Our sense of smell is probably our most underrated and misunderstood of all of our senses. We have tended to lose the importance of our sense of smell because we have devalued it and hijacked it with chemical additives. Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

Ed has been thinking about the importance of local action recently. Some fantastic volunteers have been hard at work in his area and he's been amazed by the reaction of people. How can we harness this effect more widely? What can our listeners do to get stuck in? Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

Sean has some news - a grandchild has arrived for him and his family! Very exciting news... but it's an important job with important responsibilities. Let's have a chat about how to make the most of this potentially fantastic period of our lives. Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

Today we're talking about getting out of your comfort zone and meeting people! We were inspired by a story on The Good News Network. Have a listen and let us know your thoughts. Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

We have just seen the attempted assassination of Donald Trump followed by an appeal by President Biden for the population to come together and accept disagreement with out seeing it as a threat. It is okay to disagree with other people. It does not need to lead to violence, war and death. Now we see violence on the streets of the UK! We often see anger as a negative force. Though it can be a very creative and useful force. Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

George Orwell, author of Animal Farm, described a political landscape that I am starting to see developing all around me. I see laws and rules being created only then to see them not being followed or totally ignored by those people who created them in the first place. The obvious was the fiasco of Dominic Cummings and the Barnard Castle affair and the Party Gate nonsense. Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

The election is here (in the UK)!!! Sean and Ed recorded a quick episode before the big day... but in the knowledge that it would likely be published after the results had been announced. Will it hold up? Will it be of any use??! Let's find out... Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

How do we know what we are belong told is true? How do we know if what we believe is real? We are all told things from the day we are born about life, other people, history and events. Politicians, teachers, religious leaders, advertisers, propagandists, to the covid doom sayers and conspiracy theorists and even our loved ones all want us to share their point of view and to believe what they tell us. Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

This week we are revisiting our relationship with nature and the effect that it has on our mental health and wellbeing. Finally the rain seems to have stopped and we are enjoying some sunshine. I was reminded of when I was looking out of the window of my apartment in Doha Qatar when I was working at Sidra Hospital. Below me the City was a busy place and I could see at least a thousand houses. Each house full of people, thousands of people. The roads full, sometimes gridlocked, as all these...

Currently the world seems a not very safe place, the news is full of war reports and stabbings in schools. Alongside this are all the reports of violent shop lifting and assaults on care staff in the NHS. More and more counselling clients are sharing their anxious concerns for themselves and their families especially their children. There is an increase in trauma both direct and vicariously experienced.

This week Ed and I were talking about the effects of persuasion and how people can seem to gullibly just believe anything. I was explaining about the Barnum effect. Barnum was the great circus master who was into the concepts of illusion and fooling the audience into believing that what they were seeing was real.

An episode recorded near Easter which enabled us to chat about new beginnings. Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

Social media is full of conspiracy theories. Currently those about Katherine Princess of Wales are rife. There is great interest, in certain groups, as to whether the stories about her abdominal surgery and public appearance and photograph are real or fake. The thing that interests Ed and I is why is it so important? What is it about gossip and rumour that we all get so hooked up in?

The idea of needing to get away would suggest that where we are is never really good enough. I get it that the act of taking a break, of doing something different, is stimulating and often relaxing but the question got me thinking about do we appreciate where we are and what we have? Are we able to enjoy the space that we live in. Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

Well Valentine’s has been and gone, the day of love, how was it for you? we often have talked about mood boosts and love, feeing loved, being loved and sharing love they are right at the top of positive mood, self esteem, raised energy and wellbeing. The magic is in ‘feeling’ loved. Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

Following on from last weeks look at the potential of global conflict. A listener reminded me of this and asked ‘why don’t we just encourage everybody to smile at each other?’ An excellent question! Let's discuss... Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

Ed and I did a similar episode in 2019. The issues of war and potentially a world war were on us then and, sadly, very little seems to have changed. Over the last few months the people visiting my consulting room have been more and more concerned about the potential for another world war. We need to talk about potential conflict... Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

Ok, so it is New Year! Standing at the beginning of 2024 you, and I, will be making choices about how and what this year will be. 2023 will certainly be a year to remember and for many perhaps a year to forget. People tell me that is is as though it never happened or that with the aftermath of covid and the financial crisis one they will never forget. Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

For a lot of people around the world this year Christmas Day might just be another day in a difficult year. In a work of wars, financial crisis and global warming there are a lot of people worrying. What will it be like for you this year? Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

It has never been a better time to talk seriously about the blame game and good will. As we approach the festive season and, in theory at least, a time of goodwill it seems that we are living in a divided world where everyone is finding reasons to blame other people for something.

What's more important? Expertise or experience? Sean and Ed have a chat... Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

Remembrance Day, 11 November, is a memorial day that has been observed in Commonwealth member states since the end of the First World War in 1919. This has been to honour armed forces members who have died in the line of duty. In theory, at least, we unite across faiths, cultures and backgrounds to remember. The thing that is vastly important in remembering is the art of forgiveness. In forgiveness we let go. Often in simple remembrance we can feed our hatred of those that we perceive as the...

We use the word ‘addiction’ to indicate an illness which is based on the behaviour of a person who is compulsively or habitually ‘addicted’ to a substance or a set of behaviours. Most behaviours that are described as addictions are seen as negative. We think of drugs or alcohol. We might even consider the workaholic. Whichever way we view it addiction is normally seen negative. Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!

Sean's been on a speed awareness course! Ed is busy campaigning for slower, safer streets! Has the world gotten too fast? Can we slow down and enjoy life that little bit more? Enjoy the show, it's The Self Help Podcast!