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THE TRUE PURPOSE OF PSYCHOTHERAPY

WORTH REMEMBERING DURING THESE TURBULENT TIMES “We live in a community of people not so that we can suppress or dominate each other or make each other miserable, but so that we can better and more reliably satisfy all life’s healthy needs”. Wilhelm Reich, M.D.

This is the TRUE PURPOSE OF PSYCHOTHERAPY:

To Respect, Value, Deepen and Enrich our experiences, our relationships and our lives.

So why do we need Psychotherapy ?

Just as a high proportion of the causes of problems in the atmosphere lie beneath the surface, in the soil and under the sea, many and possibly most of the causes of our emotional and mental challenges, and the resources needed to heal them, lie beneath the surface of our consciousness. read more

IS IT OK TO USE TOUCH IN PSYCHOTHERAPY?

I would like to suggest that there is no right way.

There are different ways, and each way has advantages and disadvantages.
Sometimes I use touch, sometimes I don’t. Sometimes I work with clients who know each other, sometimes I don’t.

When I asked one of my supervisors, David Boadella, what contract he had with his clients, he answered “which client and when?”
read more

Somatic Psychotherapy With A Difference. Dealing with Anxiety, Depression and Trauma

So you’re feeling anxious or depressed. Or you don’t feel quite right but you find it hard to describe how you feel.

You know your life can be better but you don’t know how to get there. You may have already tried various approaches, perhaps even been to counsellors and psychotherapists but not been able to get the results you’re looking for. read more

Restoring Our Capacity To Give and Receive Love

ANXIETY, DEPRESSION AND SOMATIC PSYCHOTHERAPY

This is what my work in emotional learning – including somatic psychotherapy and counselling – is about. Restoring our capacity to give and receive love.

As a society, and indeed as a human race, we have moved so far away from our true nature, from what we know in our hearts – ie that our true nature is loving, cooperative and compassionate – that we we have come to believe that human nature is destructive. read more

Pushing Back the Stigma of Mental Illness

Here is an interesting question. Does a person’s anxiety, depression or other distressing feeling indicate that they are mentally ill, or absolutely normal?

Different schools of thought will give you different answers. In core development terms, however, anxiety, depression and other signs of emotional distress often indicate that your sense of self is healthy enough to produce these symptoms of a deeper, often hidden emotional conflict. read more

Help with Depression, Anxiety and Stress. The Person or the Condition?

It’s good to remind ourselves not to see and relate to people – children and adults – through the filter of a label, however correct we may think the label is.

Some time ago I had the opportunity of working with a woman in her late 20s. She was diagnosed as chronically depressed, and stuck in a junior position in her company because they said she was a slow learner with poor communication skills and no good at working in a team. read more

What is the most important skill of a Somatic Psychotherapist?

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“EVERY TIME WE TEACH A CHILD SOMETHING, WE PREVENT HIM FROM INVENTING IT HIMSELF!” Jean Piaget

You may think that the most important skill of a somatic psychotherapist is their ability to understand your process, to make sense of what you’re going through. That’s helpful but it’s not enough. read more

THERE IS BEAUTY ALL AROUND US…..

I DON’T THINK THE WORLD IS CHANGING IN THE WAY I’D LIKE IT TO.

In these times of upheaval, confusion and anxiety, however, I think it may be useful to consider this:

“There is beauty all around us, only for so many people it is buried and perhaps obscured by fear, hurt, frustration, anger, hopelessness, confusion……. read more

STRESS, ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION : THERE MUST BE A BETTER WAY!

Individual Sessions, Couples Sessions, Sessions For Parents and Teenagers(together and separately), and individually tailored Talks and Workshops for Groups and Organisations.

  • Are you stressed, anxious or depressed, or know someone who is, but hesitate to seek help because you do not want to be labelled dysfunctional or mentally ill?
  • Have you wondered why, despite our advances in technology, and the increasing use and availability of counselling, coaching and psychotherapy, these issues are still major problems?
  • Have you considered that stress, anxiety, depression and other emotional states may be symptoms that need to be explored to find their cause, rather than “negative” emotions that need to be  eliminated? Like a flashing red light on an instrument panel?
  •  Have you wondered whether so-called “dysfunctional” feelings may sometimes arise because you do not fit into the boxes that you are expected to fit into?
  •  Are you interested in exploring different ways of dealing with these issues?
  • Would you like to explore these questions with an experienced practitioner who has been helping people with these issues for 40 years, and who has turned his own life around after struggling for several years with serious anxiety and depression?                                                           
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Donald Marmara  grew up in Malta where he gradually became aware of the extent of his own and others’ emotional and psychological wounding, and how deeply this affected our wellbeing and the way we treat ourselves and each other. read more