Elizabeth Gilbert-author of Eat, Pray, Love-talks about Schopenhauer's theory about intimacy and relationships and why people are like porcupines. Relationship counselling provides a safe space in which to work through difficulties together.
In love and in relationships - whether that be with our families, our spouses, our friends - we are all of us on this earth....like porcupines who are out on a cold winter's night. They get cold, and they need to huddle together for warmth. They crave connection and they crave warmth... and then they prick each other because they have these horrible spines and it's painful, so in order to avoid the pain they retreat, and then they get cold so they come together... this dance of intimacy is what defines our relationships."
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Iain and Susan are struggling to work out why their sex life has ground to a halt. A short promotional film for the BBC animated documentary: Wonderland: The Trouble With Love and Sex.
In this short excerpt from a PBS documentary, behavioral scientist Dr Peter Whybrow, author of 'American Mania: When Too Much Is Not Enough', talks about the perils of a fast-paced, consumer-driven lifestyle and why it's not the key to happiness.
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Sleep psychologist Shelby Harris discusses why insomniacs can't get to sleep, even when (they think) they've accumulated a massive sleep debt. Help for insomnia can come with Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, which is shown to give longer-lasting results than sleeping pills.
Professor Robert Sapolsky discusses the evolutionary origins and functions of stress and reveals just how dangerous prolonged exposure to stress can be in our modern lives. Mindfulness therapies can help individuals alter their responses to stressful event.
A panel of scientists discusses the evolutionary basis for fear, how these responses can be learned, and how they inform superstition, religious practice and cultural tradition.
Animation director and illustrator Steve May created this great little video about anger as one of several shorts inspired by the experiences of real teens dealing with real issues.
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Existential psychotherapist, Dr Irvin Yalom, discusses the importance of the client being treated as an equal by their therapist and of their working together. He suggests that self-revelation on the part of the therapist is also important.
Journalist Phillip Weiss, editor of Mondoweiss, discusses the pressures in modern marriage, especially to do with sex. And how most most studies show, in the US at least, that 25% of married men are unfaithful, and 15% of women.
Steve Hayes, the main force behind Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, is himself a panic attack sufferer in recovery. Panic responds very well to behavioural therapies such as CBT, especially when combined with mindfulness approaches.
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"My pick for the single most effective treatment for managing stress is actually quite a simple one . . . change your thinking style." From Mike Evans, Professor of Family Medicine & Public Health, University of Toronto.
A thoughtful piece as always from Stephen Fry, discussing his experience of depression. Fry was diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder in 1995 after suffering a nervous breakdown.
Steve Blacknell, 55, used to sneak into the kitchen in the middle of the night to eat in secret. He has been recovering from bulimia for 20 years. At The House, our therapists and counsellors are experienced in helping people overcome issues with food and eating.
In a study that asked 515 people why they entered into sex with someone, 50% of women and 52% of men said that they hoped to trigger a longer relationship.
A man's problems with his wife keep him awake during a whole night. An animation about insomnia, by Marie-Margaux Tsakiri-Scanatovits, promoting the short story 'Night Thoughts' by Helen Simpson, for Granta magazine's issue on feminism.
This powerful film by documentary filmmaker Martin Hampton introduces us to the lives of four people struggling with compulsive hoarding; each vignette more uncomfortable that the last.
Levni Yilmazis is an independent film-maker, artist and publisher. In this short animation he provides a wry how-to guide for breaking up . . . in 64 easy steps!
Social anxiety has been part of Jo's life since childhood. In this painful story she describes its pernicious effect and the vicious cycle between feelings of anxiety and sadness. But the story has a happy ending as Jo eventually discovers therapy.
Professor Mark Williams, co-developer of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy, and research fellow at Oxford University, discusses the science behind why mindfulness works, in calming stress and preventing depression from recurring.
A short animation on how OCD feels to Danish artist, Joaquim Nielsen. One in fifty adults experience obsessive-compulsive behavior during their lives. While OCD can be a serious social disabling condition, it has also become a source of inspiration for some artists.
This film by the charity OCD-UK offers insight into the problems that people with OCD face, and how they experience the condition. OCD responds very well to a combination of CBT cognitive behavioral and mindfulness therapies.
A short video from animator Kelly Bailey on what it's like to live with panic and agoraphobia, containing recorded testimony of real people who have struggled with and overcome these fears.
Professor Paul Salkovskis, a clinical psychologist and director of the Centre for Anxiety Disorders and Trauma, discusses Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. And Karen reveals how this form of therapy helped her overcome OCD.
Kadam Morten Clausen, resident teacher at the Kadampa Meditation Centre in New York, discusses how stress is all about our perceptions of others and of the world. Mindfulness practices, as encouraged at The House Partnership, can help you find a path to a life free of stress.
Levni Yilmazis is an independent film-maker, artist and publisher. This is his ironic take on the less-than-helpful advice some people give when you're experiencing depression.
A clip from the BBC's Weird Nature series showing how Vervet Monkeys in the Caribbean have taken to stealing cocktails from people on the beach. Studies show that they have the same percentage of teetotal and alcoholic individuals as the human population.
