Resources for personal growth

JohnFace002

I'm Dr John Shea. I'm a Psychologist. I have been a University teacher and worked in psychotherapy and counseling for more than 25 years. This site aims to provide a range of resources in Psychology including readings about psychological change, links to other information sources and web sites of other psychologists in Australia.

At the top part of the navigation column on the right hand of this page there is information from areas of Psychology dealing with self-healing and other change, personal growth and relationships. Lower down in the navigation column there are links to Psychologists and Psychology sites within Australia and in other countries, some dealing with very specific Psychological problems.

Use the search box below to look for themes on this site that most interest you.

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A brief description of my professional background can be found here: Qualifications, Dr. John Shea.

For details about the kinds of Psychological Services I offer and my Practice details please click here: Psychology Services, Dr John Shea..

I live and work on the Far North Coast of New South Wales, In Lennox Head: Click here for full contact details, including a map to my location.

To email me directly, in order to enquire about or arrange a consultation, please click here: email Dr John Shea.

To get in touch about Academic issues please email me at my University email address click here: University contact, Dr John Shea.

Mind-Body healing

Practically everything on this site deals with mind-body issues, but it would be fair to say that a central focus is self change and ways that psychology can help with this, especially with regard to enabling greater happiness and better health. Within this mind-body healing theme I've included some articles that take a very broad look at such issues. The readings, Personal growth", "It helps to believe", Mind over matter" and "all in the mind" look at the role of thinking processes in self-healing

Personality, emotional balance, well-being

Topics covered here focus on the interaction between long term personal characteristics and health issues. This is clear in the readings called "Personality and Cardio Vascular Disease", "Emotions and immune response", "Anger kills", 'Personality and Illness", "a Disease Personality" and "Balancing Emotions". I have also included "Anxiety and Sexual Problems". In these readings there is discussion of ways that personality characteristics might be managed, even modified, leading to a balancing of emotions and better health and well-being.

Hypnosis, Meditation, Relaxation

I tend to use the terms "Hypnosis", "Meditation", and "Deep Relaxation" to describe the same counseling strategy and the same pesonal experience. From a therapeutic perspective it is one of the most helpful strategies available. Some of the successes are truly astounding. There is a reading titled "Hypnosis, Meditation and Deep Relaxation" that discusses why I use these words to mean the same thing, what it is all about and how to do it. There are also a couple of the more spectacular and best authenticated cases of hypnotic "cures" described here. The work of doctors Dabney Ewen in "Hypnosis for Burns" and A. A. Adams in "Curing the Incurable: Fishskin Disease". (There are also a couple of readings dealing with hypnosis under other Headings.)

Psychology and Cancer: Cancer Support

For many years I have worked with cancer patients, sometimes one-to-one and sometimes with groups. And I have published some research papers describing group based interventions with cancer patients. Here there are readings about some of the central issues - "Psychologists for Cancer", "The Psychology of Cancer", Psychological factors and Cancer Pain" and " Managing Anticipatory Nausea and Vomiting "- as well as a medical report, "Mr Wright: the Power of Negative Thinking", about a man whose cancer experience seemed shaped more by his expectations than by the disease process.

Handling pain better

Anyone who has had any dealings with people suffering from pain will know that the impact of pain is not easily predictable on the basis of degree of injury. The reasons why pain comes and why it goes are often complex. Some clues about these effects are suggested here. Readings in this are are "The Mystery of Pain", "Psychological factors in Chronic Pain", "Hypnosis for Pain Relief" and "Psychologists and Back Pain".

Stress

Stress is a feature of everyday life. Sometimes we speak about it as though it has only happened in modern times. But of course human beings are adapted to coping with surprising levels of stressful experiences. Indeed we need certain levels of excitement just to keep functioning. Sometimes managment of life events does get a bit tricky though. Readings here are "Where does Stress Come From?", "Stress and Immunity", "Stress and Relaxation", "Work Stress: the importance of having Control" and "Writing about Stress Reduces Stress and Asthma Symptoms".

Relationships

Apart from stress, pain and health issues, the most common reason people consult Psychologists is for problems of relationships. Here I offer some thoughts about a variety of relationship situations. Three readings are about bringing up well-behaved children: "Influencing Others", "Punishment is Inefficient" and "Non-violent Control". Two readings are about the proper place for fathers in raising their children: "Fathers as Carers" and "Fathers Caring for Children". Five more readings are about sexual relationships: "Hypnosis for a Sexual Problem", "Sexual Advice", "Sexual Potential", "Theories about Love" and "Trust and Intimacy".

Dr David Spiegel, a quote

In response to a research study showing that writing about stress helped asthma and arthritis symptoms Dr. David Spiegel, of the department of psychiatry at Stanford University School of Medicine, California, wrote in the The Journal of the American Medical Association, April 14th,1999 "This study adds important data to the growing evidence that even limited interventions designed to improve management of stress may have lasting (physical) effects. . . .Were the authors to have provided similar outcome evidence about a new drug, it likely would be in widespread use within a short time. . . Ventilation of negative emotion, even just to an unknown reader, seems to have helped these patients acknowledge, bear, and put into perspective their distress," Spiegel writes. "In this and a growing number of studies, it is not simply mind over matter, but is it clear that mind matters."

More readings will be added to my blog from time to time. Have a quick look now to see the first posting on my blog PSYC1PLUS