The Aspiring Psychologist Podcast - What is mindfulness and how can it help wellbeing as an aspiring psychologist? With Amy Polly

Starting point is 00:00:00 Hi there, it's Marianne here. Before we dive into today's episode, I want to quickly let you know about something exciting that's happening right now. If you've ever wondered how to create income that works for you, rather than constantly trading your time for money, then you'll love the Race to Recurring Revenue Challenge with my business mentor, Lisa Johnson. This challenge is designed to help you build sustainable income streams. And whether you're an aspiring psychologist, a mental health professional, or in a completely different field, the principles can work for you.

Starting point is 00:00:34 There are also wonderful prizes to be won directly by Lisa herself. And if you join the challenge by my link, you can be in with a chance of winning a one-to-one hours coaching with me, Dr. Marianne Trent. Do you want to know more? Of course you do. Head to my link tree, Dr. Marianne Trent, or check out my social media channels, or send me a quick DM and I'll get you all the details. Right, let's get on with today's episode.

Starting point is 00:01:00 If you're looking to become a psychologist, then let this be your guide. episode. With Dr. Marianne Trent Hi, welcome along to the Aspiring Psychologist podcast. It can be so tricky in the middle of busy lives to find ways to cope with what life throws at us whether you are working with clients whether you are juggling work commitments and family commitments and just life laundry stuff it can be really really tricky and finding ways that can be useful for our own mental health and well-being and also that of our clients can be really transformational and sometimes trying on different approaches for size can be really useful ahead of doing that with your clients and there's lots spoken in the media about mindfulness and its benefits. And today I'm going to be joined by Amy Polly, who is a mindfulness expert. And I hope you will find our discussion around how she got into it, how she uses it for her own family and for her clients to be really, really useful. I will look forward to catching

Starting point is 00:02:40 up with you on the other side. I hope you find it useful. Hi, welcome along. Today we are joined by Amy Polly, who is a mindfulness expert. Hi, Amy, thank you for joining us. Hi, thank you for having me. Oh, so good to have you here. So I thought it would be useful for us to share with our audience a little bit about you and how you got into mindfulness if that's okay yeah of course so I always tell this story this is my origin story for mindfulness um I was going through a period of stress so I in my previous uh life not really not that long ago I was an accountant for nearly 19 years um and at the time I had quite a stressful job that was running around in my mind a lot of the time and I was in a relationship that wasn't very healthy for me.

Starting point is 00:03:27 And so I was really, really stressed. And the first thing that I really noticed is, and I don't know about you, but it's affected my sleep and it affected my eating. But the thing for me is I know I can function without a bit of food, but without my sleep, I'm not OK. And it got to the point where I just wasn't falling asleep very easily. And I wasn't sleeping well. And I'm pretty sure that it must have been a middle of the night Google, where I thought to myself, so I need help with this. And I came across meditation and mindfulness, and I stuck something on YouTube. And I always say this is no word of a lie. Within about three or four days, I just started to drift off easier into sleep. And the quality of my sleep was just a little bit better. And at that point, with my mind, I just needed to know everything. So I bought a book about mindfulness. I started watching videos on YouTube and that was nine or 10 years ago now.

Starting point is 00:04:22 So as I started to delve into it more I signed up to do a diploma in meditation I signed up to do a diploma in mindfulness and then it's almost like this gateway to a whole new world of understanding yourself and looking after yourself um and my nanny had dementia my mum had suffered with depression um and me going through my own journey I sort of told her all about it and so we sort of went on that journey a little bit together and I helped her and every time I'd learn something I'd go and sort of practice with my mum um and it just really changed things for me it changed my perspective on things it changed the way that we dealt with

Starting point is 00:04:58 things together um and all in all honestly it was just eye-op opening and it was life changing for me. And so, yeah, nine or 10 years ago, that was. And here we are now and I've decided to run a business based on it. That's an incredible story. And absolutely. The words in my mind were life changing, you know, for that, that random Google um you know sounds like you were really suffering um quite a lot at that time with what was going on in your work and just mind mind fog um and that's really led you to a very interesting path that helps not only yourself um but loads of other people as well and it really is my passion i think because it helped me so much and i think it's a lot i've spoke to another

