Category Archives: Mental Health

Biology is not binary

Rebecca Helm, a biologist and an assistant professor at the University of North Carolina, Asheville US writes:

I see a lot of people are talking about biological sexes and gender right now. Lots of folks make biological sex sex seem really simple. Well, since it’s so simple, let’s find the biological roots, shall we? Let’s talk about sex…

If you know a bit about biology you will probably say that biological sex is caused by chromosomes, XX and you’re female, XY and you’re male. This is “chromosomal sex” but is it “biological sex”? Well…

Turns out there is only ONE GENE on the Y chromosome that really matters to sex. It’s called the SRY gene. During human embryonic development the SRY protein turns on male-associated genes. Having an SRY gene makes you “genetically male”. But is this “biological sex”?

Sometimes that SRY gene pops off the Y chromosome and over to an X chromosome. Surprise! So now you’ve got an X with an SRY and a Y without an SRY. What does this mean?

A Y with no SRY means physically you’re female, chromosomally you’re male (XY) and genetically you’re female (no SRY). An X with an SRY means you’re physically male, chromosomally female (XX) and genetically male (SRY). But biological sex is simple! There must be another answer…

Sex-related genes ultimately turn on hormones in specifics areas on the body, and reception of those hormones by cells throughout the body. Is this the root of “biological sex”??

“Hormonal male” means you produce ‘normal’ levels of male-associated hormones. Except some percentage of females will have higher levels of ‘male’ hormones than some percentage of males. Ditto ditto ‘female’ hormones. And…

…if you’re developing, your body may not produce enough hormones for your genetic sex. Leading you to be genetically male or female, chromosomally male or female, hormonally non-binary, and physically non-binary. Well, except cells have something to say about this…

Maybe cells are the answer to “biological sex”?? Right?? Cells have receptors that “hear” the signal from sex hormones. But sometimes those receptors don’t work. Like a mobile phone that’s on “do not disturb’. Call and cell, they will not answer.

What does this all mean?

It means you may be genetically male or female, chromosomally male or female, hormonally male/female/non-binary, with cells that may or may not hear the male/female/non-binary call, and all this leading to a body that can be male/non-binary/female.

Try out some combinations for yourself. Notice how confusing it gets? Can you point to what the absolute cause of biological sex is? Is it fair to judge people by it?

Of course you could try appealing to the numbers. “Most people are either male or female” you say. Except that as a biologist professor I will tell you…

The reason I don’t have my students look at their own chromosome in class is because people could learn that their chromosomal sex doesn’t match their physical sex, and learning that in the middle of a 10-point assignment is JUST NOT THE TIME.

Biological sex is complicated. Before you discriminate against someone on the basis of “biological sex” & identity, ask yourself: have you seen YOUR chromosomes? Do you know the genes of the people you love? The hormones of the people you work with? The state of their cells?

Since the answer will obviously be no, please be kind, respect people’s right to tell you who they are, and remember that you don’t have all the answers. Again: biology is complicated. Kindness and respect don’t have to be.

Note: Biological classifications exist. XX, XY, XXY XXYY and all manner of variation which is why sex isn’t classified as binary. You can’t have a binary classification system with more than two configurations even if two of those configurations are more common than others.

Supreme Court Ruling on the definition of woman

My thoughts on the Supreme Court Ruling on the definition of woman.

I am feeling shock, sadness and utter disappointment by the recent Supreme Court ruling concerning the definition of ‘woman’. There are already many posts out there going into the details of what the ruling says. 

What I’d like to highlight is how unhelpful this ruling is to women. All women.

No evidence, science or lived experience-based knowledge that contradicted the group’s view was accepted into this court hearing. So, non-trans people made decisions for and about trans people without hearing a single trans voice. Where is the democracy in that?

Biology is not binary

The hearing was based entirely on the premise that biology is binary. We know this to be incorrect. Anyone  who has studied human biology in the last 40 years will have a basic understanding that there are essentially three biological categories: female, male and intersex (there are approx. 40 different ways of being intersex across approx. 1.7% of global population). [The term intersex is a western word and other cultures use different language to describe this category.] Biology is determined by three aspects: physical characteristics, hormones and chromosomes. Each is independent of the other and determined at different stages during gestation. [Here is a more in-depth explanation.]

