The Sociology of Culture and the Paradoxical Nature of Diversity. Culturally-Infused Practice in Counselling.

Posted on by Chele Yntema
Born from and into relationship, we are - the human race is, anything but an isolated species.  Indeed, there is a universal reality that self-concept and identity are insurmountably enmeshed within ever evolving cultural contexts (Lago, 2005; Lott, 2010; Matsumoto & Juang, 2008; Siegel, 2012).  Yet, it would be foolish to dismiss that this same enmeshment, if not explicitly conceptualised, has the potential to create group and individual levels of segregation and identity disintegration that...Read More
The final word is love…

The final word is love…

Posted on by Chele Yntema
“The final word is love… To love we must know each other … and we know each other in the breaking of bread, and we are not alone any more. Heaven is a banquet and life is a banquet, too, even with a crust, where there is companionship. We have all known the long loneliness and we have learned that the only solution is love and that love comes with community.” I think sometimes it...Read More
Self Care – Rest, Recouperate, Rejuvenate

Self Care – Rest, Recouperate, Rejuvenate

Posted on by Chele Yntema
This week I have been reminded just how important it is to rest, to come back to a place where I feel connected and at peace. In winter this place for me is in the rays of light that radiate from the mid morning or afternoon sun. Self care is such a vital aspect of who we are - never forget your own inner value and the innate human need for restorative rest. [content_block id=1189...Read More
Self Care – do not do what you are “suppose to”

Self Care – do not do what you are “suppose to”

Posted on by Chele Yntema
Quite often we find ourselves falling into the trap of doing what we feel we are “supposed to” “have to” or “need to” in the sacrifice of our own needs or of self care. Although sometimes it can be hard to tell those we respect, care about, or even those we may fear, it is important to do things in our lives because we want to. And even sometimes when we think we may not...Read More
Faith

Faith

Posted on by Chele Yntema
Faith is knowing nothing is certain but trusting anyway... How to we learn to trust? What does it mean to have faith? Is faith only for story books? It seems, sometimes, that we live in an epoch in time where control is in the forefront of all that is done. The uncertainty of tomorrow, rather than being embraced in the knowledge that we are enough, is meet with fear and trepidation, this leading to the...Read More
Our Memory is More…

Our Memory is More…

Posted on by Chele Yntema
I am blessed to have a good memory. Yet at the same time I must continually cultivate and cherish it with respect. I have learned that although my memory is a gift, it is a gift that requires me to continually be mindfully present and to acknowledge the act of remembering as a holistic skill that involves body, mind, and soul ❤ Would love to hear your thoughts - do you have a good memory?...Read More

WoW! A biopsychosocial model of holistic wellbeing

Posted on by Chele Yntema
A Counselling conceptualisation and intervention based on a Wheel of Wellness. Though often it may not be recognised as such, suffering – psychological, physiological, and even cultural – is an entity: an energy that exists within and between the dimensions of human wholeness.  This energy is an enigma with a sometimes-subtle capacity to promote optimal functioning by way of enhanced adaptability and resilience (Sarafino, Caltabiano, & Byrne, 2008; Siegel, 2012).  Yet, quite often this evolutionary...Read More

The Issue is not The Issue: Interpersonal Conflict and How to Resolve it

Posted on by Chele Yntema
The Issue is not The Issue: Interpersonal Conflict Originally featuring in a book by William Steig (1990) about identity and becoming, the character Shrek and accompanying protagonists, Donkey and Fiona, were swept up by DreamWorks and converted into characters of minimal depth whereby stereotypical anxious, ambivalent, and avoidant attachments create easily identifiable conflicts that reflect our society’s perception of conflict as unpleasant and stressful (Eunson, 2007). The purpose of this article is to utilise the...Read More

My Innate Disposition: understanding my past in truth, creating coherent narrative, and coming to identity

Posted on by Chele Yntema
All alone, I sat waiting. I was lost. It was not that I did not know where I was, nor where I was going, nor even where I had come from… No, it was deeper than that. Lost was a sadness that penetrated so deep within me that my very existence seemed indifferent, dismissible, and worthless. Lost was me without worth; it was a sense that there was no such thing as an identity within...Read More