Shows
The Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallPenny Wincer: How to Care Without Burning OutSociety would grind to a halt without the work done by unpaid carers - yet they are too often left to feel invisible, unsupported and alone.
In this episode, Andrew talks to PENNY WINCER, the author of Tender: The Imperfect Art of Caring, about how to provide care for loved ones without burning out yourself.
Penny shares her deeply personal story of caring for her mother, who lived with mental illness, and later for her autistic son. She sheds light on the complexity of care—the beauty, the exhaustion, and the personal costs.
Andre...2025-05-0548 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallTom Vanderbilt: The Beginner's MindWhen did you last learn to do something totally and utterly new? Tom Vanderbilt, author of Beginners: the Joy and Transformative Power of Lifelong Learning, was awestruck by his young daughter’s insatiable need to know how to do almost everything. He was inspired by her to embark on a year of learning purely for its own sake.
Tom had a truly unique year - a circuitous journey of learning, in which he attempted to learn chess, singing, surfing, drawing and juggling. These skills were chosen on the basis of difficulty and lack of marketability.
Tom...2025-04-2843 min
The Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallWilliam Ayot: Healing Men's SoulsToday, the “four pale horsemen” of war, famine, pestilence and death have broken into our comfortable lives once again.
As the climate emergency and shortage become normalised, how do we live through crisis after crisis without falling into fear and anxiety on the one hand, or agitated reaction and rage on the other?
Do we face the horsemen, go into denial or settle for the dull throb of numbness? And how do we maintain contact with the heart, with soul, with love and compassion?
In this week's classic episode, Andrew speaks with award-winning poet...2025-04-1453 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallPhilip Carr Gomm: How to Live AuthenticallyAre you living a life you really believe in, or are you filling in time until your “real life” begins? Are you waiting on marriage, a better job, a new exercise regime or a beautiful house to create an authentic life?
Humans do need to have goals and plans, but it is also destructive to ignore those inner voices telling us what would bring us individual meaning.
In this classic episode, Andrew and PHILIP CARR-GOMM discuss how to start developing your authentic self right now, rather than endlessly kicking that important ball further down the road. ...2025-03-3150 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallSimon Roe: Are You Leading a Life of Quiet Desperation?“The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation. What is called resignation is confirmed desperation” (Henry Thoreau).
In this classic episode, Andrew interviews therapist SIMON ROE. Simon has based his life’s work on helping men live an authentic life. After himself going through a period of quiet desperation in his mid-thirties, he went on to help men break the silence, find “the song inside” and overcome their experiences of depression, violence and loneliness.
Simon has also worked extensively with boys and their fathers to create rites of passage that help boys claim a strong, auth...2025-03-1750 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallEvan Marc Katz: Why Can't I Find Lasting Love?Many women long to be in a happy relationship, in which they feel safe, heard and understood, but have given up after years of disappointment and heartbreak. This week dating coach EVAN MARC KATZ joins Andrew to discuss why it’s so hard for women to find a man who wants to commit and to build a genuine relationship. They cover:
How to get psychologically prepared to date successfully.
Knowing which compromises to make in the service of love.
The difference between compromise and “settling”.
The importance of accepting men as they are, rather than viewing them as fixable w...2025-03-1042 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallJames Hollis: How To Be ResilientFor Andrew, it is the writings of Dr James Hollis, one of the world’s most eminent Jungian analysts, that have “sustained me through my dark times”. Dr Hollis’ books also regularly help Andrew’s marital therapy clients create change in their relationships and recover from infidelity.
In this classic reissued episode, Andrew speaks to James Hollis about what it means to be resilient - how do we discover and develop the strength nature gives us to “walk through the forest” when we inevitably hit dark times?
Bookshops and the internet are full of “five steps to happiness...2025-03-0355 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallElizabeth Earnshaw: How to Stop Stress Undermining Your Love for Each OtherIs your relationship a refuge from stress in a turbulent and demanding world? Do you always have each other’s backs? OR has the stress you face at work or in the culture seeped into your home life and created a rift between you?
Marital therapist ELIZABETH EARNSHAW, the author of Til Stress Do Us Part, works with couples to identify and address the life stress that is undermining their partnership. In this episode, Andrew and Elizabeth discuss:
Setting effective boundaries
Self-soothing when life gets rough
Taking responsibility for what makes you happy
Communicating with compassion ra...2025-02-2451 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr. Avrum Weiss: Why Men Withdraw When Women Get AngryWhen women and men argue, women can often be more comfortable in expressing their feelings of hurt and anger.
Men can feel distressed by this strength of feeling, and may pull away emotionally. They may feel a very strong urge to occupy the ground of rationality and objectivity, which in turn leads their partner to push harder, desperately seeking emotional connection.
Dr Avrum Weiss is a US-based author and psychotherapist specialising in the internal lives of men. His writing and his work with couples help men and women understand each other more deeply and build a...2025-02-1753 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDené Logan: Finding the Balance Within of Your Masculine & Feminine ForcesDoes something feel off about your intimate relationships? According to author and couples therapist Dené Logan, the answer to your problem may lie in the interplay of your masculine and feminine energies.
Masculine and feminine polarities are present in every person and relationship. When we’re out of touch with the energetics within ourselves and those around us, it can create an internal struggle and sense of disharmony in our partnerships.
In this episode, Andrew and Dené discuss:
Understanding the polarities in your partnership
Integrating masculine and feminine energies
Moving away from a codependent, tran...2025-02-1049 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallJoseph Lee: What Your Dreams Are Trying to Tell YouWhat if the answers you’re looking for in your life were available to you every night, if only you could learn to pay attention to your dreams? This week Andrew welcomes to the podcast the eminent psychoanalyst and This Jungian Life co-host JOSEPH LEE, co-author of the new book Dream Wise: Unlocking the Meaning of Your Dreams.
Andrew and Joseph discuss how developing a practice of dreamwork can enable you to start a dialogue between your surface and your depths. For many, dream analysis quickly becomes an essential aid in achieving a deeper understanding of the self...2024-11-251h 28The Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallMatthew Fray: How Good People Mess Up Their MarriagesMatthew Fray is the author of the viral article “My Wife Divorced Me Because I Left the Dishes By the Sink”. His divorce left him emotionally crushed: struggling not to cry all the time, and finding it hard even to breathe.
In this reissued classic episode, Andrew and Matthew talk about the lessons of Matthew’s failed marriage, and about how Matthew is using his own experiences in his coaching work with men experiencing relationship difficulties.
According to Matthew, “the things that destroy our relationships work like cancer…by the time we detect the problem, it’s alread...2024-11-181h 00The Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallMark Dean: Creativity: The Gateway to HealingWhether you’re a talented artist or a complete butterfingers, art and creativity can be a gateway to healing. This week Jungian analyst and professional artist Mark Dean joins Andrew to discuss the connection between art and psychological growth.
Mark and Andrew discuss:
The power of exploring imagery, symbols and fairy tales.
How art can help us transcend the rational and make contact with our soul.
Why the creative field in which you’re least talented can sometimes prove the most psychologically fruitful.
