VW Counselling and Meditation

21/10/2025

🌟 ADHD Awareness Month 2025: The Many Faces of ADHD 🌟

October is ADHD Awareness Month, and this year’s theme — The Many Faces of ADHD — reminds us that every neurodivergent person experiences the world differently. Alongside the challenges of focus, organisation, and emotional regulation, many also bring incredible creativity, energy, and empathy.

As both a counsellor and meditation teacher, I’ve seen how mindfulness-based practices can support individuals with ADHD in calming the mind, improving focus, reducing stress, and building emotional regulation.

Recently, I wasb privileged to deliver a 5-week community Meditation Course for Beginners through Shali Wellbeing CIC at the Alcester Community Shed, funded by Alcester Town Council. Participants — including several with ADHD — reported feeling calmer, less stressed, more focused, and sleeping better 🌿

It’s inspiring to see Alcester working towards becoming a Neurodivergent-Friendly Town, with local shops proudly displaying stickers to show their commitment to understanding and inclusion.

✨ If you’d like to explore how Meditation, Tai Chi or Counselling could support you, your child, or your team, please reach out — I’d love to help.

17/10/2025

🌸 World Menopause Day – 18th October 2025 🌸

There was a time I honestly thought I was losing my mind. The brain fog, anxiety, and sleepless nights of menopause can make you feel completely off balance.

Saturday is World Menopause Day, and this year’s theme — Lifestyle Medicine in Menopausal Health — really speaks to us at Shali Wellbeing. Our hormones shift dramatically during this stage, affecting key brain chemicals that influence mood, focus, and sleep. No wonder so many of us feel anxious or foggy-headed!

The good news? Mindfulness and gentle movement can make a real difference. For me, meditation has been a lifeline — helping me find calm, clarity, and a little more patience and compassion with myself.

At Shali Wellbeing, my co-founder Alison shares that same balance through Tai Chi — a beautiful form of moving meditation that restores peace and focus through breath and flow.

💫 You’re not losing your mind — your body is recalibrating.
💫 You deserve calm and clarity.
💫 Small daily practices can change everything.

If you’d like to experience meditation or Tai Chi for yourself, reach out to us at Shali Wellbeing. You can join one of our community classes — or we can even come into your workplace to deliver a wellbeing workshop.

Let’s make space for calm, clarity, and connection — together. 🌸

10/10/2025

Join Us for World Mental Health Day here at the Ken Kennett Centre

Friday 10th October | 1:00pm – 3:30pm & 5:00pm onwards

Celebrating Community, Connection & Wellbeing

This World Mental Health Day, the Ken Kennett Centre invites local residents, services, and organisations to come together for a celebration of community, connection, and positive mental health.

As part of our weekly Clopton Connect session, a special event will take place from 1:00pm to 3:30pm, featuring:

🪑 Gentle seated exercise class led by Stratford Leisure Centre – open to all abilities and designed to encourage movement for wellbeing.

🌿 Tai Chi taster session with Shali Wellbeing CIC – a calming introduction to this mindful practice.

🗣️ Information stalls and friendly conversations – local support services and organisations will be on hand to provide resources, advice, and signposting.

Continue the connection into the evening with a warm meal and good company at the weekly Community Kitchen, hosted by Net Zero Stratford from 5:00pm.
Everyone is welcome to enjoy a free, freshly prepared meal – donations are welcome to help support this ongoing initiative.

🟢 No booking required – just come along!

World Mental Health Day, observed annually on 10th October, raises awareness of mental health issues and encourages efforts to support mental wellbeing – locally and globally.

Let’s connect, support, and grow stronger together. 💚

Community Builder Stratford - Bishopton and Clopton CAVA in Stratford District Clopton Ward Stratford-on-Avon District Council Stratford upon Avon Town Council Stratford upon Avon Foodbank Stratford Herald Mayor of Stratford-upon-Avon Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon Wellbeing for Warwickshire Coventry, Warwickshire and Worcestershire Mind VASA WRCC

09/10/2025

💚 World Mental Health Day 2025 - 10 October 2025 🌍

This year’s theme is “Access to Services – Mental Health in Catastrophes and Emergencies.” It reminds us that mental health support is essential, not a luxury — especially during stressful or challenging times.