Starting point is 00:05:44 mindfulness teacher last week we had a little catch-up and it was the same for him he had his journey before he I never knew I would want to teach this to people I was just doing it for me then I was sharing it with my mum but I think as we have our experiences and you keep having those moments of realization about how much it's helped you um you know I had a miscarriage before I had my son and I don't think I would have dealt with that the way that I did if I hadn't already had a mindfulness practice that I'd been practicing for quite a while um and lots of other things that happen in life I had postnatal anxiety after I had my son um again my mum was there to support

Starting point is 00:06:20 me but also in supporting myself I had my mindfulness practice and I think people think it's like this woo-woo word and people say mindfulness and they just think oh it's having a calm mind and meditating and it's not it's so much more than that it really is a practice it's like a brain training to allow our brain to deal with basically the shit in life in a better way um and it doesn't always it's not always perfect still get angry I still get sad you know I still lose my mind sometimes and you know I'm still a human being but it's just helped me so much I couldn't not share it with people. Yeah I think you're right I think sometimes I think because of the media attention and the press it's got, it can scare people off a little bit because it does seem a little bit new age.

Starting point is 00:07:09 It does seem a little bit crystal healing, but it doesn't need to be, does it? It can just be mainstream and part of your everyday life. Yeah. And you know what? So this whole thing I always say is BS, this empty your mind thing. I was diagnosed with ADHD last year, so I didn't even know this is why my brain is the way it is. It's been really interesting to understand that. But I know that I've got a very chatty, noisy brain that sees in words and pictures, and I don't have a quiet brain, like ever. Even in meditation, I have to do things a certain way. And this whole empty your mind thing, I think people think mindfulness, meditation, empty your mind, I feel perfect and serene. And it's literally not that. Mindfulness is the

Starting point is 00:07:52 awareness of what's going on at the end of the day. Mindfulness isn't just meditation. So we might use meditation to get into some nice states. And yes, breathing in a certain way will calm us. And visualizations can be very lovely and relaxing but actually you might do a meditation one day where you notice that your breathing is shallow and your chest is tight because you're feeling anxious is that emptying your mind is that calm no is it mindfulness yes because it's awareness and so I think we just need to go right back to the beginning of educating people on what mindfulness is and how it can help us but in our everyday life like it's not

Starting point is 00:08:25 this big I need to go to a mountaintop and sit like you say with crystals although I do like a few crystals in my house um but it's not that it's not rainbows and unicorns it's a brain training to be able to be aware of what's going on in and around you and then when we've got that awareness hopefully it's a bit easier to manage those things yeah I think that is a nice distinction just to welcome people in wherever they are right now um I know when I was first learning about it actually did scare me off and I did actually quit my mindfulness course um because I was in my third year as a trainee at that point third and final year, and they were like,

Starting point is 00:09:05 well, you're going to need to spend an hour a day sort of laying still on the floor and cancel any plans you've got basically. And I was like, do you know what? I haven't actually got time or the inclination to do that. I'd moved in with my partner who's now my husband like a year before when I was having a busy life I didn't have children at that time but if I'd had children that certainly would have been a no-go you know and so I think it was just something

Starting point is 00:09:34 about the way that that was taught not as everyday chunks of time but as a standard you know hour yeah and do you know what it infuriates me a little bit because I just think for me I want to make it accessible and I would I want people to have it as a practice so I don't want to discourage people from doing it and at the end of the day wouldn't we all like to have an hour to lay down in silence and whatever but the reality is that most people don't have that opportunity and you can still reap the benefits I people don't have that opportunity and you can still reap the benefits I mean you know how the brain works you can still reap the benefits without having to lay there for an hour in silence and that's I think for me the big thing that we need

Starting point is 00:10:14 to bust I mean when I was naming my business mindfulness rebel was what I called myself and rebellion is my business because it's just breaking those norms especially around mental health and well-being and mindfulness. And actually, I started my practice with three minutes a day. So a meditation, consciously choosing to meditate for three minutes a day. That's a start. And it's better to have a small practice every day than to have a big practice every now and again. That's not a habit, is it? And so for me, especially working a lot with mums, it's about how can we incorporate this into every day? Yes. Consciously choosing to sit in meditation is really important. That's like going for the gym, going to the gym for our mind.

