Psychology, Actually

What if the thing you've been searching for isn't confidence or happiness, but a genuine sense of safety? Feeling safe can transform how you think, connect, and experience the world.

In this episode of Inner Work, Dr Marianne Trent explores why psychological safety is essential for emotional wellbeing, how our nervous system learns to expect danger, and why finding moments of safety can be the first step towards healing.

#PsychologicalSafety #MentalHealth #InnerWork

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Could one of the most effective wellbeing tools already be sitting in a knitting bag? Sometimes the simplest habits can have a bigger psychological impact than we expect. In this episode of Psychology, Actually, Dr Marianne Trent is joined by Dr Mia Hobbs and Dr Paula Redmond to explore how knitting and crochet can support mental health, emotional wellbeing and self-care through evidence-informed psychological principles.

#MentalHealth #Knitting #Psychology

Trauma doesn't always look the way people expect. Sometimes it shows up as anxiety, depression, emotional numbness or unhealthy coping strategies instead.

In the Episode, Dr Marianne Trent explores why we avoid emotional pain, how trauma affects the brain, and why therapies such as EMDR can help you reconnect with yourself and move towards healing.

#Trauma #EMDR #MentalHealth

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What if trauma isn't over because your brain still thinks you're in danger? In this episode of Psychology, Actually, Dr Marianne Trent is joined by clinical psychologist and EMDR trainer Dr Alex Button to explore how EMDR therapy works, why PTSD develops, and how trauma can affect grief, anxiety and everyday life.

Discover the three core PTSD symptom groups, the difference between big and small traumas, and why EMDR helps the brain recognise: "That was then; this is now."

#EMDR #Trauma #PTSD

Highlights:

Are you always trying to improve yourself or is it time to accept where you are?

In this episode of Inner Work, Dr Marianne Trent explores self-acceptance, perfectionism, alcohol, and the pressure to keep optimising ourselves.

💬 Where do you draw the line between growth and acceptance?

#InnerWork #SelfAcceptance #MentalHealth

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Most people think Tourette's is just swearing, but that's one of the biggest myths.

In this episode, Dr Marianne Trent and clinical psychologist Dr Jason Codner explore what Tourette's syndrome is really like, how it affects everyday life, common misconceptions, diagnosis, treatment, and the support available.

#tourettesyndrome #MentalHealth #psychology #tourettes

Highlights

What if the story you've been telling yourself isn't true? In this episode, Dr Marianne Trent explores why change is possible, how curiosity can transform your life, and why seeking the right support could change everything.

💬 What would you change if you could?

#psychology #MentalHealth #selfgrowth

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#psychologypodcast #chooseyourself

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Can your brain learn to regulate itself?

🧠 Discover how neurofeedback works, what the latest research says, and why it's becoming one of the most talked-about approaches in mental health.

In this episode, Dr Marianne Trent speaks with Dr Madeleine Roantree about anxiety, trauma, ADHD, PTSD, sleep, brain regulation, and the futu...

What do you do when someone you love is struggling, but you can’t fix what they’re going through? In this episode of Inner Work, Dr Marianne Trent explores the importance of holding hope, focusing on what we can control and responding to distress with compassion rather than shame.

Drawing on psychology, systemic therapy and personal reflections, Marianne discusses how curiosity, understanding and compassion can help us support others while accepting the limits of what we can change.

#innerwork #compassionovershame #supportingsomeoneyoulove

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What actually helps someone recover from anorexia?

After developing anorexia as a teenager, Tiffany Luxford spent approximately two years receiving inpatient treatment. Today, she is fully recovered and using her lived experience to improve how eating disorders are understood and supported. In this episode of Psychology, Actually, Tiffany joins Dr Marianne Trent to share what genuinely helped her recover, what she wishes had been different during treatment, and why compassion, connection and feeling understood matter.

Together, they explore the emotional distress behind eating disorders, the role of trauma, control and self-criticism, and why separating the...

Are you waiting to be chosen… or are you choosing yourself?

How often do we wait for permission before pursuing the life we really want? Whether it's applying for a new job, reaching out to someone we admire, asking for help or taking the first step towards a goal, it can feel safer to wait for someone else to notice us.

In this episode of Inner Work, I reflect on one of the biggest ideas to emerge from my conversation with Clinical Psychologist Cliff Hawkins: the importance of agency, self-belief and learning to raise your ha...

Are soft skills more important than qualifications?

When people think about building a successful psychology career, it's easy to focus on degrees, experience and technical expertise. But what if the qualities that matter most are the ones we don't always put on our CV?

In this episode of Psychology, Actually, I'm joined by Clinical Psychologist Cliff Hawkins to explore why reliability, curiosity, communication, professionalism and emotional intelligence may be the real ingredients of a successful psychology career.

