Blog

What are the best self help books for depression? Often I have found that self help books for depression or life struggles are not based on good science or are too prescriptive in what someone needs to do. This prescriptive approach comes at the expense of our individual differences. Here I outline the best three books I have come across to help understand and manage depression from the past 10 years.

Persistent Depressive Disorder is an often misunderstood form of depression that is long-lasting and often masked by someone's high level of functioning.

This post is part of the Psychology in TV and Movies series of posts. I’ll be writing about the films and shows which capture interesting ideas and theories from the world of psychology. Today I look at success, fear of failure, and life satisfaction in Good Will Hunting. While Matt Damon and Ben Affleck are arguably the most well known elements of the movie for their writing and acting, I'm more interested today in the rivalry between Mathematics Professor Gerry Lambeau (played by Stellan Skarsgård) and counsellor Sean Maguire (played by Robin Williams).

Does your perfectionism help you or hurt you? Does it fuel struggle with anxiety and depression or does it increase life satisfaction? I've included a brief batch of self reflection questions that may assist people in working out whether they may benefit from sessions cognitive behaviour therapy targeting perfectionism. These questions are adapted from Egan, Wade, Shafran and Antony's text on perfectionism treatment (2014).

Patrick Sheehan is a clinical psychologist who works with adults and adolescents in his private practice located in Glebe, Sydney. If you want to enquire about an appointment, please head over to the contact page.

Seeing a psychologist for the first time can feel daunting. Here are some valuable things to keep in mind to help your prepare for the first appointment with a counsellor or psychologist.

This post is part of the Psychology in TV and Movies series of posts. I’ll be writing about the films and shows which capture interesting ideas and theories from the world of psychology. Today I look at workplace stress in Mad Men's 'The Suitcase'.

One of the most common questions I am asked in my role as a psychologist is how my job differs to that of a psychiatrist. This post highlights the top 3 differences between psychologists and psychiatrists working in Australia.

This post is part of the Psychology in TV and Movies series of posts. I’ll be writing about the films and shows which capture interesting ideas and theories from the world of psychology.

This post is part of a series of posts that I’m calling Psychology in TV and Movies. I’ll be writing about the films and shows which capture interesting ideas and theories from the world of psychology.