Dr. Ingela Thuné-Boyle
Health Psychologist
Online Therapy

For individuals who have spent their lives over-accommodating, appeasing, and diminishing themselves to maintain peace, establishing boundaries may seem unnatural or even unsafe. This behaviour, known as fawning, is often a trauma response that develops in environments where one's safety relies on pleasing others or avoiding conflict. Over time, this survival strategy becomes ingrained: agreeing when we want to refuse, enduring discomfort to prevent disappointing others,

For those who have endured narcissistic abuse (i.e. a pattern of aggressive, manipulative, and controlling behaviors used by someone with narcissistic traits to gain power over another person), the concept of setting boundaries can feel foreign, threatening, or even selfish. In relationships where one’s sense of self has been repeatedly minimized, invalidated, or manipulated, boundaries may have been consistently dismissed or punished.

Health psychology is a vital and evolving field that explores how psychological, behavioural, and social factors influence physical health and illness. While traditionally associated with chronic illness, pain management, and health behavior change, health psychology also plays a critical role in addressing trauma and grief. These profoundly human experiences, which are often undetectable by medical tests, significantly impact both mental health and physical well-being.

Experiencing a major bereavement is among the most painful and destabilizing events a person can face. When that loss is traumatic, unexpected, violent, or profoundly significant, it can leave deep psychological scars. For someone already living with a chronic illness, the impact of traumatic grief is compounded, creating a complex intersection of physical vulnerability and emotional devastation. Navigating this dual burden can feel like trying to heal two wounds at once

Grief is a natural reaction to loss, but it doesn’t follow the same path for everyone. When a death is sudden, violent, or deeply...

I read an interesting blog article recently. It was written by a woman who felt completely overwhelmed by her illness, especially the chronic pain she was experiencing. Her doctor suggested that she may benefit from a referral to a Pain Rehabilitation Program that included physio therapy, occupational therapy and psychological support, but after years of not having her illness properly validated, her symptoms minimized and often being told, "It's all in your head,"