Embrace World Earth Day

Embrace World Earth Day 1

The first World Earth Day started on April 22nd, 1970. Since then Earth Day has evolved into the largest civic event on Earth, mobilising billions of people worldwide across over 192 countries to safeguard our planet. In the Hoffman Process participants learn to become loving and compassionate to themselves and others by understanding and not […]

The Benefits of Effective Communication

The Benefits of Effective Communication 3

We are communicating nearly all the time, to others, ourselves and maybe even while dreaming. Most of us are clear on what we want to say, just unsure how to say it in a way that achieves our goal (including not triggering others into defensive attack or withdraw reactions). So… What are the benefits of […]

What’s the secret code to loving relationships? 

What’s the secret code to loving relationships?  4

Why do people struggle in relationships? Firstly, most of us were given very little education about how to ‘do’ relationship. Compounding that, our primary relationship role models, (Mum and Dad), were often not the greatest examples of healthy relating. If you look at when you were learning to drive a car, we had numerous driving […]

Joy to the World

Joy to the World 5

Although some of us are happy to put Mariah Carry on mute until next Christmas, Joy to the World will be on our repeated playlist for 2024. More than ever, embracing the little moments of joy in our lives daily will be a powerful antidote to our stressors in the new year. Benefits of Joy: Recent […]

Embracing Authenticity at Work

Embracing Authenticity at Work 8

Explore the advantages of embracing authenticity at work and investigate what may be stopping you from being your true self.

What Are Daddy Issues?

What Are Daddy Issues? 9

Explore what daddy issues are and learn how to start healing father-daughter and father-son relationships.

Make Time to Play

Make Time to Play 10

“We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” – George Bernard Shaw Play may be associated with the carefree days of our youth, but does it have to be? According to play researcher Dr. Stuart Brown, humour, games, and fantasy are more than just fun. His research shows […]

Showing Up for Others

showing up for others

In this age of endless scrolling, swiping, and ghosting, showing up for others may seem like too much work. After all, when we make a commitment, there’s a chance we’ll miss out on something even better. But this obsession with FOMO (fear of missing out) traps us in a cycle of restlessness and indecision. And […]

Remothering Your Adult Self

remothering

Whether you have a bad relationship with your mother or no relationship with her at all, the arrival of Mother’s Day can be a difficult time you dread each year. But Mother’s Day also presents an opportunity to address long-standing mother wounds, opening the door to the concept of remothering yourself. While it’s impossible to […]

Asking Others for Help

asking others for help

If the thought of asking others for help scares you, you’re not alone. Recent research from Stanford found that people are afraid to ask for help because they don’t want to appear incompetent, weak, or inferior. This belief can be planted as young as seven years old. However, numerous studies show people actually WANT to […]

The Power of the Digital Detox

digital detox

The 3rd of March is the International Day of Unplugging, a 24-hour period in which participants are encouraged to disconnect from screens and other forms of virtual communication and reconnect with the world. This voluntary abstinence from social media, phone calls, texts, email, and other online noise is often referred to as a digital detox, […]

What is Transference?

transference in relationships

Bob Hoffman, founder of the Hoffman Process, wrote the following poem on transference: Wherever I go, Whoever I see, I see Mummy and Daddy And they see me. At first glance, it may sound trite and silly. But the deeper we investigate the subtleties of this poem, the more it gains depth. Our earliest interactions […]

Living with Intention

living with intention

Starting a new year offers a blank slate, leading many Australians — around 14 million — to make New Year’s resolutions every January. But when it comes to how many people keep their resolutions, the numbers are not so sunny. Research from the University of Scranton found that just 8% of people follow through. Why? […]

Creating New Holiday Traditions

new holiday traditions

Going home for the holidays can be difficult if you have unresolved tension with family members. Or, for those who are estranged from their families, the holidays can be a painful reminder of past trauma. What might seem like a standard tradition—decorating the Christmas tree or lighting the menorah, for instance—can be especially triggering. Creating […]

It’s Never Too Late to Change

never too late to change

There is no expiration date on the relief one feels when they confront childhood trauma and let go of harmful patterns. If you fear that you’ve missed your chance to pursue healing, it may be helpful to know that studies show therapy is as effective for older adults as it is for those in middle […]

Healing Estranged Relationships

healing estranged relationships

Research shows that about one in 25 Australian adults has been estranged from their family at some point in their lives. Experts have narrowed down the most common reasons for estrangement as a breakdown of trust, the absence of emotional intimacy, and having strong, disparate values. As common as estrangement is, there may come a time when […]

