Sarah Monk
Sarah Monk completed the MAPP course at Buckinghamshire New University in 2019. She has a degree in psychology from Southampton University and an MSc in Clinical Psychology from the University of Surrey. Her career in Clinical Psychology was interrupted 20 years ago when she burnt out and developed ME/CFS. She has learned to live well with an ongoing illness, Positive Psychology has been an important part of that journey and the well-being of people who work in healthcare is a keen interest.
Sarah is a Chartered Psychologist, well-being coach and a meditation and mindfulness teacher with a special interest in self-compassion, people with chronic health conditions and applying PP to marginalised groups. She is a part-time associate lecturer on the Bucks New University MAPP program and PP in Coaching course. Sarah is also part-time senior membership officer at The Positive Psychology Guild. You can contact her at sarah@allweatherwellbeing.uk or visit her Facebook page @allweatherwellbeing.uk, or website www.allweatherwellbeing.uk
Sarah’s Blog
Positive Psychology and Mental Illness
Introduction Positive Psychology has traditionally been aimed at moving those without mental illness from a state of languishing towards flourishing. In this blog I argue that it also has an important role in helping those struggling with mental ill health on their…
Why We All Need a Dose of RUM!! – WOHASU talk
Dr Amit Sood is a former professor of medicine at The Mayo Clinic and founder of the Global Center for Resiliency and Wellbeing. His Stress Management and Resiliency Training (SMART) model helps people understand the ways in which our brain functioning can be…
Evolutionary Psycho-Neurophysiology and Positive Psychology
Evolutionary Psycho-Neurophysiology and Positive Psychology: How our evolved brain can impact wellbeing. I am not a neuropsychologist. However, as a clinical and coaching psychologist, I share a number of insights with clients on the way the evolved brain can impact…
Positive Psychology, Control and Wellbeing
Introduction In this blog I look at the role of control in our wellbeing and talk about my model of the things we can control with a practical example of how this might be used to support mental health. Is control good for us? Most of us like to feel in control. It…
What is Positive Psychology Coaching?
Introduction: In this blog I talk about one way in which Positive Psychology (PP) Coaching can be applied to help people live flourishing lives. I aim to explain what this might involve and when it might be helpful. An applied science PP has always been an applied…
Why Kindness Counts
A good piece of news from the 2023 World Happiness Report is that rates of kindness are increasing. This was judged by more people having helped a stranger, donated money or goods or taken part in volunteering compared to data from previous years. In this blog I take…
Positive Psychology – Moving Forward
Following on from my colleague Lisa Jones’ blog (January 2023), I want to consider further the recent paper by Carol Ryff (2022) “Positive Psychology: Looking back and looking forward.” From its inception, PP was intended to redress the historical focus on the…
Climate Anxiety and Positive Psychology
Introduction Most of us will have seen the coverage of the COP 27 summit on climate change in November 2022. Our news feeds are full of reports of extreme weather events and the impact they are having on the planet, nature and people. This crisis threatens the whole…
Flourishing – What Does it Mean to Flourish?
To promote flourishing is a key target of Positive Psychology (PP). In this blog I hope to look at what is meant by the term flourishing and how theory and research about the concept are developing. I highlight the debates and challenges and ask how you might look at…
Finding Well-being in Nature
Introduction Contact with nature has long been thought to have positive impacts on well-being. In recent years this effect has been researched systematically. I hope to give you a brief overview of what has been found, discuss the mechanisms that might underpin these…
Positive Psychology and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
Introduction In this blog I aim to give you a brief overview of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy/Training (ACT), outline why I believe it is very compatible with Positive Psychology (PP) and look at how the two approaches might complement each other. What is…
Mindfulness and Meditation Revisited
Introduction Mindfulness and meditation are two of the most prolific terms in Positive Psychology and often the most misunderstood. I have not written a blog specifically on this topic since my very first one in 2017, so I thought it was time to revisit the…
Values, Strengths and Goals: How do they work together?
In this blog I talk about what we mean by values, strengths and goals and how these can optimally work together to promote flourishing. Values Values are the things that really matter to us, our compass bearings for who we want to be in life and what we want to stand…
Fierce Self-Compassion
My favourite Positive Psychology book of the year (so far) is “Fierce Self-Compassion” by Dr Kristin Neff. Self-Compassion is one of my key areas of interest and in this blog, I hope to outline the new insights into this concept described in the book and how they…
Using Positive Psychology in Practice to Manage a Challenge
PP in Practice In this blog I’m aiming to describe how I used a range of PP strategies in real-time to help me cope with a minor drama and look at the ways in which they helped. I also look at how this is different from the way in which I might have responded in the…
Let’s Talk about Life’s Big Questions
In this blog, I look at how Positive Psychology (PP) can provide pathways to help us engage with questions about what is important in life, whatever your background. The benefits of talking in groups One of the things many people have noticed during the pandemic is…
The Strength of Perspective
The value of strengths A focus on strengths is an integral part of Positive Psychology. Research shows us that those who regularly use their strengths have greater wellbeing in terms of health, happiness, relationships and even performance. Strengths use is associated…
Have a Beautiful Day: Even in Lockdown
Celebration in isolation A number of my family members and friends have birthdays near the beginning of the year. The usually joyful question of; “What are you doing for your birthday this year?” has recently been met with; “Well we can’t really do anything can we?”…
Elevation: What is it and why do we need it?
