Positive Thinking And The Meaning Of Life: Recent Episodes
Marcus Freestone
We discuss varying aspects of psychology, philosophy and mental health and the whole awkward business of trying to be a human being. My aim for this podcast is to provide a genuinely practical and useful insight into the human condition while avoiding all the usual self-help cliches. I am also on a continuing forty year mission to sort out my own head space.
This week we look at finding the positives of solitude in the current global situation. Being alone doesn't have to lead to loneliness.
This week I present a welcome distraction: a really mad short story entitled "Ethelbert's Sunday Afternoon". Something to take you out of yourself and away from the misery and uncertainty of the current global situation.
This week we explore sleep and dreaming and their importance to mental health. Recent studies have shown that dreams are a vital element in efficiently filing away your memories and processing negative emotions.
In this extra mini episode I vent my frustration at the media coverage of the coronavirus outbreak and do some research to get to the truth of what exactly the virus is and how worried the average person should be about it.
Finishing off last weeks listener question we look at how to counteract the negative influences the world throws at us and how to deal with an overwhelming number of decisions.
This week I respond to a very in depth and interesting listener question about the whole business of living a decent life and being satisfied with what we have.
This week the podcast returns from oblivion to explain why its been away and why its creator has been self sabotaging.
This week we begin an exploration of the existential and psychological ideas of the prolific English writer Colin Wilson.
Part four of our mini-series, prompted by a listener question, discusses anxiety and its root causes.
In part three of our mini series we look at an aspect of negative thinking - anger - and trace the roots of its effect on our thoughts and behaviour.
In part two of our mini-series on Negative Thinking we look at how to recognise negative triggers from the past and subconscious versus conscious decision making.
In the first of a mini series we answer another listener question and tackle the work of existentialist Albert Camus and how to accomodate the absurd into our lives while avoiding nihilism.
Concluding my look at Jordan Peterson's Bible lecture series and how it has changed my thinking on myths and religious stories.
I explore why watching Jordan Peterson's series of Bible lectures has had such an impact on my cynical old atheist way of thinking. It has made me totally rethink my antipathy towards myths and ancient texts.
In this episode we look at the biological causes of stress and depression and identify the differenences between everyday or reactive depression and clinical or endogynous depression.
In answer to another listener question we look at the prevalance of depression today and ask whether or not 21st century living is making us ill.
How is our identity formed and how do we learn to fit into human society? How do others define us? We explore these questions using social psychology and the work of existentialist Jean-Paul Sartre.
The first episode to deal entirely with questions from a listener. Please keep the questions coming in.
In this episode we look at the work of Gurdjieff and Ouspensky, especially concentrating on their methods of counteracting negative emotions.
This episode we turn away from the 'big questions' and look at how we all have to find subjective meaning in our own everyday lives.
In this episode we look at abandonment issues, how they manifest in adult life and how to overcome them.
Part 2 of our look at social interaction and it's many psychological and philosophical aspects.
Social judgement, misunderstanding in communication, individual difference and group homogeny.
Beginning our exploration of one of the most complicated topics known to man, woman or indeed aardvark.
Episode 4 of the podcast where I get a bit tetchy with someone who slagged off the free e-book in an ungrammatical manner.
Episode 3 of the podcast looks at psychology and what it can tell us about maintaining good mental health and a positive outlook.
Episode 2 of the podcast where I talk about the problems I have enacting the things I have learned.