Ellen Lin Perry Psychotherapy

16/06/2026

, silence, and what emerges underneath

I was reminded recently why I love this work.

What can appear as silence or withdrawal between sessions can so easily be understood as avoidance or disengagement. Yet when we are able to stay with it together, something much more human begins to emerge.

We often meet younger parts carrying feelings of powerlessness, anger, fear, loneliness, and not being understood.

At times, it can feel as though there are more than just two people in the room. Alongside the adult client and myself there may be a younger, more vulnerable part — sometimes a 4-year-old sulking self — hurt, quiet, and deeply misunderstood.

When we gently make space for this, what initially looks like resistance can begin to make sense as a protective response from a part of self that once felt overwhelmed and alone.

Moments like these remind me how easily we can misunderstand withdrawal in ourselves and others. Beneath it, there is often a story that longs to be understood.

If you recognise this in yourself, you’re not alone.

I am also mindful of how familiar this can be in many relationships — with ourselves, as therapists, supervisors, partners, or parents. Sometimes we withdraw. At other times, we are left wondering what has happened between us, unsure whether to reach out, wait, or let go.

I continue to be moved by the courage it takes to turn towards what feels difficult and to stay in relationship with it.

These moments remind me why I love this work.

02/06/2026

I was watching Ronny Chieng speak at Harvard about AI and it made me laugh… and then quietly reflect.

In my psychotherapy work, I notice that conversations about AI rarely stay about technology for long. They quickly become something more human — about identity, fear, and what it means to be alive.

A lot of people are understandably worried that AI might take away thinking, creativity, or even human connection. I understand that. There is truth in it.

But I also wonder if the deeper fear is about how closely we identify with our thinking minds.

Because when we believe we are our thinking, anything that thinks faster can feel threatening.

For me, being human has always felt wider than thought. It’s in feeling, in the body, in intuition, and in relationship.

From that place, AI feels less like a rival and more like a thinking support.
But it cannot feel grief, love, loss, pride, or tenderness.

And it cannot sit with another human being in real presence — the silence, the gaze, the staying.

That, to me, is the difference.

And maybe the invitation.

What cannot be automated is also what makes us most human.

In his keynote speech to Harvard graduates this week, The Daily Show host Ronny Chieng joked and warned students about AI. This is a production of 404 Media, a journalist-owned tech website. Learn more and subscribe at: htttps://404media.co Listen to our weekly podcasts: Apple Podcasts: https://podc...

11/02/2026

Today, I was reminded once again how gentle, body-based awareness can help someone feel steadier when social or work situations bring alertness or vulnerability.

In an online session, I guided a client through a brief somatic awareness exercise designed to support balance between the sympathetic (mobilising/alert) and parasympathetic (settling/restorative) branches of the autonomic nervous system. The client placed one hand at the back of their head and one on their abdomen, and we focused on soft, paced breathing alongside sustained, non-judgemental attention to areas of tension and discomfort.

From a neurophysiological perspective, orienting to touch, breath, and interoceptive awareness can increase a sense of safety within the body, supporting a gradual shift from hyper-vigilance toward a more grounded, regulated state. Even small, gentle attention through breathwork can help cultivate self-soothing capacity and resilience over time, allowing subtle regulation to emerge naturally.

It’s fascinating how our nervous system responds when we simply allow ourselves to be present and supported. Guided by a sense of Latif - that subtle, heart-centred gentleness, like a feather drifting softly in the air - moments like this remind me that real regulation rarely comes from forcing change. It emerges when the body feels safe enough to shift, and when the heart is quietly attended to with patience and tenderness.

I feel privileged to witness these moments of self-healing, helping people reconnect with their own presence, steadiness, and inner resilience.

You might try this for yourself - place a hand on the areas that feel tense or uncomfortable, breathe gently into them, and simply notice what arises. I’d be curious to hear what you notice.

05/11/2025

🌿 Integrating Energy Beyond Talk

Psychotherapy isn’t only about words - in integrative and transpersonal work, we also work with energy, embodiment, and awareness.

After a Kundalini or Reiki weekend, many feel heat in the head and chest, emotional openness, and disconnection, even while functioning at work or in relationships. In my sessions, I help clients ground, balance, and circulate energy through the Ren-Du channels (任督二脉) and Yin-Yang integration, harmonising the active, fiery masculine with the cool, receptive feminine.

From a Sufi perspective, this is the art of balancing heart and mind - transforming intensity into clarity, calm, and presence.

If you practise yoga, Kundalini, or other energy-based disciplines and wish to deepen your embodiment and integrate your experience safely, this approach can bring you back to stillness and flow in daily life.

✨ www.ellenlinperry-psychotherapy.co.uk

01/11/2025

🌿 Online Group Supervision – For Therapists & Counsellors 🌿

A reflective and soulful space to explore the alchemy of the therapeutic field. We’ll work with transference, countertransference, and projective identification, using image, body, and relational process to deepen insight.

This is a structured professional supervision circle designed for therapists wishing to invest in their growth and practice.

If you’re drawn to supervision as a space of depth, creativity, and professional development, you’re warmly invited to join.

✨ Message me to book your place or for more details. ✨

12/02/2025

If you're feeling low, depressed, or frustrated, I recommend watching Christina Helena's TEDx talk, "Dear Unresolved Soul, It's Not Death You Fear, It's Life."

In this powerful talk, Christina shares her personal journey of discovering her authentic self and learning to embrace life more fully. The themes she addresses—such as avoiding pain, feeling unworthy, struggling with a sense of not belonging, and confronting inner conflicts—are all common topics in therapy.

To watch Christina Helena's TEDx talk, click the video below:

It’s easy to assign fear to death. It’s unknown, mysterious with no second chances. I’ve faced death. More than once. And here is what I learned. It’s not de...

07/11/2024

Embracing change requires a sense of confidence in one self and the world but where to begin and to get guidance?

Anyone interested in this direction, please feel free to contact CCPE's 1 year part-time evenings foundation program below:

Certificate in the Foundations of Counselling and Psychotherapy Key information 2025 To apply for the 2025 CCPE Certificate in the Foundations of Counselling and Psychotherapy, please click here for the Application Pack materials and follow the instructions in the Guidance for Applicants. Any querie...

19/06/2024

30/04/2022

Feeling honored to be given an award as an Anger Management Specialist of the year (London) - Mental Health Awards 2022 Health Pharma

https://www.ghp-news.com/winners/ellen-lin-perry-psychotherapy/