As a counsellor, I’m passionate about helping people care for their mental and physical health. The science of psychoneuroimmunology shows how our thoughts and emotions directly affect our nervous system and immune system. Stress, anxiety, and unexpressed emotions can weaken our body’s defences — while calm, mindful practices can strengthen both mind and body.

Online counselling makes support more accessible than ever. Through counselling and meditation, I help clients manage stress, express emotions safely, and build resilience — all from the comfort of home.

On this World Mental Health Day, I encourage you to take a step towards your wellbeing. Whether it’s booking a session, trying a short meditation, or simply pausing to check in with yourself, you’re investing in your health and resilience. 💚

👉 Reach out today — prioritising your mental health is a right, and you don’t have to do it alone.

30/08/2025

We are so proud of you, Ellie . Taking on 100km in September is such a huge challenge, but the love and determination behind it make it even more special. You’re showing such strength and kindness in honour of your best friend, your nan, and everyone affected by blood cancer.

I’ll be cheering you on every step! Please, if you can, show your support with a donation. ❤️

ttps://www.gofundme.com/f/running-100km-in-september-for-my-best-friend-my-nan?attribution_id=sl:ebaf0d82-cfe0-46cb-9c1d-a5e31ae848fb&lang=en_GB&ts=1756494416&utm_campaign=man_sharesheet_dash&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link

This September is Blood Cancer Awareness Month, and I’ve set my… Ellie Johnson needs your support for ❣️Running 100km in September for My Best Friend & My Nan

29/08/2025

💜 31st August – International Overdose Awareness Day 💜

This weekend we remember the lives lost to overdose, hold space for the families and friends left behind, and stand together to break the silence and stigma.

Behind every statistic is a person – a child, parent, partner, or friend. Grief around overdose can feel heavy and isolating, but you don’t have to carry it alone.

At VW Counselling, we offer a safe and non-judgemental space to talk, heal, and find hope. Whether you are:
✔️ struggling with your own relationship with substances
✔️ supporting a loved one
✔️ grieving someone you’ve lost

…support is here for you.

💜 Our message today is simple: Reach out. You are not alone.

📩 Contact VW Counselling – let’s take the next step together.

27/08/2025

💚 💙

Listening, Resting & Recharging

When the hectic school term ends, I find myself slowing down—listening to my body, resting my mind, and enjoying a quieter pace. Hence being a lot quieter on social media.

Summer has been full of highlights: touring Italy, festivals, my niece’s wedding, BBQs in the garden, and celebrating my sister’s 50th (albiet we couldn't celebrate in person/in Spain).

There were lows too—my daughter’s car was written off after a deer ran into it (thankfully she’s safe, though sadly the deer wasn’t). And this week, my son moves to Scotland with his girlfriend to start new jobs—I feel proud, excited, and a little emotional too.

Through it all, meditation and rest have been my anchors, leaving me renewed for September.

Ali and I also worked hard on Shali’s first big grant application to Stratford Town Trust—a milestone made possible thanks to the encouragement and support of many.

I’m also excited to share that we’ll be running a 5-week Meditation for Beginners programme, funded by Alcester Town Council, starting mid September with limited spaces.

✨ If you’ve been curious about meditation, now’s the perfect time to begin—message us to find out more!

24/06/2025

🌿 On Becoming
Letting go of who they said you were. Becoming who you really are.

There’s a big difference between the real you and the version of you others expect.

🔁 Sometimes we carry labels, roles, and reputations that were given to us — by family, school, culture.
We start to believe that’s who we are.

But in counselling, we ask:
🧠 What if that’s not you at all?
💛 What if the real you is still underneath — waiting, growing, becoming?

Therapy is where we learn to tell the difference.
Where we stop living by old stories.
And start writing our own.

You don’t have to be who they said you were.
You can become who you really are.

24/06/2025

🌿 Meditation & Neurodivergence – Reflections from a Recent Training 🌿

Last week I attended a brilliant training with the The British School of Meditation, all about supporting neurodivergent clients through meditation. As a counsellor and meditation teacher, this felt incredibly valuable and affirming.