Mark Dean is a Jungian Psychoanalyst living and working in Pennsylvania. Mark formerl...2024-11-1147 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallRobert Carabelli: Top Five Strategies for Keeping the Passion Alive in Your RelationshipIf you and your partner feel more like roommates than lovers, this week’s episode is for you. Author, physician and spiritual teacher Dr Robert Carabelli shares with Andrew his top five strategies for keeping passion alive in a long-term relationship.
According to Robert, sex is a gift from the divine, and you and your partner can reach “incredible heights”, no matter your age or level of work-related exhaustion. Andrew and Robert discuss how men can better understand what women want in the bedroom, assessing each other’s “energetic systems”, and why your sex life needs to change and g...2024-10-2846 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallAndrew Holecek: I'm Mindful, Now What?Many of us feel like we don’t quite “get” mindfulness. Even more have struggled to create a successful meditation practice. Andrew Holecek, author of I’m Mindful, Now What?, joins us this week to broaden and deepen our understanding of mindfulness, and show us how to integrate it into our daily lives.
Our host Andrew talks with our guest Andrew about:
Why everyone can meditate, and how to start right now.
The importance of connecting with your physical body.
The benefits and limitations of mindfulness
Coping with emotions like anger, jealousy and fear using meditation and mindfu...2024-09-3059 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallLisa Marchiano: Being a Mother: A Journey of Self-DiscoveryIt isn’t hard as a parent to find advice on breastfeeding, your child’s education or managing their behaviour. What’s rarer is insight into how the parenting journey changes us as a person. Yet, becoming a mother is a unique opportunity to realise the self more fully.
In this reissue of a classic episode, Andrew and Lisa take a deep dive into motherhood: how it connects us to previous and next generations, how easy it is to be “devoured” by the experience of mothering, and what it means to feel rage as a mother.
Lisa Marc...2024-09-0949 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallTim Dowling: Can Cynicism Improve Your Life?Guardian columnist Tim Dowling has spent decades chronicling his marriage and family life for the Weekend magazine. His self-deprecating humour and determinedly cynical approach have made him hugely popular with readers.
In this classic episode, Tim and Andrew discuss the layers that go into a joke. What exactly is it that we’re doing when we laugh at ourselves and our own life? Humour can be about storytelling, making sense of the past, finding honesty and creating meaning. It can be a defence mechanism, and a form of self-protection for the intensely shy.
Tim’s reader...2024-08-2645 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallPaul Attinello: What is Your Relationship with Death and Mortality?Some of us try our best never to think about death, while some of us “live in death’s basement”. Composer, academic and psychoanalyst Paul Attinello lived through the suffering and loss of the AIDS epidemic of the 1980s. After testing positive for HIV/AIDS, he built a creative and achievement-filled life, over which death nevertheless always loomed.
Then, the advent of lifesaving medications changed everything. Paul had to define a whole new relationship with mortality, as well as experiencing a profound sense of loss for what life might have been like without the spectre of HIV/AIDS. 2024-08-1258 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallJed Diamond: Your Personal Creation StoryToo many men struggle to be happy in their intimate relationships, and fail to find a healthy version of masculinity that works for them. Disconnected males, without a strong sense of inner guidance, can behave destructively and even abusively towards those around them.
In this classic episode of The Meaningful Life, Andrew talks to Jed Diamond PhD, founder of MenAlive, about his own journey. Jed explains how he came to heal his “family father wound” and how he has helped thousands of men to do the same.
A big part of this is investigating our “personal...2024-07-2951 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallCaroline Madden: Infidelity: How to Rebuild TrustWe all think of infidelity as something that happens to someone else. When betrayal enters our own safe universe, it comes as a terrible shock. Many couples confronting infidelity end up re-examining just about everything in their lives: not just their marriage, but their work, their relationships with family and friends, and how they find meaning and fulfilment. Sometimes it can even be these couples who end up with the strongest partnerships of all.
Caroline Madden, PhD is a Los Angeles based pro-marriage therapist who specializes in helping marriages recover after infidelity. Caroline is the author of...2024-07-1551 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallTracey Cox: Great Sex After Fifty (Classic Episode)The Meaningful Life Classic Episode: TRACEY COX on Great Sex After 50
No-one would deny sex is important to a meaningful life, but what that looks like changes as we age. In this first episode of The Meaningful Life, international sex therapist and Daily Mail columnist Tracey Cox discusses her book Great Sex Starts at 50: How to Age-Proof Your Libido.
While wild, lustful sex can certainly be a unique and special life experience, the sex that brings us meaning is different. It’s the sex that lasts past the orgasm, to include that afterglow as you lie...2024-06-1742 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallPhilippa Perry: What You Wish your Parents Knew and What Your Children Hope You Learn (Classic Episode)Parents like to feel they are independent individuals making their own decisions, but in reality parenting is hugely influenced by our own experiences of childhood.
In this classic early episode, Andrew and therapist and author Philippa Perry talk about how we are “links in a chain", and why it is important for parents to recognise that and ensure their own links are shaped to the needs of their children.
Philippa Perry is a psychotherapist and author of several books, including The Book You Wish Your Parents Had Read (and Your Children Will be Glad That You...2024-05-2054 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallRobin Stern: The Three Types of Gaslighting: How to Spot and Defuse ThemGaslighting is an insidious form of emotional abuse in which a gaslighter undermines and controls another person by deflecting, twisting, and denying their reality. Gaslighting leaves victims second-guessing themselves, unable to make decisions and destabilised by constant shifts in reality.
In this week’s episode, Andrew talks to author and psychoanalyst Dr Robin Stern about gaslighting, and how to pull yourself out of this form of emotional abuse. Andrew and Robin discuss what makes you vulnerable to gaslighting, how to build your capacity to trust yourself, and how to identify the gaslight effect in different relationships. Robin als...2024-04-2949 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallLisa Marchiano: Finding Your Fire: What's Holding You Back?For many women, intense caring and nurturing relationships cause their inner fire to dim, leaving them feeling they have lost themselves.
Author and Jungian analyst Lisa Marchiano’s new book is called The Vital Spark: Reclaim Your Outlaw Energies and Find Your Feminine Fire. Lisa wrote the book to help women “break free from the conditioning that has kept them confined to rigid roles and muffled the sound of their soul”.
Andrew and Lisa discuss the eight qualities Lisa identifies in the book: shrewdness, disagreeableness, desire, trickiness, sexuality, anger, authority, and ruthlessness. They also cover the wa...2024-02-1249 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallBeth Wallace: How the Menopause Impacts Your Sex LifeMenopause is a seismic transition for women, and for their partners. The physical and emotional changes it brings will undoubtedly reverberate into a couple’s sex life.
Irish therapist Beth Wallace believes that this transition can be an opportunity rather than an ending. While decreases in hormones definitely impact women’s bodies in some detrimental ways (which will need management), decreased satisfaction with our sensual and sexual lives is NOT inevitable.
