Talking Works

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Talking Works UCKP and NCPS Registered Psychotherapist - Chris Colcomb. Online and Face to Face. A friendly counselling and coaching service tailored to your needs.

Offering the kind of talking that works for you.

We were not built for this much stimulation.The average person checks their phone over 100 times a day. We wake to notif...
06/07/2026

We were not built for this much stimulation.

The average person checks their phone over 100 times a day. We wake to notifications, scroll before sleep, and fill every quiet moment with content. And we wonder why we feel anxious, scattered and chronically tired.

This is not a willpower problem. The apps on your phone are designed by some of the world's most sophisticated engineers specifically to capture and hold your attention. Your brain's reward system, shaped over hundreds of thousands of years, was simply not designed for this level of constant stimulation.

The effects on mental health are real. Disrupted sleep. Shortened attention spans. Heightened anxiety. A nagging sense of inadequacy fuelled by social comparison. Difficulty being present with the people and experiences right in front of us.

Therapy can help you understand your relationship with technology, explore what needs it might be meeting, and build a healthier, more intentional way of living with it.

Your brain is not struggling. It is overwhelmed. And that is not your fault.

Chris Colcomb | UKCP Registered Psychotherapist | Talking Works

Something has to change. This is where that starts.Maybe you have been telling yourself you will deal with it later. Tha...
30/06/2026

Something has to change. This is where that starts.

Maybe you have been telling yourself you will deal with it later. That it is not bad enough to warrant help. That you should be able to handle it on your own.

But you are still here, reading this. And that means something.

Therapy is not just for crisis. It is for anyone who is tired of feeling stuck, overwhelmed, disconnected, or not quite like themselves. It is for the person who keeps the smile in place at work but dreads going home (or vice versa). For the one who lies awake at 3am running the same thoughts on a loop. For anyone who senses that life could feel different - better - but cannot quite find the way there alone.

I offer a warm, confidential space where you can speak freely and be heard without judgement. Together we can begin to understand what is going on beneath the surface, and work gently and at your pace toward something that feels more like the life you want.

To make that first step as easy as possible, I offer a free 30-minute Zoom consultation. No pressure, no commitment - just a chance to talk, ask questions, and see if we are a good fit.

You do not have to be in crisis to deserve support. You just have to be ready to begin.

Get in touch today. I would love to hear from you.

Chris Colcomb | UKCP Registered Psychotherapist | Talking Works
www.talkingworks.uk

Your brain is wired to notice what goes wrong. You can rewire it.Negativity bias is one of the most well-documented phen...
28/06/2026

Your brain is wired to notice what goes wrong. You can rewire it.

Negativity bias is one of the most well-documented phenomena in psychology. Our brains are disproportionately attuned to negative experiences - threats, criticism, setbacks and disappointments - and far less likely to register and hold onto positive ones. Research suggests that negative events have roughly three to five times the psychological impact of equivalent positive ones.

This is not a personal failing. It is evolution. For our ancestors, missing a threat could be fatal. Missing a good thing was merely unfortunate. So our brains became expert threat-detectors, scanning constantly for what could go wrong.
The problem is that this ancient wiring is poorly suited to modern life, where we are exposed to a relentless stream of negative news, social comparison and self-critical thought.

The late Dr Mark Widdowson - speaking at the Humber Counselling and Psychotherapy Conference - explored how intentional gratitude practice can begin to shift this imbalance. Not as a superficial exercise in forced positivity, but as a genuine neurological intervention. When we deliberately notice, savour and record what is good in our lives, we are actively training the brain to register positive experience more fully - slowly but measurably changing the lens through which we see the world.

Three things that went well today. Written down. Every day. It sounds simple because it is. And the evidence suggests it works.

Gratitude is not toxic positivity. It is neuroscience.

Chris Colcomb | UKCP Registered Psychotherapist | Talking Works

The family we grew up in shapes everything.The way we learned to manage emotions, ask for help, handle conflict, give an...
26/06/2026

The family we grew up in shapes everything.

The way we learned to manage emotions, ask for help, handle conflict, give and receive love - all of it was taught to us, long before we had the words for it. Not necessarily in what was said, but in what was felt, what was left unspoken, and what we learned we had to do to feel safe.

This is not about blame. Most parents did the best they could with what they had. But understanding the patterns we absorbed in childhood is often the most powerful thing we can do as adults - whether we are struggling in relationships, at work, with our own sense of self, or with how we are showing up as parents ourselves.

