• Rewriting Your Mental Narratives using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
    Sep 17 2025
    In this episode, Wendy talks about a therapy called Act, which stands for Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Wendy looks at some evidence-based ACT techniques and shares easy skills you can develop to diffuse yourself from unhelpful thoughts. Disclaimer - this is just an educational podcast. It's not a substitute for therapy. If you're struggling or in crisis, please reach out to your GP or your local mental health services. KEY TAKEAWAYS Some days are sunny, some days are stormy. ACT doesn't encourage you to try to control the weather. It teaches you how to deal with the weather. Using ACT helps you to keep going regardless of what happens, to keep walking towards the life you want. ACT is evidence-based. There are 6 basic ACT habits that can be used by anyone, regardless of their circumstances. Wendy explains how to develop and use each of them. Understand what truly matters to you, what your values are, what the meaning of your life is. Reframing a thought, changes your relationship with that thought and puts things in context. Use anchors to bring yourself back from bad thoughts. Wendy shares several, including how to use your breath. BEST MOMENTS “ACT helps you to make room for difficult thoughts and feelings but still focus on behaviours that are important to you.” “ACT is not about not feeling or damping down feelings…. It won't delete difficult feelings, but it can help you to struggle less and live more.” “You say, “Ah, here we go. I'm telling myself the imposter story”. And then the idea is that you say, “Thank you, mind. Now, I'm going to get back to what matters.” VALUABLE RESOURCES www.wendycastelino.com https://www.instagram.com/wendycastelino/ https://www.youtube.com/@wendycastelino798 https://twitter.com/WendyCastelino ABOUT THE HOST Wendy Castelino has been working as a psychotherapist for over thirty-five years. As an accredited CBT and EMDR practitioner, she is committed to upholding the rigorous standards required for these accreditations and helping thousands of people reach their full potential. Wendy currently runs a private practice where her focus is on CBT. Therapy is constantly evolving into developing new techniques, so she studies hard to integrate them into her therapy, to provide a rich and effective experience. Wendy is aware that working in one-to-one therapy limits the number of people she can see. She has, therefore, created a range of online resources. These resources are designed to be easy to follow and provide clear, step-by-step instructions. This can help the individual to master skills and gain confidence, therefore optimising the therapy sessions. They are also suitable to be used on their own. Further details are available at: WendyCastelino.com. This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/
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    12 mins
  • Beyond Meditation: Real-World Mindfulness You Can Try Today
    Sep 3 2025
    In this episode, Wendy talks about mindfulness, including how you can benefit from incorporating it into your life and exactly how to do that. As a CBT therapist she has already helped many people to do this and also practices it herself. Explore the proven benefits of mindfulness by trying Wendy´s simple guided exercises. She includes body scans, mindful movement and savouring pleasant moments – no incense required. Whether you’re new to mindfulness or looking to deepen your practice, this episode offers accessible tips and gentle wisdom to help you respond to life with greater calm, curiosity, and kindness. KEY TAKEAWAYS Mindfulness is mostly about deliberately paying attention, in the present moment, and without judgment. You don´t need any special equipment. Research shows that mindfulness provides small to moderate improvement for those who suffer from anxiety, depression or stress. But even someone with no mental health issues can also benefit from it. Mindfulness can often help you with managing chronic pain. Practicing mindfulness helps you to enjoy the good things in life more deeply. It increases your feelings of joy and gratitude. Everyday activities provide you with the chance to practice mindfulness e.g. noticing the scent of a flower or the smile your friend gives you when they first see you. There are many ways to practice mindfulness, it´s not all about breathing exercises. The more you practice mindfulness, the better you get at it. Wendy shares practical tips to help you overcome some of the issues people struggle with when incorporating mindfulness into their lives e.g. How to tame your wandering mind or a lack of time. BEST MOMENTS “Mindfulness isn’t about deleting thoughts. It’s about changing our relationship with them so that we can respond wisely instead of reacting on autopilot.” “All you need is your attention, your breath, and a willingness to try again when the mind wanders.” “You can’t really get mindfulness wrong.” “Set an intention to notice it, even a drink, that first sip of tea you have, or coffee in the morning, how much you anticipate it and how lovely it is.” “Give it a go. It doesn’t replace therapy, but there is a lot of evidence to say it could be very, very effective.” EPISODE RESOURCES Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) https://palousemindfulness.com/index.html VALUABLE RESOURCES www.wendycastelino.com