Andrew and Beth discuss the ways in which the natural changes of menopause can be a time to reflect on desire, expectations and sexual creat...2024-02-0555 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallJeremy Fox: How to Recover From TraumaIf you’ve suffered serious trauma, you may well be feeling confused by the sudden ubiquity of the term. The concept of trauma is having its cultural moment in the sun, and seems to be constantly under discussion on social media.
This week, Andrew speaks to Jeremy Fox, a therapist and trauma specialist, about:
How to define trauma
Different types of trauma
Whether it’s helpful to label your trauma.
Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) as a trauma treatment.
Jeremy Fox is a licensed mental health therapist, certified professional counseling supervisor, and an EMDR traum...2024-01-2954 min
Christian Fantasy And Sci-fi PodcastSpecial Guest - Jonathon Marshall - Models and Building ModelsJosiah is excited to welcome and talk with the owner of Marshall Custom Models and fellow nerd: Jonathon Marshall. In this first of two episodes, Jonathon tells us what is involved in making high-quality, large-scale models.
Podcast Credits:
Music - Take Time by Andrew C. Marshall (used with permission)
Podcast Intro - Andrew C. Marshall
Picture - Hobbit Hole (Public Domain)2024-01-1131 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallPhilip Carr-Gomm: How to Improve Your SleepMore than one third of adults suffer from insomnia or some other kind of sleep disorder. Left unaddressed, lack of sleep can lead to debilitated health, lowered resilience, and decreased performance in all aspects of life.
Psychologist, author and spiritual teacher Philip Carr-Gomm’s latest book is The Gift of the Night. The book combines an extensive knowledge of sleep science and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) with techniques drawn from spiritual traditions and insights from the emerging field of psychedelic therapy.
In this episode, Andrew and Philip discuss the sleep difficulties that can come with gr...2024-01-0851 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallWhat We Learned in 2023Better sex, coping with strong emotions, healing your inner child and harnessing the power of compassion: these were some of the big themes that spoke to The Meaningful Life listeners in 2023.
Jon from the Marshall Method team of therapists is Andrew’s special guest for this New Year’s Day episode. Andrew and Jon each choose their favourite episodes, and share highlights from them.
These are the episodes chosen by Andrew and Jon as their 2023 favourites:
What is the Feeling Trying to Tell Me? with Karla McLaren.
Healing Your Lost Child with...2024-01-0158 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr Cheryl Fraser: A More Loving ChristmasChristmas isn’t usually thought of as a romantic holiday, but this week Dr Cheryl Fraser explores some of the ways you and your partner can share intimacy, sensuality and thrill over the winter break (however you choose to celebrate).
Andrew and Cheryl discuss:
Making the most of beautiful moments.
Finding the strength to say no.
Planning ahead so things go how you’d like them to
Avoiding the people-pleasing trap.
Giving your partner a “sexy stocking”.
Dr Cheryl Fraser is the author of Buddha’s Bedroom, the host of the Sex, Love and Elephants podcast, an...2023-12-2549 minChristian Fantasy And Sci-fi PodcastSpecial Guest: Andrew C. Marshall - The Magic of Creativity and Kobayashi Maru - Part 2Josiah is excited to continue his talk with the musician who provided the music for the podcast, fellow nerd and brother: Andrew C. Marshall. In this second part of a two-part conversation, they talk about Andrew's the magic of creativity and Andrew's song Kobayashi Maru based on the famous test in the Science Fiction Series Star Trek. He also refers to and we talk about the work of another brother of ours who makes professional models (See notes for link). Enjoy!
Podcast Credits:
Music - Take Time by Andrew C. Marshall (used with permission)
Podcast Intro - Andrew C. Marshall
...2023-12-1436 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr Susan Schwartz: Imposter SyndromeThe idea of “imposter syndrome” has found its cultural moment - we hear it talked about constantly, and many of us resonate with the idea of feeling like a fraud in our work or relationships.
In this episode, Susan Schwartz PhD returns to the podcast to help explore the concept of imposter syndrome in more depth. Susan and Andrew discuss
The ways imposter syndrome is rooted in childhood.
Painful experiences of imposter syndrome in our romantic relationships
The difference between presenting different aspects of who we are VS suffering from imposter syndrome.
The related concept of the “a...2023-12-1156 minChristian Fantasy And Sci-fi PodcastSpecial Guest: Andrew C. Marshall - Music and Inspiration for Creativity - Part 1Josiah is excited to welcome and talk to the musician who provided the music for the podcast and fellow nerd: Andrew C. Marshall. In the first of a two-part conversation, they talk about Andrew's Music and the inspiration for creativity. Enjoy!
Podcast Credits:
Music - Take Time by Andrew C. Marshall (used with permission)
Podcast Intro - Andrew C. Marshall
Picture - Hobbit Hole (Public Domain)2023-12-0729 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallFabian Edzard Schneider: Mismatched Levels of Sexual DesireMost couples grapple with mismatched levels of sexual desire at some point. Some find destructive solutions - pornography, infidelity - but it IS possible to deal with this in a positive way.
This week Fabian Edzard Schneider chats with Andrew about the daily self-pleasure routine he is using to fulfil his sexual needs while his wife recuperates from the birth of their second child.
Andrew and Fabian discuss the ways in which men can take responsibility for their own physical and emotional needs, and in doing so create a better life as a strong, loving m...2023-10-2350 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr Susan Heitler: Forget ”Fair Fighting” and Learn How to Do Win-Win Problem-SolvingForget fair fighting, what you and your partner should aim for is win-win problem solving. According to psychologist Dr Susan Heitler, If you can learn to investigate and share the deep-seated emotions behind a particular argument, the two of you can emerge stronger and more connected as a couple.
In this week’s episode, Andrew and Susan explore how childhood patterns can be replicated in adult relationships, and discuss a case-study in which a couple is able to overcome a disagreement over food waste that had brought them to the brink of divorce.
Dr Susan Hei...2023-10-1651 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallConnie Zweig: Understanding Your ShadowOur “shadow” is made up of the unconscious parts of ourselves that we try to suppress or deny. Acknowledging and understanding shadow can be a powerful path to healing and authenticity.
If we pursue spiritual growth, we will certainly encounter shadow - both our own, and those of our teachers (whose secret desires around money, sex and power can come into play).
In this episode, psychotherapist and author Connie Zweig PhD talks with Andrew about her new book, Meeting the Shadow on the Spiritual Path. Connie shares some of the ways we can heal from bruisi...2023-10-0254 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallElaine Carney Gibson: Family Systems Theory: How do the Rules Growing Up Still Impact You Today?When families enter family therapy, they usually point to one person as the “problem” - this individual is seen as too much, or too angry, or too sensitive.
Family systems theory, however, looks at the whole family ecosystem to identify how this “problem” is being created, and whether it is in fact a symptom rather than a cause.
This week Andrew talks with psychotherapist Elaine Carney Gibson about family systems theory, and how “it is the relationships we experience within our families that shape who we are, how we feel about ourselves, and how we attach and r...2023-09-1845 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr Avrum Weiss: Anxiety: Are you and your partner playing hot potato?Anxiety can be as contagious as a yawn. People who are feeling more anxious often try to get others to take some of their anxiety from them, and people who are not feeling as anxious naturally resist taking on someone else’s anxiety.
