Alicia Brunskill
Alicia writes about a variety of topics including mental illness, languages, education and cats. She also loves writing poetry and fiction. Alicia lives in Rutland, England with her partner, cat and dog.
Find her on Twitter: @aliciabrunskill
Nellie the Rescuer Cat
In another story, I wrote about how I came to adopt my cat, Nellie, and described some of the impact she had when our lives became mingled with each other. In that piece I touched very briefly on her ability to sense when I’m feeling down and comfort me.
Alicia BrunskillPublished 3 years ago in Petlife
When Muted Emotions Give Relief
It might sound a little bizarre at first, how can dampened emotions provide any kind of relief? Why would you welcome that "nothing zone" from depression where all you do is function? There’s no sparkle, no raison d’être; you retreat within your walls and go through the motions waiting for feeling and enjoyment to return. You wait to live instead of exist, so how could this also be a tonic?
Alicia BrunskillPublished 3 years ago in Psyche
The Best Teachers Have Real World Experience (Opinion)
I have the utmost respect for all those people who teach, have taught and will teach; whatever route they take to do so. It’s not an easy profession and definitely not a leave it at the door kind of job. During the time that I taught in secondary schools, I noticed differences between those teachers who had spent all their lives in education and those who had come into teaching later in life after having had another career. The points I mention below are not indicative of every teacher who never left education. Of course they aren’t. But they are the things that I observed that made me believe that the best teachers had been out in the real world and gained some experience before coming back to share their knowledge.
Alicia BrunskillPublished 3 years ago in Education
Phone Assessments Are the Worst for Anxiety Disorders
For some reason earlier today my mind was thrown back to excruciating telephone assessments with the NHS for help with my mental health. I can only assume that my depression had decided that I needed to ruminate on those unpleasant experiences and that my anxiety was in cahoots and had picked right then for me to think endlessly about the stupid answers I gave.
Alicia BrunskillPublished 3 years ago in Psyche
My Experience of Mental Health Support in Schools
I recently read an article about what needs to be done in schools to make sure children are better equipped to manage their mental health. The article prompted me to write about my own experiences of mental health support in schools. The link to the article I read is below.
Alicia BrunskillPublished 3 years ago in Psyche
How Does Yoga Help My Anxiety and Depression?
Yoga is not a cure-all for depression or anxiety. Don’t worry, I’m not about to say that twenty minutes of yoga a day will fix you. It certainly doesn’t fix me, but it makes a terrible day easier to bear, gives those flat days a boost and makes a good day that bit better.
Alicia BrunskillPublished 3 years ago in Longevity
Learn a Foreign Language at Home - Part Three
When you read this, you probably think I’m going to tell you that you need to spend a significant amount of time in a country that speaks the language that you’re learning. Whilst that would be the perfect way to immerse yourself in the language, there are other ways to get the job done.
Alicia BrunskillPublished 3 years ago in Education
Learn a Foreign Language at Home - Part Two
You’ve started your course to learn the basics but there are some gaps that you need help filling. Read on below for some advice about how to make your learning experience as successful as possible.
Alicia BrunskillPublished 3 years ago in Education