Many assume only physical characteristics fully determine biological status but all three areas are required. The majority of the worlds population therefore will not categorically know their biological status. If we simply use something such as certain body parts to determine biology, what does this say about those born without those elements? Or those who have had those body parts removed/no longer functioning? 

Focus on trans women

So, why does the court ruling focus on trans women? Why are trans women feared? There doesn’t seem to be the same level of concern regarding a male attendant in the women’s toilet. Or that a female attendant serving the men’s toilet might be in severe danger (all those men!). So why the insistence that trans women are dangerous? Is it because trans women are being viewed as men? I don’t have all the answers. I suspect that it is related, in part at least, to the ongoing mis-information that gay and trans people are held by certain faiths as immoral and that society at large is under threat from them. From what exactly? My thoughts are that church and state together collude with the knowledge that if gay and trans people are no longer ridiculed, if they are afforded equal rights to cisgender and heterosexual folk, that it will further highlight gender hierarchy. Church and state need society to keep the status quo. If all people are equal, irrespective of gender, what will happen to patriarchal society? 

If those who are intersex are recognised in law it will mean costly changes to systems, forms and, of course, gender hierarchy. Who would pay for this? Who would benefit? I can see similarities with advocacy for equal rights for people with disabilities. The government didn’t want to pick up this bill. They don’t want to pick up the bill to allow intersex people to be legally valid.

Perceptions of definition of woman

This Supreme Court Ruling on the definition of woman dictates that anyone who is perceived as trans can be excluded from women-only spaces. Basically this means that anyone who doesn’t fit a rigid idea of woman/femininity potentially could be excluded. We’ve seen this play out in women’s athletics where competitors are now expressing in what might be described as ultra-feminine ways so as not to be considered ‘too masculine’. They don’t want to risk being humiliatingly investigated like in Casta Semenia’s case. Maintaining binary categories for biology and competition but then denying someone from competing is detrimental for all women. In Semenia’s case, she was accused of having an unfair advantage and prevented from competing, even though she is assigned female. There are all sorts of natural variations between competitors which have to be lived with as part of competition. So why is this different? 

Since the court hearing we have already seen additional hostility towards trans women, intersex folk and anyone who doesn’t fit a certain standard. 

If you need support please do get in touch.

Be a trans and intersex ally

A number of people have reached out in the last few days asking how they can help. If you’d like to be a trans ally, please consider:

  1. writing to your MP (see template below)
  2. challenge incorrect information around binary biology, and the perceived danger that trans, non-binary and intersex people pose
  3. support intersex individuals and advocate for visibility and equality. Help fund change where you can. 
  4. support non-violent protests
  5. increase your own knowledge about the discrimination faced by intersex, trans and non-binary folk

To find your MP list search your postcode here: https://lnkd.in/eygrZGvb

Email template:

Protect Trans, Non-Binary and Intersex People in Wake of Supreme Court Ruling

Dear [MP’s Name],

I hope this message finds you well. I am writing to express my serious concern regarding the recent UK Supreme Court ruling which defines the legal term “woman” as based solely on biological sex. Whilst the court framed this as a matter of legal clarity, the wider consequences are troubling and risk undermining the rights and dignity of transgender, non-binary and intersex people across the UK.

Although the ruling states that transgender people remain protected from discrimination, it opens the door to a narrower, more exclusionary interpretation of those protections and opens the door to further discrimination down the line. This leaves many feeling increasingly vulnerable, particularly those who have undergone legal transition under the Gender Recognition Act. The ruling also fails to recognise the existence and rights of non-binary people altogether, and places intersex people in legal limbo.

There is clear consensus amongst leading medical and psychological bodies, including the British Medical Association, the World Health Organisation and the Royal College of Psychiatrists, that gender identity is a real and deeply held aspect of who someone is. Trans women are women, trans men are men, and non-binary people exist and deserve legal recognition. Supporting people to live in alignment with their gender identity significantly improves mental health and wellbeing outcomes.

In addition, intersex people, whose lived experiences challenge the notion of a strict binary sex framework, have been overlooked in both the legal judgement and in much of the public discourse that surrounds it. Their continued invisibility in law contributes to stigma, confusion, and a lack of appropriate healthcare and protections.