In relationships, it’s often the case that one person takes on the role of the anxious person, whilst the other feels responsible for managing their partner’s anxiety. Combine this with damagingly rigid gender roles, and you have a recipe for disconnection.
This week Andrew welcomes Dr Avrum Weiss onto the podcas...2023-09-1149 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallJames Hollis: Dispelling the Ghosts Running your LifeAre you allowing your life to be run by “ghosts” - empty narratives, expired beliefs, tired fears, people who should no longer hold sway over your choices?
“When the old stories and beliefs that once defined us have played out and grown exhausted,” writes Dr. James Hollis, “our task is to access our inner compass, the promptings of the psyche that help us find our way through the complex thickets of choice.”
In this episode world-renowned Jungian analyst Dr James Hollis explores with Andrew the ways in which you can hear and answer a “summons of the soul”...2023-09-0449 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr Sharon Martin: How to Heal Stubborn & Unexplainable Health ProblemsWestern medicine cannot cure all of our ills. Many of us experience stubborn aches, pains and fatigue that our doctors don’t seem able to touch, or even explain.
Dr Sharon Martin is a highly-trained physician who became frustrated by these limits, and began to explore the capacity of alternative medicine to bring healing and peace.
In this episode Andrew and Sharon discuss our capacity for intuition, the hidden messages in our dreams, and the ways in which shamanic mystery traditions can allow us to step into our full potential.
Dr Sharon Martin is a...2023-07-1747 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr Sam Carr: The Silent Epidemic: LonelinessWe’re often told we’re in the midst of a post-Covid “loneliness epidemic”, but what exactly does that mean? Loneliness is a profound condition that goes right to the heart of being human - it’s certainly more than just being alone, and often it isn’t something that can be addressed by just “getting out more” or volunteering at the local hospital.
This week’s guest Dr Sam Carr became interested in attachment theory, and was then drawn to seek a deeper understanding of people who lacked attachment. He embarked on a study of loneliness that will be shared...2023-07-1050 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallConroy Harris: Rites of Passage and Mentoring: How to Become an AdultIt can often seem that today's world rewards people who remain psychologically suspended in adolescence. Many people, particularly men, prolong and enjoy their adolescence for decades.
Conroy Harris, CEO of the charity A Band of Brothers, discovered through his own life experiences that this wasn’t a healthy way to live. He believes that everyone seeks a meaningful identity and a purpose into which to channel the energies of early adulthood.
In this episode Andrew and Conroy discuss the importance of rites of passage and mentoring, and how men can support one another to live auth...2023-07-0345 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallMara Glatzel: It’s OK to be Needy: How to Recognise & Advocate for YoursYou have needs—your needs matter. And yet, you’ve been taught that pushing your needs to the back burner is the only way to get things done, that your needs are an overwhelming burden, or that self-care is a luxury you can’t afford.
Author, coach and podcaster Mara Glatzel encourages us to “take a seat at the table in our own life”. In this episode Andrew and Mara discuss how to articulate your needs, and how to pursue a more genuine and meaningful form of self-care.
Mara Glatzel is the author of Needy: How to Advo...2023-06-2653 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallAyala Gill: What Can I Learn from this Moment?In this episode spiritual teacher Ayala Gill shares three fundamental questions with which to approach difficult situations life throws our way:
⭐️What can I learn from this moment?
⭐️What’s asking to be loved?
⭐️What can I give in return?
Andrew and Ayala also discuss the nature of suffering, the difference between suffering and pain, animistic cosmology (the inherent luminous intelligence intrinsic to all things), and what it means to “live in sacredness”.
Ayala Gill is a teacher of meditation, yoga and other spiritual practices. She has taught for 25 years, and guides...2023-06-1952 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallScott Simon: Small Acts of Courage to Change Your LifeWhen fear presents itself, we are deterred from the essential work of holding tough conversations, defending new ideas against the status quo, and standing up against injustice.
Author Scott Simon founded the Scare Your Soul courage movement to help people harness their fears and lead more courageous lives. Since he became a “fear chaser”, Simon has had some big-ticket adventures: taking on his fear of heights by skydiving from 14,000 feet, negotiating multi-million dollar deals with tough and cynical real estate developers, and seeking out a famous healer in the misty mountains of Bali.
But the surpr...2023-06-1246 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallTonya Lester: How to Have Healthy ConflictPsychotherapist Tonya Lester believes it’s OK to be difficult. This doesn’t mean being rigid, domineering or unkind. It means making sure that your partner has a sense of who you are and what you need. Of course, you won’t get there without learning how to disagree productively.
In this episode Andrew and Tonya discuss how to develop mutually supportive relationships, including 8 ingredients for healthy conflict.
They also discuss Tonya’s recent New York Times article, “Couples Therapist, Heal Thyself”, about what it’s like to go into marriage counselling as a therapist.
Tonya Les...2023-06-0545 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallRichard Nicholls: How to be HappierIs it possible to decide to be happier, and then to go out there and make it happen? Hypnotherapist, author and podcaster Richard Nicholls believes that happiness is, at least in part, a skill to be learned. The more you practise, the easier it becomes.
Of course, each individual’s notion of happiness and their genetic capacity to achieve it easily will be very different. That doesn’t mean, though, that we shouldn't decide to influence those aspects of happiness that ARE inside our control.
In this episode Andrew and Richard discuss the nature of happi...2023-05-2947 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallGeraldine Walsh: Unraveling MotherhoodMotherhood gets great PR: women are led by society to expect it to be continuously fulfilling and wonderful. The reality is, of course, more complicated. Children absorb so much of our energy that there can be too little left over to maintain a healthy sense of self.
Writer and journalist Geraldine Walsh is the author of Unraveling Motherhood, which explores postnatal depression, the “supermum myth”, the importance of boundaries in motherhood and how to embrace a good enough mother mentality.
Andrew and Geraldine explore many aspects of parenting, including strategies you can use to self-nurture, whils...2023-05-0849 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallRobert Jackman: Healing Your Lost Inner ChildIf you often feel depressed, anxious, victimised or disappointed, you may be carrying a heavy load of unresolved emotional pain.
Psychotherapist and author Robert Jackman suggests that this pain, and associated patterns of behaviour, often stem from our lost inner child. This inner child brings with him or her a false narrative; played on repeat.
Painful childhood experiences can show up in adulthood as explosive anger, isolation, bad relationship choices, negative self-talk, feelings of being overwhelmed, being a people pleaser, and keeping others at arm's length.
This week Andrew and Robert talk about id...2023-04-1749 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallEric Maisel: What If We’ve Gotten Meaning All WrongWhat if we’ve gotten meaning all wrong? Perhaps “searching for meaning” is completely the wrong way to think about things. If we can reconceptualise, it may be far easier to build a life suffused with meaning and joy.
Dr Eric Maisel has been fascinated by the subject of meaning since he was a small child. This week Andrew and Eric discuss Eric’s new book, which suggests that meaning is just a feeling, and that purpose is a choice.
