Sara Rae - Psychological Therapy Fife

05/06/2026

🧠 The Painful Truth About Pain

The more we learn about pain, the more we realise just how complex it is.

In truth, saying we fully understand pain would be an overstatement.

Even pain scientists continue to explore and debate exactly how pain works.

What we do know is that pain is influenced by many factors.

And perhaps most importantly:

🌍 Pain is contextual.

We have all experienced this.

Imagine you stub your toe.

If you're relaxed and having a good day, you might swear for a few seconds and move on.

If you're stressed, exhausted, running late, and feeling overwhelmed, that same stubbed toe can feel much worse.

Same toe.
Same force.
Different context.

Let's take another example.

How often have you gone on holiday and found yourself saying:

My back felt much better while I was away 🏖️🚶

What changed?

* Warmer weather?
* More walking?
* More exercise?
* Better sleep?
* Less stress?
* More time with family and friends?
* A break from work pressures?

The reality is, it's often difficult to pinpoint exactly what changed.

More often than not, it's likely a combination of factors rather than a single cause.

Pain is influenced by much more than what's happening in our tissues, including:

• Sleep
• Stress
• Previous experiences
• Beliefs
• Expectations
• Confidence
• Mood
• Social connection
• General health and wellbeing

This doesn't mean pain is "all in your head."

Pain is always real.

But pain is not always a measure of damage.

Pain is an experience shaped by the brain and nervous system using information from many different sources.

One thing we do understand is that when the body perceives greater threat, pain often becomes more protective.

Part of rehabilitation is helping people:

✔ Better understand their pain
✔ Build confidence in movement
✔ Reduce unnecessary threat
✔ Reconnect with the activities that matter to them

Because recovery isn't always about fixing damaged tissues.

Sometimes it's about changing the context in which pain exists.

**Pain is real.**

**Pain is complex.**

**Pain is contextual.**

And perhaps that's one of the most important things we understand about pain today.

08/05/2026

Fridays are my favourite, working alongside my husband, both of us back-to-back with clients all day. But in the middle of the chaos, we steal 15 minutes for a cuppa, a kiss, and a moment to ground each other before the next round begins. We both truly love what we do, and building a family business together makes it even more special 🥰

01/05/2026

Perfectionism, what people think it is vs what it really feels like.

What people often see:

Someone who is organised.
Someone who works hard.
Someone who has high standards and cares deeply.

What it can feel like on the inside:

Like you’re never quite doing enough.
Like there’s always something you could have done better.
Like resting has to be earned.
Like getting it wrong might say something about who you are.

Perfectionism isn’t really about being “perfect.”
It’s often a way of trying to stay safe, from criticism, from disappointment, from feeling not enough.

🌱 Where it can come from:

Sometimes it begins early, in environments where love, praise, or safety felt linked to achievement or “being good.”
Sometimes it develops when mistakes were criticised, or when expectations (spoken or unspoken) felt very high.
Sometimes it grows in people who had to take on a lot of responsibility, or who learned to keep things together for others.
And sometimes it simply comes from being someone who feels things deeply and wants to do well, in a world that can be quick to judge.

💬 Underneath, there are often quiet limiting beliefs like:

- “If I make a mistake, I might be judged or rejected.”
- “I have to get things right to be accepted.”
- “If I let my standards drop, everything will fall apart.”
- “Other people expect more from me than I can give.”

And over time, that can be really heavy to carry.

It can look like:

Overthinking and second-guessing.
Putting things off because it feels too much to start.
Finding it hard to switch off or relax.
Being much harder on yourself than you would ever be on someone else.

It can also show up in relationships, sometimes as pressure, sometimes as distance, sometimes as feeling like things have to be a certain way.

If any of this resonates, you’re not alone and it makes sense that this pattern developed in the first place.

👉A few gentle questions that will help you determine if you struggle with perfectionism:

- Do I feel uneasy or on edge when things aren’t “just right”?
- Do I hold myself to standards I wouldn’t expect from others?
- Do I find it hard to feel satisfied, even when things go well?
- Do I have quite fixed ideas about how things “should” be done?

There’s nothing wrong with caring or wanting to do well.

But you deserve space to be human in it too.

