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TherapeuticThread
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Our Charitable Work
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All BTC/HTC Practitioners commit at least 25% of their time to the provision of low-cost and no-cost therapy. Any surplus generated from our mainstream work is ploughed back into our charitable services. You can help someone in your community access the support they need by contributing using the button below.
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Can't donate? Spread the word! If you're enjoying our newsletter, send it to your friends and get them to subscribe. Or if you know someone who might be looking to start therapy, send them our way.
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This Week
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This week, between the 13th and 19th May, we are celebrating Mental Health Awareness week!
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Every year the week takes on a different theme, and this year movement takes centre stage.
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We've embraced the theme in this week's Therapeutic Thread, so read on to hear about how some of the BTC practitioners move for their mental health and lots of events happening in your local community to get active with!
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We're very pleased to share with you that due to recent funding being made available to us through the National Lottery Community Fund, we are currently offering free initial consultations to those who are eligible for funding at Hastings Therapy Centre!
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This promotion will run throughout Mental Health Awareness Week until the 30th of June. Book yours here:
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How do we move for our mental health?
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"I love the peloton bike. I love an American woman with massive acrylics telling me as I cycle to Taylor Swift that fear is just a construct... she's wrong of course(!) but it's a very refreshing break from therapy!"
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"Until recently, I would push/pull free weights - it became my regular source of reconnecting with my body/ muscles and discipline to show my care and awareness of how my body responds to weight overload and movement rotations."
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"Dance fitness with the flamboyant Charlie , Yoga of any kind and... it's not for everyone but literally (as opposed to metaphorically) poop picking - horses only of course! "
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"I used to go to Burlesque classes. It was an amazing way to step out of my comfort zone, get moving, and feel good in my own skin. The theme for this year's Mental Health Awareness Week has made me realise I really should go back."
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"Particularly on the brighter days, I often walk for about an hour in the evenings along the seafront with music on and lose myself in a world of music, sights and sounds of Hastings Promenade life."
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"I run for the endorphins, practise yoga for the calm and dance salsa for the sheer fun of it."
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"I've been doing 5 Rhythms dance for 25 years! Brighton's got lots of it and other kinds of conscious dance. I wouldn't be without it."
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Are all babies control freaks?
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A few words from our CEO Kerry Evans
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Our relationship with control begins the minute we are born. Babies arrive in the world only partially formed and are utterly dependent on their caregivers, so they have to find a way of exercising some control ASAP.
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A common strategy is to be “no trouble at all”, supressing their inconvenient and unattractive needs in order to engender kindness from the people who are meant to be looking after them.
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Another is to accept the label of “naughty” or “bad” because it feels safer to take the blame for their misery than to admit that the people who they depend on for their survival are incompetent or inadequate. Psychoanalyst Ronald Fairbairn termed this the moral defence.
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The aim, either way, is to bring some predictability to an uncertain and potentially hostile environment. We continue to do this throughout life in response to adverse experiences and existential fears.
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Control comes in all shapes and sizes. An eating disorder or OCD are obvious examples, but consider too the self-sabotaging behaviour of the individual who repeatedly throws away opportunities, stays in harmful relationships or refuses to attend to self-care. Instead of waiting to be rejected, abandoned or told they are not good enough, they at least get to call the shots.
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Even feeling guilty can represent a bid for control. ‘The sentiment that one “should have done more”’, writes existential psychotherapist Irvin Yalom, ‘reflects an underlying wish to control the uncontrollable. After all, if one is guilty about not having done something that one should have done, then it follows that there is something that could have been done – a comfortable thought that decoys us from our pathetic helplessness in the face of death.’
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Try to identify what causes you most trouble in life – an inability to arrive on time, people-pleasing, a short temper, over-working, drinking too much – and see what happens if you turn it on its head and, with compassion, ask what it helps you to control.
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Therapists take a particular interest in this question, in working with clients to explore the hidden fears that it reveals and, ultimately, to help them develop a tolerance for not being able to control the uncontrollable.
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Mental Health in the News
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Events Calendar
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This free online seminar hosted by Mr Hastings and St Leonards, a men's health and wellbeing project within the area, will be led by representatives from the project alongside local men. They'll be discussing initiatives in local services and community groups to establish and promote services for men in the local area.
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Enjoyed last week's written article about boundaries? Then you might enjoy this webinar. You will discover practical strategies to set boundaries and prioritize your well-being while maintaining a sense of connection with those around you.
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In keeping with theme with movement, what better way to move your body than with a free one day pass to one of Freedom Leisure's centres! Perhaps you'd like to take part in an exercise class, get active in the gym or simply relax in the pool, being active is a great way to prioritise your mental wellbeing.
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All offers are subject to local availability and available for a limited time only
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Freedom Leisure Centre, Various locations.
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Celebrate the Friday of Mental Health Awareness week in Hastings with a fantastic night of live music, DJ's and chill out spaces. Get ready to dance the night away!
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The Observer Building, Hastings.
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Given this year's MHA week theme of movement, it's worth mentioning that May is also National Walking Month! Brighton & Hove City Council's Healthy Lifestyles team are leading Health Walks across the city. No need to book, just turn up! There are several dates and distances which are being led, all with slightly different themes.
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Various dates throughout May.
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Various locations around Brighton.
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Churchill Square will be offering feel-good style tips, mindful colouring and mood boosting activity rooms as they embrace Mental Health Awareness week.
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Wednesday 15th May to Sunday 19th May between 12pm and 5pm.
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Churchill Square Shopping Centre, Brighton.
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Book your Initial Consultation
Hastings Therapy Centre and Brighton Therapy Centre have vacancies for therapy throughout the week. We offer individual, relationship and group therapies.
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We also have a number of low-cost appointments available.
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Book your consultation now:
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I've been asking our therapists what it is they do and why they do it, to help introduce you to them. Next up, meet Mary George.
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"I'm Mary, a psychodynamic therapist and graduate counsellor at Brighton Therapy Centre. I was drawn to training as a psychodynamic therapist because I'm fascinated by how past experiences and early relationships affects our lives in the present, and it's rewarding to see how exploring these things can have a positive impact for the clients I work with.
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I have a special interest in neurodivergence (including Autism and ADHD) and helping clients to understand how neurodivergence might relate to their identity and experiences. I was diagnosed with ADHD whilst training to be a therapist, which inspired me to explore how being neurodivergent shapes peoples' experiences of therapy and how I can provide a supportive and affirming space for clients to explore what neurodivergence means to them.
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A large part of my decision to become a therapist was a passion for mental health and a desire to make a difference in a time when therapy and mental health support is needed more than ever. One of my biggest frustrations as a therapist is how hard it can be for people to access therapy when they need it most, so I find it really fulfilling to be part of an organisation that provides low-cost therapy to people in our community.
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Have Your Say
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Let us know what you would like to see in our Newsletter!
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"I genuinely feel that I understand myself more now than ever before. I came to therapy for one perceived issue and went on quite a journey (sometimes painful) to discover more about the causes rather than the symptoms of the mental health issues I was experiencing. This has really made a big difference to my life as I am learning to pay more attention to how I actually feel."
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Follow us on Social Media
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See what us and our community are discussing on our social media pages and join the conversation!
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Meet our Practitioners
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Browse the practitioners who offer therapeutic services from a range of modalities and specialities
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Meet our Employed Team
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Meet the friendly team behind BTC and HTC who will help you find the help you may need
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Meet our Trustees
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Meet our trustees who offer their valued experience and knowledge to support our charity
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2nd Floor, 17 Havelock Road
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Charity Number: 1150032 | Company Number: 07791021
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