The Meaningful Life with Andrew G. Marshall

Have you ever experienced a strange, inexplicable coincidence that left you feeling “like a grand, mysterious character in a story?” One that seemed to suggest a particular relationship was “meant to be”, or, on the flipside, that it was time to let go? This week Andrew talks to Jungian analyst Robert Hopcke about synchronicity: the strange coincidences that make us feel like the universe is sending us a message, or trying to turn our lives around.  These coincidences have the potential to help us find the meaning we’re seeking. Synchronistic events can offer a sense of underlying wholeness in our lives. They often happen in times of transition, and help us move to the place we need to be. They offer us the opportunity to recognise the symbolic quality of everyday life, and to be alive to the symbolism that everyday objects, events and people present. Robert Hopcke is a Jungian analyst, author and a licensed marital therapist in private practice in Berkeley, California. He is the author of two books on Jung’s concept of synchronicity - There Are No Accidents and There Are No Accidents in Love and Relationships - and a number of other books about Jung.  Follow Up Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50. Read Robert Hopcke’s book There Are No Accidents: Synchronicity and the Stories of Our Lives Read Robert Hopcke’s book There Are No Accidents in Love and Relationships: Meaningful Coincidences and the Stories of Our Families Take a look at Robert Hopcke’s website  Get Andrew’s advice on creating real change in your life and relationships in his book Wake Up and Change Your Life: How to Survive a Crisis and Be Stronger, Wiser and Happier Read Andrew’s blog on journaling and find out how writing can help you bring more meaning into your life Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall 

Dr. James Hollis, a distinguished Jungian analyst and author, shares his wisdom on resilience and personal growth. He discusses how facing life's adversities can foster growth and the importance of seeking meaning over mere happiness. Hollis contrasts fleeting pleasures with deeper fulfillment and reflects on his transformative journey to therapy after personal crises. He emphasizes the role of dreams in self-acceptance and the need for an internal compass to navigate life's challenges, inspiring listeners to trust their inner strength.

According to Dr Warren Farrell, the world is facing a “boy crisis”. Suicide, ADHD and weak educational outcomes are among the problems boys and their parents face. Many bright boys are experiencing a “purpose void,” feeling alienated, withdrawn, and addicted to immediate gratification. Andrew and Warren discuss why boys are struggling and what parents, teachers, and policymakers can do to help our sons become happier, healthier men and fathers and leaders worthy of our respect. Dr Farrell is an author and academic specialising in men’s issues. He has been chosen by The Financial Times of London as one of the world’s top 100 thought leaders, and by the Center for World Spirituality as one of the world’s spiritual leaders. He is also the only man ever elected three times to the Board of the National Organization for Women in New York City. Dr Farrell has been interviewed by Oprah, Barbara Walters and Larry King, and has been featured in Forbes, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal. This week’s episode takes a slightly different format: Andrew interviews Warren Farrell at the annual MANN SEIN conference in Berlin, an international gathering to talk about masculinity in today’s world.  Follow Up Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50. Find out more about the MANN SEIN annual conference in Berlin/online. Learn more about Warren Farrell on his website: https://warrenfarrell.com  Read Warren Farrell’s book The Boy Crisis: https://warrenfarrell.com/product/the-boy-crisis/  You can follow Warren Farrell on Twitter, Facebook, Youtube and Instagram @drwarrenfarrell Read Andrew’s book on how to be a great parent and have a happy marriage, Can We Start Again Please? Twenty Questions to Fall Back in Love: https://andrewgmarshall.com/book/can-we-start-again-please-twenty-questions-to-fall-back-in-love/  Watch Andrew’s video on the Ten Golden Rules of Happy Parenting: https://youtu.be/Ksk6PQSGhQs  Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall 

Are you jogging along, not really noticing how time is passing? Avoiding the big questions by spending hours on distractions that don’t really add much to your life? For most of us, if we knew death were around the corner, we would most likely use our time differently. Oliver Russell was one of the first people in the UK to be infected with COVID-19. All of his major organs shut down and a police officer was ready to visit family with the news of his death.  Oliver was already struggling to deal with the long, empty-seeming days of the new retiree, the needs of his aging mother, and an over-reliance on alcohol. COVID tore this troubled existence apart. After a long, frightening journey to the edge of death, he was pushed to make major life changes. Oliver stopped using alcohol, transformed his social circles so that they were positive and rejuvenating, and found a new appreciation of the small pleasures of life. Follow Up Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50.  Read Andrew’s advice on dealing with painful feelings Read Andrew’s thoughts on creating real change in your life and relationships in his book Wake Up and Change Your Life: How to Survive a Crisis and Be Stronger, Wiser and Happier Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall 