Whether you're an aspiring psychologist hoping to secure your first Assistant Psychologist post, a trainee navigating...

In this week's Inner Work, I reflect on the surprising grief that can emerge when we begin to understand our patterns more clearly. Sometimes the sadness isn't about what happened. It's about what didn't happen.The support, safety, consistency or care that might have changed everything.We explore grief, boundaries, childhood experiences and what happens when we begin to realise that our needs were valid all along.

These Inner Work videos were previously members only but I have decided to share them with you so thanks for being here.

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Why do so many of us feel responsible for everyone else's emotions?Have you ever found yourself saying yes when you wanted to say no? Feeling guilty for setting boundaries? Or carrying the weight of other people's feelings long after the conversation has ended?

In this episode of Psychology, Actually, I am joined by forensic psychologist Dr Nicole Harvey to explore the psychology of people pleasing, emotional responsibility, boundaries and the surprisingly powerful "dog poo bag" analogy.

We discuss why people pleasers often become exhausted, overwhelmed and resentful, how childhood experiences can shape our relationship...

What if your nervous system is paying attention to far more than you realise?

In this week's Inner Work, I reflect on my conversation with Health Psychologist Dr Sula Windgassen and explore the idea that our bodies are constantly taking in messages about safety, worth and belonging.

We consider what happens when we repeatedly dismiss our own feelings, stay silent when something doesn't sit right, or fill our environments with content that leaves us feeling "less than".

This isn't about dramatic life changes. It's about the small moments of self-advocacy, self-respect and self-compassion...

When doctors tell us our tests are normal, many people hear a very different message: "It's all in your head." But what if that phrase is based on a complete misunderstanding of how the mind and body actually work together?

In this episode of Psychology, Actually, I am joined by Health Psychologist Dr Sula Windgassen, author of It's All In Your Body, to explore chronic illness, pain, recurrent UTIs, adenomyosis, periods, stress, nervous system regulation and the powerful relationship between physical and psychological health.

We discuss why so many people feel dismissed when living with...

What happens when you begin recognising old relational patterns… and start looking back at past relationships differently?

In this week’s Inner Work episode, I reflect on grief, hindsight, growth, emotional memory and the complicated feelings that can emerge when we realise we might make very different choices now than we once did.

We explore:

This...

Why do some fears disappear whilst others seem to stay with us for years? Why can one bad experience shape the way we think, feel and behave long after the danger has passed? And why do humans keep expecting the worst, even when things are actually okay?

In this episode of Psychology, Actually, I’m joined by Dr Martyn Quigley, Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Swansea University, to explore the fascinating psychology of extinction learning, phobias, anxiety, exposure therapy, conditioning and habit change.

We discuss why fear responses develop, why they can be so difficult to...

What happens when you begin recognising old relational patterns… and start looking back at past relationships differently?

In this week’s Inner Work episode, I reflect on grief, hindsight, growth, emotional memory and the complicated feelings that can emerge when we realise we might make very different choices now than we once did.

We explore:

This...

Why do we keep repeating relationship patterns that no longer serve us?

In this episode of Psychology, Actually, Dr Marianne Trent is joined by fellow Clinical Psychologist Dr Kate Sherratt to explore attachment, relational patterns, dating psychology, burnout, self-esteem and why our earliest relationships can quietly shape the way we navigate adult life.From people-pleasing and emotional shutdown… to burnout at work, dating “catnip”, anxious attachment and struggling to ask for needs to be met - this conversation explores the hidden relational patterns that often sit underneath our everyday struggles.

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What if the problem isn’t that you’re lazy… but that modern life is designed to overwhelm you?

In this episode of Psychology, Actually, Dr Marianne Trent is joined by author Lily Silverton to explore the psychology of procrastination, overwhelm, attention, comparison and why so many people struggle to prioritise what actually matters.If you constantly feel behind, overstimulated or exhausted by competing demands, this conversation may really resonate.

⏱️ Timestamps

Why are so many employees burning out sometimes before their careers have even properly begun? In this episode of Psychology, Actually, Dr Marianne Trent is joined once again by educational psychologist Dr Adam McCartney to explore the psychology of workplace wellbeing, burnout, leadership, identity, organisational culture and the growing impact of AI on confidence and autonomy at work.

We discuss how modern workplaces often prioritise productivity and metrics over human wellbeing, why early career professionals are struggling, and how organisational systems can either support or damage psychological safety.

The conversation explores mentorship, identity, communities of...