This is not a victory for women’s rights. Real equality cannot be achieved by denying the rights of others. We must be able to hold space for all marginalised genders, and ensure that legislation reflects the lived realities of those it affects. I urge you to take this matter seriously and to use your platform to call for stronger, clearer protections for trans, non-binary and intersex people. This includes ensuring that the Equality Act and its guidance uphold inclusive practices, and that future legal definitions are grounded in compassion, scientific evidence, and human rights.

I hope you will do everything you can to stand up for the rights, dignity and safety of all your constituents.

Kind regards,

[Your Full Name]

Template courtesy of https://lnkd.in/eWkZanqA

Intentional vs Unintentional Harm

I’ve been thinking a lot recently about intentional vs unintentional harm. 

So often I hear of situations where someone is sharing their experience of harm/hurt and the listener responds with “I don’t think they would have intended to upset/get it wrong/be racist/phobic or “I didn’t intend to cause harm (and therefore I didn’t). This is such an unempathic response and it totally invalidates the first person’s experience. 

It’s a little like someone treading on your toe. Whether they do it intentionally or not, your toe will still hurt.

People are less likely to intend to harm

Accusing someone of being racist/phobic rarely ends well. People like to think of them/ourselves as good people. So being accused of something can feel really challenging. Often it’s more helpful and fruitful to call out the behaviour that is problematic rather than the person. Clearly, there are people that set out to aggravate, cause harm and have intense beliefs about being superior. For the majority who don’t feel like that there is a lot of work we can do to make the world a kinder place. 

I’ve had people say to me, why do the minority get to tell me in the majority what to think and feel?”. I’m at a loss at times to know what to say other than, “why wouldn’t we want to learn about those at a disadvantage and how we might inadvertently perpetuate it?”. I don’t have all the answers and I don’t claim to get it right. 

Why would we want to harm?

So, back to the unintentional harm. Why wouldn’t we want to learn about what causes life to be more difficult for others. Why wouldn’t we want to make an effort? How do we engage in learning about systemic dis/advantage? How serious are we about making a difference? Are we only interested in the areas that impact ourselves?

Essentially we are being invited to think about how someone might experience the same situation but in a different way. Do we become defensive and in denial or can we hold both our own and the other’s experience together? How might this knowledge help soften our own position? How might we respond if we realise that we might be inadvertently adding to the suffering of someone else or another group of people? 

A few years ago I wrote and article about Why Pronouns Matter. I’ve since updated it and I realise I need to update it again. I used language, that although didn’t intend to cause harm, I can now see might cause harm. I’d write it differently now.

So, I will continue to think about intentional vs unintentional harm and how I might intentionally help the world to be a kinder place.

January 2025

Here we are in January 2025.

For the first time in my working career, I took two weeks off for my Christmas break. I recognised that my mind and body needed a little longer than I usually take. I’m glad I listened to myself. Taking time out has enabled me to re-set, spend some time with myself and others. I feel ready to see what 2025 has lined up.

Winter break

How has the winter break been for you? Has it brought clarity to any situations for you? What have you found difficult? What has been less effortful than you anticipated?

Setting intentions

As we make our way back into our regular lives, I am mindful that January is often a time for setting resolutions, goals etc. What works for you? I like to think more in terms of intentions as it feels less daunting and less shaming if I’m not able to make it happen. During my break I’ve been able to think about what I might need more or less of.

What about you? What do you need more or less of? How can you influence that? What if you feel you can’t? Can you be compassionate with yourself in the meantime?

Might you need more joy in your life? What might that look like? What sort of joy? A loud belly-laugh sort of joy or a quiet, internal smile on your face sort of joy?

Are there things coming up this year that will require bravery from you? Might this mean a loud sort of bravery or a quiet assertiveness that only you know the true meaning of?

Whatever you need more or less of this year, I hope you are able to make steps towards discovering what your needs are and having the compassion with yourself and others as you implement those needs. Having strong boundaries is necessary in healthy relationships. We can do this in a way that is kind to ourselves and those around us.