Dr. Eric Maisel is the author of more than 50 books. His interests include creativity, life purpose...2023-04-1051 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallSherri Mandell: How to Grow Resilience: The Seven Cs & Why Creativity is KeyAfter her 13-year-old son Koby was murdered by terrorists, Sherri Mandell was forced to explore the nature of spiritual resilience in the face of overwhelming grief.
In her book The Road to Resilience Sherri outlines seven steps required to face suffering and be enlarged:
Chaos
Community
Choice
Creativity
Commemoration (discussed in bonus episode for supporters)
Consecration (discussed in bonus episode for supporters)
Celebration (discussed in bonus episode for supporters)
Andrew and Sherri discuss these seven steps; and also explore the power of creativity to find your inner truth (the subject of Sherri’s latest book, The...2023-04-0349 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr Ruth Ann Harpur: Narcissism: Helpful Diagnosis, or a Trap?These days “narcissist” has become the insult of choice for many of us caught on the wrong side of arrogance, self-absorption or monotonous bragging.
Narcissism is more complex than that, however, and an empathetic understanding of it can make it much easier to deal with partners or family members with narcissistic traits, or with full-blown narcissistic personality disorder.
This week clinical psychologist Dr Ruth Ann Harpur discusses with Andrew the origins of narcissism, the “Echo” phenomenon, and why partners of narcissists need to focus more on their own needs and sense of self.
Dr Ruth Ann...2023-03-2055 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallJan Day: Tantra: How to Make Your Lovemaking More ConnectedHow can we have more meaningful, connected sex? Many couples today are stuck in a low-sex or no-sex dynamic, while others struggle to break a routine that feels unbearably dull.
In this episode Jan Day, a relationship expert and psycho-spirital teacher, discusses “Living Tantra”.
Andrew and Jan cover how to “resensitise” in a world where there is not enough touch, and too many of us have become desensitised. Coming off autopilot and being open to depth and mystery can lead to a richer connection with the world and with our partners.
Jan Day has been...2023-03-1348 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallMalcolm Stern: Slay Your Dragons With CompassionAre you being held back by darker moments from your past? Would you like to find the courage to shine a light on some of the tragic or shameful moments that you don’t like to think about?
This week author and therapist Malcolm Stern joins Andrew to discuss his new book Slay Your Dragons With Compassion. Malcolm and Andrew talk about confronting your fears and working through blocks in a way that is compassionate to yourself and others.
Malcolm Stern is a psychotherapist with over thirty years of experience in the therapy room. His bo...2023-02-2750 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallSamantha Baines: Do We Need a More Honest Conversation About Divorce?Everyone has a different divorce experience, but getting divorced is pretty much guaranteed to change your life.
In this episode Samantha Baines, host of the Divorce Social podcast, shares her own experiences of divorce. Andrew and Samantha discuss:
⭐️The shock of divorce (even if you think you’re ready)
⭐️ Making the decision to get a divorce
⭐️ Dealing with what everybody else thinks.
⭐️ The “celebration” stage post-divorce.
⭐️The fun and the not-so-fun stereotypes around divorce (including wearing lots of leopard skin and having an adventurous love life).
Samantha Baines is an aut...2023-02-2054 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr Anna Colton: How to Sit With AnxietyIf you’re restless and irritable, or plagued by headaches or stomach upsets, then anxiety might be an issue. More and more of us are looking for support, and even diagnoses, to help manage anxiety.
This week’s guest is Dr Anna Colton, a clinical psychologist, trained actress and TV presenter. Anna works with families, teenagers and couples, but also with performers and lawyers experiencing profound anxiety.
Andrew and Anna discuss:
⭐️How our “unlived lives” feed into anxiety.
⭐️How anxiety can be protective.
⭐️The importance of curiosity.
⭐️How adrenaline feels and...2023-02-1349 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallWilliam Ayot: Healing Men’s SoulsToday, the four pale horsemen of war, famine, pestilence and death, have broken into our comfortable lives once again.
As the climate emergency and shortage become normalised, how do we live through crisis after crisis without falling into fear and anxiety on the one hand, or agitated reaction and rage on the other?
Do we face the horsemen, go into denial or settle for the dull throb of numbness? And how do we maintain contact with the heart, with soul, with love and compassion?
This week Andrew speaks with award-winning poet, author and te...2023-02-0656 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallCharlotte Fox Weber: What Do You Really Want? Why We Are Frightened of Answering This Question.Life brings to all of us long periods where we feel lost or confused. We don't know how to get what we want, or even what it is that we want.
The struggle to articulate the thing that might really make us “come alive” can be profound, even if we enter therapy.
Charlotte Fox Weber is the author of Tell Me What You Want, a new book that explores how to identify and navigate our deepest longings.
Andrew and Charlotte discuss the idea that we have 12 fundamental desires: to love and be loved; unders...2023-01-3046 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallWilliam Pullen: Run (or Walk) Your Way to Better Mental HealthThrow away your FitBit, stop counting your daily steps, and instead learn to run mindfully. If you can find the three key elements of space, silence and patience, you’ll be far more able to tackle big problems at work and at home.
William Pullen is a psychotherapist who helps clients using his revolutionary method of Dynamic Running Therapy. His work combines movement and talk therapy to harness the synergy of mind, body and spirit.
In this episode Andrew and William discuss
🏃🏾♂️How a good walk is different from a good run
🏃🏽♀️The pra...2023-01-2353 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallNiamh Fitzpatrick: Tell Me the Truth About LossHow do you cope when life suddenly and dramatically falls to pieces?
In March 2017 psychologist and author Niamh Fitzpatrick’s beloved sister Dara was killed in a helicopter crash.
Soon afterwards, Niamh’s marriage disintegrated, and she feared she would also lose the house she lived in. Life as she knew it had ended and the cumulative loss was staggering in terms of impact.
As a psychologist for many years, Niamh had helped hundreds of clients through the worst times in their lives. Her own experiences of loss and grief were nonetheless shocking and d...2023-01-1657 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr. Avrum Weiss: Why Men Withdraw When Women Get AngryWhen women and men argue, women can often be more comfortable in expressing their feelings of hurt and anger.
Men can feel distressed by this strength of feeling, and may pull away emotionally. They may feel a very strong urge to occupy the ground of rationality and objectivity, which in turn leads their partner to push harder, desperately seeking emotional connection.
Dr Avrum Weiss is a US-based author and psychotherapist specialising in the internal lives of men. His writing and his work with couples help men and women understand each other more deeply and build a...2023-01-0952 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallTracey Cox & Andrew: Ten Things We Learned in 2022 to Take Into 2023Better sex, building a stronger connection with your partner, coping with anxiety, and dealing with shame and fear: these were some of the big themes that resonated on The Meaningful Life in 2022.
Tracey Cox, international sex therapist, author and Daily Mail columnist, was the very first guest on episode one of The Meaningful Life. She joins Andrew again this week to discuss their stand-out episodes from last year.
Tracey and Andrew talk about how their favourite guests influenced their thinking, and what they’ll be taking forward into 2023.
Subscriber Content This Wee...2023-01-0249 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr. John Kaag: Be Not Afraid: How Philosophy and William James Saved My Life“Be not afraid of life. Believe that life is worth living, and your belief will help create the fact.”
