Author Archives: Simon Brotherton

Men’s Mental Health Month

Everybody’s #mentalhealth is of course important all year-round, but as November is Men’s Mental Health Month, I thought it would be a good opportunity to talk about this some more. You’ve probably heard of #Movember and all the crazy facial hair experiments that come with it (I know I’ve been involved myself in the past!)Continue reading “Men’s Mental Health Month”

Happy Holidays?

When I’m working with bereaved and pre-bereaved people, the idea of making memories comes up in our sessions quite a lot. So too do the memories themselves, and those are quite often ones made on holidays in the client’s past. After all, it’s the time when we are escaping the daily grind for a coupleContinue reading “Happy Holidays?”

Keeping Men’s Health in Mind

June 10-16 is Men’s Health Week and with it comes the sobering statistic that 80 per cent of suicides are by men. It’s true that awareness about men’s mental health and the stigma surrounding it is growing, but it’s also true that it takes a long time to spread that awareness and for its effectContinue reading “Keeping Men’s Health in Mind”

Get moving for Mental Health Awareness Week

It’s #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek and the theme this year is movement. As I’ve said on my blog posts a number of times in the past, physical activity is good for our mental health, beneficial to our wellbeing and of course, helps us to keep healthy too. This doesn’t mean dusting off your forgotten running shoes or evenContinue reading “Get moving for Mental Health Awareness Week”

Settling into spring

Celebrated Lake District fell walker Alfred Wainwright once said “There’s no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothing”. And, while I’ve continued to hold walk and talk therapy sessions throughout the winter months in all weathers and in the evenings too, there’s something reassuring about knowing that my clients can now enjoy an eveningContinue reading “Settling into spring”

Memories on Mother’s Day

At the time of writing, it’s Mother’s Day. It is of course a good opportunity to celebrate everything our mothers have done and continue to do for us. It can also be a difficult time for those of us who have lost our mothers, either recently or in the past. It’s also important to understandContinue reading “Memories on Mother’s Day”

Healthy body, healthy mind

Come January, we’re bombarded with positivity messages and talk of new year’s resolutions, new starts and everything else. If Christmas was tough and we’re struggling to feel that motivation, January can be a difficult month to tackle. Getting fit is something that inevitably crops up in new year’s talk but it doesn’t mean shelling outContinue reading “Healthy body, healthy mind”

When Christmas is tough

Christmas is upon us again and though it’s a time that’s associated with celebration, spending time with loved ones and making happy memories, it can also be a difficult and emotional time. It can of course be particularly difficult for anyone who is grieving or recently bereaved – one of a number of ‘firsts’ thatContinue reading “When Christmas is tough”

Adjusting to Autumn

Even though we had a late flourish of sun this September, all the usually signs that autumn is around the corner are here. Whether it’s an influx of TV advertising, talk of Christmas party planning or just that extra chill in the air, the ending of seasons can seem to creep up on us andContinue reading “Adjusting to Autumn”