The Velvet Rage: Overcoming the Pain of Growing Up Gay in a Straight Man’s World by Alan Downs

It is my personal mission to help members of the LGBTQ+ community to lead healthier and more balanced lives by freeing their authentic selves from their automatic patterns. Alan Downs‘ excellent book, which I review here, establishes some valuable groundwork for understanding the impact of growing up gay in a hostile culture and moving beyond the patterns that helped us to get through the pain. In the article I describe some key concepts including the escape from shame, the shift from seeking approval to seeking contentment and the movement beyond body objectification.

Our Hopeful Response to the Corona Crisis

This is a challenging situation for all of us. It is almost as though the rapid spread of a virus is reminding us painfully of how interconnected all of us human beings on this planet are. Perhaps we can use this reminder to improve the ways in which we connect to ourselves, other people and the world at large.

The human spirit is strong and has survived through horrendous challenges at countless moments throughout history: the plague, the Spanish flu, many wars and so on. At times in the past people have thought: life will never be good again, we are doomed, everything is always going to be terrible. And people have bounced back, sometimes having learned painful but useful lessons.

Move your depression along

How can you move your depression along? Read here about two possilbities: antidepressants and sport.

How a handbag can hurt: gay jokes and their disastrous consequences

Picture the scene: At a recent concert, one member of our group, a man in his 60’s, was trying to find his seat in the row in front of us as he clutched a small bag. The bag had been given to everyone by the organiser of the concert as a free promotional gift. One of the men in our group commented in a funny voice “Lovely handbag!“ Upon hearing this, the slightly older man wordlessly smiled and pranced for a second in an effeminate way.

Self-Help for Dealing with Depression

Our psychotherapeutic practice specializes in the treatment of depression. It’s our aim to help our clients feel empowered and independent and to promote their ability to take good care of themselves. That’s why we emphasise possibilities for self-help. Here in this article we have put together five measures that you can put in place alone to help enhance your well-being.

How to man up to your emotions

The client, Mr. K., reports that it no longer affects him emotionally that his parents did not visit him and his wife after the birth of their daughter. Because he decided to make it a priority to deal with the very difficult relationship with his parents,