Julie Keir Therapy

08/06/2021

As we come out of the pandemic I am excited to now be offering a hybrid therapy service - in person and online sessions via zoom. In person sessions follow the current Covid guidelines and I am fully vaccinated. Check out my website to find out more about my generic services; juliekeir.com. Some new services launched during lockdown were for Faith-Based Organisations. Check out more here; http://www.juliekeir.com/faith-based-organisations/

Professional therapy utilising person-centred, cognitive behavioural and solution focussed therapeutic approaches, dependent on what issues you bring to therapy and the type of approach you are looking for. Counselling always seeks to understand the individual’s worldview. Incorporation into the t...

08/04/2020

During this uncertain time, I am continuing to offer therapy services to current clients online via Zoom or by phone and am taking new referrals.

It might be you would benefit from a single session to assess your current coping strategies and how to improve these or you may be considering a course of therapy.

Do visit my website; juliekeir.com for more information about my services.

We all face times in our lives, when aspects of life, feel overwhelming. The most up to date statistics tell us that 1 in 4 people will experience depression or anxiety at some point in their lives. Others of us might experience loss or something that has been traumatic either in our childhood, teen...

21/04/2018

21/04/2018

During Mental Health Awareness Week in May, !Audacious Church is presenting ‘Mental Health Matters’. The day will feature practical sessions on subjects such as improving your mental wellbeing and supporting others with mental health issues, alongside inspiring and hope-filled moments of worship and prayer. There will also be time to talk and meet others and be signposted to other ways of getting help and support where needed. For more information or to book go to audaciouschurch.com/mhm .

12/04/2017

For more details about my therapy service please have a look at my website juliekeir.com or find my listing on www.counselling-directory.org.uk

16/03/2017

Emotional resilience is a term that's currently in vogue. Apparently society at large is lacking it, children and teenagers haven't got as much of it as the post war generation ... but what exactly is it?!

I like to think of emotional resilience as the ability to be ok when everything is not ok. All hell can be breaking loose around us, the future may be ridiculously uncertain, relationships might be rocky, finances might be scarce, your job may be on the line; but somehow, just somehow, you are still standing. And not just surviving but thriving.

So is this ethereal quality something we're born with or something we develop? I think the latter. Many factors contribute to our resilience - our parenting, childhood events, life experiences and also how we've seen people around us cope. What encourages me is if you're a person who feels lacking in this quality it can be developed. In the same way we build muscle by lifting weights, so too we can build our resilience by developing our coping muscles.

So how practically do we do it?

1. Reflect on your coping history

Without realising it we all have a track record of coping. Think briefly about some of the most challenging times of your life. List them. You're still here, so just how did you do that? Was it the support of family and friends? Was it inner strength? Was it your faith or beliefs? Was it a decision to put one foot in front of the other? Write next to the events what you did to cope. Brilliant! You have just recorded your track record of coping!

2. Healthy self-soothing skills

When we were babies and we were wailing or distressed, hopefully someone picked us up and soothed us. Maybe they sang you a lullaby or wrapped you in a warm blanket or rocked you. The effect - you calmed down! As young people or adults we get distressed too. We may not (🙄) wail but we get anxious, upset, overwhelmed, our thoughts race, we catastrophize. At these times we all choose a means to calm down. How do you do it? Some things we resort to might be viewed as unhealthy like excessive alcohol, drugs, self harm, over or under eating, po*******hy or risky s*x.

What we need to find are healthy soothing strategies. What might some of these be? A warm bath, exercise, a conversation with a friend, a duvet & a good book, a massage, relaxation or meditation, prayer or other rituals. When we turn to unhealthy coping strategies, the very thing that started as a solution to a problem can become another problem i.e. now you have 2 problems!

3. Pleasant activities aka fun times & laughter

The third way of building your resilience is to build into your life, particularly in the midst of uncertain times, some fun! Laughter is a great medicine. Even if the last thing you feel like doing is having a laugh it has to be done. Ask a friend to drag you out to a movie, watch your favourite episode of Miranda or Peter Kay, hang with some friends who will stop you taking yourself so seriously!

4. A belief that Someone higher than you has the blueprint or plan

There is growing research that people who have faith or religious belief are more emotionally resilient. Why is that? The rationale is that you believe in Someone higher than yourself - that there must be a plan, a blueprint, a purpose for all this suffering. Those who have hope, faith or trust seem to cope better in the midst of difficulty. When they come out the other side of the trouble they are stronger and can see meaning in what they've gone through.

So ... if you're looking at your quota of emotional resilience and finding it lacking, why not take one of the keys above and start to workout. Happy muscle building 💪🏻

23/02/2017

Interesting article discussing whether there is actually an increasing prevalence of mental ill health or just increased incidence due to the rising de-stigmatisation of mental ill health.

College may very well be the best four years of a person’s life, but reports show that college students are more stressed out nowadays than they have ever been before.…

29/11/2016

What have you stopped doing?

When I meet someone who has low mood, one of my first questions is often 'is there anything you used to enjoy doing that you no longer do?' Its amazing how often people say that they used to go out with friends, bake, go running, volunteer, pursue a hobby, have a relaxing bath, have a massage or simply laugh!

It's easy in the busyness of life to neglect doing the things we love that have the effect of energising us. We get so bogged down with the to-do-list and forget that by doing that one thing that we love (or used to), even just for a short time, gives us fuel to do the rest of our lives.

When you're feeling low; going out, exercise and looking after yourself often get replaced by withdrawal , inactivity and self neglect. The very things that help become the things we feel least able to do.

Change starts with making one small step. Like asking yourself, "what's one thing I used to love doing that I haven't done in ages" and then .... doing it! If you can't face doing it alone, grab a friend and do it together!

24/11/2016

Gratitude is a powerful thing. I usually start my day by writing the heading in my journal '5 things I am grateful for'. I then begin to write them 1-5. I normally scan back in my mind over the previous day and notice things, from the smallest to the greatest. It could be the tiniest occurrence such as 'the sun was shining' (as it's a rarity for those of us that live in the north!) to a great thing that happened. Some days the 1-5 is done in seconds and I keep going. Other days I notice that my 1-5 reflect digging very deep; 'thank you that the sun came up today', 'thank you for my home and that we are warm.'

You might be fooled into thinking that I must have been blessed with the most positive disposition from birth to have such a practice?!Unfortunately not! What I have found is that I can choose my focus. If I choose to hone in on the difficult events and circumstances of my life, guess what? They seem bigger! Alternatively if we search for the good, the light in the darkness, we will find it. And the more we look for it, the more we notice it!

So how about it? What are you grateful for today?

22/11/2016

If you've never tried Mindfulness, here are some helpful tips. My favourite is a 'mindful walk'. Rather than walking along deep in your thoughts take notice of the sights and sounds of autumn around you! See the changing colours, listen to the sounds of the leaves crunching under your feet, notice your cold hands and face, smell the smells of autumn! Enjoy!

The brain is the control centre for our body - but rarely do any of us give it any training.

12/11/2016

The Lily-Jo Project is a platform devoted to using the power of music to educate, equip, and empower people of all ages to take control of their mental health. 🧠✨

To learn more about who we are and what we do, please visit www.thelilyjoproject.com/about-us

To check out our mental health curriculum, visit thelilyjoproject.thinkific.com

💥 Please note 💥

👉 If you are looking for mental health support, you can access our free self-help resource, www.thelilyjoproject.com/ 24/7.

👉 If you need immediate assistance, please contact your local GP and/or
emergency services

26/10/2016

What we say to ourselves, about ourselves is powerful. It is only once we acknowledge our internal dialogue that we can then start to address and change it.