Little by little, it’s possible to soften the edges, not by lowering your worth, but by loosening the pressure around it.

You don’t have to earn rest. You don’t have to earn enough-ness. 💛

29/04/2026

Sometimes we think “taking care of ourselves” has to look like spa days, bubble baths, or treating ourselves. And while those things are lovely, they’re only the tip of the iceberg.

Real self-care is often much quieter and much harder.

It’s unlearning the rules you created to keep others comfortable.

It’s noticing the limiting beliefs that tell you your worth is tied to how much you give.

It’s choosing to say no, even when it feels unfamiliar or uncomfortable.

Self-care can look like:
– Protecting your boundaries
– Resting without guilt
– Leaving things unfinished
– Doing nothing, on purpose
– Asking for support instead of pushing through

If you’ve spent years people-pleasing, these acts won’t feel natural at first. They might even feel wrong. But that doesn’t mean they are.

Sometimes the most powerful form of self-care is giving yourself permission to not be everything for everyone.

And that’s where real change begins.

27/04/2026

As a therapist, I’ve been noticing a pattern in my work lately.

Many women come to therapy feeling anxious, stressed, or low. On the surface, it can look like overwhelm, burnout, or low mood. But when we take the time to gently piece together their story, to really understand where these feelings come from, we often uncover something deeper.

A set of long-held beliefs:

“I’m not good enough.”
“I’m not worthy of love.”
“I’ve failed.”

These beliefs rarely appear out of nowhere. They’re shaped over time, through past experiences, early relationships, and the powerful (often unspoken) expectations placed on women in society.

Somewhere along the way, many women learn rules like:

“I must put others first.”
“I should be able to cope with everything.”
“I can’t let people down.”

And while these rules might once have helped us feel accepted or safe, they often come at a cost. They can lead to people-pleasing, self-criticism, and a constant sense of falling short.

One part of therapy I really value is the educational piece. Helping people understand what’s happening inside their minds and bodies.

When we’re constantly criticising ourselves or carrying shame, we activate our threat system. And that threat doesn’t just come from the outside world, it can come from within.

When this system is switched on, we might notice:
• Feeling overwhelmed or on edge
• Struggling to make decisions
• Becoming more reactive
• Finding it hard to concentrate or remember things

Physiologically, the body is flooded with stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. Over time, this can become exhausting. Eventually, the system may push us into shutdown: feeling numb, disconnected, or losing motivation for things we once enjoyed.

This is why self-esteem work is so important.

It’s not about “thinking positively” or ignoring struggles. It’s about gently identifying these old belief systems, understanding where they came from, and updating them to something more balanced, compassionate, and true to who we are now.

Because when our beliefs begin to shift, our nervous system can begin to settle too.

And from there, change becomes much more possible.

26/03/2026

Come and join our team at Rae's Anatomy 🙌

📝 Clinical Note: Recruitment | Rae’s Anatomy Physiotherapy

Presenting Condition (PC):

Physiotherapist seeking:
✔️ Improved work-life balance
✔️ Greater flexibility and autonomy over working hours
✔️ A supportive and progressive clinical environment
✔️ Opportunities for professional growth and development

Examination Findings:
✔️ Part-time physiotherapy role available
✔️ Option to work across two clinic locations
✔️ Wide-ranging MSK caseload - amazing group of patients
✔️ Well-equipped clinical space with high-quality equipment
✔️ Ongoing professional development and clinical support
✔️ Working alongside experienced clinicians
✔️ Close links with other professionals including massage therapy, strength & conditioning, podiatry, and psychology

Clinical Impression:
✔️ Passionate about MSK physiotherapy
✔️ Patient-centred and motivated
✔️ Keen to develop clinically and professionally
✔️ Looking to be part of a positive, growing team

Experience:
✔️ Ideally 2+ years
✔️ Less experience considered with the right attitude, behaviours, and willingness to learn

Management Plan:
To initiate positive change:
Contact Marcus at:
📩 [email protected]

For further information or an informal chat, feel free to get in touch we’d love to hear from you.