Starting point is 00:10:52 You can't get a six pack without exercising the muscles, the same as, you know, our brain needs the exercise. And you can, I always say it like this, you can walk instead of taking the car. You can take the stairs instead of the lift. That's your everyday practice. That's your everyday looking after your physical health where your mindfulness everyday practice is what you do in your boring mundane everyday tasks you don't have to sit for an hour but you can practice mindfulness when you're brushing your teeth having a shower eating your food god we don't do that at all you know having a walk washing up the pots whatever it is you can practice mindfulness every day um and that for me is like the big myth busting that we still need to do okay so i think many of our audience

Starting point is 00:11:32 are having time at least to brush their teeth twice a day so could you talk us through how you might be really mindful in those two minutes um morning and evening sure so i am actually just before i explain that i I work for a charity so my local mental health charity so people that come along there are usually prescribed by someone for my eight-week course so I do volunteer work during the day drop-in sessions then we have the eight week course for people that need to maybe have a little bit of help with things so these are people that aren't mentally well and I was having a chat and we were doing a session and one of the ladies said to me because I was talking about brushing my teeth it's one that I

Starting point is 00:12:08 always go to I think because I really like it because it's got so many different sensations and she went yes but it's not the same as you know if paying attention to sitting outside and looking at the nice tree or flowers or whatever and I said it is exactly the same I said your brain doesn't know what it's paying attention to it might feel nicer for you to be outside looking at a beautiful scenery but your brain engaging that prefrontal cortex of your brain doesn't know if it's a beautiful rainbow or if it's looking at you brushing your teeth um and it was almost like a little light bulb moment she was like oh okay so I can do both um and then we talked about how to do

Starting point is 00:12:45 that so when we're brushing our teeth for example or anything it's all about engaging as many of our senses as possible um and for someone with me like a really chatty mind sometimes it helps me to almost narrate it a little bit um and label what I can smell what I can taste what I can hear um but just coming back to those senses so so when you're brushing your teeth, so many of them are being activated, so you can smell your toothpaste, you can taste the toothpaste, you can hear the sound of the toothbrush on your teeth, you've got the sensation of touch either onto your teeth or in your hand, it's just about coming back to all those micro senses, like really honing in on all of those things, and you do that you are so present in the moment you are very highly unlikely to be thinking about the to-do list or what happened yesterday

Starting point is 00:13:30 um do you know what I mean so it's really about bringing your attention to the moment which sounds a little bit like oh how am I going to do that but that's how we start using our senses in everyday tasks and I think that's so much more get on boardable with yes than learning with a raisin you know oh by the way right I have to say I do do the raisin just because it is a really good thing for especially if I'm teaching online I know people might be able to get a raisin or a nut or whatever it is um but I always tell the story of right at the beginning of my journey I've been practicing mindfulness for a bit. And I said to one of my colleagues, oh, there's a mindfulness managers course. Let's go, because we might be able to do this for people.

Starting point is 00:14:11 Even then, obviously, there was something within me that wanted to start sharing. And I just remember and I'm not this isn't about the guy at all. It was very lovely. But sitting in a hotel conference room with a guy standing there in a gray suit and tie telling me to listen to a raisin was honestly one of the funniest experiences ever so I do the raisin exercise but I never ask anyone to listen to it it still makes me laugh now I'm not gonna say very much no but in case people are listening to this they're like I don't even know why you're talking about raisins could you give us just a very quick overview of the raisin exercise um so the raisin exercise really is just an example in being aware so it's one of the first things we do when we start a meditation course just to show people how unaware they are because you've probably never really

Starting point is 00:14:53 studied a raisin and like i say it by looking at it by touching it by tasting it we are using all of our senses um and so it's just a way to get people to interact with being mindful especially if you're getting someone to come and sit down and do this thing how do you show them awareness we use a raisin brilliant and i'm really heartened with the idea that it doesn't matter what we're looking at so long as we're doing it because actually my bathroom is still the only room in the house that needs to be refurbed so it's not that nice but it's going to be as beneficial for me to be mindful in there as it is if I am by a waterfall you know doing love that's really good to know really good to know so you know lots of the time with our audience you know they're managing big caseloads there's you know clinical risk that they're managing they've got you know supervisor

Starting point is 00:15:45 pressure pressure from family and home life it's a lot you know how could you know have you got a top tip um for how to kind of reduce and manage burnout by using mindfulness yeah so a couple of things really mindfulness is something that's proactive and that we should create a practice so that's the first thing if you're interested in mindfulness I would say just get started have a look what's out there you can even go on youtube you can see if there's courses but it's a practice so it's really important to do that proactive stuff so rather than just going I need mindfulness now because I'm stressed out actually practicing it when everything's all good so actually when you are by the waterfalls or you're out on a day out, or you're in a hot tub, or whatever you're doing,

