If I were to ask you, ” What’s inside your junk drawer?” Could you answer?
I’m guessing it would be difficult, because who ever knows what’s inside there, right? After all, that’s why it's the junk drawer.
As a Counsellor and Sandplay Therapist, I use the ‘junk drawer’ metaphor often. Why? - because metaphor is an important part of my work, to help people understand and relate to themselves in a different and often creative way. Mental visuals can be very helpful - and for most people, this particular imagery and reference is relatable.
So,where am I going with this?
Hear me out!
Often new and perspective clients wonder whether counselling is for them. Surely you have to have experienced or be experiencing something really terrible to be in therapy right?
Wrong!
You just need to have a ‘junk drawer’ and here’s the thing - we all have one!
Just as our homes have 'junk space’, so do our bodies. Its called our MIND!
So therapy is helpful for EVERYONE!
Most of us tend to have that one space, be it in our houses or offices, where we regularly place, sling, even hide things, because we can’t be bothered to find a use or a home for them or we just haven’t the time to work out what to do with it yet.
We treat our minds in a similar vein, storing all of our thoughts, feelings and memories from life experiences, good and not so good.
Sound familiar?
As humans, we are excellent at putting things away and closing the drawer on them ( both physically and mentally/emotionally) I too have been the keeper of all things, whether they have served me well or not, which from an emotional perspective, was part of the reason I evolved into becoming a counsellor in the first place. I needed to sort through my own junk!
Whether we are hoarding our bits and bobs or keeping hold of all our thoughts and feelings, eventually the space, in this case our mind, becomes so overcrowded, that we have absolutely no clue what is even in there anymore and it feels too jammed to open, or the final thing we put in there means it no longer shuts.
I don’t know about you, but when my mind is full, it feels heavy!
Just as, with our physical ‘junk’, when we find it helpful to empty it all out from time to time - sort out what we want to keep, what we can actually throw away and often during the process, find some real hidden gems to treasure in there too - in counselling, you can do exactly that with your thoughts, feelings, learned beliefs and behaviours - and ironically, often when we do have a clear out of our physical stuff we say “ that was really therapeutic “
Whether clearing out your physical or your mental load - it is therapeutic!
I believe that counselling isn’t only a space for those who have experienced adverse life events or facing and dealing with extremely challenging situations. Counselling is for anyone and everyone, because we all have an overloaded mind from time to time. It is a space, created just for you. No phones ringing, no TV blaring, no kids screaming or tasks we feel we have to do. It’s a space where I can skilfully and compassionately support you to safely empty out the contents of ‘your drawer’, take a look at it all and support you to decide what you want to keep and what no longer serves you well.
and so I invite you to be curious…….. what's inside YOUR junk drawer?
Erin Molloy ( molloycounselling@protonmail.com)