https://www.instagram.com/wendycastelino/ https://www.youtube.com/@wendycastelino798 https://twitter.com/WendyCastelino ABOUT THE HOST Wendy Castelino has been working as a psychotherapist for over thirty-five years. As an accredited CBT and EMDR practitioner, she is committed to upholding the rigorous standards required for these accreditations and helping thousands of people reach their full potential. Wendy currently runs a private practice where her focus is on CBT. Therapy is constantly evolving into developing new techniques, so she studies hard to integrate them into her therapy, to provide a rich and effective experience. Wendy is aware that working in one-to-one therapy limits the number of people she can see. She has, therefore, created a range of online resources. These resources are designed to be easy to follow and provide clear, step-by-step instructions. This can help the individual to master skills and gain confidence, therefore optimising the therapy sessions. They are also suitable to be used on their own. Further details are available at: WendyCastelino.com. This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/
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    44 mins
  • Beyond Child Therapy: Empowering Parents on the Mental Health Journey with Anna Guildford
    Aug 27 2025
    Today, Wendy is joined by Anna Guildford, who for 25+ years has worked as a mental health nurse, systematic practitioner, DBT therapist, supervisor and coach. Anna now also runs her own private coaching practice. She specialises in helping parents with children who have emotional or MH related difficulties. Instead of only focusing on the child, Anna sees the power of creating space and time for parents to really think; about themselves, their families, their emotions and their own identity. As a trained systemic practitioner (family therapy approach) she draws on her clinical background to offer a bespoke approach. KEY TAKEAWAYS Modern pressures, e.g. Social media, academic demands, and reduced family time are contributing to the rise in youth mental health issues. When parents are helped to adapt their parenting style they become better equipped, so are more effective at helping their children with mental health issues. Open, non-blaming communication between parents and adolescents fosters trust. Approach conversations with a spirit of curiosity instead of being judgmental or being confrontational. Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) skills—such as mindfulness, emotion regulation, and validation—are valuable tools for both parents and young people navigating emotional difficulties. Anna teaches these skills and more. BEST MOMENTS “If you can support changes within a family, sometimes that can make all the difference for a child.” “It's normal to feel kind of guilt and a bit of shame as a parent when things aren't going the way that you might want them to in your family.” “Don't panic … most parents won't get through the adolescent phase completely unscathed.” “ Joy isn't something to have once everything else is done, you've got to kind of force it in. That's how you're going to have a healthier emotional life.” “What happens if we’re not on the ends (of the seesaw), but we both come into the middle?” ABOUT THE GUEST Anna welcomes enquiries from parents directly, as well as professionals working with children who would like to refer parents for coaching as part of a bigger package. Email - annaguildfordcoach@icloud.com https://www.instagram.com/annaguildfordcoach/ VALUABLE RESOURCES www.wendycastelino.com https://www.instagram.com/wendycastelino/ https://www.youtube.com/@wendycastelino798 https://twitter.com/WendyCastelino ABOUT THE HOST Wendy Castelino has been working as a psychotherapist for over thirty-five years. As an accredited CBT and EMDR practitioner, she is committed to upholding the rigorous standards required for these accreditations and helping thousands of people reach their full potential. Wendy currently runs a private practice where her focus is on CBT. Therapy is constantly evolving into developing new techniques, so she studies hard to integrate them into her therapy, to provide a rich and effective experience. Wendy is aware that working in one-to-one therapy limits the number of people she can see. She has, therefore, created a range of online resources. These resources are designed to be easy to follow and provide clear, step-by-step instructions. This can help the individual to master skills and gain confidence, therefore optimising the therapy sessions. They are also suitable to be used on their own. Further details are available at: WendyCastelino.com. This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/
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    59 mins
  • Writing for Therapy: Transforming Pain Through Therapeutic Writing
    Aug 20 2025
