A Bunch of Therapists

This episode discusses gambling addiction, shame, co-dependency, self-esteem and masculinity.

This episode of A Bunch of Therapists is proudly sponsored by The Awareness Centre Training School. If you’ve ever thought about becoming a therapist or are looking to enhance your clinical skills, TAC Training School offers a complete, supportive pathway into the profession. From foundation-level counselling courses to their BACP-accredited Diploma in Integrative Counselling and Diploma in Clinical Supervision, their programmes are led by expert tutors and designed to help you grow into a confident, ethical and skilled practitioner.

To find out more, visit www.tactrainingschool.com and take the next step in your therapy journey.

🎧 Join us for a fascinating and refreshingly honest conversation with therapist and coach Joel Bild as he shares his journey from a teenage gambling addiction that spiralled out of control, to finding his way through years of self-exploration and ultimately training as a therapist.

This compelling discussion explores the shame and co-dependency that can underpin addiction, and why that elusive sense of “feeling good enough” is so central to our wellbeing.

Hosted by Michaela McCarthy, Founder of The Awareness Centre, The Awareness Centre Training School, and Creator and Host of A Bunch of Therapists Podcast. Michaela is a Senior BACP Accredited Psychotherapist and Influential Leader. Also hosted by Dipti Solanki, Therapist, Coach and Consultant, Mental Health Trainer and Founder of Grief Matters 4 All CIC.

In this compelling episode, Joel openly shares:

• His first encounters with gambling during his school years
• Spending his bus money on fruit machines and the gradual pull of addiction
• His family recognising the problem and referring him to therapy in his teens
• The addiction spiralling out of control by the time he reached university
• The long and non-linear journey of overcoming addiction through self-exploration
• Waiting until he felt “grown up enough” to train as a therapist
• Working with clients on confidence, self-esteem and addiction
• His thoughts on co-dependency and the role it plays in addictive behaviours
• Unpacking shame and how it keeps people stuck
• Exploring masculinity and vulnerability
• The search for that elusive feeling of being “good enough”

This essential conversation offers valuable insights for anyone navigating addiction, struggling with shame, or on their own journey towards self-worth and confidence.

🔍 Key topics discussed:

• Gambling addiction and how it can take hold from a young age
• The role of shame in addiction and recovery
• Co-dependency and its connection to addictive behaviour
• Family intervention and the introduction to therapy
• The long road of self-exploration and personal growth
• Masculinity, vulnerability and emotional honesty
• Confidence and self-esteem in recovery
• Feeling “good enough”: what it means and why it matters
• Using lived experience to inform therapeutic practice
• Working with clients on addiction and self-worth

🎬 Watch full episodes of A Bunch of Therapists on our YouTube channel
🎧 A Bunch of Therapists is available on all major podcast platforms
🗓️ New episodes every other Thursday

Follow A Bunch of Therapists on social media:

YouTube: @ABunchofTherapistsTV
TikTok: @a.bunch.of.therapists
Instagram: @abunchoftherapists
Facebook: A Bunch of Therapists
LinkedIn: A Bunch of Therapists
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode discusses childhood trauma, disordered eating, neglect, abuse, PTSD, narcissistic abuse, self-harm and suicide.

This episode of A Bunch of Therapists is proudly sponsored by The Awareness Centre Training School. If you’ve ever thought about becoming a therapist or are looking to enhance your clinical skills, TAC Training School offers a complete, supportive pathway into the profession. From foundation-level counselling courses to their BACP-accredited Diploma in Integrative Counselling and Diploma in Clinical Supervision, their programmes are led by expert tutors and designed to help you grow into a confident, ethical, and skilled practitioner. To find out more, visit https://tactrainingschool.com/ and take the next step in your therapy journey.

🎧 Join us for a fascinating and deeply personal conversation with psychotherapist Domenica Stilwell as she shares her journey from a childhood marked by anxiety, neglect and abuse to finding safety through therapy and becoming a specialist in trauma.

