Michael Leak Counselling

08/10/2025

Interesting read around October Theory. What are your thoughts?

October theory can look good on paper but, like any other productivity system, can fail if you’re not realistic about it. Here are two ways to ensure it works for you.

01/10/2025

October is Mental Health Awareness Month, a time dedicated to educating the public about mental wellness, reducing the stigma associated with mental illness, and encouraging people to seek support in improving their mental wellbeing.

I’m often asked: “Is mental wellbeing part of mental health, or the other way around?”

The truth is, mental wellbeing is the foundation of mental health. It’s the daily experience of emotional balance, purpose, and connection, even when life gets tough. Mental health, on the other hand, includes both wellbeing and the presence or absence of mental illness.

Think of it like this:
• Mental wellbeing is how we thrive.
• Mental health is how we function across the full spectrum from flourishing to struggling.

Stephanie Murdock from Sanford OccMed positions this difference as such: “The primary difference between health and wellness is that health is the goal and wellness is the active process of achieving it.”
You can live with a mental health condition and still cultivate wellbeing. On the flip side, you can feel “fine” on the outside while your wellbeing quietly erodes.

Supporting mental wellbeing isn’t just about avoiding illness but also building resilience, meaning, and joy. But here’s the nuance: mental wellbeing is only one part of the overall wellbeing puzzle. True wellbeing also includes physical, emotional, spiritual, intellectual, environmental, occupational, social and financial wellbeing (Anderson, 2002). Each piece matters as they all interact, forming a system.

While some shifts are happening, barriers like limited access to care, affordability, and cultural silence around emotional support can make this journey more difficult. These challenges often discourage people from seeking help, even when they’re actively trying to maintain their wellbeing.

Another barrier that often goes unspoken is the fear of opening up, particularly when it comes to sharing personal struggles, relationship tensions, or what’s happening within the relationship. The idea of speaking to a professional can feel exposing, even risky, especially when trust has been eroded elsewhere. Therapeutic spaces are designed to honour your pace, your boundaries, and your story. Support doesn’t have to mean full disclosure from day one, and trust with your counsellor develops over time.

By normalising mental wellbeing as just one part of overall health, we open the door to more compassionate, inclusive care where seeking support is recognised as a courageous and necessary step toward wholeness.

In support of Mental Health Awareness month (October 2025) I’m offering a reduced rate of R500 for your first individual or relationship counselling session. If you’ve been considering support, this could be a gentle first step.

View my website at www.michaelleak.co.za or go directly to my booking profile and register and book your first session at https://clientportal.uk.zandahealth.com/clientportal/michaelleak

If you have any questions please WhatsApp me on +27826749481

10/04/2024

Why am I a counsellor? It is one of the ways I live out my mission of doing good in the world. I work with clients to identify the obstacles that are preventing them from living their best life, and then together we work out a plan to shifting these.

Go to my web site and then follow the link to schedule your first session. www.michaelleak.co.za

If you would to first have a free 30 minute intro/chemistry-check session WhatsApp me on 082 674 9481.

Michael Leak Counselling, Coaching & Mediation Home Counselling, Coaching & Mediation to help you live your best life.

17/03/2024

To all Followers of my Page, if you don't mind, please share my QR code with friends, colleagues, or clients (can be individuals, or couples) that could make use of, or that you know would benefit from counselling. Thank you.

04/03/2024

Putting clients in the driving seat - schedule your own appointments according to your availability: https://clientportal.uk.powerdiary.com/clientportal/michaelleak

03/09/2023

Seeking relationship counselling is a must before making any rash decisions abou your relationship when the kids have left home is advisable. Communication enhancement and a few tools can make the world of difference.

It’s not uncommon for couples to have the “staying together” talk after their kids leave the house. Here are a few psychological factors to consider.

20/05/2023

Men have fewer friends these days, which can hurt their well-being. Here are expert tips for fostering those relationships.

30/07/2022

“Grandma, how do you cope with pain?”
“With your hands, honey. If you do it with your mind instead of relieving the pain, it toughens even harder.”
“With your hands grandma?”
“Yes, our hands are the antennae of our soul. If you move them; knitting, cooking, painting, playing or sinking them into the ground, you send care signs to the deepest part of you and your soul lights up because you’re paying attention to it. Then signs of pain will no longer be necessary.”
“Hands are really that important?”
“Yes my daughter. Think of babies: they start to know the world through the touch of their hands. If you look at the hands of old people, they tell you more about their life then any body part. Everything that is done by hand is said to be done with the heart. Because it’s really like this: hands and heart are connected. Masseurs know well: when they touch someone with their hands, they create a deep connection. It is precisely from this connection that healing comes. Think of lovers: when they touch their hands, they make love in a more sublime way.”
“My hands grandma.... how long I haven’t used them like this!”
“Move them, my love. Begin to create with them and everything within you will begin to move. The pain will not pass away. And instead what you do with them will become the most beautiful masterpiece and it won’t hurt anymore. Because you have been able to transform its essence..

~Elena Bernabe ~

Artist Credit : Claudia Tremblay

15/07/2022

As the winter sets in why not spend some time working on that aspect of yourself that you have been meaning to but have been too busy to get to. Whether it is a fear you have, a relationship that you keep hoping will improve but does not. Use this time of hibernation to reflect on yourself. Sometimes we can work on a lot of things by ourselves, but it can also be immensely beneficial to have someone to walk the journey with you. I have sessions available later afternoons and Saturday morning.

06/03/2022

Something that all people who love and value themselves should review from time time. Which of these apply to you

There are plenty of things to apologize for, these aren’t it.
“I’m sorry, but I need more” : actual words that came out of my mouth as I walked away from a relationship where my needs weren’t being met. I wasn’t asking for anything out of the ordinary. I wanted commitment, he didn’t, we just weren’t on the same page, it happens!
Looking back on it, what I remember most are my words, “I’m sorry” - as if wanting intimacy was something I should apologize for. Spoiler alert, it’s not.
As a recovering people pleaser, I have spent a lifetime apologizing for a lot of things, it’s been built into my vocabulary and sentence structure, something I’m still working on.
So, while there’s plenty of things we can apologize for, let’s make sure having needs, boundaries, a voice, etc. aren’t some of them. Also worth noting...our tone and the way we say things is also important. AND, sometimes no matter how we say things, we will hurt and disappoint others. This is the discomfort that often comes with showing up as your whole self.
What are you no longer apologizing for?
Please note: this is a generalized post, does not apply to all circumstances, may lack nuance.

28/12/2021

05/10/2021