Friendship Therapy

Emma Reed Turrell

Friendship Therapy is a brand new podcast, in which psychotherapist and author Emma Reed Turrell talks to real people about real friendships and looks at these pivotal relationships through a therapy lens. read less
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Episodes

S3, Ep 9 Friendship Therapy: Surface Dwellers and Depth Seekers - exploring emotional depth in male friendships
16-12-2024
S3, Ep 9 Friendship Therapy: Surface Dwellers and Depth Seekers - exploring emotional depth in male friendships
Welcome to this week's episode of Friendship Therapy, the podcast in which we look at friendships through a therapeutic lens.This week, Emma is joined by Elliot to talk about what it's like to be an, as he puts it, emotional male within male friendship groups. Elliot shares an experience that many of us might be able to relate to: being unceremoniously exited from a friendship group chat, with no real explanation or conversation beforehand. In this episode, Emma and Elliot talk about why being a lone voice in the wilderness might feel lonely, but might also be necessary when it comes to blazing a trail towards greater emotional intimacy and permission to be authentic among a group of individuals who haven't necessarily been encouraged to be vulnerable.Emma and Elliot also chat about the difference between friends who are surface dwellers and the ones who are depth seekers, and how to avoid emotional bends when we're traveling between different water pressures. In fact, this episode makes a lot of references to the ocean, from Finding Nemo to treasure chests - so we encourage you to settle back on your Lilo and enjoy the conversation.If you’d like to apply to appear on the podcast, please click the link below to fill out the form: https://forms.gle/9yZAVgF9BbyKhwsV7---Friendship Therapy is hosted by Emma Reed Turrell, produced by Chris Sharp and Lauren Brook.--- Social media: Emma Reed Turrell @emmareedturrellFriendship Therapy @friendshiptherapypodEmail: contact@friendshiptherapypod.co.uk
S3, Ep 1 Friendship Therapy: Reciprocity in Friendship - how fear can get in the way of vulnerability
18-11-2024
S3, Ep 1 Friendship Therapy: Reciprocity in Friendship - how fear can get in the way of vulnerability
Welcome back to Friendship Therapy, the podcast in which we look at friendships through a therapeutic lens. To kick off season three, Emma chats to Poppy, who is struggling with a friendship dilemma that many of us can relate to.We've all been on the receiving end of a friend who has ditched us temporarily for a new relationship; perhaps we've been that friend who has, for a period of time, chosen to spend more time with a new partner than with our friendship group. But what happens when history seems to repeat itself over and over again?This week, Emma and Poppy talk about a particular friend who continuously chooses to drop her when the offer of a new relationship is on the horizon, and how that feels for Poppy. Using a Gestalt therapy technique, Emma takes Poppy through a therapy exercise live on the podcast to help her make sense of how a conversation with her friend might play out, and what the resolution might look like.Together, Emma and Poppy discover what Poppy's motivations in this friendship are, and why it might be more about feelings of fear, than feelings of frustration between the two of them.Find out more about Gestalt Therapy techniques: https://www.mentalhealth.com/library/gestalt-therapy-the-empty-chair-technique#:~:text=The%20Empty%20Chair%20Technique%20is,internal%20conflicts%20or%20unfinished%20business.If you’d like to apply to appear on the podcast, please click the link below to fill out the form: https://forms.gle/9yZAVgF9BbyKhwsV7---Friendship Therapy is hosted by Emma Reed Turrell, produced by Chris Sharp and Lauren Brook.--- Social media: Emma Reed Turrell @emmareedturrellFriendship Therapy @friendshiptherapypodEmail: contact@friendshiptherapypod.co.uk
S2, Ep 12 Dial Emma: Friendship Accountability - is it me, or is it them?
04-10-2024
S2, Ep 12 Dial Emma: Friendship Accountability - is it me, or is it them?
Welcome back to Dial Emma from Friendship Therapy, and the season 2 finale! This is where you get to dial Emma, with your dilemma (see what I did there?!) You share your friendship concerns, and I share my reflections as a therapist to give you the tips and tools you need to build better bonds.This week, our Dial Emma caller wants to talk about accountability in friendship. Should we adjust our expectations when friends let us down, or should we hold them to higher standards? Why is there often less accountability in friendship compared to romantic relationships?In this episode, and in the absence of a friendship HR department, jury or ombudsman, Emma encourages this listener to ask a simple question that might open up a much more honest conversation: is it me that’s not okay, or is it this situation that is not okay?Emma also explores why accountability and deep connection are not always a given in friendship, and why we need to get curious about what we are willing to offer as a friend and, crucially, what we need from friendship.  What advice would you give this listener?We'll be back with season 3 very soon, so please keep sending in your dilemmas for Emma to respond to! Drop us a voicenote on Instagram @friendshiptherapypod.---Friendship Therapy is hosted by Emma Reed Turrell, produced by Chris Sharp and Lauren Brook.--- Social media:  Emma Reed Turrell @emmareedturrellFriendship Therapy @friendshiptherapypodEmail: contact@friendshiptherapypod.co.uk
S2, Ep 10 Dial Emma: Guilt in Friendship - how do I stop feeling guilty for moving away from my friends?
27-09-2024
S2, Ep 10 Dial Emma: Guilt in Friendship - how do I stop feeling guilty for moving away from my friends?