Starting point is 00:16:28 but being engaging your senses in the good times as well. And just starting to get interested in it. Meditate as often as you can. By the way, not all meditations are equal. Some people's voices will really annoy you. So feel free to turn it off and try another one, because that's really important. Don't sit there like gritting your teeth to get through it if someone's irritating um so what I would say is the proactive work we need to put that in you know like I said about the six pack you're not going to get a six pack without exercising the muscle and mindfulness is the same we need to make a practice we need to create a new habit um but what I would say is so start with the basics being aware in our every day choosing a small mindfulness meditation each day.

Starting point is 00:17:07 But when we go through a mindfulness course, we start to realise that there's so much more to mindfulness than just meditation and just being aware. It really allows us to start to understand how our brain works. And one of the big things about awareness is you'll get to know yourself a bit more and I'll get to know myself a bit more. I'll know the things that trigger anxiety in me more I'll know the things that trigger anxiety in me I'll know the things that trigger stress I know the things that will be um flags that are leading to burnout for example we need awareness to notice those things that's why the proactive mindfulness really works well um but as we go through the course you know we talk about other things like managing our reactions because our brain works super quick and we knee jerk into things um letting things be is another

Starting point is 00:17:45 big area that we talk about because especially if you are stressed out like you say you've got these cases you've got clients you've got worries we have to come back to the reality and a big part of mindfulness is having an awareness of what's going on and having a reality check so the question I always say is what what can't I change what can't I control? Try to let those things be, like let those things go and actually put our time, energy and focus into the things we can control, the things we can change. And that's a really big shift in mindset and in where your energy is going, because we can sit and stew on a lot of things. We can stress about a lot of things, but most of the time they've already happened or they certainly haven't happened yet. actually that question and I think that's one of the big parts of mindfulness is thinking about where our awareness attention and our energy is

Starting point is 00:18:31 going and so we can pose those questions to ourself particularly if we're starting to feel stressed like why am I feeling stressed is this real is this actually real life or is it something that hasn't happened yet or happened in the past because that's that's not here now um does that make sense yeah it really does it really does we can be swept away can't we by things that that may never happen um or are not within our immediate future and it's really easy you know and when I was going through that time when I couldn't sleep I'd be driving along in my car stewing stewing on things that had happened and that would then be informing worries that I would

Starting point is 00:19:05 be having about the future. Never was I very present in the moment. And that stewing was really what led me down that spiral of, you know, negative thinking and anxiety. And I've now learned, you know, driving is one of the places where I think a lot. And I now try to just practice mindfulness even when I'm driving. And I didn't know this was done in courses where people have been caught speeding and stuff. I only found that out in the last couple of months that you just label what you can see. And it's about that paying attention and bringing yourself back to the moment. And, you know, it isn't all woo woo. It's just about training your brain to do that, because every time that your mind flitters off somewhere and you pull it back to pay attention to the thing that's right in front of you you've just practiced mindfulness and so I

Starting point is 00:19:49 always say there's no like failing if you're sitting in meditation and people say like I've had a bad meditation no one has a bad meditation you just meditated and each time your mind wanders off because sometimes you'll sit in meditation and you'll feel like oh that was I paid attention to my breathing and I did that really well today another day you'll think oh, oh, that was, I paid attention to my breathing, and I did that really well today. Another day, you'll think, oh, my mind just didn't settle. But you will have gone somewhere in your thoughts and pulled it back to the meditation. Give yourself a pat on the back. Each time you've done that, you've just practiced mindfulness.

Starting point is 00:20:22 Yeah, I think when I work with people and we've done some elements of mindfulness or guided imagery type stuff, people can be quite mean to themselves when they wander off track but it's about that gently returning yourself without criticism that's the word i always yeah gently yeah and and that you know that nods to when we get to sort of the latter part of our mindfulness course compassion and kindness is a huge area that we talk about how are you looking after yourself how are you being kind to yourself? And it keeps coming back. And we say it all the time and it comes with practice, but you wouldn't speak to your worst enemy the way that you speak to yourself sometimes.