This honest and illuminating discussion explores how disconnection from the body can be a response to childhood trauma, and why working with the nervous system is so powerful in facilitating healing.

Hosted by: Michaela McCarthy (Founder of The Awareness Centre, The Awareness Centre Training School, and Creator and Host of A Bunch of Therapists Podcast. Senior BACP Accredited Psychotherapist and Influential Leader) and Dipti Solanki (Therapist, Coach & Consultant, Mental Health Trainer and Founder of Grief Matters 4 All CIC).

In this compelling episode, Domenica openly shares:
• Growing up in Poland and the traumatic experiences she faced in the family home
• Developing an eating disorder at an early age as a response to anxiety, neglect and abuse
• Living so disconnected from her body that she didn't notice a burn turning septic
• A visit to her GP becoming the unexpected catalyst for beginning therapy
• Working with a therapist to understand the roots of her disconnection
• Discovering how her childhood experiences had shaped her relationship with her body
• Finding a sense of safety through therapy that she had never felt in childhood
• Being inspired by her own healing journey to train as a psychotherapist
• Working as a lecturer and therapist specialising in trauma
• Supporting clients experiencing PTSD and narcissistic abuse
• Using nervous system work to facilitate healing in others

This essential conversation offers valuable insights for anyone exploring childhood trauma, disordered eating, body disconnection, or the healing power of therapy.

🔍 Key Topics Discussed:
• Childhood trauma and its lasting impact on the body
• Disordered eating as a response to anxiety, neglect and abuse
• Disconnection from the body and somatic awareness
• The role of the nervous system in trauma and healing
• How an unexpected moment can become a turning point
• Therapy as a path to safety and self-understanding
• PTSD and the effects of narcissistic abuse
• Training as a therapist following personal experience of healing
• Working with trauma in a therapeutic setting
• The journey from surviving to helping others heal

🎬 Watch full episodes of A Bunch of Therapists on our YouTube channel
🎧 A Bunch of Therapists is available on all major podcast platforms
🗓️ New episodes every other Thursday

Follow A Bunch of Therapists on Social Media:
YouTube: @ABunchofTherapistsTV
TikTok: @a.bunch.of.therapists
Instagram: @abunchoftherapists
Facebook: A Bunch of Therapists
LinkedIn: A Bunch of Therapists
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode discusses anxiety, depression, OCD, PTSD, ADHD, Bipolar Affective Disorder, and psychosis.

This episode of A Bunch of Therapists is proudly sponsored by The Awareness Centre, a leading counselling and psychotherapy practice in London with over 300 therapists, offering therapy both in person and online. With a range of fee options designed to make support more accessible, no GP referral needed, no waiting list, and appointments available seven days a week. Visit https://theawarenesscentre.com/ to find the right therapist for you.

🎧 Michaela and Dipti meet Consultant Psychiatrist Dr Soumitra Burman-Roy to ask vital questions and challenge myths about mental health, neurodiversity and more.

Born into a family of doctors, Soumitra joined the medical profession as a young man, but it was only when he walked into a psychiatric ward that he realised he'd found his calling. Having spent his young life 'trying to connect with people', he enjoyed the challenge of engaging with people with difficult or confusing behaviours and trying to understand and help them.

He now works with patients and their families to tackle common and complex mental health problems including anxiety, depression, OCD, PTSD, ADHD, Bipolar Affective Disorder and psychosis.

In this fascinating and informative episode, Soumitra explains what psychiatrists do, how psychiatrists and therapists work together, what a diagnosis is (and when you might need one), why ADHD is on the rise, how our culture and our genes influence our mental health, and how to stay sane when it seems like the world has gone crazy.

