In this episode of Compassion in a T-Shirt, I’m joined by Margaret Cullen, a licensed psychotherapist and one of the true pioneers of bringing mindfulness and compassion into mainstream psychology, healthcare, and community settings.

Margaret was among the first teachers certified in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction, has taught internationally for decades, and spent over 30 years supporting people living with cancer and their loved ones. She co-developed Compassion Cultivation Training at Stanford, founded Compassion Corps to bring compassion programs to underserved communities, and has helped shape how contemplative practices are taught across the world.

Our conversation centres on Margaret’s beautiful new book, Quiet Strength, which explores equanimity not as detachment, numbness, or emotional suppression, but as a steady, wise presence that allows us to stay open, engaged, and human — without being hijacked by reactivity.

We explore what equanimity really is (and what it isn’t), how it shows up in the body and nervous system, how it supports compassion without overwhelm or pity, and why “broken-hearted equanimity” may be one of the most important capacities for living in uncertain, polarised, and painful times.

This is a grounded, thoughtful conversation about calm strength, embodiment, and how we can meet life as it actually is.

Timestamps:

00:00 Welcome to Compassion in a T-Shirt

00:13 Introducing Margaret Cullen and her work

01:04 What is equanimity? Introducing Quiet Strength

03:50 Common misunderstandings about equanimity

05:32 Equanimity, emotional balance, and recovery

09:32 Mindfulness and equanimity: how they overlap

22:21 Margaret’s early journey with MBSR

25:23 The body and nervous system in equanimity

28:27 Bottom-up equanimity and embodied practice

31:37 Interrupting rumination and hyperarousal

34:34 Fears, blocks, and resistance to equanimity

37:03 Equanimity in relationships and real life

40:01 Nonviolent resistance and quiet strength

45:51 Broken-hearted equanimity

47:44 Equanimity as a support for compassion

52:31 Clinical and therapeutic applications

54:06 Closing reflections

Links:

Margaret Cullen’s website with links to the book, training, and other resources

https://margaretcullen.com/

More on Quiet Strength from the publishers:

https://www.harpercollins.com/products/quiet-strength-margaret-cullen?variant=43897021300770

If you would like to learn more about compassion focused therapy, you can find Dr Stan Steindl's book The Gifts of Compassion here: https://www.ausapress.com/p/the-gifts-of-compassion-how-to-understand-and-overcome-suffering/

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Video hashtags:

equanimity, compassion, mindfulness, emotionalresilience, contemplativepsychology, quietstrength