Starting point is 00:20:53 And it does come back to compassion and kindness and giving yourself a little bit of leeway for being a human being. I think people often think, you know, I'm going to practice mindfulness and meditation. It has to be perfect because that's what we see on Instagram and Facebook and whatever. And it's not. We're human beings with a human brain that is wired a certain way to protect us.

Starting point is 00:21:10 We don't need that so much nowadays, but there's still things that triggers us. And I think one of the big things about our mindfulness practice is having that compassion for ourself to accept that we're human. And things aren't always going to go to plan and we're going to make mistakes. And that's OK. I just think, you know, social media and being online a lot of the time makes us think that we're not allowed to make mistakes but we absolutely are um and like you say it's about being kind there's no failing there's no wrong um it's just about a practice and you know most of the time when people are doing this practice it's because they want to look after themselves a little bit better um so yeah kindness and compassion is huge some of the stuff you mentioned there you know when you're struggling to stay present in the now because of stuff from then or stuff from that's going to happen.

Starting point is 00:21:50 It's actually, you know, symptoms of trauma, isn't it? And then symptoms of hypervigilance about what's going to come is all tied up in trauma as well. So by really trying to stay in the present, we really trying to help you know the brain and the body and the mind know that's not now that was then or that's gonna be what may or may not come to pass and that can be really useful as well well it really affects our you know our nervous system and you know well you do know the the way that our body and our mind works is that we don't actually know if we are in that situation or if we're thinking about being in that situation we still release those stress chemicals and

Starting point is 00:22:28 hormones so actually it really is beneficial for us physiologically to be better at being present in the moment because when we start to ponder on those things or take ourself back to a it could be a traumatic place or just a generally stressful place or for me for example when I had postnatal anxiety being in that space like I could feel those feelings in my body like that physiologically something was happening and so I think you know often we think like I said before that mindfulness is this woo woo la la thing that we're going to do in a perfectly quiet space and it isn't it's really useful in helping us to manage our mental health but also that impacts our physical

Starting point is 00:23:05 health and if we start thinking about mental health as a whole I started to create a toolkit for the sessions that I was leading and you know what's going to be on there we talk about eating we talk about sleep we talk about human connection but mindfulness sits at the core because we have to have that awareness to be able to do all of those other things so yeah it can be really life-changing and I know you said to me earlier about not looking my age or whatever, but I think part of that is just been looking after myself. And, you know, stress can be aging, can't it? Not to say I never have any stress, but I just feel like sometimes we just accept these high levels of stress.

Starting point is 00:23:41 But it's doing so can actually learn a new way of managing it. And that's what I think I want for people yeah yeah I love that it can have a total impact on your mind your body your soul um all of that and it's yeah it can be life-changing like it has been for you it really has and I honestly don't know what I would have done in those really difficult times those things that have happened in my personal life if I didn't have that practice like I just can't even imagine it I can't imagine not having I just I just can't I just don't know what I would have done I just don't know what I

Starting point is 00:24:15 would have done it's like future-proofing yourself isn't it learning the stuff now so that when you need it later along the road perhaps at times you can't even imagine you've got that in the bank you've got that ready yeah and I and you know when I when I had postnatal anxiety so I've never had anxiety in my life I never had anything like that it was very much linked to the birth of my baby um and you know one of the things that my mindfulness practice also helped me with wasn't just my mindfulness practice it was the awareness that I needed help because I was so in tune with how I usually thought and felt and my emotions and I could see what was happening and that it I was not okay and so I did actually get some additional help um even still last year I was working through and had some therapy um because I

Starting point is 00:25:03 think I had that awareness of what sort of my baseline if you like and when I knew that my practice wasn't helping me so it made sure that I actually went and got some more help as well. Yeah yeah it teaches you that awareness doesn't it and I love the idea of what your your baseline is you know normal for aiming yeah which is different for everyone right yeah absolutely but you knew that that wasn't you thriving um and you felt that you had more that you could give yourself and um you know this new relationship that you've got with your little boy um you know to supercharge that as well and just help everything flow that much easier yeah we're getting there it's still not it's still you know it was only I mean lockdown didn't help because a lot of my anxiety was around actually

Starting point is 00:25:52 leaving the house so I had friends this is another important thing about mindfulness actually is communication I am not afraid to communicate and I understand what I probably need to communicate not always my my ADHD brain also is not good at that. So it's give and take. But I would talk to friends about it. And they'd start to open up to me. And I never even knew some of my bestest friends were experiencing what they're experiencing. And someone at the time, we'd not long had our babies, you know, from each other. And she said, I feel exactly the same except when I'm indoors and staying at home. So we had the same symptoms, but the trigger for us was completely different.