    In this episode, Wendy explores writing for therapy, and how putting pen to paper can help you process an upsetting event or to feel more grounded or to be able to move forward in your life. So, I'm going to go through a step-by-step process to write about a difficult experience and then how to reframe what has happened so that the pain is less, and also how to use affirmations that really work for you. She also shares tools to use if you hit writer's block. Writing about painful memories can stir very strong feelings. If anything, if it becomes too much here, you can pause, ground yourself and use some self-soothing techniques. If you are in crisis or risk harm, please contact your GP, NHS, 111, or the Samaritans on 116123, in the UK. KEY TAKEAWAYS · Research shows using writing therapy for as little as 20 minutes a day can, over time, greatly improve your mental health. · Writing therapy is a structured way to organise your thoughts and get to grips with what is distressing you. · Grounding before you start makes the session more effective. The benefits tend to take place over days and weeks as the brain kind of processes the experience. · Wendy takes you through the questions you need to ask yourself to guide your sessions. · Affirmations are powerful, but it is really important to use the right ones. Wendy shares how to craft them. · Research suggests that writing by hand is better for you. It slows you down so that you can fully process things. BEST MOMENTS “Writing about painful memories can stir very strong feelings. So, if anything here becomes too much, pause, ground yourself and work on some self-soothing techniques.” “When guided, writing can be a really good tool to help you to process trauma.” “What's really important is that the space that you use is your space. It's private, it's secure. It's where you can express yourself.” “Before you start writing, do a grounding technique.” “Write about what happened, when and where, who was there, quite factual. Then, write down what feelings came up.” “It is not sugar coating. It's called cognitive reappraisal - stepping back to see the event in a fuller way.” “You're not approving the event; you're recognising the skills or the values that emerged from the event.” VALUABLE RESOURCES www.wendycastelino.com https://www.instagram.com/wendycastelino/ https://www.youtube.com/@wendycastelino798 https://twitter.com/WendyCastelino ABOUT THE HOST Wendy Castelino has been working as a psychotherapist for over thirty-five years. As an accredited CBT and EMDR practitioner, she is committed to upholding the rigorous standards required for these accreditations and helping thousands of people reach their full potential. Wendy currently runs a private practice where her focus is on CBT. Therapy is constantly evolving into developing new techniques, so she studies hard to integrate them into her therapy, to provide a rich and effective experience. Wendy is aware that working in one-to-one therapy limits the number of people she can see. She has, therefore, created a range of online resources. These resources are designed to be easy to follow and provide clear, step-by-step instructions. This can help the individual to master skills and gain confidence, therefore optimising the therapy sessions. They are also suitable to be used on their own. Further details are available at: WendyCastelino.com. This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/
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    30 mins
  • Healing Trauma: 3 Powerful Therapeutic Techniques Explained
    Aug 13 2025
    In this episode of "Don't Get a Therapist Yet," Wendy explores trauma and its impact on mental health. Learn about three powerful therapeutic techniques - Narrative Exposure Therapy, EMDR, and Visualization - that can help you process traumatic memories, reduce distress, and reclaim your emotional well-being. Whether you've experienced childhood abuse, bullying, accidents, or other challenging life events, this podcast offers insights into healing, understanding your experiences, and developing compassionate self-support strategies. Discover how trauma therapy can help you transform painful memories, improve sleep, and build emotional resilience. KEY TAKEAWAYS The goal is to move from feeling stuck and distressed to feeling empowered and at peace with past experiences. Trauma can be caused by many different types of incidents. This includes abuse, witnessing violence, a difficult birth, seeing a loved one die, a car accident and more. Trauma is complex and can manifest in various ways, including PTSD, sleep disturbances, and behavioural changes. Narrative Exposure Therapy (NET): Retelling your story from a compassionate perspective can help to reframe things and address trauma. EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is another way to effectively process traumatic memories. The right therapy can help process trauma by reducing negative interpretations of past experiences. Therapy can help you to improve your self-belief. Even trauma that does not meet the clinical PTSD threshold can be difficult to live with. Fortunately, it is also treatable. Work with a specialized trauma therapist. BEST MOMENTS “Trauma doesn't really go away, it sort of gets stuck in the emotional part of our brain.” "Trauma is very, very distressing…. And there's all different types of trauma that people can have." "The story is the same, but often the trauma is of your interpretation of the story as well." "That's the power of your imagination." "You don't have to suffer. Even if it's a distressing memory, a 5 out of 10, if it's really holding you back, you can often deal with that in a few sessions." "Pursue some self-help strategies as well. Or, combine those with actually going to therapy." VALUABLE RESOURCES www.wendycastelino.com https://www.instagram.com/wendycastelino/ https://www.youtube.com/@wendycastelino798 https://twitter.com/WendyCastelino ABOUT THE HOST Wendy Castelino has been working as a psychotherapist for over thirty-five years. As an accredited CBT and EMDR