Blog posts, articles, think-pieces and Q&A’s presented by Jessica Kingsley Publishers and associated authors on and around the subject of mental health.
“Our alcohol fuelled world must impact on children and young people who look to us to see what being a grown up is all about. Unlike other drugs, alcohol is socially acceptable and almost expected in some instances. It is actually quite hard to be teetotal and socialise in pubs without attracting attention and unwanted questions about why you are refraining.”
“I have had a range of managers who, probably like most people, have ranged from “The Good, The Bad and The Ugly”. My best managers have provided me with the opportunity to grow, challenge, develop my skills, provided support, compassion and humanity.”
Here are some helpful tips for adoptive parents and foster carers to ensure that holidays are fun for everyone—especially for the anxious child. By Deborah Gray, MSW, MPA,…
“Kids with High Functioning Autism (HFA) and Aspergers, are very self-aware, and crave social interaction. We work with them to facilitate this, not only to make socialising a rewarding experience but to help them see and remember how it is achieved. It requires constant and persistent reinforcement, but it really pays off. “
“Professionals and parents want the best for children and need to know how to guide them through childhood. Positive Psychology provides the evidence on which to base decisions. For example, we know that optimism is invaluable to mental health because it encourages people to be hopeful and take good care of themselves. It helps people stave off depression by reframing challenging experiences and it increases people’s overall happiness.”
“I think it’s really important to stay in communication with us, as human being to human being – because we are still human beings with a spirit. And it’s spirit to spirit that we can really stay in touch.”
“I think the top tip with regard to playfulness is to embrace the playful moment. These are the moments that hold the relationships together, get us through the tough times and stay with us long after the moment has passed.”
“The news that a parent has a terminal illness generally presents the family with a huge crisis. Everything about family life is catapulted into a maelstrom, routines change and nothing appears to be predictable anymore. If children are not included in conversations about their parent’s illness and possible imminent death they are going to witness all the changes without having any ‘concrete’ knowledge to use as a marker. They will be aware of the changes and know that something is very different but will not be able to form a consistent narrative. As a result they are in danger of piecing together the information they have gleaned and making erroneous conclusions.”
“Ironically, as my fibre-making skills developed, my clinical skills also developed. I became better at creating relationships and more and more comfortable with using textile as an entryway to connect with women whom I didn’t know. At some point, it became obvious to me that making textiles and clinical psychology didn’t need to be two separate compartments in my life: I realized that I was already integrating the two.”
” I hope readers will become less afraid of rocking the boat of authority that urges us to make the child talk in adult terms about what the adult world deems important to them. Rather than having children be obedient patients, I want to encourage us to attempt in our work to foster true self-possession, knowing how very hard it is to achieve. I urge us all to fight the tendency to negate emotion, to negate aggression, to negate anything and everything that pulsates with life and therefore stirs things up.”