Contact 

Welcome!

My name is Kerstin Carlbergh and my goal as lecturer is to bring people closer together, both within and beyond the workplace. I hope you wish to join me in this quest!

I am part of Athenas - a Swedish speaker agency
To Athenas 

Do you wish to create a better work environment together with your co-workers? An environment where people are confident that we can combine a care for each other with the demands at work? Then I look forward to visiting you!

My lectures are built on humor and warmth while at the same time guiding the listener on a difficult issue: how can we best take care of one another in the place where we spend the most time - but often do not deeply know each other.

I combine my experience as manager and business developer with personal knowledge of mental illness and shame in order to provide concrete tools for use in everyday life.

Are you part of a forum where the goal is to help members look at themselves and the people around them with greater understanding? Do you wish to laugh and open up for reflection on our strange, comical and sometimes harmful behaviour?

All lectures I offer can be adapted to focus on life outside the workplace. The starting point is still group behaviour and shame, but we put the light on life in general and try to make sense of our feelings and actions. 

Or are you part of a forum for people close to mental illness, employees within healthcare or those who themselves suffer from mental illness? Do you wish to support, understand or just meet each other in a difficult situation? Then I can help! 

Based on my own experience of mental illness and shame, I have created lectures which I hope will inspire and help others. I wish to increase the knowledge of a mental illness that few know about but many suffer from. At the same time, I want to work towards a decrease in feelings of shame in a broader perspective.


"Kerstin’s humble, clear and humorous way to approach a difficult subject became strengthening and encouraging for many who listened."

Mats Tängermark, Deputy Principal at Hyllie Park Independent Adult Education College – Malmö

"Kerstin raises questions and thoughts surrounding how we at work communicate about our well-being so that we can build stronger relations and get to know each other better."

Work Environment Representatives at University of Gothenburg, Sahlgrenska Academy
"Kerstin made an often sensitive and difficult subject light, inspiring and so tangible. I warmly recommend you to also invite her to your workplace!”

Louise Jeanson, HR-manager, Nim Distribution

"What a lovely evening we had! Kerstin talked about obsessive thoughts in a playful and warm manner. She was very professional in managing the children, and could respond to their thoughts and questions really well. We all want her to come back to us again!"

Linnea, Group leader at Trygga Barnen

"Incredibly good lecturers with fun anecdotes that puts the issue in a context for those who have not themselves experienced this situation."

Student in evaluation of lecture evening on mental illness arranged by Medical Educational Council at Lund University

"I think it is important to shed light on mental illness and promote a culture within the workplace where we are able to talk about it. I am sure that Kerstin contributed to exactly that!"

Arber Jashari, Group Manager, Recuritment and staffing, Swedish Police

What I offer

I offer a number of lectures described in more detail below. If you wish, I am happy to create new material based on your specific needs. Apart from business development and mental illness, I offer knowledge and experience in areas ranging from group dynamics, work environment, leadership and process development.

"Shame on me"

This is my inspirational lecture which I have built out of a wish to decrease the feelings of shame in our everyday life. The purpose of this lecture is to create awareness of how our way to speak (or not speak) with each other threathens to maintain an unhealthy work situation. With outset in the consequences of my own fear of talking about mental illness, I wish to help those who listen to challenge these feelings of shame that so often make life difficult for us. The lecture is meant to build courage within the audience and open up for self-reflection. Personal experiences meet research surrounding group dynamics and organizations in order to describe the logic of our fears and sometimes harmful behavior.

- Do you within your company or organization wish to help members look at themselves and the people around them with greater understanding?

- Do you wish to give your co-workers strength and means to talk about stress in a new manner? A manner that creates preconditions to help each other achieve balance.

- Or do you wish to open up for conversations in everyday life where you can challenge norms that stipulate how we are expected to be?

This lecture is 45 minutes long and afterwards there is time for questions and reflection. If you wish, this lecture can be combined with a workshop.

This lecture can also be adapted to forums outside work life.

"Shame on me - and now what?"

In this lecture we take off where "Shame on me" ended. With a better understanding of what shame really is, and tools to limit this feeling within ourelves and others, we move on from another perspective.

When we have acchieved a more open climate at the work place or in other parts of life and thereby an increased feeling of safety - how do we manage other peoples trust in us? How are we suppose to receive the stories we are told? How can we find balance in our wish to help? And what on earth is our brain up to when we mean so well but things go so wrong?

This lecture is 45 minutes long and afterwards there is time for questions and reflection.

"Forget your dream!"

This lecture is about the need to feel satisfaction in life and that things are meaningful. It is also about what is stopping us from achieving this feeling. Once again shame is on the agenda and how we by understanding it can reduce the effects it may have.

I combine behavioral science, personal stories and observations to help the listener gain clarity into what can be very vague - what do I really want?

This lecture is suitable in any context where the goal is increased well being among those who take part. Humor and seriousness are mixed to achieve both laughter and reflection.

The lecture is 45-60 minutes long and afterwards there is time for questions and reflection.

