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 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
"Look into your mind’s eye see what you can see, there's hundreds of people like you and me" (Hawkwind; 'Hurry On Sundown') The town I grew up in was renowned for its Friday night street brawls, conspicuous uneven distribution of wealth and availability of illegal drugs. It was once described in a national newspaper, albeit … Continue reading Look Into Your Mind’s Eye
Wednesday October 10th is World Mental Health Day. The theme for this year is ‘Young People and Mental Health In A Changing World’. What we regard as poor mental health in an individual is often their expression of the emotional impact of struggling to thrive in the face of difficult circumstances. Yesterday I attended a … Continue reading Making A Difference
Here's an example of how I apply the Solution Focused Approach to my everyday life: One of my favourite pastimes is playing a tabletop miniatures game called 'X-Wing', based on the space combat dog fighting scenes in the Star Wars movies. Next weekend, I'm taking part in 'UKTC' - the X-Wing UK team championship. My … Continue reading Fly Casual
Something that a lot of mental health nursing students still seem to do, which I and most of my peers also did 25 years ago, is freak out at some point because they've noticed things they have in common with patients. Elements of this freak out might include speculating about whether they might also have … Continue reading The Human Condition
Yesterday I climbed a mountain with my family. Actually, to be honest, it's more accurately described as a 'fell', and most seasoned fell walkers or mountaineers would regard it as a relatively straight forward 'un-technical' challenge, posing very little danger. But for us it's a big deal, okay! Anyway, it's a mountain we've intended to … Continue reading I have seen the top of the mountain
There's something we health professionals do sometimes that I now notice myself doing less often. It's talking about our clients characteristics, beliefs and habits with apparent certainty that these things exist right now, in the current moment, even though we can't possibly know whether that is the case because they aren't in the room, and … Continue reading Past, Present and Future
Keep Calm and Solution Focused 