Seeing and hearing people getting their #dclinpsy offers makes me feel so emotional! . For incoming trainees from marginalised backgrounds here are my thoughts:.

YES!.

What do you want to know?.

People in hospital for their MH deserve SO. MUCH. BETTER. NHS staff deserve better. Fund our services properly. Listen to us tell you what we’ve been screaming for decades. People deserve robust, safe and effective care. That is the bare 🤬 minimum, and we aren’t there yet.

Has Liz Kendall ever, just once, stepped foot onto a ward? Does anyone behind this appalling policy have even the slightest clue about what kind of suffering is endured or About how wards aren’t allowed to be truly therapeutic because of systemic pressures? 1/.

I for one would be happily uncooperative as far as this proposal is concerned. Also if anyone has access to this apparent ‘trial’ data I’d be SO curious to see what is actually says.

The four horsemen of the apocalypse:. 1) Ethics application .2) My luteal phase.3) Whatever new plague I’ve picked up from my CAMHS placement. 4) Setting up a new IT account on placement. #dclinpsy.

Hot take: Formulation-driven therapy, OT, housing support, benefit advisors, support to leave abusive relationships/systems are the forms of support that should be offered to those in distress. Work is not, and should not be a universal measure of ‘wellness’.

RT @Shrink_at_Large: We urgently need the right people visiting those in mental health hospitals: therapists, benefits advisors, housing su….

The measure nobody asked for 🤦🏻‍♀️.

RT @Shrink_at_Large: I would say patients labelled with BPD have MORE ‘grit’ than most folk. Do you have any idea how courageous you have t….

I feel a sense of grief that I’m not enjoying training, I’m merely trying to survive it at the moment. Placement was a safe haven in 1st year and clinical work rejuvenated and energised me but that safety net no longer exists as I head into unfamiliar territory in CAMHS and LD.

So impaired by endometriosis latelly. The fatigue??? Genuinely can’t describe how hard it is to just get through the day. Acutely aware that training is having a massive impact on my body and I’m frightened I won’t ever get back to ‘normal’. Just constantly drained. #dclin #endo.

RT @SarmientoVerano: What is Anti-oppressive therapy?. Exploring your experiences in context: There can be differences in how we are allowe….

Anyway, hope said ex-manager is having the day they deserve. I’m eating mochi in the sun and brainstorming workshop ideas for the incredible trainee-led inclusivity group I’m a part of on my Dclin course. A group of inspiring trainees on a mission to create change.

Also, random, but just remembered a time when following an OH assessment in a pre-training post, my (then) manager called me into her office, pulled up NHS jobs and proceeded to tell me it would be “easier for everyone if I were to find a more suitable position”.

Training is exhausting. I’m tired. I want to go on holiday. Now. - A haiku . #dclinpsy.

And finally, remind yourself regularly why you should be here. Hold onto it and hold onto yourself. Your mission is to look back in three years time and know that you honoured your story and didn’t let training take away what makes you an asset to the discipline. You got this ❤️.

Celebrate LOUDLY. Be unapologetic in your jubilation. Celebrate for every past version of yourself who got you here, against all odds! . Celebrate for aspiring psychologists from your communities who don’t think they ‘fit’ the trainee profile. You are enough and so are they.

You won’t be a trainee forever use the next three years to nurture yourself into the type of psychologist you want to be, into who your communities need you to be. Maybe your institution will support that, maybe not. Do it anyway.

Spend this time remembering who you are. Surrounded yourself with people who value you and celebrate you. On training you will be pulled and pushed to abandon your identity or mould it into something more palatable. Resist. You are powerful as you are.