Psych Spiels and Silver Linings

Chris and Rowan begin a three-part series on some of the themes related to domestic violence. In this first episode, we will be looking at how to manage conflict in a healthy way.

Chris and Rowan continue their series on the themes related to domestic violence. This week we are discussing anger and anger management. Anger is a part of life and we will never be able to fully escape being angry, but there are many things we can do to ensure that our anger doesn't become harmful to ourselves and those around us.

Chris and Rowan discuss how therapists can individualise therapy with their clients through a process that mirrors the process of evolution.   We discuss how people can vary their approaches, sometimes in novel ways, to get the most out of therapy and maintain their wellbeing beyond any mental health challenges they have faced.

Chris and Rowan speak with Dr Ken Harris. Ken is an author, educator, keynote speaker, lecturer and chiropractor, as well as the lead author of the book Second Chances – From Surviving to Thriving, which included a chapter written by Chris. Ken has spent decades dedicated to the exploration, understanding and promotion of the mind, body, spirit connection.   We speak with Ken about what he's learned as the lead author of Second Chances – From Surviving to Thriving, as well as tap into Ken's extensive knowledge and enthusiasm that he's gained from many years working in the field.

Chris and Rowan discuss the role of meaning and purpose in mental health and modern psychology.   We talk about how positive psychology has reintegrated the importance of meaning and purpose into the field of psychology and how some of the latest research has backed up the importance of meaning for our mental well-being.   We look at why meaning and purpose were de-emphasised by some of the earlier psychologists like Sigmund Freud and why they later re-emerged through the work of people like Martin Seligman and Michael Steger.

Chris and Rowan discuss the contribution of Victor Frankl to psychology. Frankl is the founder of logotherapy, a therapy approach that focuses on meaning. We discuss Frankl's life and the experiences that he had that led to his ideas, including spending time in 4 different concentration camps during the Second World War, and why Frankl's ideas are becoming more relevant today.

Chris and Rowan finish off the series on ancient Greek philosophy with a look at how stoicism developed out of Socrates' practices in ancient Athens.   We look at the cynics and their influence on the stoics and their ideas ideas including the fundamental principle in modern psychology that we are not disturbed by things, but by our view of them.  

Chris and Rowan look back at some of the philosophers from Ancient Greece and how their ideas relate to modern psychology. In this episode, the first part of a two-part series, we look at the ideas of Socrates, Plato, Aristotle and Epicurus and relate their ideas to modern psychology, which has translated many of these ancient ideas into a modern context.

Chris and Rowan discuss how stoic philosophy is related to modern psychology principles and how we can benefit from drawing upon stoic philosophy as we face different challenges in our lives. This is the first of several episodes on stoic philosophy and how it relates to modern psychology.

Chris is away for the first podcast of the year and so Rowan will be taking you back through some of our previous episodes on stoic philosophy as an introduction for the next few episodes, which will also cover the topic of stoic philosophy.   These snippets will look at how Tim Beck and Albert Ellis used stoic principles to inform their therapy approaches, which went on to become modern cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT).   The first two clips are from episode 52 of Psych Spiels, The ABC of CBT and the final clip, discussing one of Ellis's principles that is a distillation of stoic philosophy, is from episode 54, The Intolerance of Irrational Ideas.