My name is Paul. Fishing may not be for everyone, but for me it’s a form of therapy that has helped me get through some very difficult periods in my life.
Growing up in the Shetland Islands I was always near water. You literally can’t avoid the stuff, sea all around and an abundance of fresh water lochs on land. My father loves his trout fishing. So from a young age I would accompany dad on trips to the troots. These are fond memories for sure.
It wasn’t till I moved to Edinburgh for work in 2006 that I realized how much I missed fishing. I met my now wife in 2010 before I got myself back into fishing. She now describes herself as a fishing widow when the season starts.
I still remember the first outing just outside Edinburgh. Fly rod in hand and a load of flies ready to go. Got set up and hooked a fish about half an hour into the trip.
When I got it to the net I was like what the hell is this thing. I had just landed a rainbow trout and up till this point I had only caught wild brown trout, so was a bit surprised at this foreign specimen laying in the net. But the addiction had begun again.
With this blog I hope to raise awareness to the therapy fishing has had on me, as in February 2017 my life imploded when my wife and l lost our child. Fishing became more therapeutic for me on a personal level and has helped me process and move forward with grief.
It’s is truly amazing how much you think about stuff when standing on a bank or out in a boat fishing.
It’s like you leave everything at the car in ways of responsibility. Your main objective is fishing and that comes with peace and hopefully quietness.
You are left just with your thoughts and the sound of nature. I usually start by giving myself a mental breakdown of the last week or so to see what I can deal with on any given trip.
This way I can process my thoughts in a way I know I can handle it. I then just let myself work stuff out whilst enjoying the surroundings.
Fishing With Munro 