When did you last feel elevated? Elevation is the emotion elicited when you see someone do something morally beautiful, such as helping someone in need. Try and think about the last time you experienced this. Perhaps it was seeing a video about a hard-working…
Meaning and Well-being
Having Meaning in life is good for you Positive Psychology (PP) research consistently shows that experiencing high levels of meaning in life is associated with all sorts of positive wellbeing indicators such as life satisfaction, hope, optimism and resilience to name…
The Role of Novelty and Adaptation in Well-being
A change is as good as a rest? The old adage suggests “a change is as good as a rest?”. In this blog, I take a look at how Positive Psychology (PP) views the idea that both novelty and adaptation are important factors in well-being and what that might mean for us as…
The Appreciation of Beauty and Excellence
A core strength The appreciation of beauty and excellence is described by the VIA Institute on Character (viacharacter.org) as one of the 24 universal core character strengths. In this blog I want to describe what that means and how developing this strength might help…
Global Pandemic
The world grew quiet, Streets were empty, The silence, eerie, not serene. People were afraid, Stalked by an invisible foe, Noise signalling threat. In isolation humanity retreated, An apocalyptic stillness. But the earth endured, The sun turned, While birdsong…
Compassion in the time of Coronavirus
Yes, it’s my favourite topic! Those who have followed my blogs will know that compassion and self-compassion (SC) are key interests of mine. Perhaps then it is not surprising that I come back to them when the world tilts sideways and we all find ourselves in lockdown…
Balancing Positive and Negative Emotions
Positive Psychology’s relationship to emotions One criticism of Positive Psychology (PP) has been that it focuses too much on positivity and neglects the reality of suffering as part of human experience. This results from a misperception of what PP is really about….
Strengths Development in Context
A cornerstone of Positive Psychology A focus on strengths rather than weaknesses is a fundamental aspect of Positive Psychology. Research supports the idea that regularly using our strengths is good for both well-being and performance because capitalising on our…
Politics and Positive Psychology : Thriving in difficult times
Many people in the UK woke on the morning of Friday the 13th of December 2019 feeling the date was an appropriate one. Our country voted to endorse the Conservative manifesto, which for those more left-wing in their thinking, felt like a betrayal of the values of…
The Positive Psychology of Pets
Personal Experiences of Pets My colleague Kelly Seaward wrote a beautiful account (May 2019 blog) of her positive experience of living with her cat, Bella. I too have had wonderful experiences of pet ownership as a child and more recently with my cat Florence (see…
Forgiveness as a Strength
Knowing your strengths Knowing and developing one’s signature strengths is a core feature of Positive Psychology. Regularly using our top strengths, rather than focusing on our weaknesses is an evidenced based means of promoting well-being. That’s not to say we should…
Can Positive Psychology Enhance Your Holiday
Time for a break As the schools break up in the U.K. for the summer vacation, many people are focussed on their upcoming annual holiday. The nature of “the holiday” varies from something that people spend significant money on and involves travelling to far flung…
Can Your Job Make you Happy?
Job, Career or Calling? Most people spend a large part of their life at work. How can this significant investment of our endeavor contribute to our happiness? Seligman (2002) suggested that individuals can see their work as a job, a career or a calling and that which…
Why failure is important to well-being
The success culture When we think of the word failure, we do not think of well-being but the opposite. We live in a world where we worship success and achievement. We are conditioned to strive to constantly be better, thinner, more beautiful, richer, more successful,…
Self Determination
New Year, New You? January is typically a time for resolutions, reflection and new goals. Like many people, self regulation is near the bottom of my list of strengths, so self improvement can be a challenge!. Often, we know what we want to change but we just can’t…
Why Is It Hard To Be Self Compassionate?
Defining Self Compassion I have previously blogged about my ongoing journey towards a more compassionate self. Here I talk about some of the reasons that some people find it hard to be kind to themselves. Self Compassion (SC) is defined by Neff (2011) as comprising…
The Possibilities and Perils of Change
Positive Psychology and Change The rationale of Positive Psychology (PP) in discerning the factors which promote wellbeing, flourishing and meaning in life, implies a call to change. Even positive and desired change can be problematic. The extent to which change is…
The Power of Silence
In the last six months I’ve had three experiences of silent retreats. This has given me the opportunity to reflect on the power of silence and the range of responses it elicits from people. Some people embrace silence. I am one of them. I live with my husband and our…
Caring For Carers
The Demand for Carers A number of societal issues mean that more people are living longer in different circumstances. An ageing population, the advent of the mobile phone (meaning emergency reporting is more rapid) and new and better health diagnostics and treatments,…
The Power Of Gratitude In Close Relationship
An Attitude Of Gratitude Research in Positive Psychology has consistently found that having a grateful disposition is associated with many well-being advantages including better health, lower risk of illness, improved performance in a variety of domains and enhanced…
Positive Psychology and Values
In a recent conversation with a fellow MAPP (MSc in Applied Positive Psychology) student we found ourselves covering the full range of typical positive psychology themes; hope, resilience, love, gratitude, forgiveness, authenticity, growth, compassion. My colleague…
Hope In The Age Of Obesity
Snyder’s Theory of Hope Snyder’s (2002) Hope Theory assumes human behaviour is fundamentally goal orientated. Hope is seen as arising from two components: Waypower, which is the perceived ability of the person to generate pathways towards achieving valued goals and…
Self-Compassion
Self Compassion or self indulgence? We are all familiar with the advice that, “you can’t look after others unless you first take care of yourself”. I have communicated this idea many times, in various forms, to others genuinely and helpfully, in the role of…
Mindful Versus Mindless
The rise and rise of mindfulness Mindfulness is, in it’s simplest form, conscious awareness. It has become big business. The assistant head teacher responsible for pastoral care at my children’s secondary school tells me he is overwhelmed with emails from…