family recently so I thought this was an apt place to begin!