The Tidal Model emerged in the late 1990s from the work of Phil Barker and Poppy Buchanan-Barker in Newcastle.  The Tidal Model is a different philosophical approach to the art of helping people with mental health problems.  It presumes that our mental wellbeing depends on our individual life experience, including our sense of self, perceptions, thoughts and actions.  At the core of everyone is the unique story of this experience.  An essential part of this story concerns our interactions with other people.  Although we are all different, we are all human and dependent on one another.The following films show Phil's interview with Jack, followed by a group of service users discussing the ten Tidal Model commitments.

• Full transcription for Tidal Modal - Introduction (pdf; opens in new window)

• Tidal Model - Introduction
• Jack's story
• Commitment 1: Valuing the voice
• Commitment 2:  Respecting the language
• Commitment 3: Developing genuine curiosity
• Commitment 4: Becoming the apprentice
• Commitment 5: Revealing personal wisdom
• Commitment 6: Knowing that change is constant
• Commitment 7: Using the available toolkit
• Commitment 8: Crafting the next step beyond
• Commitment 9: Giving the gift of time
• Commitment 10: Being personally transparent
  
• Tidal Model Handbook (PDF file)

If you cannot see the video


We have used the Flash player to develop this resource. If you do not have Flash installed please click on the icon below to obtain the latest free Flash player.

(Note: Although the Flash Player is free and pre-installed on most web browsers, institutional users may need their IT section to install the player if the video does not work.)