Most therapy tries to understand what’s “wrong” with someone. But what if the person isn’t the problem at all? In this episode of Psychology, Actually, Dr Marianne Trent is joined by clinical psychologists Rosslyn Offord, Elizabeth Field and Polly Kaiser to explore narrative therapy a therapeutic approach that helps people separate themselves from problems, reconnect with identity, and rewrite the stories they hold about themselves.

We discuss trauma, grief, dementia, migration, stigma, ageing, burnout, community work, and how narrative therapy can support people across cultures and across the lifespan. The conversation also explores externalising problems, Tree of...

Why do people stay in abusive relationships?It’s one of the most common questions people ask after stories of trauma, coercion and abuse. But it’s often the wrong one.

In this episode of Psychology, Actually, I explore the psychology behind the question “Why didn’t she leave?” through the lens of Virginia Giuffre’s memoir Nobody’s Girl https://amzn.to/4tAA93f - unpacking trauma, grooming, coercive control, attachment, dissociation, threat, and why survival can look deeply misunderstood from the outside.

We explore what keeps people in harmful situations, why trauma reshapes choice, and ho...

What do you do when your child won’t go to school… and it doesn’t feel like defiance? In this episode of Psychology, Actually, we explore emotional based school avoidance (EBSA / EBSNA) – why it happens, when it’s most likely to start, and what actually helps children feel able to return to education.I’m joined by Educational Psychologist ⁨@Dr.AdamMcCartney⁩ and we discuss the psychology behind school refusal, the pressure on families and schools, and why one trusted teacher can sometimes make all the difference.If you’re a parent, professional, or aspiring psychologist trying to understand school anxiety, at...

Who are you… without the roles you’ve built your life around? In this Inner Work episode, we reflect on identity, validation, and the tension between who we are and how we’re seen. We explore what it means to rely on external markers of success and how we begin to build something more internal, stable and self-defined.

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⚠️ Disclaimer This content is for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute medical, psychological, or professional advice. Any actions taken based on this content are at your own risk.

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What happens when fame arrives before you know who you are… and then disappears? In this episode of Psychology, Actually, I’m joined by 90s pop star Kavana (Anthony Kavanagh) to explore the psychology of fame, addiction, identity and recovery.

We talk openly about the reality behind the spotlight - from chart success and public adoration to addiction, shame, and rebuilding a life when everything changes.Anthony shares his journey into sobriety, what recovery really looks like day-to-day, and how writing his memoir became part of that healing process.

If you’ve ever wondered about the em...

Is it too late to become a clinical psychologist?In this episode of Psychology, Actually, I’m joined by trainee clinical psychologist Claire Dunn, who started her journey at 40 and secured a place on the doctorate at 47.Together, we break down what retraining in psychology actually looks like practically, emotionally, and strategically.

Using real-life style examples of older applicants navigating career change, family life, and self-doubt.We explore pathways into clinical psychology, including conversion courses, assistant psychologist roles, NHS experience, and how to stay competitive when you feel “behind”.If you’re an aspiring psychologist wondering whether you’ve l...

Most people think liver disease is only caused by alcohol. It isn’t. In this episode of Psychology, Actually, we explore fatty liver disease (now known as metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease), a common but often silent condition affecting 1 in 5 people in the UK.

I’m joined by NHS health coach Sharan Verma, who shares both professional insight and her personal experience of losing her father to the disease. We discuss symptoms, diagnosis, reversibility, and why so many people are unaware they have it until it’s progressed.This episode also explores the psychological impact of illness, caregi...

Becoming an Assistant Psychologist in the UK can feel frustrating, competitive, and at times deeply personal – especially when applications don’t lead to interviews or offers. In this episode of Psychology, Actually, we explore why Assistant Psychologist roles are so difficult to secure, what experience is actually needed before applying, and how to navigate rejection without burning out or losing confidence.

We discuss the reality of psychology career pathways in the UK, including why many successful applicants have prior relevant roles, how to build experience strategically, and how to approach interviews as a two-way process – including checking whethe...

What if one of the most powerful tools for girls’ confidence, resilience and emotional wellbeing was already on the school timetable? 

In this episode of Psychology, Actually, we explore why girls in sport is about so much more than physical fitness. 

Joined by educational psychologist Dr Mel Morrison (The Sporty Ed Psych), we discuss how sport supports emotional regulation, identity development, belonging, and confidence in girls and young women.We also unpack the barriers that still exist – including gender stereotypes, access, cost, and school culture – and how we can create more inclusive opportunities so all girls can thrive, both in education and beyond.

If you’re a parent, educator, or aspiring psycho...

We train psychologists to think brilliantly… but no one really teaches us how to feel. In this episode we explore embodied practice in psychology, including how to manage stress, anger, burnout, trauma, and emotional overwhelm through the body rather than just the mind.I’m joined again by Dr Sunil Lad, Consultant Counselling Psychologist and NHS Clinical Director, and we discuss why many clinicians feel disconnected from their bodies and what changes when we begin to work bottom-up instead of top-down.This episode is essential for psychologists, therapists, and anyone who feels stuck in their head, overwhelmed, or unable to s...

