Can you explain how it works in simple terms?

Sure. Think of your brain as like a big old bundle of wires. Within this bundle are lots of interconnected circuits. The way these circuits relate to each other changes throughout your lifetime as a result of your life experiences.

For example, when you are born you don't have a 'circuit' for how to ride a bike. You have to create the circuit through experience. In a similar way, symptoms and problems can develop, either as a direct or indirect result of your experiences.

In Sequential Psychotherapy we work in a systematic way with the  symptom-generating circuits by engaging in new experiences that enable them to 'rewire' and cease causing you problems. Next

The Brain Stem

The Brain Stem is the oldest part of your brain. It oversees numerous bodily processes. It is responsible for your instinctive physical reactions, such as the startle response, and your bodies innate fight, flight, or freeze survival response. Exposure to traumatic experiences can cause the brain stem to get stuck in a 'stress-loop'. According to Dr Robert Scaer MD, an expert in the field of traumatology, "Trauma is defined as any negative life event in a relative state of helplessness". Chronic stress can occur when the brain stem doesn't receive the necessary feedback it requires to turn off its instinctive stress response. Next

The Limbic System

The Limbic System evolved to facilitate social behaviour. It promotes bonding and attachment (i.e. relationships) through emotional processes and aims to protect you from social and emotional threats. Through emotional experiences the limbic system establishes unconscious rules - known as schemas - that enable you to instinctively navigate social situations in order to meet your emotional needs. Symptoms and problems develop at the level of the Limbic System when the instinctive actions elicited by these unconscious rules are no longer adaptive and thus begin to do more harm than good. Next

The Neocortex

The Neocortex is the newest part of your brain. It facilitates conscious thought and many intellectual processes such as reason and logic. It enables you to have an imagination, through which you can consider  potential future events and thereby prevent or protect yourself from potential future threats. Symptoms and problems can develop at the level of the neocortex as a result of stress-inducing ruminations and attributional errors, sometimes referred to as cognitive distortions. Issues can also arise through auto-suggestion; a powerful phenomenon in which the brain and body produce effects on the basis of beliefs. Next

The Fight, Flight, or Freeze Response

The fight, flight, or freeze response is characterised by massive biochemical changes in your brain and body. Your autonomic nervous system switches from parasympathetic (resting, relaxing, healing, digesting) mode, to sympathetic (fight, flight, alert, on guard) mode, and a flood of hormones and neurotransmitters such as cortisol and adrenaline prepare your body for intense action. This triggers a cascade of physiological changes such as increased heart and respiration rate, changes in muscle tone and blood pressure, and pupil dilation. This automatic instinctive response also causes a depression in your immune system, digestive system, excretory system, and reproductive system. Next

What the heck is a freeze response?

The 'freeze' response is an automatic response of the nervous system that is triggered when a stressor or threat cannot be successfully attacked or escaped from. In certain animal species the freeze state involves tonic immobility, a temporary condition that resembles rigor mortis. This counter-intuitive defense mechanism is adaptive because it not only facilitates a less painful death, but many predators require the thrill of the chase to arouse their instinct to kill.

For humans, who have more complex brains, the freeze state doesn't necessarily involve physical paralysis, though it might. More commonly the freeze response involves a number of physiological, emotional, or psychological effects such as muscle tension, fatigue, emotional numbness, a sense of detachment, obsessive thinking or mental blankness. Through the process of bottom-up / top-down control, your innate fight, flight, freeze response doesn't just affect you physically, it also affects your emotional state, thoughts patterns, perceptions, expectations, and memory systems. Next

Life Problems = Stress...

A whole host of life problems can trigger a stress response in you, such as:

• Major Life Changes
• Bereavement
• Relationship / Family Problems
• Financial Problems
• Work Pressures
• Upbringing / Parental Relations Issues (Attachment Issues)
• Damage to Reputation
• Low Self-Esteem / Low Self Worth
• Feelings of Guilt or Shame
• Sexual Problems
• Traumatic Experiences (Accidents, Abuse, Assaults, Natural Disasters, Etc.)
• Bullying or Conflict
• Loneliness or Lack of Purpose
• Injury & Illness
• Etc.

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...and Stress = Symptoms.

