I have contributed a chapter on Andrew Austin's Metaphors of Movement model to Tanja Sharpe's book Creative Counselling with Adults: 50+ Creative Therapeutic Interventions in Practice, pp.147-156
I have contributed a very short section on the use of Russian dolls in therapeutic work with sand, to Pauline Andrew's book A Creative Guide to Working with Nesting Dolls.
I have contributed a section on incorporating Sound within other creative interventions in counselling to Tanja Sharpe's book Creative Counselling: Creative Tools & Interventions to Nurture Therapeutic Relationships, pp.94-97.
My first poetry collection, The Appearing Act, is available on Amazon website as a paperback. The poems in the book form part of my healing and personal development journey. Some copies are available at my Sand & Sound Centre, or you can buy yours online by clicking on the button below.
'These poems articulate the heart of our journey through Life - they are compassionate and gentle yet so wise, clear and true. A treat for our senses and hearts.' (Rosalind Heiko PhD)
'A treasure trove of poetry in one beautiful book. The opening poem and title of the book hits the spot perfectly. I have taken great delight in reading every poem cover to cover.' {Jo)
'I'm thankfully not even half way through this wonderful book of poetry but already I can promise you this is a collection of poems by turn thought-provoking and unexpected, then reassuring, cheeky and playful. I'll eat my hat if you don't find yourself touched and/or smiling broadly with every page. Very accessible, I highly recommend you buy one for you and a couple as presents!' (Selina)
'My introduction to poetry - I'd given poetry a hard swerve all my life, it seemed too complicated too self indulgent and too hard to understand,.. so I gave up on it a long time ago - but this book really reset my way of understanding - I saw and felt it for the first time- and it felt good.' (Jacqueline)
'There is so much to the work of Masha Bennett, psychotherapist, writer, painter, poet - and leader in playfulness. To be able to encapsulate the many layers and flavours of her healing work takes something very special... Read this collection from cover to cover in appreciation of its artistry. Curl up with a page, or just a line or two,
'There is so much to the work of Masha Bennett, psychotherapist, writer, painter, poet - and leader in playfulness. To be able to encapsulate the many layers and flavours of her healing work takes something very special... Read this collection from cover to cover in appreciation of its artistry. Curl up with a page, or just a line or two, to absorb the wisdom, beauty and humour that can be distilled even from our most tender moments of suffering.' (Pam)
'Now I'm wanting to buy a copy for everyone I know. Read in my quiet moments as I was sure Masha's poetry was going to be very special and thought provoking. It did not disappoint. Thank you Masha for sharing your wonderful gift.' (Allison P.)
Piece by piece I was stolen
My Disappearing Act
Wasn’t an act of magic
Wasn’t a trick, or a plan, or at all intended
Each piece, unacknowledged, unseen
Was thus taken away, vanished, forgotten
First by those with unseeing eyes, unhearing ears
Then by me, myself, mimicking the only thing I knew
I have been searching for those pieces
In an attempt to complete the puzzle
This is my Appearing Act
This is my lifetime work, in progress
I see and hear and witness
Those stolen pieces of myself
One by one
I acknowledge their invisibility
I gaze into their blank expressions
I witness their mistrust, their caution
You jolly well should be cautious, be mistrusting
I will wait here, until you are ready to come alive
Until you accept my embrace, and let me
paint you in glorious colours
Until you are ready to join hands and dance
No longer disappearing in a haze, vanishing
into a magic cabinet
Appearing, stretching to the light, still unsure, still hurting
But risking the exposure to the elements,
the warmth, the cool breeze
Even if just for a brief moment
Dear stolen pieces
I give you permission to retreat back into the dark,
Into the nothingness
But only if absolutely necessary
The thieves no longer have the power over you
Their script is no longer your story
Let’s make a new story together -
A peculiar, unfamiliar sort of story
The one that doesn’t shame and doesn’t turn away
The one that is tasting life as if for the first time
The story of possibility of touching and being touched
The story of the Appearing Act and of what happens next
[This is the poem that gave the title to the book]
I am honoured to have the above poem included in one of the chapters by Dr Zandra Bamford in this book, IFS-Informed EMDR: Creative and Collaborative Approaches, edited by David Polidi (2025)
For my MSc Therapeutic Practice in Psychological Trauma with Chester University, completed in 2016, I conducted a qualitative study of the experiences of 8 counsellors and therapists working with trauma, in applications of EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) for self care.
Bennett, M. (2016). A thematic analysis of the use of Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) as a self-care tool by trauma therapists. MSc Dissertaiton (unpublished). University of Chester.
ABSTRACT
The aim of this study was to investigate the use of EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) as a self-care tool by trauma therapists. Professionals working with trauma are subject to deleterious effects such as compassion fatigue, vicarious traumatisation and burnout. EFT is an innovative therapeutic and self-help tool, combining the use of acupressure point stimulation with mental focus on, and verbalisation of, the distressing issue. Empirical research supports the efficacy of EFT for a range of conditions including post traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression. Thematic Analysis was used to analyse the data collected from semi-structured interviews with 8 experienced trauma therapists who are also EFT practitioners. The main findings of the study are: (a) EFT may act as an ‘inoculation’ agent, protecting the therapist from the effects of client’s traumatic material during sessions; (b) EFT is a useful stress management and emotional regulation tool for therapists in their personal and work life; (c) the use of EFT may contribute to enhancing levels of compassion satisfaction in therapists.
Presenting on the results of my research dissertation at the EFT Scientific Mini Symposium in Manche
In my "past life", before becoming a therapist, I was a botanist and the gardener, and wrote a number of articles, a horticultural monograph on family Boraginaceae, and some sections for a popular garden plant encyclopedia.
I spent several years obsessing, researching and writing about plants from the family Boraginaceae (including plants such as borage, forget-me-nots, brunnera, pulmonaria) which resulted in publication of my first book, Pulmonarias & the Borage Family in 2003, by B. T. Batsford.
I contributed the entries for perennials of Boraginaceae family to the 2006 edition of the Royal Horticultural Society Encyclopedia of Perennials, edited by Graham Rice and published by Dorling Kindersley (a new edition was published in 2011).