Have you been told “just be yourself”, only to feel confused about what exactly that means? This week Andrew discusses with Dr Linda Berman seven important starting points for finding your authentic self.  Linda Berman is a writer, artist and retired psychotherapist. Before her retirement she worked privately, including in a psychiatric hospital, and for the NHS. Linda was also a counsellor and supervisor with Relate for many years. Linda has written a book, Beyond the Smile, exploring the importance of photographs in people’s lives and in psychotherapy. She has degrees in literature, psychotherapy, and fine art, and also a PhD, for which she researched the effects on survivors of telling the Holocaust story. Linda writes a weekly blog about mental health, psychotherapy, life and relationships.   Follow Up Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50. Read Linda Berman’s blog waysofthinking.co.uk - it covers mental health, psychotherapy, life and relationships. Take a look at Linda’s book Beyond the Smile: the Therapeutic Use of the Photograph Follow Linda on Twitter @LindaBerman4 Read Andrew’s advice on keeping a journal of your life and emotions at https://andrewgmarshall.com/top-twelve-benefits-of-journaling/  Get Andrew’s advice on creating real change in your life and relationships in his book Wake Up and Change Your Life: How to Survive a Crisis and Be Stronger, Wiser and Happier: https://andrewgmarshall.com/book/wake-up-and-change-your-life-how-to-survive-a-crisis-and-be-stronger-wiser-and-happier/  Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall 

Half of all women have experienced pain during sex. Yet the subject remains taboo, and help and understanding from the medical profession can be very hard to find.  In this week’s episode Fran Bushe, author of My Broken Vagina, shares her funny, moving quest to fix her sex life (and yours). During her journey toward understanding vaginismus, Fran was advised by doctors to have a glass of wine to loosen up, male friends suggested she just hadn’t tried the right penis yet, and she even visited a Sex Camp.  Andrew and Fran discuss how understanding the vagina better can enhance sex lives for women and men. They also talk about how to overcome pain during sex, move past the idea of penetration as “real sex”, and find a deeper level of pleasure for both of you.  Follow Up Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50. Read Fran Bushe’s book My Broken Vagina: One Woman’s Quest to Fix her Sex Life, and Yours Get tickets for Fran’s one woman show Ad Libido at the Soho Theatre in August/September 2021. Follow Fran on Twitter and Instagram @franbushe Find out more about vaginismus from The Vaginismus Network Read Andrew’s blog Three Secrets of a Happy Relationship Read Andrew’s book Have the Sex You Want: a Couple’s Guide to Getting the Spark Back Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall 

Diet culture is everywhere: it’s impossible to avoid exposure to “clean eating”, fat phobia and the thin ideal. Yet as Kate Daigle tells Andrew this week, it’s not possible to live a meaningful life whilst being fully immersed in diet culture. These are limiting beliefs that shrink people’s worlds. In this episode Kate Daigle, a specialist in supporting people to recover from eating disorders, talks with Andrew about people’s increasingly unhealthy relationship with food. Kate also shares her personal journey of recovery from eating disorders, and explores what it means to have an eating disorder. An eating disorder can be a constant, “reliable” companion, offering relief and a high similar to other addictions. Eating disorders are also likely to point to an underlying attachment wound.  Kate Daigle is a Certified Eating Disorder Specialist (CEDS) and a Licensed Professional Counselor. She is also a speaker and published author supporting people in recovery from eating disorders and body image issues from a Health at Every Size (HAES) perspective.   Kate is based in Denver, Colorado and has been in private practice since 2010. In addition to her professional work, Kate volunteers in her local community to raise awareness about the prevalence and treatment of eating disorders and works to reduce the shame and stigma that are often associated with these disorders. Follow Up Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50 Read Kate Daigle’s book The Clinical Guide to Fertility, Motherhood and Eating Disorders: From Shame to Self Acceptance Visit Kate’s website and read her blog  Follow Kate on Facebook @KateDaigleCounseling and Instagram @katedaiglecounseling Read Andrew’s blog “How to Heal from Trauma: Six Key Ways to Deal With Trauma” Read Andrew’s book on making meaningful change in your life Wake Up and Change Your Life: How to Survive a Crisis and be Stronger, Wiser and Happier Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall 

