Invisible Girl
Hello and a big warm welcome to my brand new website. As life continually evolves , I saw it as the right time to have a fresh new look to allow me to share with you some of the latest counselling work I have been priviliged to take part in, with little people.
I am continuing with my regular counselling services in Leicester, but as Emotional and Mental Wellbeing is such a broad topic, and so close to my heart, I felt the need to expand and each month I am also going to be sharing a relevant blog post with you. Each month we will have a spotlight on a different subject, sometimes from a clients view point, so we always keep it real. Designed to bring awareness and support to those whom may need some help right now and also to educate people whom have a special interest.
To start off on the new journey, for April 2017, it seemed the perfect opportunity to share a story about another local lady, Samantha Houghton, whom has also become a friend of mine. She has experienced many long term mental health issues of her own and always found writing to be a way of not only coping but something she enjoyed. From struggling with depression, anxiety, obsessions and an eating disorder, and overcoming many adversities, she decided to put it altogether in a book. It was completed in February this year and is for release on April 26<sup>th</sup> 2017 and is available on Amazon and at events. The book is titled “The Invisible Girl: A Secret Life” and is both a memoir and a self help book. You can purchase The Invisible Girl here.
From the age of 15, Samantha was admitted to a psychiatric unit suffering from depression and anxiety, which had escalated and became too much for her to cope with, as well as going through the usual demands of puberty and change. She was truanting from school and soon became part of the psychiatric system as an adult also.
Long term psychodynamic counselling therapy followed by CBT enabled Samantha to make big changes in her life after many years of struggling. She also became to love personal development and made many further improvements to her mindset and life through this. The book title has several meanings : An “invisible” illness, growing up and feeling invisible to the world and the phrase “I am invisible” was her bottom line term in CBT treatment.
She had a big desire to share her story through her book and speaking as she wanted to empower others that are struggling and demonstrate to them that life can and does improve, even when you are in your darkest of days. Also to raise awareness about Mental Health and the impact it has not on only the sufferer but on the lives of loved ones. It is still taboo in some areas of this world but thankfully is becoming much more talked about, with more people speaking openly. After all, 1 in 4 people will suffer from some form of mental illness at some period in their life.
Everyone finds their own way of coping, and often a bit of extra help is needed such as through counselling or another therapy. Talking has been proven to make a big difference to sufferers, to not feel so isolated and burdened and is the old adage of “A problem shared, is a problem halved.”
I hope that you have enjoyed reading this month’s post. If anyone has any questions or comments please get in touch with me on the contact details on the website.
You can also contact me on my social media channels – Leicestershire Counselling on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Have a peaceful month x