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The Meaningful Life with Andrew G. Marshall

The Meaningful Life with Andrew G. Marshall

By: Andrew G. Marshall
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Hello, I am a marital therapist, communications trainer and author. I have thirty-five years helping couples and individuals make better relationships. I have written twenty-plus self-help books which include the international best-sellers ‘I love you but I’m not in love with you’ and ‘How can I ever trust you again?’ My books have been translated into twenty languages. I trained with RELATE the UK’s largest counselling charity. Perhaps it has been turning sixty but I have become interested in spiritual as well as psychological questions. Who am I? What are my values – as opposed to my parents, my teachers and the wider society? What makes my life meaningful? What do I believe about life, the universe and everything? Although my clients might come to me because of destructive arguments, falling out of love and infidelity, they are also interested in having more meaningful relationships and a more meaningful life. So what is the meaningful life? Why do we so easily lose our way and get lost in depression, anxiety, doubt, addictions and obsessions: the swamplands of the soul? One thing I know for sure is that there is not one answer. Each of us has to find out for ourselves what makes our life meaningful. But we can learn from each other, share our experiences of how to navigate the journey, how to endure and learn from the swamp, and finally how to find solid ground. I have decided to use my original training in radio and journalism to interview witnesses for what makes life meaningful. Each week, I invite someone who is a therapist, academic, self-help coach or who has an enlightening personal story to share their knowledge or experiences. I hope our discussions will help you discover what makes your life meaningful and find more purpose and contentment.Copyright 2023 All rights reserved. Hygiene & Healthy Living Personal Development Personal Success Psychology Psychology & Mental Health Spirituality
Episodes
  • Dr. Wendy Suzuki: Stressed? Worried? Can’t Focus?: The Neuroscientist’s Guide to Anxiety

    Dr. Wendy Suzuki: Stressed? Worried? Can’t Focus?: The Neuroscientist’s Guide to Anxiety
    Jun 8 2026

    If you dread parties, can’t face job interviews, or won’t start scary conversations with your partner, this is the episode for you.

    Dr Wendy Suzuki is a neuroscientist and an international expert on anxiety and the brain. Her new book, Good Anxiety, unpacks the science of everyday anxiety in a way that helps us manage it.

    In this episode, Andrew and Wendy discuss:

    ⚡️What “good anxiety” is, and how to channel it in the right direction.

    ⚡️How anxiety can lead to productivity and creativity.

    ⚡️Meditation, tea-drinking, and the jujitsu move that turns anxiety around.

    Dr. Wendy Suzuki is a Professor of Neural Science and Psychology in the Center for Neural Science at New York University and a celebrated international authority on neuroplasticity. She was recently named one of the 10 women changing the way we see the world by Good Housekeeping. Her TED talk has more than 31 million views on Facebook, and her first book Healthy Brain Happy Life was recently made into a PBS special.

    If You’re Looking for More….

    You can subscribe to The Meaningful Life (via Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts) and hear a bonus mini-episode every week. Or you can join our Supporters Club on Patreon to also access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50.

    This week supporters will hear:

    ⭐️Three things Dr. Wendy Suzuki knows to be true.

    ⭐️AND subscribers also access all of our previous bonus content - a rich trove of insight on love, life and meaning created by Andrew and his interviewees.

    Follow Up

    Attend Andrew’s mens’s retreat near Berlin in June 2026: details here

    Get Andrew’s free guide to difficult conversations with your partner: How to Tell Your Partner Difficult Things

    Take a look at Andrew’s new online relationship course: My Best Relationship Tools

    Read Andrew’s new Substack newsletter The Meaningful Life, and join the community there.

    Read Dr Wendy Suzuki’s book Good Anxiety: Harnessing the Power of the Most Misunderstood Emotion

    Visit Dr Wendy Suzuki’s website

    Connect with Dr Wendy Suzuki on social media: find her on Instagram @wendy.suzuki, on Twitter @wasuzuki and on Facebook @WendyASuzuki

    Read Andrew’s blog on how keeping a journal can improve your life: Top Twelve Benefits of Journaling

    If anxiety is a topic of interest for you, you may also enjoy Andrew’s conversation with Richard Paterson: No More Overthinking

    Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50.

    Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall

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    53 mins
  • Terry Real: The Five Traps that Undermine Your Love & One Simple Solution

    Terry Real: The Five Traps that Undermine Your Love & One Simple Solution
    Jun 1 2026

    Is society setting you up to fail in your marriage? World-renowned relationship therapist Terry Real sees a toxic culture of individualism troubling society at every level.

    We are told to strive for personal productivity and perfection, ignoring the fact that we exist in a web of crucial relationships.

    In this episode, Terry describes research showing that the mind exists in a social context, and that couples in fact co-regulate each other’s nervous systems.

    Getting this right is very tricky, though, if you grew up without enough emotional support. The survival strategies that got you through childhood may, in fact, “torch your personal relationships”.

    Andrew and Terry discuss the five most common traps that can undermine your relationship:

    🚩 Needing to be right

    🚩 Controlling your partner

    🚩 Unbridled self-expression

    🚩 Retaliation

    🚩 Shutting down

    We can overcome these, however, by tapping into our wiser, more collaborative self. If we can find the “us” rather than the “I”, we can achieve the warmer, more intimate relationships many of us long for.

    If You’re Looking for More….