Hosted by:
Michaela McCarthy (Founder of The Awareness Centre, The Awareness Centre Training School, and Creator and Host of A Bunch of Therapists Podcast. Senior BACP Accredited Psychotherapist and Influential Leader) and Dipti Solanki (Therapist, Coach & Consultant, Mental Health Trainer and Founder of Grief Matters 4 All CIC).

In this compelling episode, Soumitra shares:
• How he found his calling in psychiatry
• Why he was drawn to understanding difficult or confusing behaviours
• What psychiatrists do
• How psychiatrists and therapists work together
• What a diagnosis is - and when you might need one
• Why ADHD is on the rise
• How culture and genes influence mental health
• How to stay sane when the world has gone crazy

🔍 Key Topics Discussed:
• Psychiatry and how it supports mental health
• Working with patients and families
• Understanding diagnosis and when it can help
• ADHD and why more people are talking about it
• Anxiety, depression, OCD, PTSD, Bipolar Affective Disorder and psychoses
• The role of culture and genetics in mental health
• Making sense of mental health myths and misconceptions

🎬 Watch full episodes of A Bunch of Therapists on our YouTube channel
🎧 A Bunch of Therapists is available on all major podcast platforms
🗓️ New episodes every other Thursday

Follow A Bunch of Therapists on Social Media:
YouTube: @ABunchofTherapistsTV
TikTok: @a.bunch.of.therapists
Instagram: @abunchoftherapists
Facebook: A Bunch of Therapists
LinkedIn: A Bunch of Therapists

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode contains discussion around grief, loss, relationships, attachment, and food psychology.
This episode of A Bunch of Therapists is proudly sponsored by TAC Training School. If you’ve ever thought about becoming a therapist or are looking to enhance your clinical skills, TAC Training School offers a complete, supportive pathway into the profession. From foundation-level counselling courses to their BACP-accredited Diploma in Integrative Counselling and Diploma in Clinical Supervision, their programmes are led by expert tutors and designed to help you grow into a confident, ethical, and skilled practitioner. To find out more, visit http://www.tactrainingschool.com/ and take the next step in your therapy journey.
🎧 Join us for an entertaining and enlightening conversation with academic, cook, Financial Times Book of the Year Author and psychotherapist Dr Andrea Oskis as she shares insights from her new book 'The Kitchen Shrink: How the food we eat is the key to how we love', exploring how food stories from therapy reveal the deeper truths about our relationships and psychological wellbeing.
This thought-provoking discussion explores how food is fundamental to our emotional lives, profoundly affecting how we deal with life's big challenges - love, loss, separation and jealousy.
Hosted by:
Michaela McCarthy (Founder of The Awareness Centre, The Awareness Centre Training School, and Creator and Host of A Bunch of Therapists Podcast. Senior BACP Accredited Psychotherapist and Influential Leader) and Dipti Solanki (Therapist, Coach and Consultant, Mental Health Trainer and Founder of Grief Matters 4 All CIC).
In this compelling episode, Dr Oskis openly shares:
• How food stories told by clients in therapy explain how we form and sustain relationships
• The 'fried egg theory of grief' and what it reveals about loss
• The 'hot sauce paradigm' and its connection to relationship dynamics
• Combining storytelling, recipes and Attachment Theory in therapeutic practice
• How food affects our psychological wellbeing beyond basic nutrition
• Understanding the emotional connection between what we eat and how we love
• Practical insights for grieving partners and parents of picky eaters
• Why there's a lot of discussion about eggs in this episode
• How academic research, cooking and psychotherapy intersect
• Recognising food as more than just sustenance in our emotional lives
This essential conversation offers valuable guidance for anyone interested in the psychology of food, attachment patterns in relationships, or understanding how our eating habits reflect our emotional world.
🔍 Key Topics Discussed:
• The intersection of food, psychology and relationships
• Attachment Theory and how we form connections with others
• The 'fried egg theory of grief' explained
• The 'hot sauce paradigm' and relationship dynamics
• How food stories reveal deeper psychological truths
• Using recipes and storytelling in therapeutic practice
• Food as a lens for understanding love, loss and separation
• The emotional significance of what and how we eat
• Consoling grief and supporting parents through food psychology
• Why eggs feature so prominently in food and relationship narratives
 