Associate Victoria Oliver

Victoria Oliver

It is through this relationship where I can help support you in learning about yourself, understand any aspects of your life that cause distress or dissatisfaction and help to empower you to uncover your own inner resilience to make effective and lasting change 

I work as a humanistic and integrative therapist; that is to say that I work in a way that is warm, compassionate and non-judgemental. It respects who you are as a person, your own uniqueness and how you experience the world around you, while using a range of modalities to construct a bespoke therapeutic approach that fits with your own needs and requirements.

I offer sessions online which will be for 50 mins and held on a regular weekly or fortnightly basis. 

Counselling Therapy Room Hire in Leicester

Would you like to make use of our counselling therapy rooms for hire/rent and become an Associate of the practice? 

Counselling therapy room for hire/rent. Spacious, comfortable and versatile ground, first and second floor therapy rooms (accessibility info: door widths 75 and 69 cm, all-gender WC 2nd floor). Available to use for regular single sessions, half-day or full day blocks. The rooms are furnished suitable for use with individual clients (adults and young people), couples, family/systemic therapy, group supervision, group training, personal development groups, and mentoring/coaching. Our rooms are certainly designed with calm and safety in mind. Our consulting rooms are situated in a discreet, professional location of the city centre (LE1, near Regent Road). The building is easily accessible by public transport. There is street parking nearby (£1 per 2 hrs/free after 6 p.m.).

Expectations of you

Independent counsellors and psychotherapists are welcome to hire the counselling rooms. Our expectation of you as a potential associate of the practice is that you are registered and qualified to at least Diploma level (incl supervised clinical placement). You should also have professional indemnity insurance; be a member of a professional organisation, such as the BACP, and abide by its code of ethics; be GDPR compliant; have adequate clinical supervision for your caseload and experience; have, a clinical will in place; be willing to incorporate simple safety procedures into your practice; and take full responsibility for your private practice, including storing your own records. We will also require from you awareness and willingness to learn about all areas of intersectionality.

Benefits

You will experience benefits as a result of becoming an associate of our practice. For example, these include emergency support when needed, being part of a network of therapists with a strong ethical stance, access to organised peer support group, and possible referrals (where ethically appropriate).

Practice Ethos

Whilst maintaining our individuality and autonomy we work as a team; our core values are: honesty, integrity, openness, collaboration, accountability, support and respect. Clients’ needs are at the heart of our work. 

Counselling Rooms Gallery

We are currently looking for additional associates to expand the practice.

Are you ready to expand your private practice? Maybe this is your first time venturing into private practice? We can provide support and guidance along the way. There is room availability across the week for new associates: 

We have space in our team for additional therapists. Therefore, we welcome your interest. We are actively looking for therapists who meet any of the following:

  • has experience of working with couples/relationships
  • identifies as LGBTQI+ / GSRD
  • identifies as/has knowledge of working with disability
  • have experience of working with attachment difficulties related to early separation
  • has experience of providing supervision to individuals and/or groups
  • has experience of working with children and young people

Would you like more information about becoming an associate? Would you like to make use of our counselling therapy room for hire? Please contact  luan.bbcp@gmail.com. We will invite you to complete a short form and then also arrange to meet for an informal interview.

Baines-Ball & Associates: Counselling, Psychotherapy and Clinical Supervision in Leicester, Leicestershire and online

Associate Paula Fowle

Are you recently bereaved or struggling to come to terms with a life changing illness?
Are you a fellow professional looking for supervision or mentoring support?

Paula Fowle has long light brown hair and is wearing a white dress with brown flowers

Ways to work with me:

  • Therapy for bereavement or recovering from a life changing illness and trying to get your life back on track.
  • Supervision for professionals who help others who are qualified or in training,
  • Mentoring newly qualified therapists as they navigate setting up in Private Practice.

I am an experienced professional with a passion to help others. I have worked as a therapist 15 years and more recently a supervisor. I work face to face and online.

We can work together at your pace as you recover or undergo treatment for a life changing illness.

Trying to find your way following the loss of a family member or close friend takes time and courage. Together we can work at your pace as your attempt to understand the effect of your loss and consider working towards the future.

I am passionate to support trainee counsellors and therapists as they select and begin placements together, we can consider which placement is the best fit for you and your study requirements.

Are you considering the next steps in your career post qualification? I can work with you as a mentor to guide you towards setting up your private practice.


