Guest post - MIMT Mirror therapy research
Reflecting participant’s experiences of completing a new psychotherapy through a mirror – “It’s like the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party”
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Mirror Therapy (MIMT)
08 March 2024 | 11:36
“I will always be with you… and care for you”
Author: Dr Francesca
The word compassion comes from ‘com’ (with) and ‘passion’ (suffer). It means to suffer together. Nonetheless, compassion goes beyond just suffering as it involves accepting suffering and wanting to help. As described by Prof. Paul Gilbert...
Mindfulness
09 March 2023 | 16:55
Snow and mindfulness
Author: Dr Francesca
I love the snow! It inevitably changes things around us (including transport issues!) and I like to notice them. You can try to do this practice (one, some or all of the six steps listed...
Mirror Therapy (MIMT)
30 September 2022 | 16:45
Being me feels like...
Author: Dr Francesca
I asked one of my clients to describe how they see themself. After a long sigh, they explained that it was simply too hard to describe the nothingness and shapelessness they see. ‘The only word...
DBT
19 March 2022 | 18:23
An interesting dialectic
Author: Dr Francesca
An interesting dialectic: history repeats itself OR everything flows?Two philosophical concepts have always fascinated me: The idea that everything flows by Heraclitus, and The idea that history repeats itself by Giambattista Vico. They appear to...
Mirror Therapy (MIMT)
08 August 2021 | 10:02
Compassion in mirror therapy (MIMT)
Author: Dr Francesca
Compassionate awareness is how we describe the use of compassion in Mindful Interbeing Mirror Therapy (MIMT). One of the most commonly cited definitions of Mindfulness is ‘awareness that arises through paying attention, on purpose, in...
Abuse & Trauma
20 July 2021 | 11:48
The doll test
Author: Dr Francesca
I came across to the concept of insidious trauma some time ago. Maria Root coined the term insidious trauma in 1992 to describe the ‘Traumatogenic effects of oppression that are not necessarily overtly violent or...
Mirror Therapy (MIMT)
09 July 2021 | 13:12
I feel therefore I am
Author: Dr Francesca
This piece in The New York Times is fascinating background to René Descartes’ well-known concept ‘I think, therefore I am.’ It’s a declaration so central to the way many of us perceive what it means...
Anxiety & Emotions
08 June 2021 | 15:26
Primary vs secondary emotions
Author: Dr Francesca
‘When I feel sad, why do I show anger?’ One of my clients asked this question recently. In this example, sadness is the primary emotion. Primary emotions occur as a reaction to a trigger, such...
Anxiety & Emotions
31 May 2021 | 09:17
Honouring your grief
Author: Dr Francesca
Today is a sad day for me as one of my closest aunts has passed away. Sadness is a sign of grief, which is a consequence of losing someone or something we care about. In...
Mirror Therapy (MIMT)
29 May 2021 | 14:34
Guest post - The origin of self compassion
Author: Theodora Sabadeanu
In recent years, psychologists have increasingly discussed the benefits of self-compassion for one’s mental well-being. According to Neff (2011), self-compassion involves being understanding and kind towards oneself rather than judgemental, acknowledging that everyone experiences failure...
Psychological tests
29 May 2021 | 11:30
Standardised minds
Author: Dr Francesca
During this crucial time of GCSEs, A-levels and university exams many of my patients talk about their increasing anxiety, and I have been reflecting on standardised minds with the help of Albert Einstein. On 17...
Mirror Therapy (MIMT)
30 April 2021 | 18:06
Guest post - Mirror therapy study @ UoB
Author: Theodora Sabadeanu
I am currently doing a Masters of Research in Clinical Psychology at the University of Birmingham, and as part of this programme I will soon start the first ever research project into mirror therapy! The...
Mirror Therapy (MIMT)
20 February 2021 | 14:46
About feeling safe
Author: Dr Francesca
The absence of danger isn’t enough to feel safe. We experience safety when we feel connection with ourselves and others. Mammals need ‘conspecifics,’ others of the same species. In other words, humans need other humans....
Self-compassion
01 January 2021 | 10:18
When life gives you lemons
Author: Dr Francesca
One thing’s for sure. Nobody will ever forget 2020. We’ve been through a lot (and are still going through a lot) and we have experienced many strong emotions… On New Year’s Day, I am thinking...