Disability, Identity & Leadership in Psychology - Turning Difference into Strength! What if the thing that makes you feel different is actually the thing that makes you a better psychologist?In this episode we explore disability, identity, lived experience, and leadership in psychology, and how difference can shape powerful, compassionate clinical practice. I’m joined by Dr Sunil Lad, Consultant Counselling Psychologist and National NHS Clinical Director, who shares his experience of growing up in a body the world wasn’t built for and how that shaped his journey into psychology, leadership, and compassion-focused work.This episode is essential for aspi...

How do international students actually become clinical psychologists in the UK? In this episode I speak with Dr Samuel Chu, originally from Hong Kong, who moved to London as an international student and is now a qualified NHS clinical psychologist.

We unpack the real pathway into UK clinical psychology training, including Tier 4 student visas, international student fees, assistant psychologist roles, NHS access, and the Clearing House application process.Samuel shares his journey of leaving Hong Kong at 18, adapting to British culture, gaining clinical experience in the NHS, and eventually qualifying as a psychologist in the UK.

Teachers are burning out. Classrooms are becoming harder to manage. And children are struggling to regulate their emotions in school. In this episode, clinical psychologist Dr Marianne Trent speaks with educational psychologist Dr Adam McCartney about what educational psychologists actually do in schools - and how psychological thinking can help transform behaviour, emotional regulation and staff wellbeing across entire school systems. Using real case studies from UK schools, we explore classroom behaviour challenges, teacher burnout, SEND pressures and practical emotional regulation strategies that help children and teachers thrive. Whether you're an aspiring psychologist, teacher, SEN professional, or simply curious...

What Teenage Mothers Really Need - A Psychologist’s PerspectiveTeenage pregnancy is often framed as a social problem, a failure, or a life “ruined.” But what if the real issue isn’t the pregnancy - it’s the stigma, judgement, and low expectations placed on young mothers?

In this episode, I’m joined by Dr Hayley Lugassy, an educational psychologist who became a mother at 15. We explore the psychological impact of teenage pregnancy, the harm caused by shame-based responses from families and professionals, and what truly supports better outcomes for both young mothers and their children.

We discuss...

In this episode of The Aspiring Psychologist Podcast, I’m joined by Dr Emma Hepburn, Clinical Psychologist and creator of The Psychology Mum, to explore burnout, shame in mental health professionals, creativity in clinical psychology, and what happens when your body forces you to stop. We discuss how Emma’s illustrations began in NHS brain injury groups, how her “capacity cup” drawing went viral during the pandemic, and how social media traction unexpectedly led to publishing opportunities.

We unpack the psychology of burnout, emotional exhaustion, stress overload, shame narratives, and why even clinical psychologists are not immune to menta...

In this episode of The Aspiring Psychologist Podcast, we explore what it’s really like working as a UK-trained Clinical Psychologist in the UAE. If you’ve ever wondered about relocating abroad, practising outside the NHS, navigating private healthcare systems, or balancing career progression with lifestyle changes, this conversation offers a realistic and informed perspective.

I’m joined by Dr Jack Nejand, a UK-trained Clinical Psychologist who moved from South London to Abu Dhabi. We discuss visas, licensing, tax differences, CAMHS-style work in the UAE, insurance-based healthcare models, relocation logistics, career development abroad, service development opportunities, and what l...

In this episode of The Aspiring Psychologist Podcast, we explore whether the popular “Let Them” mindset is always as healthy as it appears.I’m joined by Dr Rana Pishva, Clinical Psychologist, to unpack how ideas intended to support empowerment and boundary-setting can sometimes slip into emotional avoidance, disconnection, and relational rupture – particularly when applied rigidly or without reflection.Together, we discuss boundaries versus avoidance, curiosity versus control, and what happens when self-focused wellness messages are used to shut down difficult conversations rather than deepen understanding. We explore real clinical examples involving family relationships, holidays, romantic partners, and unmet emotiona...

In this episode of The Aspiring Psychologist Podcast, we explore what it really means to be care experienced and how early experiences of foster care and the care system can shape identity, relationships, and career journeys into clinical psychology.I’m joined by Jacob Maspero Bottaio, one of the youngest trainee clinical psychologists in the UK, who shares his experience of entering the care system at a young age, moving between foster placements, experiencing a failed adoption, and navigating the emotional and systemic barriers on the path to clinical psychology training.Together, we discuss care experience, hyper-independence, attachment, supervision dy...