Therapy:

From £45 per session

Supervision/Mentoring:

From £50 per hour -Student rates considered for weekly/fortnightly appointments.

Private Practice Mentoring

Have you finished your studies and now qualified as a Counsellor or Psychotherapist and considering your next career steps?

If you decide to set up in Private Practice, I would like to offer my experience and knowledge to help you advance your career and achieve your goals.

I have been qualified as a Counsellor since 2012 and working in Private Practice since October 2020. During my career it has always been very important to me to have a good supporting network around me as my career progressed. This was especially necessary during the time I was considering and then took steps to set up my Private Practice.

I hope that some of the experiences that I have had will help you to navigate the next steps of your career.

I am offering a one-year package, or longer if we choose to continue, in which I will share my knowledge to help you through the process of setting up and growing your own Private Practice.

The package includes the following:

Monthly 1-hour sessions with information and resources to help you set up and grow your Practice.

Our session may include:

  • Choosing the right space for your Practice – whether it be home or office based.
  • Legal and Ethical requirements – including the recording of Supervision and CPD sessions.
  • How to advertise and get yourself known – support with directory profiles and entries.
  • Setting up of client documentation, including contracts.
  • Managing your diary and client appointments to fit with other personal commitments.
  • How to take and record your client notes.
  • Setting up of your finance records and how to record your monthly income and

expenditure and what record keeping is required.

  • Invoicing and dealing with non-payment of sessions fees.
  • Measuring your progress and seeking evaluation.
  • Self-care and peer support.
  • Review of progress – One year on – Where are you now? What are the next steps you would like to consider.

Our sessions can be either online or face to face, whatever works best for you.

The fee for each session is £45.00. (Introductory Price)

Call me on 0776 0840009 to book an appointment for FREE 30minnute introductory chat or email me on paulafowle63@gmail.com .


Contact:
paulafowle63@gmail.com
0776 0840009
www.counselling-directory.org.uk/counsellors/paula-fowle

World Health Day

April 7th is World Health Day. I wonder what this means for us as individuals and within the group spaces we are part of. UK culture is often positioned around the ‘I’ perspective but let’s not forget the collective experience also.

So, what does World health Day mean for us in terms of our physical, mental, sexual, relational and spiritual health? What areas are being taken care of? What areas could do with a bit more care and attention? What takes priority and would it be more helpful to continue in this way or make some changes?

I’ve recently been on a break and reconnected with the joy of walking after a protracted period of not being able to. It was lovely. My body needed the movement, the momentum. My mind stopped mulling over various situations, and I was able to re-connect with simply being and take in the view.

Self-compassion and helpful choices

Coming back from my break I am mindful of not being able to achieve all the things on my list in one go so I am going gently, picking up what I’m able to do. Much of this comes back to healthy boundaries; the ability to recognise what we have capacity for and being able to say ‘no’ or ‘not yet’ when we need to.

This might be in the form of taking longer than usual to respond to a friend. Hopefully, if the relationship is strong enough and with clear communications, the friendship will still be there as you are able to re-engage.

It might mean taking on more or less work depending on your own situations. It might mean asking for help.

Helpful decision-making often stems from having a good enough dialogue with our inners selves so we can better attune to our multi-faceted needs. So maybe we can start with simply asking ourselves and each other ‘how are you?’ and really listen to the answers. Not have to distil it into a binary good/bad but simply hear the myriad of feelings. We can then hope to respond with compassion and see where that takes us.

If you’d like to speak with anyone in the team, do get in touch.

The cost of not being our authentic self

I’ve been thinking today about the things that enable/allow/prevent us from being our authentic self and what impact this has on our minds and bodies. There is a cost of not being our authentic self.

For those of us who work heavily with attachment, we know the importance of attunement and mirroring by the primary caregiver on the developing infant and their sense of self.

Mirroring

When our primary caregiver sends the message, “I see you, I hear you, I understand you and I love you just as you are”. Well, that’s the creation of the internal world right there! As adults it becomes ‘money in the bank of resilience’. When we feel insecure, we go back to those moments of ‘it’s OK to be me’. Alternatively, with little or no attunement and mirroring we don’t learn who we are. Or that it’s OK to be us. In turn, we wrestle with, ‘I am ­____________ but I am not allowed to be this.

