2020 · 25. June 2020
Do you frequently try to manage your worries by seeking reassurance? It's human to want a little reassurance when times are tough, but excessive reassurance-seeking doesn't help you manage anxiety – it perpetuates and worsens it. This article explains why and offers advice on how to kick the reassurance habit.
2020 · 21. May 2020
Think of a loved one. If I asked you to write down and read out the following sentence – "I hope (name of your loved one) dies today in a car crash" – would you do it? This 'test' was originally designed for use with people with OCD, but most people (not just people with OCD) feel icky about it. My latest Southern Star column explores what's known as thought-action fusion and suggests that most of us are prone to taking our thoughts and feelings too seriously.
2020 · 26. March 2020
These are anxious times. In last week's Southern Star, I offered some advice on how to manage anxiety over the coronavirus.
2020 · 05. March 2020
Animal phobias – of dogs, cats, spiders, and so on – are common in children and sometimes persist into adulthood. My column in last week's Southern Star explained the CBT treatment of animal phobias; how the bulk of this work is done in a single extended exposure session lasting up to three hours; and mentioned some reading for people interested in trying a DIY approach.
2020 · 20. February 2020
When life is good, you’re more optimistic, more confident, more open to trying new things. But when you’re down, you’re more pessimistic, less confident, less open to actions that might ease your plight. In last week's Southern Star, I explained how a vicious circle is at the heart of most emotional problems and how, through effort and awareness, you can turn that unhelpful, vicious circle into a helpful, virtuous circle.
2020 · 23. January 2020
All of us occasionally worry about our health. For some people, however, the worry is not occasional, but persistent and excessive. In last week's Southern Star, I asked: how is health anxiety different to other forms of anxiety and how can it be treated?
2019 · 18. December 2019
Office parties, getting together with extended family, meeting up with old friends and acquaintances – Christmas is a social time, but what if the thought of socialising fills you with anxiety and dread? My column in last week's Southern Star explored how to beat social anxiety, or "self-consciousness on steroids", as one expert calls it.
2019 · 14. November 2019
There are no shades of grey with black-and-white thinking, I argued in last week's Southern Star; everything is great or awful, hot or cold, feast or famine.
2019 · 18. July 2019
Kinsale CBT therapist Linda Hamilton offers some mental health tips for parents who may be concerned about their teenage children.
2019 · 04. July 2019
Kinsale CBT therapist Linda Hamilton explains why we should not allow our feelings to guide our actions and beliefs.