Therapy offers a space to look at that story with fresh eyes, and to gently begin to write a new one.

Understanding where you came from is how you choose where you go.

Chris Colcomb | UKCP Registered Psychotherapist | Talking Works

Some days, getting up is the achievement.If you are living with depression, you will know the particular weight of ordin...
24/06/2026

Some days, getting up is the achievement.

If you are living with depression, you will know the particular weight of ordinary things. Getting dressed. Replying to a message. Making a meal. These things that others do without thinking can feel enormous, and that gap between what you can manage and what you feel you should be able to do can itself become another source of pain.

Depression is not weakness or self-indulgence. It is a recognised condition that responds to the right support. Therapy offers a space to understand what is happening, at your own pace, without judgement.

You are not failing at life. You are carrying something heavy. And you don't have to carry it alone.

Chris Colcomb | UKCP Registered Psychotherapist | Talking Works

Recovery is possible. It is not a straight line.Most people who find their way through addiction will tell you the same ...
23/06/2026

Recovery is possible. It is not a straight line.

Most people who find their way through addiction will tell you the same thing: it rarely looked the way they expected. There were good days and very hard days. There were moments of real progress followed by steps backwards. And every single one of those steps, forwards and back, was part of the process.

A setback is not proof that you cannot do this. It is not the end of the story. Relapse, when it happens, is often where the most important learningA setback is not proof that you cannot do this. It is not the end of the story. Relapse, when it happens, is often where the most important learning takes place.

Therapy can help you understand what drives the patterns, build genuine resilience, and find your own path through at a pace that is right for you. Without shame. WithoTherapy can help you understand what drives the patterns, build genuine resilience, and find your own path through at a pace that is right for you. Without shame. Witho judgement.

If you or someone you know is struggling with addiction, reaching out is always the right first move.

Chris Colcomb | UKCP Registered Psychotherapist | Talking Works

You deserve a space where all of you is welcome.For many LGBTQ+ people, therapy has not always felt like a safe place. E...
22/06/2026

You deserve a space where all of you is welcome.

For many LGBTQ+ people, therapy has not always felt like a safe place. Experiences of being misunderstood, pathologised, or having to spend energy educating a therapist rather than being supported by one are far too common.

Affirmative therapy is different. It starts from a place of genuine acceptance, where your identity, your relationships and your experiences are not a problem to be solved but a context to be understood. The work is about you, not about explaining yourself.

Whether you are navigating coming out, processing family rejection, managing the impact of minority stress, working through relationship difficulties, or simply wanting a space where you do not have to edit yourself, you are welcome here.

No part of you needs to be left at the door.

Chris Colcomb | UKCP Registered Psychotherapist | Talking Works

Anxiety is not a character flaw or a sign of weakness. It is your nervous system doing exactly what it was designed to d...
20/06/2026

Anxiety is not a character flaw or a sign of weakness. It is your nervous system doing exactly what it was designed to do, scanning for threat and sounding the alarm.

The difficulty is when that alarm becomes so sensitive it fires in the absence of real danger.

Therapy can help you understand and gently re-tune that response.

If anxiety is affecting your daily life, you don’t have to navigate it alone. Get in touch. I would love to help.

Chris Colcomb | UKCP Registered Psychotherapist | Talking Works

Life has a way of teaching us to be careful, composed, and contained. But underneath all of that, your Free Child is sti...
18/06/2026

Life has a way of teaching us to be careful, composed, and contained. But underneath all of that, your Free Child is still there. ✨

Spontaneity. Joy. Curiosity. Aliveness.

Therapy isn’t about fixing you. It’s about remembering who you already are.

Many of us learned early how to keep the peace, shrink ourselves, or stay strong. Because we had to. That wasn’t weaknes...
17/06/2026

Many of us learned early how to keep the peace, shrink ourselves, or stay strong. Because we had to. That wasn’t weakness. It was a brilliant adaptation. 🌿

But some of those patterns may no longer be serving you.
Therapy is a space to notice them with curiosity, not judgment.

Address

29 South Street
Cottingham
HU164AH

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 9pm
Tuesday 9am - 9pm
Wednesday 9am - 9pm
Thursday 9am - 9pm
Friday 9am - 9pm
Saturday 10am - 5pm

Telephone

+447581088211

Website

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