About

My name is Stefan Charidge. I’m a therapist and writer who created the Penny Model to help people understand the quiet weight of everyday emotional compromises. Each “penny” represents a moment we disconnect from ourselves. My work invites awareness, compassion, and the freedom that comes from giving those pennies back.

Coming soon...

Below is a short excerpt from The Penny Model that explores how we develop emotional armour.

In medieval times, warriors wore armour to protect themselves in battle. It kept their bodies safe and shielded from attack. In much the same way, when we experience traumas — large or small — we begin to develop emotional armour. This armour is a coping strategy, forged and refined in our early years. It serves as a protector, and in many situations, it is both needed and useful. But we need to be able to take it off. The Penny Mode book can help with this.

This short video was filmed by the wonderful Happiful team and offers an introduction to some of the ideas explored in The Penny Model. Many of the metaphors shared in the book serve as “GoTos” — simple, relatable ways of making sense of our emotional world. These metaphors act as touchstones for understanding how we accumulate emotional weight, how we can release it, and how to return to balance.