Mindfulness
26 December 2020 | 18:05
Relax like your life depends on it
Author: Dr Francesca
Sometimes the most productive thing you can do is relax. Mark Black Often, we get so entangled in our busy lives that we actually forget to relax! Yet relaxing for just for a few minutes...
Mirror Therapy (MIMT)
14 November 2020 | 18:22
What clients say about mirror therapy
Author: Dr Francesca
I’d like to thank a client of mine for recently sharing this lovely feedback about mirror therapy. You know who you are! “When I started mirror therapy, a few months ago, my initial response to...
Mirror Therapy (MIMT)
18 September 2020 | 14:59
Overcoming self-criticism with mirror therapy
Author: Dr Francescsa
Self-criticism tends to develop a sense of worthlessness and affects our relationships. Being overly self-critical is very common among my clients. This affects how we perceive ourselves, how we relate with others and also how...
Mirror Therapy (MIMT)
23 July 2020 | 08:50
Hug power
Author: Dr Francesca
Years back, when my best friend had her first child she picked up every parenting book she could lay her hands on. Of course, all of the ‘gurus’ offer different advice and she found it...
Mirror Therapy (MIMT)
09 July 2020 | 10:01
Anatomy of shame
Author: Dr Francesca
Intense shame is the number one emotion I hear about in my clinic, and there’s a reason for that. I want to use this post to unpack exactly what makes shame different from other emotions,...
Anxiety & Emotions
14 June 2020 | 18:55
Cabin fever
Author: Dr Francesca
‘Thank you, I can finally go out now… or maybe I’ll just wait a while!’ Following the easing of lockdown, many of us are experiencing fear and anxiety and a desire to continue to hunker...
Parenting
11 June 2020 | 09:44
Back to school
Author: Dr Francesca
My son returned to school today and wasn’t happy at all! The walk in was a rather difficult 10 minutes! He wasn’t having it and I have really tried my best to validate his mixed...
Anxiety & Emotions
08 June 2020 | 10:25
Am I crazy?
Author: Dr Francesca
At his first session, one of my patients asked me ‘do you think I am crazy’? He was experiencing a very high level of anxiety and was meticulously avoiding people and places. After he shared...
Mirror Therapy (MIMT)
25 May 2020 | 08:30
New! Mirror Therapy
Author: Dr Francesca
Mirror Therapy (MIMT) is a new form of therapy which can help you to look at yourself in a compassionate, benevolent and non-critical way. Mirrors are very interesting objects. They are often associated with vanity...
Self-compassion
11 May 2020 | 12:18
Needs and limits
Author: Dr Francesca
Ignoring our needs and not acknowledging our limits can cause unhappiness. Lisa (not her real name), told me in her last session ‘I should be glad I can spend more time with my five year...
DBT
19 April 2020 | 09:11
Time travel and Covid-19
Author: Dr Francesca
We’re all busy asking when life will go back to normal. I’ve been thinking about this too and have concluded it’s the wrong question. Lacking access to time travel, I’ve never managed to return to...
Abuse & Trauma
08 April 2020 | 19:14
Abuse and Covid-19
Author: Dr Francesca
‘I always approach him with great caution, as you would a caged lion!’ It’s an account that is especially familiar to many domestic violence victims right now, as they long for some time apart from...
Anxiety & Emotions
04 April 2020 | 16:02
Embrace your worries
Author: Dr Francesca
Sometimes, the best way to overcoming your worries is to simply accept them. Worrying is part of human nature. We can’t stop worrying as it helps to keep us alive! Worrying prepares us for action...
Self-compassion
10 March 2020 | 15:33
Practice self-compassion
Author: Dr Francesca
No one deserves your compassion more than you! Let’s start with the etymology of the word. The Latin root of compassion, is pati, which means ‘to suffer’. The prefix, com-, means ‘with’. In other words,...
Self-compassion
08 March 2020 | 10:04
Try '5 Tibetan rites' yoga
Author: Dr Francesca
The clinic where I see clients started running yoga sessions. I went along last week and I haven’t shut up about the class I attended since then. 5 Tibetan Rites is a series of five...
Self-compassion
25 February 2020 | 16:22
Sleep tight
Author: Dr Francesca
One of the first things I ask new clients is ‘how are you sleeping, lately?’ What’s interesting is how many people are surprised by the question. No one bats an eyelid when I ask about...