We explored how meditation can help with emotional regulation, anxiety, sensory overwhelm, and sleep—but also how traditional approaches don’t always fit neurodivergent experiences. The training emphasised the importance of adapting meditation to make it truly inclusive.

That might mean:
✨ Using movement instead of stillness
✨ Offering shorter practices with gentle transitions
✨ Allowing stimming or fidgeting
✨ Using special interests as part of the practice
✨ Letting go of rigid ‘rules’ like eyes closed or silence

The message was clear: meditation doesn’t have to look one way. It should be flexible, empowering, and shaped by the individual.

This course deepened my belief that our work—whether counselling, teaching, or supporting emotional well-being—needs to be inclusive at its core. Everyone deserves access to tools that help them feel grounded, safe, and seen.

Thank you to the British School of Meditation for such a thoughtful, progressive training. I’m looking forward to bringing even more of this inclusive approach into my work VW Counselling and Meditation 💙

21/06/2025

☀️ Summer Solstice: A Time to Pause, Reflect, and Realign

As the sun reaches its highest point in the sky, we’re invited into a moment of stillness and clarity.

The summer solstice, the longest day of the year, has been celebrated across cultures for thousands of years—from ancient stone circles in Britain to midsummer festivals in Scandinavia. Traditionally, this was a time of light, abundance, and connection to the rhythms of nature.

But what does that mean for us today?

In our busy, screen-lit lives, we can easily lose touch with those natural cycles. The solstice offers us a chance to come back to ourselves. To honour not just the sun’s power, but our own energy, balance, and growth.

Solstice is more than just a seasonal milestone, it’s an invitation to pause, breathe, and ask:

🌿 What am I growing in my life right now? What do I want to bring into the light?

Whether you mark it with a morning meditation, a mindful walk in nature, or a few minutes of quiet journaling—this is a potent time to set intentions and reconnect with your inner wisdom.

Here’s a simple solstice practice you can try:

🌞 Solstice Stillness: A 5-Minute Meditation

1. Sit somewhere calm and quiet—preferably where you can feel natural light.

2. Close your eyes. Notice your breath, slow and gentle.

3. Visualise the sun above you—radiant, steady, warm.

4. With each inhale, imagine drawing in clarity, vitality, and light.

5. With each exhale, release what no longer serves you.

6. Repeat the affirmation: “I welcome light, presence, and peace.”

In a world of constant motion, tuning into nature’s still points can be deeply grounding.

Wishing you a joyful, mindful solstice season 🌻

20/06/2025

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/19ejjsCi2f/

17/06/2025

💙 When Unresolved Trauma Turns Into Overthinking and Emotional Dependency

Unresolved trauma doesn’t always look like flashbacks or panic attacks. Sometimes, it shows up as overthinking, people-pleasing, emotional overwhelm, or becoming deeply affected by someone else's mood.

For some, getting attached to another person means their entire emotional state begins to hinge on how that person behaves. A delayed message, a quiet tone, or a perceived change in attention can spiral into self-doubt, anxiety, or panic. They become hyper-attuned to others’ emotions, trying to keep the peace, meet unspoken needs, and avoid rejection—often without realising it.

This pattern isn’t about being needy—it’s about trying to stay safe. When past experiences have taught you that love is conditional or that your needs don’t matter, your nervous system learns to scan for danger, especially in relationships.

Often, this goes hand-in-hand with high expectations and harsh self-criticism. You expect a lot from yourself—and sometimes too much from others—hoping that if you just “get it right,” you’ll feel secure. But the goalposts keep moving, and peace always feels just out of reach.

💙 What can help?

There are no quick fixes. But healing is possible—and it begins with understanding yourself in a deeper way. Therapy can offer a safe, non-judgmental space to explore:

* Why you think and feel the way you do in relationships

* How your past may still be influencing your present

*.Ways to gently shift patterns of overthinking, self-blame, and emotional dependency

If this resonates with you, know that you’re not alone—and you don’t have to keep carrying this on your own. Therapy isn’t about fixing you. It’s about helping you understand yourself with compassion, so you can start feeling more secure, confident, and free.

You're invited to come and explore this at your own pace. Healing doesn't happen all at once—but it starts with one step.