Cross, Andy and Tilbe, Tessa (2025) Climbing out of the therapy room. University and College Counselling, 2025 (March). Full text not available from this repository.
(Contact the author)Abstract
Andy Cross and Tessa Tilbe write about the development of ‘climbing for wellbeing’, otherwise known as ‘bouldering therapy’, at the University of Cumbria.
What am I doing? I’m way out of my depth. No, this is fine, it’s well within your ability, you’re just scared. Take a breath, it’s just a couple of moves and then you’ll be fine.' Failing to reassure myself, I look behind me and judge whether I can climb back to my partner and set up an abseil to retreat off the 30 metres we had just climbed. I feel a familiar tightness in my chest and my legs start to tremor. At this moment, I pause and take a deep breath. Calming myself down, I purposefully lower my shoulders and stand up straight. I notice my heartbeat slowing down, feel the cold rock under my fingertips, and open my eyes. I reach for the next hold and begin climbing again. It’s climbs like this that have both humbled me and helped me grow in equal measure. Climbing provides a visceral response and can present you with abject fear and absolute joy, sometimes all within the same route. Although I’m no longer the obsessive climber I was in the late-1990s, climbing still never ceases to surprise me and I continue to learn so much about myself through the activity.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Journal / Publication Title: | University and College Counselling |
| Publisher: | British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) |
| ISSN: | 2398-3574 |
| Departments: | Professional Services > Student & Staff Services |
| Additional Information: | Full text made openly accessible with kind permission from the publisher. This article first appeared in the March 2025 issue of University & College Counselling published by the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy. https://www.bacp.co.uk/bacp-journals/university-and-college-counselling/ ©BACP 2025. Andy Cross is completing a PGDip in psychotherapy and person-centred counselling and is also a registered social worker and mental health case worker at the University of Cumbria. Tessa Tilbe is the Mental Health & Wellbeing Manager at the University of Cumbria and a BACP accredited person-centred counsellor. |
| Depositing User: | Anna Lupton |
| Date Deposited: | 13 Mar 2025 10:59 |
| Last Modified: | 14 Mar 2025 12:19 |
| URI: | https://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/8703 |
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