Lectures that focus on mental illness - "Take the good with the bad"

Based on my own experiences from living with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), I wish to increase the understanding of the reactions and behaviors people are faced with. At the same time, I also want to show how reactions and behaviours from people around them affects the person suffering from mental illness. 

The lecture adressing relatives or others close to someone with mental illness focuses on the often difficult part it is to manage. My goal is to give hope and most of all encourage not to forget oneself.

The lecture adressing students/employees within healthcare focuses on the importance of attitudes and manner of reception. It aims to increase the understanding - not just for the illness - but also for the great impact of feelings of shame.

I also offer material and conversations with those who are themselves suffering from mental illness. I will always adapt the content based on your specific needs.

Who am I?

I graduated from Lund University with a degree in organizational psychology in 2011. For the past ten years I have been working with business development and work environment within a governmental organization - both as manager and in other capacities. Every day I have the privilege to work towards an increased well-being in the workplace and inspire the reach of important preconditions for progress.

I am an experienced moderator and educator and I combine this knowledge with my personal experiences as a lecturer. Because of this, those who hire me are hiring someone who can offer a holistic perspective – from understanding of the psychology behind shame within individuals – all the way to knowledge of how difficult change can be. Regardless of whether it needs to take place within a single person or a whole organization.

Said about me

"Kerstin gave a lecture that was exposing, honest, and humorous. Her lecture was appreciated most of all due to her sharing concrete examples och speaking openly about what has been more or less helpful on her journey. We are very happy to have taken part of her story during our lecture evening regarding mental illness och it has contributed to a greater understanding among the students concerning how OCD can manifest itself and how important the approach from care providers really is." Maria Areskoug, Co-chairman, Medical Educational Council Lund University

“An absolutely amazing personal lecture that gave an understanding and clear picture of what it can be like to live with OCD. Kerstin shared her personal experiences leading to many laughs, and a deeply touching feeling of what her everyday life looked like before given help, hard to understand when you see her today.” Taina Ahola, Coordinator within Staffanstorp Municipality

“Kerstin Carlbergh held a very appreciated lecture at Hyllie Park in Malmö in October 2020. This lecture was given at distance via screen, but Kerstin managed to create a good connection with the audience despite this. Most of all I experienced that Kerstin’s humble, clear and humorous way to approach a difficult subject became strengthening and encouraging for many who listened. That is also the feedback we got from several of those who attended. It is in my experience unusual to meet someone with such an openness about av difficult personal experience that can make the connection to a universally relevant and constructive reflection. An unusual lecture that in a strongly touching way approached problems and challenges that are probably far more common than we think. More people should get to hear Kerstin Carlbergh!” Mats Tängermark, Deputy Principal at Hyllie Park Independent Adult Education College – Malmö

“Our aim with the lecture “Shame on me" was to open up for conversations surrounding mental illness, and to take a step towards decreasing the taboo or shame that makes the most common answer to the question “How are you” be – simply - “Fine”. A step towards daring to be more open with who we are even at work and to feel more comfortable with answering that things are actually not fine today or that you need help. As you can understand our expectations were already high but Kerstin exceeded them all and really made an often sensitive and difficult subject light, inspiring and so tangible. I warmly recommend you to also invite her to your workplace!” Louise Jeanson, HR-manager, Nim Distribution

“Kerstin’s lecture opens up for conversations about vulnerabilities and the fact that we all experience struggles and troubles, at work and at home, that affects the relations with co-workers and performance at work. She raises questions and thoughts surrounding how we at work communicate about our well-being so that we can build stronger relations and get to know each other better. We appreciated the lecture very much and felt it inspiring and thought-provoking. Thank you from us!” Work Environment Representatives at University of Gothenburg, Sahlgrenska Academy

“Kerstin shared generously her own experiences in a fun and thought-provoking manner! I think it is important to shed light on mental illness and promote a culture within the workplace where we are able to talk about it. I am sure that Kerstin contributed to exactly that! Afterwards I have together with my co-workers been thinking a lot about how we when recruiting can create conditions for openness and decreased shame with those we meet. My co-workers and I want to say thank you for an interesting and good lecture! More people need to hear what you have to say.” Arber Jashari, Group Manager, Recuritment and staffing, Swedish Police

What is obsessive-compulsive disorder?

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a mental illness that traps a person in a vicious circle of compulsive thoughts and behaviors. Compulsive thoughts are anxiety-provoking, involuntary impulses concerning among other things bacteria, the risk of harming others, symmetry and health. These compulsive thoughts lead the person suffering from OCD to repetitively perform actions or rituals in order to ensure themselves that the terrible things they have imagined cannot, and will not happen.

For people living with obsessive-compulsive disorder, these thoughts and behaviors take up so much space and time that life becomes very restricted. The illness dictates the terms of daily life since you want to avoid what frightens you at any cost.

Contact me

Do you wish to book a lecture or know more?

Write to me!

kontakt@carlbergh.se