Counselling and Mindfulness for Women

We are going through some of the most challenging times ever and have no doubt,

had to call on all our reserves of emotional strength to get ourselves, loved ones and friends through.

It’s now essential to take time for ourselves; to treat ourselves with kindness and compassion and replenish those emotional reserves.

To support you through these difficult times Blackburne House with funding from The National Lottery Community fund and DCMS can offer mindfulness sessions.

During these sessions, we will to look at the benefits of living mindfully, how this can reduce stress and anxiety by truly living in the ‘now’.

We will explore the benefits to your health and wellbeing through mindful eating and the impact it has on weight loss and reducing binge eating habits.

Throughout the sessions, we will practise a variety of meditations; learn how to use our breath as an anchor in times of stress and challenging situations.

Practise some light mindful movement meditations and consider how nature can play an important part in our nurturing and general health.

You will be encouraged to practice between sessions helping you develop daily informal mindfulness into everyday life. In turn, daily practice becomes a habit. You will gain greater levels of wellbeing improve your confidence, achieve clarity of thought that will stop you ruminating about the past, worrying about the future, and focusing only on the present.

There will be lots to talk about and to learn from each other and we hope that the sharing of our thoughts and experiences will make us strong and put us firmly in control of our lives.

By practising our meditations in every session, you will inject far-reaching and long-lasting benefits into our lives.

There are four, three-hour sessions for you to attend, these are currently being delivered via zoom.

Counselling for Women

“Heal from Within” Women’s Therapeutic Programme- Blackburne House. In these times difficult times resilience is the key to getting through. However some days we face such challenges that there really does seem to be more obstacles than solutions. It’s when these concerns become a little overwhelming that we perhaps need some additional help. At The Health Place in Blackburne House, we have recognised the challenges our student's staff and community are facing. So with the help of funding from The National Lottery Community fund and DCMS, we are able to provide three services that can support you through these challenging times. One to one counselling a maximum of six sessions

Individuals will be able to access personal counselling in a confidential, safe and non-judgemental space, offered by a qualified and highly experienced integrative counsellor who as the name suggests; uses a combined approach that brings together different elements of specific therapies e.g., Person Centred, Psychodynamics, CBT, Transactional analysis to mention but a few. As an integrative counsellor/psychotherapist, the counsellor takes the view that there is no single approach that can treat each client in all situations. Some examples of what students, staff and members of the community can gain from personal counselling are;

Improve communication and interpersonal skills Greater self-acceptance and self-esteem Ability to change self-defeating behaviour and habits Relief from depression, anxiety or other mental health conditions Increased confidence and decision making skills Better expression and management of emotions, including anger, shame, guilt etc.

Group counselling weekly session

This is where a collection of participants with similar issues or concerns meets as a group with the trained counsellor/therapist, to discuss those issues, and to learn about and share information and solutions about these issues. Examples of such are; Relationship problems, work-related stress, Grief and Bereavement, communication and social skills deficits, Anxiety and Depression, Anger etc. Like for personal counselling, groups will offer a confidential, safe space for participants to gain self-awareness and awareness of others to cope better with life’s challenges. The experience often reduces loneliness, normalises participants’ experiences, promotes change in quick and meaningful ways, and helps them to learn and process new skills, as well as allowing participants to learn how to express their issues and accept criticisms from others. Individuals can benefit from more support offered by the group, in addition to their personal counselling/therapy. Specialised group counselling

This in many ways; like an educational experience, participants will not only learn more about themselves, but also acquire new skills and knowledge/awareness. Sometimes counselling involves learning more about particular conditions e.g. depression, anxiety, and panic attack, eating disorder, chronic pain, self-harming, suicidal thoughts etc., which affects an individual, so that they can better, understand treatment options. A one-off meeting of a small group that will be guided by a trained counsellor to discuss a designated topic, that is of great importance to the health and wellbeing of the students, staff and the community. Examples of such may include; Domestic Abuse, Resilience, Trauma, Sexual Abuse, Bullying, Harassment, Separation and Divorce, Addiction, Anger Management, Procrastination, Loneliness, Self –Knowledge/Self-awareness, Rejection, Shame and Guilt etc. Participants will be supported to explore issues that affect women, in a safe place and space, to share feelings and develop the skills of supportive challenge and empathy.

To express your need for these services please speak to your course tutor who will refer you to Lynne or email her directly Lynnekavanagh@blackburnehouse.co.uk