25/03/2026

11/03/2026

Why Your Brain Becomes a Problem-Solver at Bedtime (and What Can Help) 💫👇

Ever notice how your brain suddenly becomes a professional problem solver at bedtime? 🧠🌙

You lie down, ready to sleep… and suddenly your mind starts reviewing conversations, planning tomorrow, or worrying about things that felt manageable earlier in the day.

Psychology research suggests this happens partly because of cognitive arousal and the Default Mode Network (DMN). When external stimulation drops at night (no work, phones away, lights off), the DMN becomes more active. This network is involved in self-reflection, memory processing, and future planning. In other words, your brain naturally starts reviewing the past and preparing for the future.

Add a little stress or unfinished tasks, and this process can easily turn into rumination or worry, a pattern strongly linked with insomnia in sleep research (Harvey, 2002; Carney & Edinger, 2006).

A few strategies supported by sleep and CBT-I research:

✨ Schedule “worry time” earlier in the day
Setting aside 10–15 minutes to write down concerns can reduce nighttime rumination by giving the brain a structured time to process them.

📝 Do a quick “brain dump” before bed
Studies show that writing a simple to-do list for the next day can help people fall asleep faster (Scullin et al., 2018).

🌬️ Calm the nervous system
Slow breathing, body scans, or relaxation techniques help reduce physiological and cognitive arousal, making it easier to transition into sleep.

🔁 Gently postpone the thinking
A CBT-I technique is to remind yourself: “This can wait until tomorrow.” Nighttime thinking is rarely productive thinking.

Your brain isn’t trying to annoy you, it’s trying to protect and prepare you. Sometimes it just needs guidance on when to do that work.

Sleep isn’t the time to solve everything.
It’s the time to restore. 🌚

Painting - Rembrandt (1635)

08/03/2026

Happy International Women’s Day 🌼

Today I’m thinking about the women who have shaped me.

The women who showed me what strength really looks like, not just the loud, obvious kind, but the quiet resilience that carries families, friendships, and communities every single day.

The women who helped me grow into who I am, as a woman, as a mother, as a wife, and as a therapist.

You reminded me to trust myself when motherhood felt overwhelming.

You showed me what compassion and patience look like in relationships.

You helped me learn how to hold space for others in my work.

Some of you guided me with words.
Some of you taught me just by being who you are.

Women have this incredible way of shaping each other’s lives, often without even realising it.

Today I’m grateful for the strength, wisdom, honesty, and kindness that women pass on to one another.

To the women who held my hand, lifted me up, and helped me become the person I am today 🥰 thank you 🙏🌼

Painting by artist Claudia Tremblay 🎨

03/03/2026

As a therapist I’ve been reflecting a lot on the rise of AI in therapy spaces. It’s a topic that brings both excitement and caution so I think it deserves a balanced conversation.

What are some of the Pros of AI in Therapy:

AI can increase accessibility. For people on long waiting lists, living in rural areas, or feeling unsure about starting therapy, AI tools can offer immediate support. They’re available 24/7, which matters during moments of distress that don’t wait for office hours.

AI can also help with structure, mood tracking, journaling prompts, psychoeducation, and CBT-based exercises. For some individuals, especially those who struggle to open up face-to-face, interacting with AI can feel less intimidating. It can be a stepping stone TOWARD human therapy.

And let’s acknowledge this: AI doesn’t get tired. It doesn’t have a bad day. It can consistently provide evidence-based information when used well.

But here are the limitations we must consider!

Therapy is not just about techniques. It’s about relationship. The therapeutic alliance, the felt sense of being seen, understood, and emotionally held by another human is one of the strongest predictors of outcomes. AI cannot truly attune, read micro-expressions, sense shifts in tone, or hold silence in the way a trained clinician can.

There are also ethical considerations like privacy, data storage, crisis management, and the risk of over-reliance. AI cannot take responsibility for safeguarding in complex or high-risk situations.

And importantly, therapy involves nuance. Trauma, attachment patterns, relational dynamics, these require depth, formulation, and human judgment. AI can simulate empathy, but it does not experience empathy.

My perspective?

AI can be a tool. It can complement therapy. It can increase access and support between sessions. But it is not a replacement for the deeply human process of psychological healing.

We don’t need to fear AI BUT we do need to use it thoughtfully.

I’d love to hear your thoughts. Have you used AI for mental health support? What was your experience like?