Personal development health and counselling supports towards better!

The I Can Centre supports are open to the general public and

suitable for men and women of all ages, backgrounds and cultures.

The problem is not that life is short, but that we wait so long before we start living!

Dr Ann O’Hanlon, BA (Hons), MSc, PhD

Ann is the Director of The I Can

Centre, and a psychologist

and CBT Therapist by back-

ground. She completed two ad-

vanced degrees in psychology

from the University of Southamp-

ton, and 5 years of postdoctoral psychology and

research training at the Royal College of Sur-

geons in Ireland. At Queens University Belfast,

Ann also completed a Diploma in Person Centred

Counselling (with distinction), and a Postgraduate

Diploma in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT).

Clinically, Ann has worked in public and private

healthcare settings. She has also taught in higher

education for nearly twenty years, and presented

her research at 300+ conferences and scientific

meetings around the world. Ann has also pub-

lished many scientific journal papers and books,

including a second edition academic textbook in

psychology for use by undergraduates and post-

graduates (in press).

Ann is passionate about lifelong learning, and

does not believe people should have to wait until a

crisis before gaining insights and techniques to

manage mood. Instead, by gaining these early, we

hope that a lot of angst and distress can be avoid-

ed, and that people will soon add/regain quality to

their lives and relationships. Additionally, even

when each course finishes, ongoing support will

be available, incl meditation classes, regular “top-

up” seminars and courses, and peer support with

fellow MoodstersTM, DAKtivistsTM and others. We

are really looking forward to working with you.

Anything else I need to know? To protect the privacy of attendees, no

one wil l ever be asked in front of others

to answer a question, or to talk about

how they are feeling. Instead, sl ides wi l l

have all the information needed, with ex-

amples. However, attendees can ask

questions of the course leader—either

directly, or via a class mailbox. At al l

t imes i t is quite f ine simply to shake your

head, or say “no comment” i f you do not

wish to contribute to a discussion.

We also now run teen versions of our

adult community Stress Busters courses.

Queries / further information Contact details are below for further information.

Free seminars are also available in different loca-

tions to meet the course leader, and/or to hear

more about the wide range of personal develop-

ment and well-being supports we have on offer.

Contact:

www.TheICanCentre.com / StressBusters.org

Email: info@TheICanCentre.com

Tel UK/NI: (028) 3084 8508 / 078) 4761 1212

Tel RoI: (048) 3084 8508 / (087) 1025 120

Skype: ann-ohanlon

(Mobile calls are free of charge to those on Viber /

WhatsApp.)

Please also check out our sister sites:

www.TheKindnessCentre.org www.NICHAW.org

The I Can Centre™ is a cross-community psy-

chology and counselling centre that changes

lives! Through 1-1 CBT, or community courses

for the public, people gain insights and techniques:

- to prevent or manage low mood, depression and

all types of anxiety, and

- to be happy and well which includes becoming

the best and finest version of ourselves.

So, do get in touch, and let us show you (or your

staff) how to drop 'I can't ..' and be someone who

says: "I can manage anxiety / anger / low mood”

or 'I can stop worrying / shopping / procrastinat-

ing', or "I can be happy / confident / myself".

People need our supports because all of us feel

stressed, anxious or down at times, but techniques

to manage these feelings are not routinely taught,

and often people do not know what they can do to

improve or manage how they feel. Also, if these

moods stay, negative consequences can follow:

time and energy get wasted, relationships become

impaired, and many physical ailments or more sig-

nificant emotional problems can follow.

WHAT SUPPORTS ARE ON OFFER?

We offer a wide range of supports incl 1-1 CBT counsellling, meditation classes, and informal community courses for the general public. We offer these to a wide range of groups representing all ages, backgrounds and cultures, including:

- older people: see our “AgeSPIRE” project

- young people: see “KidsSPIRE” / “TeenSPIRE”

- men’s groups: see our “Real Strength” project

- corporate (see “Staff Matter”), and professional groups (e.g. GPs, Nurses, Teachers, Counsellors and Psychologists ).

The I Can CentreTM

1-1 CBT Counselling

Cognitive Behaviour Therapy can help with specific or

urgent issues around low mood, and/or all types of

anxiety, incl shyness (or social anxiety), phobias, and

worry or worrying. A short phone / skype call will de-

termine initial suitability, followed by a more detailed

but informal face-to-face chat. This support may even

be free-of-charge with one of our CBT trainees.

Mindfulness Meditation

Mindfulness refers to the non-judgmental attention

and acceptance of the present moment. We offer a

low-cost six-week course of mindfulness meditation

which builds and deepens practice week-on-week.

New six week courses start almost every month, and

drop-in / per-session guests are also welcome.

Community Courses and Workshops

We offer a range of fun, informal low-cost sequential

community courses / workshops that can be taken for

information, support, or personal development. These

courses include: 1) Stress Busters I: learn how our actions or be-haviours affect mood, and how changing these can help us feel better. For instance, the 4-week course “Stress Busters” course is especially for those feeling down, but this course is also very suitable for those who simply want to learn how to self-care.

2) Stress Busters II: In this course, learn how our thinking affects mood, and how to manage busy, stressed, angry or worry thoughts. For instance our level 2 6-week Stress Busters II course takes a differ-ent theme each week so that week-on-week people get to know their own thoughts in a range of contexts, while building a wide repertoire of coping strategies.

3) Stress Busters III: We now build on the previ-ous course to give people techniques to manage stress-related compulsions and cravings—which most of us have! These level III community courses can be

taken for preventative reasons and so that a small tendency does not become a problem. Com-pulsions can be diverse, but common examples in-clude compulsive facebooking, shopping, or check-ing. (Stress |Busters II is a prerequisite for Stress Busters III as one course builds on the other.)

4) At level 4, attendees learn to make mindful, com-passionate choices toward happiness and well-being. These cannot occur where people are down or anxious; therefore doing at least ‘Stress Busters II’ is recommended before doing our level 4 courses. Nevertheless, happiness is not the absence of stress or low mood. At this level, we help people take steps towards greater happiness, well-being and purpose.

5) Level 5: with the basics in place, our journey inwards continues as we talk informally, and without jargon, about continuing development towards the very best and finest versions of ourselves - evident through genuine and mindful awareness, confi-dence, creativity, compassion and wisdom. These can happen for you!

ANY FOLLOW UP SUPPORTS / MEETUPS?

Yes– we have a number of peer social groups, incl:

- MoodstersTM: While "youngsters" are people who

are young, MoodstersTM describes those with an

interest and some training in mood or stress, i.e.

those finishing Stress Busters’ can join MoodstersTM

to avail of discounted prices at many of our classes

and events. MoodstersTM also go out socially for fun,

enjoyment and peer support; the later includes a

monthly Stress Café meetups.

- DAKtivistsTM are those who

counter negativity with at least one

daily act of kindness for them-

selves, or others, beginning with

daily acts of self-care. We hope DAKtivism will

improve health, while offering further opportuni-

ties for learning, fun, and peer support.

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