Hi, I’m Patrick Hollingsworth, I’m one of LEAF Health’s therapists. I Love psychology and getting involved in psychology research. I’m a big fan of wild places and sharing experiences with people in outdoor settings.
Before starting my journey to become a therapist I underwent jungle survival and expedition leadership training with Trekforce, a UK company running courses in Belize in 2011. After this I was an expedition leader for two multi month stints in the Amazon for LPAC conservation. During this time, I also traveled to rock climb in US national parks and New Zealand. Upon returning to the UK, I completed my mountain leader training in 2016 before beginning my studies to become a psychotherapist in 2017.
Before starting my journey to become a therapist I underwent jungle survival and expedition leadership training with Trekforce, a UK company running courses in Belize in 2011. After this I was an expedition leader for two multi month stints in the Amazon for LPAC conservation. During this time, I also traveled to rock climb in US national parks and New Zealand. Upon returning to the UK, I completed my mountain leader training in 2016 before beginning my studies to become a psychotherapist in 2017.
My jungle expedition training involved 3 main components: survival skills, group management and casualty evacuation. All 3 have come in useful both in the jungle and out. The group management aspect of my training emphasized to me the importance of clear communication and interpersonal skills to keep morale up. I had a knack for this side of the job and most of my clients for either guided jungle tours or wildlife filmmaking, often ended up talking to me about their personal lives. This side of the job lead me down the psychology pathway as I realized that even in an extreme environment, people still needed to process their lived experience.
The casualty evacuation side of the job has come in useful on a couple of occasions in the wilderness as even when all precautions are taken, accidents can happen. Keeping people calm in stressful situations where someone is hurt requires a high level of interpersonal skills to keep people from panicking and making the situation worse. Fortunately, I’d only needed to utilize these skills on a few occasions but successfully getting people back to civilization so they can receive the required medical interventions and make a full recovery was an experience that I found extremely rewarding and meaningful.
The survival side of my work in the wilderness was particularly meaningful to me in my personal and career development. Before training and working in that industry I thought it would be action packed and hectic. The reality of learning survival skills and spending time in remote areas was very different. I found that once an individual has become competent with these skills there is an abundance of 3 things. Monotonous tasks or a lack of tasks altogether such as weaving a shelter roof out of palms or chopping firewood, time alone and discomfort. These three things plus time in nature create an environment where the internal journeys can be even longer than the journey to the wilderness. Introspection becomes a constant part of your life. Keeping positive with this level of introspection in addition to being too hot, too cold, thirsty or covered in insect bites becomes the real survival skill. Looking for dinner and sharpening your machete becomes a foundation to your daily life. Not the main task that should be accomplished as peace with the self and contentment with nature become the name of the game.
I was forever changed by my first jungle expedition, and I have never been able to see myself or the world in the same way. I would like to thank the south American jungles for teaching me these things even if they are far too hot, incredibly muddy, riddled with biting insects and you forget what being dry feels like. Those moments when you see a clearing with a waterfall that is literally a stereotypical depiction of paradise. Without a doubt those moments plus personal growth makes it worth it.
