Tristan Abba Tristan Abba

Why Can’t I Sleep?

Q: Why do psychologists ask about sleep in the first session? A: Sleep is one of the most sensitive indicators of mental health. Disrupted sleep architecture often appears early in depression, anxiety, grief, and chronic stress, frequently before a person has consciously connected their sleep changes to what's happening in their life.

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Tristan Abba Tristan Abba

How Often Do I Need to Go To My Psychologist?

“What I'd encourage you to move away from is the idea that monthly sessions from the start are equivalent to weekly ones. For most presentations, in most people, they're not. That's not a judgment; it's just what the research shows.”

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Tristan Abba Tristan Abba

What do I do if AI takes my job?

“That question isn't really about AI. It's older than that. For some people it's been there since childhood, the sense that their worth is conditional, that they have to keep earning their place. AI and economic uncertainty have just given it a very concrete, contemporary shape.”

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Tristan Abba Tristan Abba

Meeting Teddy: A Different Approach to Imposter Syndrome

Q: What is the confidence-competence paradox? A: The confidence-competence paradox refers to the disconnect where highly competent professionals can feel little confidence (imposter syndrome), while less competent individuals may feel extremely confident. This gap emerges from deep-seated narratives about self-worth rather than actual ability.

Q: How does IFS help with imposter syndrome? A: Internal Family Systems (IFS) reframes imposter syndrome as a protective part trying to keep you safe from failure. Instead of fighting self-doubt, IFS teaches you to dialogue with it, understand its origins, and update its role—transforming warfare into collaboration.

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Tristan Abba Tristan Abba

When Depression Steals Your Future: Reclaiming Time Through Forward Planning

Depression doesn't just affect mood—it fundamentally alters our relationship with time. In a depressive episode, the future disappears or appears impossibly bleak, making the present moment feel eternal. This blog explores the neuroscience behind temporal distortion in depression and offers evidence-based strategies to counter it.

Drawing on clinical experience and research, I discuss how "scaffolding the future" through specific goal setting, advance commitments, new hobbies with accountability, and social connection can help rebuild prospective thinking. Behavioural activation gets us moving, but future planning extends that momentum forward in time, creating a framework for recovery even when we can't yet imagine it.

If you're struggling to see beyond today, this post offers compassionate, practical guidance for reclaiming your future.

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Tristan Abba Tristan Abba

The impact of chronic invalidation on the nervous system

The nervous system is a sensitive thing. It doesn’t develop in spite of our environment; it develops around it. We all come into the world with certain temperaments and vulnerabilities, but our nervous system is constantly learning from the people and spaces around us:

Is it safe to have feelings here?
Is it safe to need things?
Is it safe to get something wrong?

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