Check the checklist:

Scroll down and read through the list below. If you answer 'Yes' to one or more of the following questions it's a good sign that Sequential Psychotherapy will benefit you:

• Do you worry a lot?
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• Do you ever feel unlovable, like a failure, or inferior to others?
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• Do you ever feel that there's something inside you that's out of control?
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• Are you often irritable or quick to anger?
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• Do you procrastinate more than you would like to?
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• Do you often struggle to make a decision or take action?
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• Do you struggle with low self-esteem or low self-worth?
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• Do you feel unfulfilled or struggle to feel content or happy in life?
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• Do you grind your teeth during the day or at night in your sleep?
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• Are there certain situations, such as group activities, being alone, or being the centre of attention, that you feel compelled to avoid?
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• Do thoughts / worries / concerns keep you awake at night?
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• Do you bite your nails, sometimes to the degree that they become sore?

• Do you habitually over-react or under-react to certain specific situations without knowing why?
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• Do you experience physical symptoms, such as aches, pains, tingling, fatigue, muscle spasms, or irritable bowls, that medical practitioners can find no physical cause for?
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• Do you ever experience repetitive thoughts or intrusive thoughts that are distressing, such as the thought of randomly hurting a loved one or stranger?
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• Do you experience significant issues with your weight or body-image?
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• Do you have difficulties socializing or making friends?
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• Do you tend to isolate yourself from people, preferring to be alone?
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• Are you experiencing brain-fog, memory issues, difficulty focusing, or a sense of detachment from reality?
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• Do you ever feel like an impostor, like you're playing a role (and perhaps worry that one day you'll be found out)?
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• Do you find yourself repeating a certain behaviour even though you know you don't want to do it?
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• Do you find that your relationships always end in a similar pattern?
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• Do you often worry about how you're perceived by others?
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• Do you feel a strong sense of responsibility for making others happy or preventing them from being sad or angry?
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• Do you ever feel on edge for no apparent reason?
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• Is there a part of you that wishes you'd had a better relationship with your parents?
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• Were either of your parents emotionally unavailable or noticeably cold and unaffectionate towards you?
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• Were either of your parents ever strongly critical or dismissive of you?
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• Were either of your parents ever neglectful of you, perhaps forgetting to pick you up or forgetting your birthdays or other important occasions?
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• Are you prone to significant mood swings?
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• Do you have a certain behaviour or ritual that you have to perform in order to feel OK?
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• Do you have difficulty experiencing happiness or feeling content in life?
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• Do you feel like you are not living to your full potential but don't understand what's holding you back?
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• Are there certain things about your character or your appearance that you really don't like?
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• Do you feel empty or depressed when you're not getting attention?
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• Do you ever intentionally hurt yourself?
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• Do you ever feel trapped or suffocated by certain situations that don't seem to bother other people?
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• Are there things in your past that you feel you haven't overcome yet?
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• Do you find that you often feel down, depressed, miserable, hopeless, or helpless?
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• Have alcohol, drugs, gambling, spending, pornography, gaming, or exercising become a major crutch in your life to the point that it's become a problem?
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• Do you go to great lengths to avoid failure, rejection, or confrontation, such as avoiding certain activities all together?
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• Do you experience frequent muscle pain or tension, or regular headaches?
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• Do you often feel like things are out of control?
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• Do you have a strong need to be in control, organised, and on top of things all the time, to a point in which you feel exhausted and unable to relax?
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• Do people often say, "You're way too hard on yourself"?
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• Do you ever consider suicide?
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• Do you recognize a pattern of self-sabotage in your relationships or work life?
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• Do you allow opportunities to slip by because of a fear of failure, success, or responsibility?
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• Do you frequently put other people's wants and needs before your own, even when you really don't want to (sometimes referred to as people-pleasing)?
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• Do you tend to have a fairly low opinion of yourself ? Do you often see others as better than you?
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• Do you frequently put yourself down or beat yourself up?
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• Do you experience bouts of strong anxiety or panic attacks?
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• Are you experiencing sexual problems such as Erectile Dysfunction, Premature Ejaculation, or Vaginismus (pain during intercourse)?
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• Do you find that impulsiveness or compulsivity gets you into bother sometimes?
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• Do you often feel a strong need to 'prove yourself' or 'be the best'?
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• Have you ever experienced a major trauma such as an assault, sexual abuse, or road accident that still affects you?
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• Do you have a strong negative or overwhelming reaction to tests or exams, such as a driving test?
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• Do you ever feel like you're just unlucky in life?
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• Do you have difficulty relaxing or letting go?
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