This week, I had one of those moments where you realise you’ve somehow missed something that everyone else seems to already know. You know the feeling, people are nodding along, using the language with ease, and you’re quietly thinking, How have I not come across this before? That was me this week when I properly encountered Yalom’s group factors. It felt surprisingly new to me, not because the ideas were unfamiliar, but because I’d never seen them named, structured, and explained in this way. Once I started paying attention, I couldn’t unsee them. They suddenly showed up everywhere: in learning spaces, support groups, friendships, and communities like ours. And the more I reflected on them, the more I realised how powerful they are, especially when it comes to emotional wellness and group wellbeing. 💛 Why This Matters for Emotional Wellness One of the most important ideas in Yalom’s work is Universality, the realisation that we are not alone in our struggles, our quirks, or even our insecurities. So often, emotional distress grows in silence. We assume our feelings are unique, excessive, or somehow “too much.” When we discover that others feel the same way, whether it’s anxiety, self-doubt, overwhelm, or even feeling too loud or too quiet, something softens inside us. That softening is emotional wellness in action. Shame reduces. Anxiety eases. Self-judgement loosens its grip.We move from “What’s wrong with me?” to “Oh… this is human.” And that shift alone can be deeply healing. From Individual Wellness to Collective Wellness What really struck me, though, is how these ideas extend beyond the individual. We talk a lot about personal wellbeing, and rightly so, but group wellness is something different. It’s about how safe, supported, and regulated a group feels as a whole. It’s about how people show up together. Yalom’s factors give us a beautiful framework for this. - Altruism reminds us that helping and being helped both matter - Group cohesiveness creates emotional safety and belonging - Instillation of hope shows us that growth is possible, even when things feel messy - Interpersonal learning helps us understand how we affect others, and how they affect us

I love this guy Sam Bentley happy news

What an absolute honour! Today, I had the privilege of going to Leeds to officially receive the Hypnotherapist of the Year award from The Prestige Awards! 🎉 It was an inspiring day that allowed me to champion the incredible work being done in our field: 🎙️ Educating the Next Generation: It was fantastic to be interviewed for a video about the Northern College of Clinical Hypnotherapy and the vital work we're doing to educate and train the next wave of clinical hypnotherapists. 🧠 Supporting Mental Health: This is crucial, especially now. We're stepping up to support mental health and well-being through this ongoing "pandemic" of need, ensuring our services are ready for those who need us most. 🌟 My Private Practice: I also loved talking about my practice, Joyful Mind Mentor, where I support individuals one-to-one across the North East (East Boldon) and Harrogate. My Special Focus: Substance Misuse Recovery My passion and specialisation is supporting people with behaviour modification and substance misuse recovery hypnotherapy. This work is more critical than ever: The news is stark: In the past year, there has been an increase in people entering recovery services 6% of adults and a concerning 13% of young people. These are the people whose struggles have become so severe they are now getting help from the NHS. We know many more are struggling without support. It's time that we, as a society, recognise this as an issue and step up to help those who feel abandoned. Hypnotherapy is a wonderful, effective solution. Writing the Book! ✍️ To help even more people, I'm currently writing a book on my own specialised TRANCE protocol. My goal is to support and educate other hypnotherapists so they can, in turn, help countless others on their recovery journey. What an incredible honour it was to be nominated, and to ultimately win Hypnotherapist of the Year! Thank you to The Prestige Awards for the recognition. I can't wait to finish this book and expand our collective impact!