Welcome back to Dial Emma from Friendship Therapy! This is where you get to dial Emma, with your dilemma (see what I did there?!) You share your friendship concerns, and I share my reflections as a therapist to give you the tips and tools you need to build better bonds.This week, we meet a listener who is grappling with feelings of guilt after moving away from their hometown - especially when the friends they left behind make comments about how little they get to see each other, and how they wish things could be different.We can all recognise that the feeling of guilt is only appropriate when we have done something objectively wrong, but how can we put this into practice in our relationships? How can we repair, when there was no wrong to begin with? How can we understand the difference between what we're choosing to hear, and what is actually being said?In this episode, Emma encourages this listener to get curious about their metric of friendship in order to find a way forward that meets their needs and that of their friends. Emma also explores some of the deeper emotions that might be hidden beneath the feeling of guilt, and reminds us all that we are not responsible for remedying how other people feel about the decisions we make for ourselves.  What advice would you give this listener? If you’ve got a friendship dilemma, drop us a voicenote on Instagram @friendshiptherapypod!---Friendship Therapy is hosted by Emma Reed Turrell, produced by Chris Sharp and Lauren Brook.--- Social media:  Emma Reed Turrell @emmareedturrellFriendship Therapy @friendshiptherapypodEmail: contact@friendshiptherapypod.co.uk
S2, Ep 8 Dial Emma: Friendship Endings - how do I stop ghosting friends and create some friendship stability for myself?
20-09-2024
S2, Ep 8 Dial Emma: Friendship Endings - how do I stop ghosting friends and create some friendship stability for myself?
Welcome back to Dial Emma from Friendship Therapy! This is where you get to dial Emma, with your dilemma (see what I did there?!) You share your friendship concerns, and I share my reflections as a therapist to give you the tips and tools you need to build better bonds. This week, we hear from a listener who recognises that they have a tendency to initiate very intense friendships, only to end them abruptly after a short time. This listener travels frequently for work and struggles to hold on to friendships long-term, but is that because they are not around in a purely geographical sense, or because there's something deeper there to explore?In this episode, Emma explores the idea of bingeing and purging in friendship, and how we can both crave connection and be overwhelmed by it beyond a certain point. We also discover the role that attachment styles can play in our friendships, and why sometimes, it's better to lean into our fears and allow them to motivate us to make a change, rather than sticking with what we've always known. What advice would you give this listener? If you’ve got a friendship dilemma, drop us a voicenote on Instagram @friendshiptherapypod!---Friendship Therapy is hosted by Emma Reed Turrell, produced by Chris Sharp and Lauren Brook.--- Social media:  Emma Reed Turrell @emmareedturrellFriendship Therapy @friendshiptherapypodEmail: contact@friendshiptherapypod.co.uk
S2, Ep 6 Dial Emma: Communication in Friendship - how can we give ourselves permission to exist as our true selves in friendship?
13-09-2024
S2, Ep 6 Dial Emma: Communication in Friendship - how can we give ourselves permission to exist as our true selves in friendship?
Welcome back to Dial Emma from Friendship Therapy! This is where you get to dial Emma, with your dilemma (see what I did there?!) You share your friendship concerns, and I share my reflections as a therapist to give you the tips and tools you need to build better bonds. This week, we hear from a listener who is struggling to navigate an imbalance in communication styles in a friendship, especially when it comes to making plans and responding to messages within a perceived timeframe that, currently, neither of them are sticking to. How can these friends update their friendship contract into the present so that both parties can show up wholly as themselves? Can people who have very different communication styles be in a successful friendship where their individual needs are met? In this episode, Emma comes back to attachment styles to try and understand what the dissonance could be between these friends, and why they have two very different reactions to a lack of ‘regular’ communication, whatever that looks like for them. Are they simply singing from different hymn sheets, or is it about giving themselves permission individually to behave in the ways that work for them within the friendship? What advice would you give this listener? If you’ve got a friendship dilemma, drop us a voicenote on Instagram @friendshiptherapypod!---Friendship Therapy is hosted by Emma Reed Turrell, produced by Chris Sharp and Lauren Brook.--- Social media:  Emma Reed Turrell @emmareedturrellFriendship Therapy @friendshiptherapypodEmail: contact@friendshiptherapypod.co.uk
S2, Ep 5 Friendship Therapy: Friendship Heartbreak - the games we play in friendship
09-09-2024
S2, Ep 5 Friendship Therapy: Friendship Heartbreak - the games we play in friendship
Welcome back to Friendship Therapy, the podcast in which we look at friendships through a therapeutic lens.This week, Emma is joined by Holly to talk about friendship heartbreak and how it feels to be dumped by a friend.When Holly’s two closest friends got engaged, she found herself waiting for an invitation to be a part of the bridal party that never came. What happened next was a slow and painful reevaluation of the terms of a friendship that had formed such a significant and meaningful part of her life for more than a decade.In this conversation, Emma and Holly discover how a text message about wedding planning would unravel a whole decade's worth of friendship and, ultimately, reveal a much more conditional connection built on conflict avoidance and adaptation.Through the Transactional Analysis theory of games, we look back to the beginning of Holly's friendship game to help her understand what went wrong and learn how to avoid the same heartbreak in future.To learn more about transactional analysis and the games people play, visit: https://www.mindtools.com/ayjtd4p/transactional-analysisIf you’d like to apply to appear on the podcast, please click the link below to fill out the form: https://forms.gle/9yZAVgF9BbyKhwsV7---Friendship Therapy is hosted by Emma Reed Turrell, produced by Chris Sharp and Lauren Brook.--- Social media: Emma Reed Turrell @emmareedturrellFriendship Therapy @friendshiptherapypodEmail: contact@friendshiptherapypod.co.uk