Starting point is 00:26:31 And again, it's about that understanding and knowing that it's different for everybody. And I knew that I needed help to get out of the house and she knew she needed help to stay in the house. And like now, I just don't think the pandemic helped me particularly because it meant that I could stay in the house and I was safe in my mind um and so I think that's elongated my process to where we are now but I'm very happy to say that uh I have a picture of it actually that I took into the garden center um for lunch on our own and that was only a few months ago um and I got a picture of us and that was a big deal for me so it's not just practicing mindfulness and working in the mental health space doesn't mean that we all have it all together but it means I understand when I need help and I took my time and yeah I'm happy to say we've been out and about now in the summer so it's really good oh I'm really

Starting point is 00:27:19 pleased to hear that and I know you've been starting to use mindfulness with your with your little boy as well and that's something that you really advocate teaching young people mindfulness and that might be something that our audience can either do with their own children or in services they might be working with with children and young people could you give us a few top tips for how to build that into working with little ones yeah do you know what and I mentioned this to you before we got started but they just don't question things so much as adults do um if you ask I it will just stay with me forever I had this group of beavers on zoom and they're all messing about I can see them all on their screens and doing this and I asked them just to notice their breathing so we did some

Starting point is 00:28:00 breathing we were counting it and they all just stopped and did it no they don't question anything and I talked about mindfulness and I talked about paying attention to you know nice things that kids are going to want to be involved in and I just really think that we can lead by example with this so when it comes to kids like make things fun so with my little boy for example if we're out and about I've said to him before mindfulness means we have a little book that we read and I say what does mindfulness and he says what says, what I can see, what I can smell, what I can hear. So when we're out on a walk, I'll just say to him, what can we smell? What can we see? What can we hear? So it's just practicing a bit of mindfulness. He doesn't need to know why or how or whatever. We're just practicing. And then the same with his breathing. And he even

Starting point is 00:28:42 does this, I posted on LinkedIn this morning, he does this to me. So how wonderful is that? I've taught him something. And when he's really upset or crying or say he's fallen over or whatever it is, or he's probably having a tantrum, and we do the breathing technique and hand on the heart. And the other day I really hurt my knee, I really bashed my knee and I had a couple of tears. And he just came over to me and put his hand on me and went it's okay don't worry just breathe that's my boy um and you know like I say just make it fun and the breath is a wonderful one to come back to because everybody's got breath everybody's got breathing and it's something that we can get them to count or we can do it with them sometimes as well if they're really little ones you can put your hand on their heart and ask them to notice the rise and fall um but there's so many lovely things that we can do with

Starting point is 00:29:28 kids and i think it starts with us actually um if we have a bit of a practice then we can share that with them and then we can practice together and what's nicer than that yeah absolutely it sounds like golden moments there but you're right you know breathing is really one of the things that is truly mindful because you can't breathe in the past and you can't breathe in the present. It's only right now. I love that. Is there anything I haven't asked you that you hoped I would? No, I don't think so. I hope that I always get so in the zone and I feel like, oh, did I say everything I wanted to say? I think my overarching thing is I just want people to switch the view of mindfulness into knowing that it's something that is for anybody and everybody.

Starting point is 00:30:12 And, yes, some people find it easier than others. Some people resonate with certain things than others. But it really is for everybody. And I just implore people to get started, to just look into it and don't believe that it's this empty mind Zen robot it isn't it's just a practice to understand how your brain works to get to know you a little bit better and then learn some techniques to help you manage the stresses and strains of everyday life which we all have and so yeah and once you've learned whether you do a course or whatever you decide

Starting point is 00:30:42 to do it's free forever like you've got it forever um so actually it's just bloody amazing and I love it you get to keep that in your head don't you you know it becomes part of yourself and your future interactions and I used it even you know this weekend just gone I was um a lovely little cottage with some of my friends a hot tub in the Malvern Hills it was gorgeous um and we were like well let's just just take a moment to just soak this in because you can use it on days that feel tough in future yeah and you know what one of the things sorry that's just reminded me one of the things that I say often is use mindfulness in the good times so of most of the time people come to learn mindfulness because they want to deal with