We spend a lot of time feeling very serious about seeking meaning in our lives; but is it possible that the secret lies in making the search more fun? Can we say a creative, mutually affirming “yes” more often? And when do we need a self-protective “no”? This week Andrew and improv comedy star Pippa Evans have lots of fun together as they compare the strategies of improvisational comedy with those of therapy. Perhaps the most interesting lesson from improv: “be in the moment that is, not the one you thought would come along”.  Pippa Evans is a comedian and writer known for her skills in improvisational comedy. She was a core member of the improv team behind the award-winning stage show Showstopper: The Improvised Musical which toured the UK and abroad, and has regularly appeared on BBC radio.  Pippa likes to “use jokes to find connection”, and teaches courses on improvisation and the ways it can help improve our relationships with ourselves and with others. She has recently written a book called Improv Your Life: An Improviser’s Guide To Working With Whatever Life Throws At You. Among her many other accomplishments, Pippa is also the co-founder of the Sunday Assembly, a church for non-believers.  Follow Up Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50. Read Pippa Evans’ new book Improv Your Life: An Improviser’s Guide to Working With Whatever Life Throws At You Take a look at Pippa’s website  Find out more about the Sunday Assembly, a church for non-believers co-founded by Pippa and fellow comedian Sanderson Jones. Follow Pippa on Twitter and Instagram @IAmPippaEvans Get Andrew’s book on rejuvenating your relationship when you feel you’ve lost the spark: Can We Start Again Please? Twenty Questions to Fall Back in Love  Read Andrew’s advice on building a happy relationship with your partner: Three Secrets of a Happy Relationship https://andrewgmarshall.com/three-secrets-of-a-happy-relationship/  Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall 

Men with sex or pornography addictions and problematic sexual behaviours need support to find the root of their pain. Eddie Capparucci helps these men find and listen to their inner child, and to figure out why that child is creating pain and upheaval in their lives. Eddie is a therapist certified in the treatment of sexual and pornography addiction. He and his wife, Teri, have a private practice working with men struggling with sex/porn addiction, as well as with their wives who are dealing with betrayal. Among his many clients, Eddie has worked with professional athletes including NFL and MLB players and television personalities. This week Andrew, Eddie and Teri discuss finding and speaking to your inner child, and the power of this process to heal relationships and restore hope.  Follow Up Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50. Take a look at Eddie Capparucci’s Inner Child Recovery Process on his website. Find out about Eddie’s online community for those recovering from sex/porn addiction:  www.GoingDeeper.co  Follow Eddie on Twitter @ECapparucci Read Andrew’s books on infidelity recovery: Why Did I Ever Cheat? Help Your Partner (and Yourself) Recover From Your Affair How Can I Ever Trust You Again? Infidelity: From Discovery to Recovery in Seven Steps I Can’t Get Over My Partner’s Affair: 50 Questions About Recovering from Extreme Betrayal and the Long-Term Impact of Infidelity Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall 

The hard truth is that if you don’t allow yourself to fail, you won’t live a full life. Giles Paley-Phillips sees failure as a fascinating moment of opportunity. Failure offers the chance to take stock, re-evaluate, dust yourself down and give things another try.  Giles has a book and a podcast, both titled Blank, in which he asks highly successful people to share their experiences of going completely blank. According to Giles, it might be frightening, but “blank is a very creative place to start”. In this episode, Andrew and Giles explore what it means to allow yourself to fail in life and in your relationships, why failure must not be the end of your journey and how to go about picking yourself up when things go wrong. Giles Paley-Phillips is an author for children and adults, as well as a podcast host and producer. Follow Up Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50. Listen to the Blank podcast with Giles Paley-Phillips and Jim Daly. Read Blank:Why it's fine to falter and fail, and how to pick yourself up again by Giles Paley-Phillips. Read Giles’ short verse novel One Hundred and Fifty-Two Days. Follow Giles on Twitter @eliistender10 Get Andrew’s advice on creating real change in your life and relationships in his book Wake Up and Change Your Life: How to Survive a Crisis and Be Stronger, Wiser and Happier. Read Andrew’s blog on how to start keeping a journal, in which you can reflect on failure and growth. Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall