Breaking Up with Friends

We are excited to release our first podcast episode of the 2024 season! Together with Sarah Peart ( @sarah_and_sexology ), Certified Sexual Educator, we delve into the world of SEXOLOGY: What is it? What does it mean to study this science and what can a career as a sexologist look like?.Sarah and Ludo explain why they chose this field, and offer some tips to people who would like to do the same. They study together at Sapienza University, where they met. Their course, Clinical Psychosexology, is the only existing course in the field (taught in English) in the whole of Europe (excluding the UK).

What is loneliness? Why do we feel lonely when we are with other people? What can we do about it? We explore these topics along with Psychotherapist and Jr. Assistant Professor Anneke Vedder (Utrecht University), and Clinical Psychologists Yashna Pande and Angeliki Giannou. If you are a Utrecht University student here is their Peer Support Group on Loneliness: Conscious Connections

What is asexuality? Together with asexuality activist, Caterina Appia, and Sexologist and researcher, Filippo Nimbi, we try to clarify the main misconceptions surrounding asexuality.What is it? How do asexual people live their sexuality? And what about dating?

We dive deep into the topic of relationships, with the help of Henrik Sahlén ( @warriors_of_light_555 ).Henrik is a facilitator of sessions, workshops & retreats combining movement, psychology & energy healing.We talk about how security allows for vulnerability and depth, and the learning that come from connecting with others and from accepting change in our relationships.

Ludo and Marghe share positive and negative moments during the holidays throughout the years. We hope you can let your feelings flow whatever direction they may take.

We talk about loss, grief, and coping with bereavement along with Dr. Henk Schut, professor and researcher at Utrecht University. We go through the intricacies of grief, common misconceptions, and his (and Maggie Stroebe's) well-known "Dual Process Model of Coping with Bereavement".

With Georgia, a new Shrink it Out member, we talk about the EGO. Is why we engage in these mechanisms, what these mechanisms are, and how we let it all go!!!

And now what? We discuss the anxiety of nearing graduation from University (or high-school) and not knowing what to do next. Where does the pressure come from? Older-generations? Our peers? How does perfectionism play into this? and our inability to tolerate uncertainty? We share our thoughts on these questions along with @ellatheproject.

Along with our friend Sofia, we discuss the idea of breaking up with friends. While in romantic relationships, break-ups follow some sort of patterns and common rules, in friendships this is much more ambiguous. What brings us to break up with friends? Is breaking up as necessary as in romantic partnerships? Is it the same as growing apart?

How do you let go? Are you quick or slow at letting go? What do you find hardest letting go of: people, life phases, parts of yourselves? Ludo and Margherita discuss this and give some tips which personally helped them in letting go