Philosopher William James (brother of the novelist Henry James) seems way ahead of his time with this insight.
Our guest this week is author and philosopher John Kaag. John credits William James with helping him through several existential crises, including bouts of despair as a young man, and two divorces.
Andrew and John discuss:
⭐️The pressing choice in modern life of where to put our attention
⭐️How philosophy helps parents
⭐️The wa...2022-12-1951 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallTara Blair Ball: Recovering from Toxic RelationshipsLeaving a toxic relationship is really just the beginning: how do you then pick up the pieces and build a new life?
Certified relationship coach Tara Blair Ball is a second-time guest on The Meaningful Life - her first interview on attachment theory was so popular that we invited her back to discuss her new book on surviving toxic relationships.
According to Tara,
⭐️Personal responsibility is the key to change
⭐️Healthy relationships are built, not found
⭐️Whether you’re single or partnered, you can recover from toxic relationship patterns and learn a healt...2022-12-1249 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallAmanda Deibert: You Have All The Answers⭐️What is something you could do right now to help your future self?
⭐️What is the most dangerous thing you have survived?
⭐️Who is a person you’re glad exists?
These are the kinds of questions writer Amanda Deibert asks her Twitter followers everyday, and which she has now gathered into a beautiful gratitude journal called You Already Have the Answers.
In this episode, Andrew and Amanda discuss the ways in which our lives are full of insight and wisdom, if we can only slow down and find a meaningful route inward. Most o...2022-12-0550 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr. Galit Atlas: Buried Trauma: How the Past Can Unconsciously Trap YouFamily secrets can live on for generations, shaping our lives in ways we may not recognise or fully understand.
In this episode Andrew talks to Dr Galit Atlas, author of Emotional Inheritance: A Therapist, Her Patients, and the Legacy of Trauma about how our struggles in life are linked to the emotional inheritance we receive from our families.
Dr Atlas is a psychoanalyst and clinical supervisor in private practice in Manhattan.She is a clinical assistant professor on the faculty of the New York University Postdoctoral Program in Psychotherapy & Psychoanalysis and faculty at the National...2022-11-2851 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr. Christopher Kerr: What Death Can Teach Us: Visions and Dreams of the DyingThe end of life isn’t always a time of fear and suffering. Dr Christopher Kerr has cared for thousands of patients who, in the face of imminent death, speak of love and grace.
Dr Kerr is the author of Death is But a Dream, in which he shares dying patients’ experiences of pre-death dreams and vision. These end-of-life dreams humanise the dying process and can also comfort the bereaved, who see their loved ones dying with a sense of calm closure.
Andrew and Dr Kerr discuss how end-of-life dreams can bring love and forgiveness, resto...2022-11-1443 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallPhil Poole: How to Find a Meaningful Job or Make Your Job More MeaningfulIf work leaves you feeling tense, unfulfilled or anxious, then it’s definitely time to make some kind of change. You probably know that already - but this week’s episode helps you think through where to start.
This week’s guest is Phil Poole, a Berlin-based coach, entrepreneur, writer and leader. Phil and Andrew discuss:
⭐️Phil’s journey through burnout to finding a meaningful, joyful career
⭐️How to know if it’s really the job that’s the problem.
⭐️Making big life changes with the support of your partner/family.
⭐️Narrowing down yo...2022-11-0749 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr Suzanne Degges-White: The Unwritten Rules of Friendship: Why Things Turn ToxicThere's endless advice on romantic love, but how can you nurture loving friendships? And what should you do if a friendship turns sour, or leaves you feeling taken advantage of?
This week's guest is writer and therapist Dr Suzanne Degges-White, the author of Toxic Friendships: Knowing the Rules and Dealing with the Friends Who Break Them.
In this episode Andrew and Suzanne discuss:
⭐️ Making friends and why it gets harder as we age
⭐️ Being a good friend
⭐️ How many friends we need
⭐️ When to let go of a friendship....2022-10-2450 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallLibby Nugent: Exhausted? How Fairytales Can Refresh & Move You ForwardAre you “world-weary”? Exhausted by life to the point where a day on the couch, a mini-break or a night out with friends won’t even touch the tip of your fatigue? This week’s guest, Dr Libby Nugent, is here to help. Libby discusses with Andrew the powerful healing properties of the fairytale.
If you’ve experienced:
Strains in relationships with your children or parents
Anxiety about reaching goals you’ve defined for yourself
A nagging sense that you’re missing out on other ways to approach life
Then this week’s episode is for you.
2022-10-1751 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDawn Kohler: When the Call to Be Yourself Can No Longer Be IgnoredWhat happens if you ignore the voices in your head urging you to change your life? Most likely they will make themselves heard in some way, be it positive or negative.
Dawn Kohler was an award-winning entrepreneur in the computer industry when she was abruptly summoned to take a life-altering course. She began to receive “messages”, which launched her on an extraordinary healing process.
In this episode Dawn and Andrew talk about Dawn’s journey through anxiety, depression and a relentless pull towards the unknown (all while also trying to meet the needs of a young...2022-10-1047 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr Matthew McKay: Loving in the Face of PainIf we know anything for sure about love, it’s that our beloved will change as time passes. They will look different, believe new things and feel new sorrows and joys.
Psychologist and author Dr Matthew McKay has written a new book on how we can keep love alive in an age of impermanence. He talks with Andrew about five ways to keep loving in the face of change, loss or disappointment:
⭐️Truly knowing the people we love
⭐️Actively caring for loved ones
⭐️Cultivating compassion
⭐️Setting a daily intention to act with love2022-09-2645 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr. Cheryl Fraser: How to Stay in LoveIs it possible to fall in love with your partner over and over again? Can you hope to hold onto passionate sex as you grow older together?
This week Andrew is joined by Dr Cheryl Fraser, an author, Buddhist teacher, psychologist and sex therapist. They explore the nature and longevity of passion, including:
⭐️Libido and why it can wane over time
⭐️How mindfulness works in the bedroom
⭐️The “passion triangle” - intimacy, thrill, sensuality.
Dr Cheryl Fraser is the author of Buddha’s Bedroom, and the host of the Sex, Love and Eleph...2022-09-121h 03The Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallJoanna Harrison: How to Argue More ProductivelySome of us spend years having the same arguments with our partner, on repeat. Others drift into a state of lonely togetherness where we don’t bother to talk about discontents, because it just feels pointless.
Joanna Harrison is a marital therapist who has identified five arguments that all couples need to have. If you can work through these issues, your chances of building a healthy, happy relationship are much stronger.
In this week’s episode, Andrew and Joanna discuss basic skills for productive conflict, why we try to avoid arguments, and how therapy can help...2022-08-2952 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr. Patricia Hasbach: Reconnect with Nature and YourselfCreating a more meaningful life does not have to happen indoors. Whether it’s writing, meditating, repairing relationships or planning a big life change, doing the work outside surrounded by nature can be calming and inspiring.
