I hit 50 last year, and clichéd as it may sound, the fact is I reached something of a crossroads in my life.It coincided with all sorts of shit going down.Maybe that's only to be expected on reaching 50, I've no idea. Whatever.All sorts of shit. Anyway, a year on, and I've finally made a … Continue reading Success
Every conversation we have with every other person is a conversation we have with ourselves.Every conversation we have with ourselves is a conversation we have with every other person. 1: Thanks for seeing me, you must be very busy2: No problem1: Yeah, so… The thing is, well… I made a few suicide attempts when I … Continue reading The Difficult Answer
Working in a solution focused way, I think of every session with a client as an opportunity to reach a point of realisation that everything needed to achieve the desired outcome is present. I view any single session as potentially all that's needed to reach that point, and therefore can always be the last session. … Continue reading Hello, Goodbye (ending sessions)
It is that time of year again. Even in a year like no other, there's familiarity at least to be found in the passage of time. The Solstice arrives at the mid-point in the year. Its arrival tends to prompt a particular response in me. I find myself reflecting and thinking ahead. What do I … Continue reading Where Do We Go From Here?
A couple of weeks ago, I moved to an island. I got to name the island, so I decided to call it Chillaxia. I arrived at Chillaxia airport, located on the South coast, in a flying boat piloted by a dodo called Wilbur. I thanked him and made my way inland, where I met a … Continue reading New Horizons
Welcome everyone, especially newly enrolled members of the Solution Focused University (SFU), to whatever this is! I'm going to share with you what the term 'solution focused' really means for me: The first time I met Elliott Connie in person, he said something that made me sit up straight. I heard him say "I grew … Continue reading Something In The Way
I watched a programme on BBC 2 over Christmas called 'Pilgrimage, The Road to Rome'. It was about a bunch of celebrities walking an old pilgrimage route to Rome to meet the pope. One of the celebrities, Stephen K Amos, had a personal agenda; he was determined to challenge the Catholic Church’s apparent traditionally disapproving … Continue reading Adjectives Are Meaningless
When people ask me what I do, if I reply with “I’m a mental health nurse”, they often say something like “that must be hard”, “that must be difficult”, “that must be rewarding” or “that must be interesting”. My response is generally along the lines of “yes it can be, sometimes”. Above all, and mainly … Continue reading It’s Like This
I can't remember the last time I made a New Year's resolution. I don't have any intention of making one this year. But I will have hopes for the year ahead. I'll also be thinking about the implications of what I'm hoping for. What I hope for from what I hope for will be in … Continue reading New Year’s Hopes
I caught a bit of a tv show, in which artists were competing to produce the portrait that would delight the judges most when the allotted time for their painting activity was up, although it was clear that taking part was rewarding for all involved anyway, no matter who actually 'won'. One of the contestants … Continue reading Painting
Keep Calm and Solution Focused 