Starting point is 00:31:25 stress or burnout anxiety or whatever it is but actually we can practice moment when the times are good as well so like yesterday I've gone paddleboarding for the third time my new hobby um and I'd been out I spent some time with my partner and I just sat in the car and I just said I'm really I feel really happy today um and he said why and we talked about it and it was like that acknowledgement that awareness and that being present with the feeling of joy with the feeling of happiness and just when I'm with my friends because you know we're all quite so I say it to them often I love you I'm so happy I'm with you and we acknowledge that as well we don't just have to acknowledge the feelings

Starting point is 00:32:01 that are unhelpful acknowledge the good we can use mindfulness in the good times as well um and the final thing if it's okay i'll just say is if you feel like you do want to practice mindfulness sometimes it feels a bit self-indulgent to do a mindfulness course but it's just for you um but i think actually we should invest in ourselves and if you can find an eight-week course that really is the start of a habit and I've took many people through an eight-week course doing one-off sessions and stuff is nice um but you either have to commit to doing a course or you need to commit yourself to take the time every week because you need that time to practice um and it will form a habit and you will have it forever um so yeah invest in you I love that how can people connect with you or learn more about your work, Amy, if they'd like to?

Starting point is 00:32:46 Sure. So I am on Instagram. That's mostly my mum audience. I do a lot of work with mums. This is Amy Polly. I'm on LinkedIn, Amy Polly. And my website is Amy Polly dot com. Thank you so much. It's been an absolute pleasure speaking with you. And I know people will find this super useful. Thank you. Yeah. Thank you find this super useful um thank you yeah thank you again thank you thank you so much thank you so much for listening um we do do um elements of mindfulness and you know compassion and guided imagery within the aspiring psychologist membership um and we might well have Amy coming to the membership shortly too.

Starting point is 00:33:28 If you would like more information or to jump on the waiting list so that you're there ready when the next spaces are available on the 2nd of September, then do head to the link on the show notes, which will tell you how to join the waiting list or you can head to any of my social medias and the link tree link there for link tree dr marianne trent will also guide you straight there but yeah i hope you're having a lovely summer you're being kind to yourself and you're taking time for rest and relaxation please do know that whatever service you're working in can cope for long enough

Starting point is 00:34:13 for you to take some much needed annual leave so thank you for being part of my world and I will look forward to catching up with you again very soon for our next episode of the podcast which comes around at 6am on Mondays but it will be there for you when you're ready. Thank you for being part of my world and speak soon. Take care. If you're looking to become a psychologist, then let this be your guide. Filled with lessons and experience that will help you get qualified. So come and take a look. It's right here in this book. It's the Clinical Psychologist Collective.

Starting point is 00:35:03 It's the Clinical Psychologist Collective It's the Clinical Psychologist Collective Clinical Psychologist Collective book is the book to read for aspiring psychologists. Like most aspiring psychologists, I've read all the books about becoming a clinical psychologist. While other books break down the entry criteria and speak of the course competitiveness, the Clinical Psychologist Collective reveals the varied journeys and individual differences of those who've gotten onto and completed training. It inspired me to embrace my own journey and make the most of my experiences and identity. If you read one book about becoming a clinical psychologist, this is it. If you buy someone who aspires to be a clinical psychologist a book this is it this book will help freshen

Starting point is 00:36:07 blossom into a more diverse group of mental health practitioners who use their backgrounds to enhance their ability to support those we serve Thank you. It's right here in this book It's the Clinical Psychologist Collective It's the Clinical Psychologist Collective If you're looking to become a psychologist Then let this be your guide With this podcast at your side You'll be on your way to being qualified It's the Aspiring Psychologist Podcast

Starting point is 00:37:21 With Dr. Marianne Trent. My name's Jana and I'm a trainee psychological well-being practitioner. I read the Clinical Psychologist Collective book. I found it really interesting about all the different stories and how people got to become a clinical psychologist. It just amazed me how many different routes there are to get there and there's no perfect way to become one and this kind of filled me with confidence that no I'm not doing it wrong and put less pressure on myself. So if you're feeling a bit uneasy about becoming a clinical psychologist I'd definitely recommend this just to put yourself at ease and everything will be okay but trust me you will not put the book down once you start.

The Aspiring Psychologist Podcast - What is mindfulness and how can it help wellbeing as an aspiring psychologist? With Amy Polly

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