Psychotherapist Dr Patricia Hasbach is a specialist in ecotherapy. She sees clients outside and also incorporates nature into her therapeutic work indoors. She is a lifelong lover of nature and a profound believer in its power in treating anxiety and depression, and fostering health and wellness.
Patricia has recently published Grounded: A Guided Journal to Help You Reconnect with th...2022-07-1152 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr Susan Schwartz: Daughters and Fathers: the Impact of the First Man in Your LifeWomen often spend many hours considering their relationship with their mothers; but far less attention goes to the impact of fathers.
For some, the reason for this is that their mothers were there, making wrong and right decisions (which they remember in the starkest possible light) whilst their fathers were absent.
Jungian psychotherapist Dr Susan Schwartz has spent many hours guiding her women clients in thinking about how they were shaped by physically or emotionally absent fathers.
These daughters relate feeling an insecurity of self, a splintering and disintegration of their personality and a...2022-07-0451 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallVeronica Valli: Does Your Relationship With Alcohol Still Make Sense?Do you think about drinking alcohol more than you think about eating sandwiches? Do you spend significant amounts of time thinking about NOT drinking (Dry January, for example)? Or are you one of the many with an uneasy feeling that alcohol is no longer bringing anything good into your life, and may well be holding you back?
Therapist and sobriety expert Veronica Valli had a problematic relationship with alcohol for twelve years. She has now been sober for twenty years, and has helped countless others give up drinking.
In this episode Andrew and Veronica discuss:2022-06-2754 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallLinda Hershman: Should I Stay or Should I Go?Many older people, particularly women, are “divorce-curious”. They wonder about life on the other side of a tired marriage, and feel that perhaps it isn’t too late. Could a divorce be the route to rediscovering passion, stimulation and new experiences?
Others are in the position of having a divorce thrust upon them, and are left to work through the pain and upheaval a split can cause in later life, both for themselves and the family unit.
Linda Hershman is an expert on the “silver divorce” and has worked extensively to help couples navigate divorce. In this ep...2022-06-1350 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallChristina Patterson: Getting Out of Your Own Way: Are You Unknowingly Self-Sabotaging?Christina Patterson found herself in the heartbreaking position of being the last one left in a loving and beloved family. She took on the task of writing the story of her family and her place in it.
In the process, Christina explored the ways in which our personal history can cause us to “get in our way”, self-sabotaging as we work through the suffering experienced both by ourselves and others in the family.
Christina and Andrew also discuss:
Living with mental illness
Finding and losing religion
Loss and grief
The healing effects of writing
Chr...2022-06-0648 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallErik Qualman: Being More Focused: the Art of Saying NoDoing a lot of things won’t get you where you want to go. According to “Digital Dale Carnegie” and best-selling author Erik Qualman, it’s become increasingly hard to achieve the things that mean the most to us.
Modern life splinters our attention span and makes it extremely challenging to hone in on what matters.
Erik Qualman interviewed hundreds of people for his book, The Focus Project, including parents, teachers and entrepreneurs. They all felt that success depended on the extent to which they had been able to focus on their goals.
In this ep...2022-05-3048 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallJulie Wald: Feeling Balanced: The Four Pillars of Self-CareSometimes things feel way too complicated. You’re working hard, taking care of your family, you have enough money - but things still just don’t feel right. You push on, looking forward to your next holiday or a night out with friends, but the day to day is grey and exhausting.
Wellness practitioner, CEO, yoga instructor and clinical social worker Julie Wald specialises in working with people who are close to burnout. She cuts through the wellness noise all around us to zero in on what it is we actually need to change in order to feel...2022-05-2351 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDavid Kessler: Finding Meaning: The Sixth Stage of GriefDavid Kessler is one of the world’s best-known experts on grief, yet nothing could prepare him for the loss of his beloved son at the age of 21. Just as he’d advised his clients for decades, David attended grief groups, saw a therapist and sat with his pain.
In this episode, Andrew and David discuss how society wants us to grieve versus the reality of loss. We will likely never “get over” the loss of someone close to us, nor will we learn life lessons that somehow compensate us for our pain. It is possible, though, to locate...2022-05-1647 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr. Stephan Poulter: Shame: How to Break Out and Start LivingShame is one of the emotions we find hardest to talk about. It can feel paralysing, and is linked to despair, imposter syndrome, fear and the sense of an impending doom.
This week’s guest, psychologist and author Dr Stephan Poulter, is the author of Shame Factor: Heal Your Deepest Fears and Set Yourself Free. Andrew and Dr Poulter discuss how shame makes us feel - paralysed, unclean, not good enough, defective - and how we can reduce its impact on our lives.
As Dr Poulter states, “the best analogy is this gold brick inside you. S...2022-05-0946 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDaisy Turnbull: How to Talk to TeenagersTeenagers have a big reputation for being hard to talk to. How can you find that spark of connection with your teen? Is there a way to set up a channel of communication so that you can help them through the rough patches?
In this episode Andrew talks to Australian teacher and author Daisy Turnbull about her new book, 50 Questions to Ask Your Teens.
Daisy shares insights from her work as a teacher, as well as from her own teenage years growing up in a household where both parents had high-profile and demanding careers.
2022-05-0251 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr Mairi Macleod: Finding a Good Man in Midlife“So he’s become the real love of my life. But if I’d been following my old ways of looking for men I wouldn’t have noticed him”.
If you’re following your heart and trusting to the universe in your search for midlife love, you may need to take a step back and rethink your approach.
This week’s guest, Dr Mairi Macleod, is the founder of Dating Evolved, a science-based dating consultancy. Mairi helps women look for partners in a more thoughtful and successful way. We are often told to “trust your gut” when it comes...2022-03-0755 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallJulia Paulette Hollenbery: Self Care: Seven Medicines for Healing from Trauma (and Life in General)Many of us are brought up to see sacrifice and exhaustion as the route to success. Julia Paulette Hollenbery’s mission is to help us all realise that in fact “pleasure is the essential nourishment you need for productive work, happy relationships and vibrant health”.
Julia also believes that pleasure is not hard to find. There is an abundance of pleasure available to us all, in every moment and with every interaction. What Julia describes as “the universe of deliciousness” is everywhere around us.
In this episode Andrew and Julia discuss the healing power of pleasure, i...2022-01-3155 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr Dilip Jeste: Wisdom: Five Ways to Become WiserWhat does it mean to be wise? Do we grow in wisdom as we age? Pioneering neuropsychiatric researcher Dr Dilip Jeste has spent years investigating the biological and cognitive roots of wisdom.
In this episode, Andrew and Dilip discuss what we mean when we talk about wisdom, and whether we can, in fact, grow wiser. Dilip describes what he has established as the key components of the wise individual:
⭐️ Self-reflection
⭐️ Empathy and compassion (including for yourself)
⭐️ Emotional regulation and resilience
⭐️ Gratitude
⭐️ Openness to new experiences
⭐️ Spirituality
Andre...2022-01-2452 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallJosephine Worseck: Stress Reduction: TheTransformative Power of Cold ExposureStepping into a bath of ice isn’t the obvious pastime for a Northern winter. But if you do it the right way, the extreme cold can be:
❄️ Empowering - diving in means turning off the voices of procrastination.