practitioner, she is committed to upholding the rigorous standards required for these accreditations and helping thousands of people reach their full potential. Wendy currently runs a private practice where her focus is on CBT. Therapy is constantly evolving into developing new techniques, so she studies hard to integrate them into her therapy, to provide a rich and effective experience. Wendy is aware that working in one-to-one therapy limits the number of people she can see. She has, therefore, created a range of online resources. These resources are designed to be easy to follow and provide clear, step-by-step instructions. This can help the individual to master skills and gain confidence, therefore optimising the therapy sessions. They are also suitable to be used on their own. Further details are available at: WendyCastelino.com. This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/
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    22 mins
  • How You Can Help Build Your Neurodiverse Child's Brain So They Can Shine with Lara Barnes
    Aug 6 2025
    Today, Wendy is joined by Lara Barnes, founder of Brain Development UK, who provides parents with a pathway to healing the behavioural and learning symptoms of their Autistic, Dyslexic, ADHD, Dyspraxic child, which builds the foundation of the brain. These children may have missed key milestones in their development before the age of 12 months. Lara assesses and teaches parents primitive reflexes and how to use the sensory systems of vibration, smell, coloured lenses and sound to change the nervous system and to correct the foundational problem. Through her podcast, Lara shares parenting success stories, expert insights, how the brain develops, what causes changes in a child's trajectory, how to help your child, gut health, microbiome, supplements, diet, nutrition, lab testing, visual and auditory systems, correcting the trajectory of a child with primitive reflexes, nervous system, photo biomodulation and more. Join us to understand how you can help build your child's brain to let your child shine. KEY TAKEAWAYS Many early brain development issues are fixable. The older a child gets the harder it is to fix issues. Lara shares the early warning signs of neurodiversity. Some will surprise you. Theta wave music can calm a child down. It only takes a month to drastically improve the gut microbiome. Going outside is vital. Get rid of mould in your home. You need to use the right treatments at the right stage of development. BEST MOMENTS “I had this epiphany moment of, oh my god, it's actually fixable.” “Every time you stroke a baby's face, and you should be stroking their face a lot, it stimulates the reflex.” “They should be walking before they start properly talking.” “Look at the root causes.” About Lara Lara Barnes, a successful woman in tech, found herself managing behavioural, learning and speech difficulties with her son, she learned functional neurology and how to change the brain to correct his symptoms and build his left brain. She has seen profound changes in her son, emotionally, physically and academically. Now she wants to share these techniques with the world to show there is a way to heal your child. www.braindevelopment.co.uk lara@braindevelopment.co.uk Social – @braindevelopmentuk VALUABLE RESOURCES www.wendycastelino.com https://www.instagram.com/wendycastelino https://www.youtube.com/@wendycastelino798 https://twitter.com/WendyCastelino ABOUT THE HOST Wendy Castelino has been working as a psychotherapist for over thirty-five years. As an accredited CBT and EMDR practitioner, she is committed to upholding the rigorous standards required for these accreditations and helping thousands of people reach their full potential. Wendy currently runs a private practice where her focus is on CBT. Therapy is constantly evolving into developing new techniques, so she studies hard to integrate them into her therapy, to provide a rich and effective experience. Wendy is aware that working in one-to-one therapy limits the number of people she can see. She has, therefore, created a range of online resources. These resources are designed to be easy to follow and provide clear, step-by-step instructions. This can help the individual to master skills and gain confidence, therefore optimising the therapy sessions. They are also suitable to be used on their own. Further details are available at: WendyCastelino.com This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/
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    50 mins
  • Breaking the Chains of Childhood Bullying with Self Help Strategies
    Jul 23 2025
    In this episode, Wendy takes a look at something that many people have direct experience of – childhood bullying. So many people, when adults, are still suffering from the traumatic effects of being bullied as a child or teenager. It´s very common. Wendy shares the details of the kinds of therapies that can help adults deal with the traumatic effects of childhood bullying. As well as several self-help strategies you can use without a therapist to help yourself. KEY TAKEAWAYS Compassion-focused therapy is particularly effective. Learn to self soothe. It helps to dampen down and re-regulate the fight or flight response which bullying makes over sensitive. There are dozens of ways to self-soothe, which means it can be done anywhere, any time. Use your imagination to successfully stand up to your childhood bully. Imagery scripting