First Psychology Online

09/05/2025

Spring is the perfect time to align with nature's cycle for wellbeing. It's a time of rejuvenation and resilience. Find out how your wellbeing can benefit from the energy of this season in our latest blog post at https://bit.ly/4d8l9SF

07/05/2025

Our new Community Clinic offers online sessions to clients who need a low-cost counselling option.

Announcing the launch of our low-cost counselling service – our First Psychology Community Clinic staffed by our counselling trainees is now accepting clients.

This new service is available at selected First Psychology venues across Scotland and also online for those who prefer to work in this way.

Our Community Clinic is staffed by trainees on our Diploma in Integrated Counselling and Psychological Therapy who are all in regular supervision and approved by us to work with clients.

Our fees are on a sliding scale from £5 to £25 per session.

For further information visit https://bit.ly/4d3tes5

21/03/2025

There's been a lot of discussion about men and masculinity in relation to mental health and wellbeing in the last few days and this has been great for bringing this important topic into public awareness.

Men report lower levels of life satisfaction and are three times more likely to complete su***de yet many people still believe that men don't suffer from mental health issues to the extent that women do.

Many men feel unable to share their emotions and struggles with others and may turn to unhelpful coping mechanisms such as gambling, drinking, etc in an attempt to manage their feelings.

Our latest booklet 'Supporting mental health for men: a workbook and guide' explores some of the reasons why men find it so hard to seek help when they need it and looks at some things that may help.

The booklet is free to download at https://bit.ly/4iogApr

17/03/2025

It was great to catch up with colleagues at The Studio in Glasgow last week for our First Psychology Annual Conference. Huge thanks to our wonderful speakers Alex McClintock from Andy's Man Club and Pete Collins, actor, director and teaching artist and to everyone who came along and made it such a success!

17/03/2025

A vital part of being a counsellor/psychological therapist is learning to work with clients from day one. Find out more about managing the initial session and some things to consider in our latest blog post at https://bit.ly/3DIUtee

14/03/2025

If you struggle to get to sleep, wake up during the night, or wake up feeling tired and unrefreshed in the mornings, then you may have sleep problems.

Getting a good night's sleep is important because a lack of quality sleep is linked to reduced mental and physical health.

Find out more about the link between sleep and our mental health and what you can do to make things better in our free booklet at https://bit.ly/3DJTsm6

13/03/2025

Our community is very important to us at First Psychology! Over the past 15 years we have built a strong, nationwide community of practitioners, students and developing practitioners, core team members, and clients, that share our values and goal of providing exceptional therapy and therapeutic services. We continue to develop our community with every step we take, and are passionate about creating space for practitioners to grow, flourish, share skills, and support one another!

28/02/2025

Men in the North East have traditionally had a tough reputation and while the area has changed a lot over the years, the associations between men and toughness have remained. This causes men to avoid seeking help due to fear of seeming 'weak' but there are so many ways that therapy can help men.

* It provides a space to express suppressed feelings.
* It is an opportunity to develop healthier ways to cope.
* It is a step towards increased strength and resilience.

Read our latest blog post for more about the benefits of therapy for men at https://bit.ly/41AuvCN

24/02/2025

Eating disorders are thought to affect up to 5% of the population yet when a family member or friend is affected it can be hard to know what to do to support them. Read our latest blog post for some tips at https://bit.ly/439U1zP

24/02/2025

A warm welcome to Nancy who has also joined the First Psychology Online team and is available for online therapy.

A huge welcome to senior psychological therapist, Nancy Billias who joined our Inverness team of practitioners today.

Nancy has a wealth of experience working with individual adults, couples, children, adolescents and families.

She has particular experience working with clients dealing with grief/loss, depression, life transitions, chronic illness, and gender and sexual identity issues. She also particularly enjoys providing couples counselling, working with blended families, and helping people to listen more carefully and lovingly to one another.

For more about Nancy and the services she offers visit her webpage at https://bit.ly/NancyBillias

17/02/2025

Dr Sylvie Kay has worked at First Psychology for many years and the experience has enabled her to develop her career in a range of ways. Here's what she had to say about her time with us.

“I joined First Psychology in 2019 as a trainee counselling psychologist on the Advanced Skills Practitioner (ASP) programme. The programme provided a very supportive and nurturing environment for me to develop my skills and confidence in both the clinical and practice management aspects of my work. Since qualifying as a counselling psychologist and moving into partnership with First Psychology, I have continued to learn, grow, and develop. Due to the opportunities available within the organisation, I am now involved in supporting the development of other practitioners in my role on the ASP management team, as well as supervising and delivering training. The idea of ‘growing’ in the role rings true for me, and I’m looking forward to continuing to grow and learn within First Psychology!”

14/02/2025

It's Valentine's Day - a day when we celebrate love and the perfect day therefore to think about being kind to yourself!
Here are some ways to show yourself some love and kindness.

❤️ Give yourself a big hug.
❤️ Focus on thoughts that activate your 'soothing system' helping you feel calm and safe: mistakes happen, everything will be ok. I'm doing my best...
❤️ Think of an image that says 'compassion' to you. Use it when you feel your inner critic coming out.
❤️ Write a compassionate letter to yourself. Imagine that the person writing the letter is someone supportive, caring, accepting, kind, and forgiving.
❤️ Remind yourself of your good qualities to help engage your inner cheerleader rather than your inner critic.
❤️ Practise relaxation techniques such as mindful breathing, meditation, yoga, etc.

People who practise self compassion have been found to worry less than those who are less compassionate to themselves.
Self compassion increases motivation, boosts happiness, enhances self-worth and fosters resilience.

Take some time today to foster self-compassion. You don't need a partner to celebrate love!

For more about self-compassion, read our free booklet at https://bit.ly/3EypNXC