❄️ Relaxing - staying in the bath requires you to work on physical relaxation.
❄️ Mindful - the cold focuses you hard on the now.
❄️ And, extremely healthy - there is evidence for cardiovascular benefit.
Dr Josephine Worseck is a molecular biologist, yoga teacher, naturopath and exponent of cold exposure. The Wim Hof method she teac...2021-12-1353 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallCate Mackenzie: Flirting: Why Everyone Should Learn the SkillsSome of us are afraid of it, some of us gave it up decades ago, and some of us are trying desperately to master it. The art of flirting is a form of relationship magic, and it can bring so much happiness into our partnerships and our lives. Flirting opens us up to silliness, fun and joy.
In this episode Andrew talks with flirting coach and psychosexual therapist Cate Mackenzie about why we should master the skills of flirting.
Andrew and Cate talk about the ways in which your childhood might have left you finding the...2021-11-2952 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallMichelle Farris: Seven Signs You Might Be CodependentAre you a serial people-pleaser? Do you find all your self-worth at work? Or do you gravitate towards difficult partners, with problems you feel driven to fix for them?
These are some of the signs and symptoms of codependency. Codependency has a big impact on how we feel about ourselves, and may mean we keep repeating destructive relationship patterns.
In this episode, Andrew and psychotherapist Michelle Farris discuss the signs and symptoms of codependency, and Michelle identifies seven key signs you may be codependent. Michelle also shares her personal history of overcoming codependency.
Mi...2021-11-1549 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallViv Groskop: How to be Heard, Really HeardMany of us, particularly women, experience endless frustration because we don’t feel heard. At work and at home, it seems like we are constantly interrupted and rarely feel in control of a conversation.
This week Viv Groskop, journalist, podcaster, stand-up comedian and author of How to Own The Room and Lift As You Climb, talks with Andrew about how to speak so that people will listen. Diving into the world of stand-up taught Viv about pacing, pausing and gauging people’s reactions; but most importantly, about quieting your own ego and tuning into your audience.
An...2021-10-181h 00The Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallGraham Johnston & Matt Wotton: Good Boundaries: The Foundation of Happy RelationshipsWe all know that good boundaries are pretty much essential if we want happy relationships. There is a lot of confusion, though, about what exactly a boundary is and how to make it work. Can we have too many boundaries? Should we ever compromise on the boundaries we set?
This week Andrew talks about boundaries with Graham Johnston and Matt Wotton, psychotherapists and co-founders of the London Centre of Applied Psychology. Matt and Graham share their own experiences of creating good boundaries in both love and parenting, and what it means if we are struggling to get...2021-10-111h 03The Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr. James Hollis: How to Be ResilientFor Andrew, it is the writings of Dr James Hollis, one of the world’s most eminent Jungian analysts, that have “sustained me through my dark times”. James Hollis' books also regularly help Andrew’s marital therapy clients to create change in their relationships and recover from infidelity.
For the 50th episode of The Meaningful Life With Andrew G. Marshall, Andrew speaks to James Hollis about what it means to be resilient - how do we discover and develop the strength nature gives us to “walk through the forest” when we inevitably hit dark times?
Bookshops and...2021-09-2056 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallDr. Warren Farrell: The Boy Crisis: How to Help Your Son FlourishAccording to Dr Warren Farrell, the world is facing a “boy crisis”. Suicide, ADHD and weak educational outcomes are among the problems boys and their parents face. Many bright boys are experiencing a “purpose void,” feeling alienated, withdrawn, and addicted to immediate gratification.
Andrew and Warren discuss why boys are struggling and what parents, teachers, and policymakers can do to help our sons become happier, healthier men and fathers and leaders worthy of our respect.
Dr Farrell is an author and academic specialising in men’s issues. He has been chosen by The Financial Times of London...2021-09-1358 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallKate Daigle: Have a Heathier Relationship with FoodDiet culture is everywhere: it’s impossible to avoid exposure to “clean eating”, fat phobia and the thin ideal. Yet as Kate Daigle tells Andrew this week, it’s not possible to live a meaningful life whilst being fully immersed in diet culture. These are limiting beliefs that shrink people’s worlds.
In this episode Kate Daigle, a specialist in supporting people to recover from eating disorders, talks with Andrew about people’s increasingly unhealthy relationship with food.
Kate also shares her personal journey of recovery from eating disorders, and explores what it means to have an eati...2021-08-1648 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallKate Lucey: Depression - What Worked for MeSo many of us have experienced depression, and if not, we’re likely to have seen the people we love battle it. This week’s guest, Kate Lucey, specialises in writing about mental health. She talks candidly with Andrew about her own depression and the six-year journey she’s been on since her diagnosis: including physical symptoms and the effects on her personal relationships.
Kate and Andrew also take a deep dive into what depression means - what might cause it, how therapy can help, and some exercises that have helped Kate to manage when feeling overwhelmed.
Kat...2021-06-2148 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallJed Diamond: Your Personal Creation StoryToo many men struggle to be happy in their intimate relationships, and fail to find a healthy version of masculinity that works for them. Disconnected males, without a strong sense of inner guidance, can behave destructively and even abusively towards those around them.
In the fourth episode of The Meaningful Life With Andrew G. Marshall, Andrew talks to Jed Diamond PhD, founder of MenAlive, about his own journey. Jed explains how he came to heal his “family father wound” and how he has helped thousands of men to do the same.
A big part of this i...2020-11-0250 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallKay Hutchison: Coming back from a midlife crisisHave you ever felt so defeated and frustrated that you want to just throw in the towel and run away? Author Kay Hutchison did exactly that, fleeing her annual holiday to the Cote d’Azur, moving out of her home, and leaving behind her marriage and a well-established career.
In seeking to understand what forced this huge rupture in a previously smooth existence, Kay tried a range of mainstream and alternative therapies. In the end, she took part in 37 different forms of therapy to explore her particular midlife crisis and experience of the menopause. From colonic irrigation thr...2020-10-2656 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallTracey Cox: Great sex after fiftyNo-one would deny sex is important to a meaningful life, but what that looks like changes as we age. In this first episode of the new self-help podcast The Meaningful Life with Andrew G. Marshall, international sex therapist and Daily Mail columnist Tracey Cox discusses her new book Great Sex Starts at 50: How to Age-Proof Your Libido.
While wild, lustful sex can certainly be a unique and special life experience, the sex that brings us meaning is different. It’s the sex that lasts past the orgasm, to include that afterglow as you lie together or even ju...2020-10-2641 minThe Meaningful Life with Andrew G. MarshallLaunching on Monday 26. October 2020 - The Meaningful Life with Andrew G.MarshallSo what is the meaningful life? Why do we so easily lose our way and get lost in depression, anxiety, doubt, addictions and obsessions: the swamplands of the soul? One thing I know for sure is that there is not one answer. Each of us has to find out for ourselves what makes our life meaningful. But we can learn from each other, share our experiences of how to navigate the journey, how to endure and learn from the swamp, and finally how to find solid ground.
2020-10-1701 min