is very powerful. Being kind to others helps. It makes you feel good about yourself, which improves your confidence. Little acts of kindness every day add up for you and those around you. Give your negative inner voice a name and use the simple technique Wendy shares to minimise the impact it can have on you. Live your life in a way that aligns with your own values, rather than those of others. BEST MOMENTS “You actually learn to self soothe by doing things that actually make you feel better and much calmer.” “Imagine yourself as a strong, compassionate person.” “Small things can make a big difference.” “Have a bit of compassion for yourself.” VALUABLE RESOURCES www.wendycastelino.com https://www.instagram.com/wendycastelino/ https://www.youtube.com/@wendycastelino798 https://twitter.com/WendyCastelino ABOUT THE HOST Wendy Castelino has been working as a psychotherapist for over thirty-five years. As an accredited CBT and EMDR practitioner, she is committed to upholding the rigorous standards required for these accreditations and helping thousands of people reach their full potential. Wendy currently runs a private practice where her focus is on CBT. Therapy is constantly evolving into developing new techniques, so she studies hard to integrate them into her therapy, to provide a rich and effective experience. Wendy is aware that working in one-to-one therapy limits the number of people she can see. She has, therefore, created a range of online resources. These resources are designed to be easy to follow and provide clear, step-by-step instructions. This can help the individual to master skills and gain confidence, therefore optimising the therapy sessions. They are also suitable to be used on their own. Further details are available at: WendyCastelino.com. This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/
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    15 mins
  • How to Use Future Memories - Your Best Future is Waiting with Donna Laine
    Jul 16 2025
    In this episode, Wendy is joined by Donna Laine, an award-winning entrepreneur and author of “The Remembering Technique”. A transformative and effortless technique Donna use to manifest her dreams, achieve her deepest desires, overcome fears and create the life she wanted. Over the years, Donna has helped many others to do the same. You will be stunned by how simple and easy The Remembering Technique is to use. KEY TAKEAWAYS You can choose your next thought - you are in control. Left to its own devices, your mind plays things over and over again, following the same neural pathways, setting you up to act and react as before and get the same negative results. Future memories enable you to change the neural pathways your brain follows. Laying down new neural pathways changes who you are and what you experience in life. You can use visualisation, writing, mind maps or recordings to create future memories (new neural pathways.) Accepting that what has happened has happened, then taking responsibility for how you react to things in the future is transformative. Your mind always takes you to pleasure rather than pain. It is primed to keep you deep in your comfort zone. It is change adverse. Listen to your instincts. BEST MOMENTS "The mind can create anything." “You have the power… to actually activate the life you want.” "When you start to create these new neural pathways, you can actually change your DNA." “The past does not equal the future; you actually get to change your future.” "This is about being the new you, and this is about your power." ABOUT THE GUEST https://donna-laine.com https://www.amazon.co.uk/Remembering-Technique-Donna-Laine-ebook/dp/B0D7TQ3Q88 Donna Laine is an award-winning jeweller, global speaker, mindset expert, and creator of The Remembering Technique. She helps people transform their lives by guiding them to create and live their future memories now, knowing it is already done. With over 30 years in personal development and a love for heartfelt storytelling, Donna is there to inspire you to reconnect with who you truly are and step boldly into a life filled with joy, freedom, and purpose. Your best future is waiting — and Donna is there to help you remember it. VALUABLE RESOURCES www.wendycastelino.com https://www.instagram.com/wendycastelino/ https://www.youtube.com/@wendycastelino798 https://twitter.com/WendyCastelino ABOUT THE HOST Wendy Castelino has been working as a psychotherapist for over thirty-five years. As an accredited CBT and EMDR practitioner, she is committed to upholding the rigorous standards required for these accreditations and helping thousands of people reach their full potential. Wendy currently runs a private practice where her focus is on CBT. Therapy is constantly evolving into developing new techniques, so she studies hard to integrate them into her therapy, to provide a rich and effective experience. Wendy is aware that working in one-to-one therapy limits the number of people she can see. She has, therefore, created a range of online resources. These resources are designed to be easy to follow and provide clear, step-by-step instructions. This can help the individual to master skills and gain confidence, therefore optimising the therapy sessions. They are also suitable to be used on their own. Further details are available at: WendyCastelino.com. This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/
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    1 hr and 5 mins