The first reading I ever completed for my three-year psychotherapy diploma program was in the summer before starting the certificate (In the UK we get our Postgraduate Certificate before we can progress to the Diploma). I can’t remember what book it was from, but the author seemed very determined to instill in the reader that any trainee…
At the end of one of our sessions, a client apologized to me for leaving me with all of their problems. This wasn’t the first time a client has apologized to me for this and I’m sure it won’t be the last. We were running out of time and my rushed response became a garbled,…
I want to talk about rape but I’m not really sure where to start. I only have three sessions left with my current therapist. We’ve been working together for about eight months, yet it’s only in the last three sessions that I’ve been able to voice anything further than, “So that happened” or discuss what…
Last week I caught a cold. Usually, this wouldn’t be breaking news. I used to catch tonsillitis every school holiday, and have narrowly missed being able to have my tonsils removed several times. However, that was when I wasn’t permanently ill. That was when I was in my devil-may-care days, when the common cold could…
God, I hate change. There is just something inside of me that clenches whenever the word is mentioned. I get this mental image of myself as a small child throwing myself face down on the carpet, beating my fists and screaming. And yet, there is an equal part of myself that firmly believes that change…
Years ago, I was on an early morning train from Dallas airport to the city center. I had caught a ridiculously early flight and was traveling with two female friends. I sat across from them in the carriage. I was beyond exhausted, and, feeling safe in the knowledge that I was riding the train until…
Tonight is the third night in a row I have left the support center I volunteer at once a week, needing to pee. There is a perfectly acceptable bathroom that I have access to before I leave, but I never use it. There is always this little voice in my head, as I watch the minutes…
Nightline Awareness Week runs this year from the 14th-20th November. This annual national campaign seeks to raise awareness of the student-run, student-led Nightline services. These non-directory information and listening services offer anonymous and confidential peer-support (without advice) and are managed on University campuses all over the UK and Republic Of Ireland via phone lines, Instant Messaging,…
i can’t write tonight i can’t write because my throat has closed, my voice is bubbling beneath the surface, clogged by my own privilege and fear i can’t write because i’m not sure i’m the one you should be hearing from the world is angry and the headlines are scary and i’m watching, listening, waiting for this…
I caught a sting of you last night. There was an image of us, standing in my high school bedroom, holding hands fiercely as we said goodbye. We were good at goodbye. The pair of us, clasping each other in my parents’ living room, bookending our relationship from beginning to end, realizing that from this…