Creating Healthy Boundaries

creating healthy boundaries

Creating healthy boundaries with loved ones can be difficult, especially if you never learned how to create them as a child or they were rarely respected when you did. But however difficult, boundaries are essential for your well-being and your relationships. After all, when you set clear boundaries, you make the people around you aware […]

Why Vulnerability is an Asset

embrace vulnerability

As a child, how did your parents react when you cried or outwardly showed your frustration? Did they allow you to air your emotions or were you told to ‘suck it up?’ Many of us were taught that keeping a straight face was the superior thing to do, that vulnerability was a weakness. But this […]

Exploring the Mind-Body Connection

exploring the mind-body connection

Do you ever notice how your body responds to stress and worry? Maybe your heart pounds like there’s a drum in your chest. Or maybe your stomach feels like it’s tied up in knots. Have you ever calmed yourself down by breathing deeply or taking a walk? Though they are often thought of as two […]

Signs You Had a Narcissist Parent

narcissist parent

In Greek mythology, Narcissus was a hunter who was fixated with his own beauty. One day, he happened upon a pool of water, fell in love with his own reflection, and remained there until his death. All that became of him was the narcissus flower, or the daffodil. This classic story of Narcissus is the […]

Change Yourself to Change the World

change yourself to change the world

With war raging in distant lands and floods hitting close to home, it’s easy to feel hopeless in the face of disaster. But each of us has the potential to make a difference in the lives of others. You may not be a politician, but your everyday actions count, from how you treat your neighbor […]

Defence Mechanisms & Sexual Intimacy

sexual intimacy

A recent survey commissioned by Netflix and conducted by YouGov found that just over one in 10 Australians rate themselves as great lovers. While being a “great lover” will mean something different to every person, those carrying negative patterns from childhood may find that their sexual experiences are especially lacking. Sexuality is about being able […]

When Your Spouse is Like Your Parent

choosing spouses like our parents

If you’ve ever noticed your significant other doing something that reminds you of Mom or Dad, the phenomenon is more common than you think. A 2019 study by dating site eHarmony revealed that 64 percent of men go for women with the same personality traits as their mothers and research shows that women prefer male […]

How to Create a Vision

vision retreat

With so much beyond our control after two years of living through a pandemic, it may be difficult to imagine what the future may hold, or if it will be much different from previous months. But learning how to create a vision for the future is crucial at times like these. Different from goal setting, […]

A Case for Compassion

mental health retreat australia

Recent surveys by Relationships Australia indicate that the Christmas period is a time of increased stress for many families. While finances and work certainly contribute to this stress, family time can also be rife with old tensions that dampen the holiday spirit. One antidote to this tension is compassion. While it may be difficult to […]

Freedom vs Obligation

freedom vs obligation on vaccination

With ongoing debates on vaccines, masks, political preferences and beyond, the world may seem as divisive as ever these days. One scroll through your social media feed and you’re likely to come across a heated exchange between individuals who are sure they are on the “right” side and that their opponent is completely wrong. In […]

Accepting Criticism

accepting criticism

While no one wants to hear that they’ve made a mistake or they’ve let someone down at home or at work, accepting criticism is an important life skill that promotes growth. Criticism, when given constructively, allows individuals to learn new things, perform better at tasks, and see themselves or their work from a new perspective. […]

Healing the Father Wound

healing the father wound

When we have unresolved issues with our fathers, the annual arrival of Father’s Day can provoke a range of emotions in us—many of them unsettling. Whether you had an absent father, an emotionally distant one, or a strict and overbearing father, you may have found yourself affected by what is known as the father wound. […]

What Is Equanimity?

spiritual healing retreat

Equanimity describes a state of mental and emotional stability in which one’s composure is undisturbed be external influences. In Buddhist practice, it is one of the highest states of being. Not to be confused with aloofness or indifference, equanimity does not mean denying one’s emotions, but rather witnessing them without becoming attached. Dr. Rick Hanson, […]

What Is the Mother Wound?

healing the mother wound

Mother’s Day can be a time fraught with anxiety for those of us who have unresolved issues with our mothers. Whether your mother was highly critical, emotionally absent, or ambivalent with her affections, different mothering styles have the potential to produce what is known as “the mother wound,” often defined as the trauma passed down […]

Overcoming Resistance to Change

overcome resistance to change

Research shows that one of the biggest barriers Australian leaders face with their employees is resistance to change. But this resistance is not confined to the workplace. In fact, we are hardwired to resist change as the amygdala part of our brain interprets changes as threats, thus releasing the hormones for fear, fight or flight. […]