🎬 Watch full episodes of A Bunch of Therapists on our YouTube channel
🎧 A Bunch of Therapists is available on all major podcast platforms
🗓️ New episodes every other Thursday
Follow A Bunch of Therapists on Social Media:
YouTube: @ABunchofTherapistsTV
TikTok: @a.bunch.of.therapists
Instagram: @abunchoftherapists
Facebook: A Bunch of Therapists
LinkedIn: A Bunch of Therapists
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode discusses childhood hardship, caring responsibilities, racism, perfectionism, overwork, stress, and serious health issues.
This episode of A Bunch of Therapists is proudly sponsored by TAC Training School. If you’ve ever thought about becoming a therapist or are looking to enhance your clinical skills, TAC Training School offers a complete, supportive pathway into the profession. From foundation-level counselling courses to their BACP-accredited Diploma in Integrative Counselling and Diploma in Clinical Supervision, their programmes are led by expert tutors and designed to help you grow into a confident, ethical, and skilled practitioner. To find out more, visit http://www.tactrainingschool.com/ and take the next step in your therapy journey.
 
🎧 Join us for an honest and inspiring conversation with counsellor, coach and public speaker Maryane Mwaniki as she shares her journey from growing up with constant money struggles and caring for her mother from a young age, to becoming a high achiever in a demanding professional world before being forced to confront the cost of overwork.
This thoughtful discussion explores how childhood experiences can shape perfectionism and work addiction, and why slowing down can be the beginning of a more balanced and fulfilling life.
Hosted by:
Michaela McCarthy (Founder of The Awareness Centre, The Awareness Centre Training School, and Creator and Host of A Bunch of Therapists Podcast. Senior BACP Accredited Psychotherapist and Influential Leader) and Dipti Solanki (Therapist, Coach and Consultant, Mental Health Trainer and Founder of Grief Matters 4 All CIC).
In this compelling episode, Maryane openly shares:
• Growing up in a family affected by ongoing money struggles
• Caring for her mother, who lived with chronic ill-health and did not speak English as a first language
• Advocating for her family from a young age
• Becoming highly driven and high-achieving at work
• Studying English and going on to work in Higher Education
• Being the only young, Black female in a space dominated by older White men
• Building a successful career at pace
• Reaching a point of personal stress and overwork that led to serious health issues
• Being forced to slow down and re-evaluate her priorities
• Addressing what she describes as 'a work addiction'
• Retraining as a counsellor after her recovery
• Choosing to live a 'softer life' centred more on balance than perfection
• Working now as a counsellor, coach and public speaker with individuals, couples and groups
This essential conversation offers valuable insight for high achievers struggling with perfectionism, overwork, and the pressure of trying to 'have it all'.
🔍 Key Topics Discussed:
• Childhood hardship and early caring responsibilities
• Growing up with financial pressure and family advocacy
• The roots of perfectionism and overachievement
• Navigating race, gender and identity in professional spaces
• The impact of chronic stress and overwork on health
• Recognising and addressing work addiction
• Slowing down and re-evaluating priorities
• Recovery and career change
• Retraining as a counsellor
• Living a softer, more balanced life
• Supporting individuals, couples and groups through counselling and coaching
🎬 Watch full episodes of A Bunch of Therapists on our YouTube channel
🎧 A Bunch of Therapists is available on all major podcast platforms
🗓️ New episodes every Thursday
Follow A Bunch of Therapists on Social Media:
YouTube: @ABunchofTherapistsTV
TikTok: @a.bunch.of.therapists
Instagram: @abunchoftherapists
Facebook: A Bunch of Therapists
LinkedIn: A Bunch of Therapists
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.