Welcome back to Friendship Therapy! This is the bitesize episode, where Emma discusses her therapeutic takeaways from her conversation with this week's guest, Rachel.

On Monday's episode, Rachel bravely opened up about the loss of her father two years ago. It was a bereavement that, in her words, 'shone a light' on the friends who were willing to get in the trenches with her, and those who couldn't meet her where she was.

For Rachel, the death of her dad signified the end of an incredibly difficult six months since his re-diagnosis, during which she had to contend with the inevitable arrival of her very worst fear, and the loss of the hope that she had been holding on to since she was a 12 year old girl making wishes on birthday candles. The losses that Rachel had experienced since she was a child gave her a sense of vigilance that stayed with her into adulthood, causing her to feel fearful of change, particularly within her friendship groups.

In this bitesize episode, Emma explores where Rachel's fear of loss and endings originates from and how it is showing up in her friendships now, with the help of the blind spot profiles in her latest book, What am I Missing? Emma also explains the concept of 'compound loss' in therapy and how we can begin to navigate it, and why fear, hope, love and sadness exist most productively when we allow them to co-exist.

Find out more about the blind spot profiles: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/454959/what-am-i-missing-by-turrell-emma-reed/9780241624982

If you’d like to apply to appear on the podcast in season two, please click the link below to fill out the form:   

https://forms.gle/owsfs6DVxVdTMFo46  

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Friendship Therapy is hosted by Emma Reed Turrell, produced by Chris Sharp and Lauren Brook.

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Social media:  

Emma Reed Turrell @emmareedturrell

Friendship Therapy @friendshiptherapypod

Email: [email protected]