Attachment and Compassion in Psychotherapy — Paul Gilbert and Jeremy Holmes

In this episode, I’m joined by Professor Paul Gilbert and Professor Jeremy Holmes. Paul is the developer of Compassion Focused Therapy and one of the world’s leading clinical psychologists studying the scientific application of compassion in therapeutic practice. Jeremy is an award winning attachment expert, clinician, and author, whose books include: In Search of the Secure Base, Attachment & Psychotherapy, and most recently The Spirit of Psychotherapy. In this wide ranging discussion, we explore: — The difference between “safety” and “safeness” and why this is vital to understand in therapeutic practice — How early attachment dynamics shape our developmental trajectory and relationships throughout life — How attachment theory helped to form the theoretical foundations of Compassion Focused Therapy. And more. You can find Jeremy’s books at http://bit.ly/jh-books and learn more about Paul’s work at http://compassionatemind.co.uk --- Professor Paul Gilbert, FBPsS, PhD, OBE is a British clinical psychologist, the founder of compassion focused therapy (CFT), compassionate mind training (CMT) and author of books such as The Compassionate Mind: A New Approach to Life’s Challenges, Overcoming Depression. He has researched evolutionary approaches to psychopathology for over 40 years with a special focus on the roles of mood, shame and self-criticism in various mental health difficulties for which Compassion Focused Therapy was developed. Professor Gilbert has written/edited 21 books and over 200 papers. In 2006 he established the Compassionate Mind Foundation as an international charity with the mission statement: “To promote wellbeing through the scientific understanding and application of compassion”. Professor Jeremy Holmes is a clinician, author, leading Attachment expert, and three-time speaker at The Weekend University. For 35 years, he was Consultant Psychiatrist/Medical Psychotherapist at University College London (UCL) and then in North Devon, UK, and Chair of the Psychotherapy Faculty of the Royal College of Psychiatrists 1998-2002. He is visiting Professor at the University of Exeter, and lectures nationally and internationally. In addition to 200+ peer-reviewed papers and chapters in the field of psychoanalysis and attachment theory, his books include John Bowlby and Attachment Theory, Exploring In Security, Attachment in Therapeutic Practice, and most recently: “The Brain has a Mind of Its Own”. He was the recipient of the Bowlby-Ainsworth Founders Award 2009. --- Interview Links: — Jeremy’s books - http://bit.ly/jh-books — Paul’s work - http://compassionatemind.co.uk