BBC Radio London's Shay Kaur Grewal show was discussing relationships and specifically rekindling sparks in romantic relationships and the idea of date nights.

In this interview I chat with Graham Johnston and Matt Wotton about how to get good therapy. Graham and Matt have recently published a book, through PCCS Books, A Straight Talking Introduction to Therapy. Graham and Matt are also directors of the London Centre for Applied Psychology. In the podcast, we reference the work of Miller and Moyers and the 8 characteristics that research informs are to be found in the best therapists. These are 1. Empathy, 2. Non-judgemental acceptance, 3. Affirming and validating, 4. Genuineness, 5. Focus, 6. Promoting Hope and Optimism, 7. Solution Focused and strengths-based, 8. Advice and Guidance. Graham and Matt added an additional characteristic, namely a good therapist be grounded in the evidence in their field.

In this interview I chat with Tricia Ibe, counsellor in West London, about infidelity and affairs and specifically about being the other (single) woman in an affair. Her article pasted here, informed our chat: https://www.counselling-directory.org.uk/memberarticles/being-the-other-woman-the-other-side-of-infidelity?_gl=1*1asykgr*_up*MQ..*_ga*MTQ1MDgwNzg0Ny4xNzA2OTIwMjQw*_ga_BMWGCG64PD*MTcwNjkyMDIzNy4xLjAuMTcwNjkyMDIzNy4wLjAuMA..

Have you found yourself in a kink or polyamory lifestyle and are wondering whether or not your behaviour has become problematic? Perhaps the most important question you could ask yourself is whether you might be escaping difficult feelings by engaging in high-intensity sexual behaviour.

A discussion about death and grief with Annie Broadbent, author of Speaking of Death, what the bereaved really need. Annie is a psychosynthesis psychotherapist and trainer at the Psychosynthesis Trust in London. 
Links
 Annie Broadbent website: https://anniebroadbent.com/
Noel Bell website: https://noelbell.net
https://www.counselling-directory.org...
Article on bereavement: https://www.counselling-directory.org...
Tea and caked at a death cafe: https://noelbell.net/?p=6241

Anxiety, perhaps closely followed more recently by trauma, are words that can be overused in counselling and psychotherapy circles. Anxiety is a term that is even more dominant in mental health settings when you look at the news.  Anxiety becomes dysfunctional when it stops being helpful.   Our fight/flight response can get activated when we’re not actually in danger, but under perceived danger. We perhaps need to have our survival system triggered and activated when we are faced with a wild animal running towards us in a narrow alleyway. In that scenario we may receive a surge of adrenaline to help us to either flee or deal physically with the threat being presented.  Anxiety, in that instance, is a response to fear, when adrenaline starts to pump around the body and this could be viewed as healthy worry. 

Audio of an article that appeared on https://www.counselling-directory.org.uk/memberarticles/how-to-live-better-with-social-anxiety#accept-cookies How to live better with social anxiety.

Written and read by Noel Bell, MA, PG Dip Psych, UKCP

Noel Bell is a UKCP accredited clinical psychotherapist in London who has spent over 20 years exploring and studying personal growth, recovery from addictions and inner transformation. Noel is an integrative therapist and draws upon the most effective tools and techniques from the Psychodynamic, CBT, Humanist, Existential and Transpersonal schools.