Fear of rejection, abandonment, ridicule, reproach can not only prevent us from being authentically us, they can have dire consequences on our resilience, our mental health and also on our physical health.

Many people I work with who have had to hide themselves, emotionally speaking and/or an attribute of their identity, end up with a mind/body disconnect. It’s the brain’s way of ‘dealing’ with constant misattunement.

Mind/body connect

We don’t really know the full cost of not being our authentic self. It can take years of unlearning and re-learning to be able to lift the mind/body separation. To allow for and learn self-attunement. The impacts can be severe. Many suffer with chronic fatigue syndromes (part of this is the body getting us to listen) and other long-term health conditions with little or no hope of the situation improving.

I am passionate about helping clients to gradually allow themselves to connect different parts of themselves. Also, in supervision, it is vital that we can be our authentic self. There’s a vast difference between affirmative therapy/supervision and something much more benign like “I am happy to work with anyone; I treat people the same”. It essentially repeats that pattern of not being attuned to and mirrored.

We can’t be all things to all people but we can learn affirmative processes for areas such as working with LGBTQIA+, BAME, disabled, neurodiverse and differently classed clients and supervisees.

I’ve experienced a number of supervisors over the years and thankfully there are only a few unhelpful moments. However, working with a queer supervisor, the difference is massive in terms of me being able to show up as my authentic self, unapologetic about my identity. Knowing I’ll be understood on that level help to free me up to think more openly about my clinical work. This in turn helps each person I work with.

Internalised shame – the cost of not being our authentic self

When we’ve lived, for any length of time, in a world that tells us that we are different/bad/wrong/sinful this is what we internalise however hard we try not to. That’s why affirmative work is so important as we are starting from minus figures essentially. We have to put something back in rather than simply be blank and bland about it.

So where do we learn affirmative therapy/supervision? Sadly I am not convinced there is enough affirmative content within therapy training programmes. So the onus is on ourselves to be accountable for what we need to learn. It isn’t enough, for example, to simply use a client’s name and pronoun as requested – we need to understand why it’s important. It’s not a level playing field. We need to understand the battle fought to get to that point; the discrimination faced. That’s what moves it from “I work with anyone” to “I see you, I hear you and I love/respect you as you are”.

Trans adolescents and adults in a therapeutic setting

Many therapists are fearful of the idea of working with trans adolescents and adults in a therapeutic setting. I was recently invited to take part in a study designed to investigate how psychologists and psychotherapists who see trans adolescents in their practices assess their clients’ capacity to make decisions about their treatment and how to approach this subject in an ethical manner. Inevitably it got me thinking…

Is gender exploration any different to any other area in therapy?

No client, adolescent or otherwise, voices questioning their gender if they are not. No one can be made trans simply by talking about possibly being trans. I approach this area as simply as I do with any other. I trust the client knows themself better than anyone. Hopefully I attune to what they are expressing. We explore together how they feel, when they first felt this way, what their understanding of themself is. I affirm who they say they are in the same way I would affirm someone who tells me they have experienced a bereavement, an assault or anything else. I educate myself so I have the most current knowledge about different identities and all the different biological possibilities.

Many possibilities

My client will be one of the many possibilities in terms of biology, identity and expression. It’s our work to discover who they are at that time. Knowing that identity and expression can change during the life span along with everything else. Adolescents are rarely given the opportunity to have surgery or take cross-sex hormones before they are emotionally mature enough to make that decision. In the same way they are mature enough to make a decision to join the army, for example. Puberty blockers are designed to buy time and play a valuable role. See High Court Ruling blog.

Looking for certainty

Often, it’s parent’s and/or therapist’s attitudes that generate fear and friction. Often, they’re looking for a level of certainty that cannot be provided. Some clients will explore and decide they want to press forward with further treatments and others will decide not to. In many ways it’s really that simple. In terms of process, the long waiting lists provide copious time for reflection, pausing if needed or even halting the process altogether.

What clients need is to be heard and seen for who they are now and into the future.

Clear ethical guidance is essential in working with trans adolescents and adults in a therapeutic setting. However, there is no need for fear. Just an open mind to the range of possibilities.

Please get in touch for further information via the contact page or here.