    You can subscribe to The Meaningful Life (via Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts) and hear a bonus mini-episode every week. Or you can join our Supporters Club on Patreon to also access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50.

    This week supporters will hear:

    ⭐️Three things Terry Real knows to be true.

    ⭐️AND subscribers also access all of our previous bonus content - a rich trove of insight on love, life and meaning created by Andrew and his interviewees.

    Follow Up

    Attend Andrew’s mens’s retreat near Berlin in June 2026: details here

    Get Andrew’s free guide to difficult conversations with your partner: How to Tell Your Partner Difficult Things

    Take a look at Andrew’s new online relationship course: My Best Relationship Tools

    Read Andrew’s new Substack newsletter The Meaningful Life, and join the community there.

    Buy Terry Real’s book Us: Getting Past You & Me to Build a More Loving Relationship

    Take a look at Terry Real’s other books, including The New Rules of Marriage and How Can I Get Through to You?

    Visit Terry Real’s website https://terryreal.com

    Follow Terry Real on Facebook and YouTube @TerryRealRLI

    Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50.

    Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall

    Show More Show Less
    54 mins
  • Helen Tower & Lisa Arends: Infidelity: Lessons from My Recovery

    Helen Tower & Lisa Arends: Infidelity: Lessons from My Recovery
    May 25 2026
    My guests this week - Lisa Arends and Helen Tower - know just about everything there is to know about the painful subject of infidelity, because they have lived it through it themselves. Both have written extensively about their experiences. Lisa’s is a story of the most extreme and dramatic betrayal: ten years ago her husband ended their 16-year marriage with a text message, after which she never saw him again. Lisa rebuilt her life and has a new partner. Helen’s experience involved her partner’s lengthy affair with a co-worker. After initially separating from her husband, Helen came to the decision to try and rebuild the relationship. She and her husband recently celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary, and the journey toward recovery continues. Both Helen and Lisa agree that recovering from infidelity is all about strengthening the self. The journey to a new life and a new relationship (whether that’s with the unfaithful partner or someone new) hinges on doing the work to achieve self-knowledge and personal strength. This week’s episode is a fascinating three-way conversation featuring two totally different experiences of infidelity. It is essential listening if infidelity has been a part of your experience, but it also has much to offer if you’d like to feel stronger and more empowered in your relationship. Lisa Arends is a data scientist, former middle school math teacher and accidental expert on divorce. She is passionate about empowering, motivating and inspiring people as they move through difficult transitions and life situations. Lisa blogs at Lessons from the End of a Marriage. She lives outside of Atlanta with her husband and two adorable pit bulls. Helen Tower writes and blogs about infidelity (Helen Tower is the pen name she uses to protect her family). In 2018 Helen discovered her husband of twenty-two years was having an affair, and eight months later published her story as Sailing Through Infidelity: A Story of Love and Forgiveness. If You’re Looking for More…. You can subscribe to The Meaningful Life (via Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts) and hear a bonus mini-episode every week. Or you can join our Supporters Club on Patreon to also access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50. This week supporters will hear: ⭐️Three things Helen and Lisa to be true. ⭐️AND subscribers also access all of our previous bonus content - a rich trove of insight on love, life and meaning created by Andrew and his interviewees. Follow Up Attend Andrew’s mens’s retreat near Berlin in June 2026: details here Get Andrew’s free guide to difficult conversations with your partner: How to Tell Your Partner Difficult Things Take a look at Andrew’s new online relationship course: My Best Relationship Tools Read Andrew’s new Substack newsletter The Meaningful Life, and join the community there. Read Lisa Arends’ blog Lessons from the End of a Marriage Follow Lisa Arends on Facebook @LESSONSFROMTHEENDOFAMARRIAGE, on Twitter and Instagram @stilllearning2b and on YouTube. Helen Tower blogs at Sailing Through Infidelity Read Helen Tower’s books, including Sailing through Infidelity: A story of love and forgiveness. Listen to Helen Tower's podcast Sail Through and Beyond Infidelity https://open.spotify.com/show/0191IgpffJkLcxebwTm5S5?si=DYMn9S--QPOi5LT2HxRZag&dl_branch=1&nd=1 Follow Helen on Facebook @HelenTowerAuthor, on Instagram @helentowerstaycalm and on Twitter @sailinginfidel1 Read Andrew’s books on infidelity recovery: Why Did I Ever Cheat? Help Your Partner (and Yourself) Recover From Your Affair How Can I Ever Trust You Again? Infidelity: From Discovery to Recovery in Seven Steps I Can’t Get Over My Partner’s Affair: 50 Questions About Recovering from Extreme Betrayal and the Long-Term Impact of Infidelity Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50. Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall
    Show More Show Less
    1 hr and 2 mins
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All stars
Most relevant
Andrew G Marshall is insightful and compassionate. The guests are almost always engaging and friendly.
The podcast tackles subjects from relationships, personal growth and communication, to the psychology of fairy tales. Andrew himself, guides the listener through the topics with clarity, occational light hearted humour and enthusiasm.
Listeners can write into the podcast with a problem to be discussed, this is one of my favourite aspects of the show.
Definitely in my top 3 podcasts. The new episodes are available on a Monday morning, giving me a 'thought for the week', in which I contemplate the weeks' subject and put into practice some of the subject matter that has 'landed with me' from the pod.
Food for thought delivered in a clear and entertaining way.

Wonderful. Thoughtful. Entertaining.

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