After the last post on death and dying - I felt there was an important question to ask - do we know how to live?! Let's be honest, there are handbooks for everything and most of them tell us we are have much to learn, so when Cynthia Hickman a psychotherapist wrote a 'Handbook for Being Human' I was intrigued. My interview with Cynthia talks to how we grow up in this world without buying into the fear factor that is fed to us left, right, centre, up and down! 

The confusion and unease around initial changes to work practices meant these women had to address the stress and reassess how to make decisions. There are also some amazing insights for raising girls in the future - if we can show our girls that you are who you are in your essence and that can't be defined or boxed (by a profession or a title) they are then prepared for everything that comes.

Parents can be full of helpful advice, yet it can get heard by adolescents as criticism. Listen to Gabe, Annette and Lucy for some insights into how we develop the way we hear words and how intention and reception can be very different. This two part series is an incredible opportunity to consider the impact of the way we communicate in relationships, in our families. Gabrielle Caplice, Annette Baker and Lucy Dahill consider what criticism looks, sounds and feels like and how that plays out for children, teens and adults alike.

How much does shame influence the decisions we make and the behaviours we have taken as our normal? Jean Gamble talks us through shame and regret and teases out the different types of shame - toxic, functional and vicarious shame. What if there is a way to re-frame our thinking? Get snug as a bug in a rug and perhaps a pen and paper - you may want to take notes!

The show today is an up close and personal with study – the stress, the anxiety, the need – and perhaps most importantly, the why. A fundamental question has to be why are we studying and who are we studying for? If we have a family or are studying and working full or part time there are challenges inherent in juggling those commitments and responsibilities. There is a level of support we need to bring to ourselves in order to offer the space and perspective to work effectively without overriding the communication from our bodies and making ourselves sick. There is nothing intelligent about choosing dysfunctional behaviours! Join Lucy as she shares some of the things she learnt the hard way!