Psych for Life with Dr. Amanda Ferguson

Like it or not, we all have attachment styles! You have probably even heard the term before - but what are they and why should you be familiar with yours? In this episode I welcome back Jennifer Nurick to dive deep into all things attachment and how it impacts our relationships. Jennifer Nurick (Jen) specialises in healing anxious attachment, attachment injuries and childhood trauma. She is a lice...

Co-dependence may seem like the latest buzzy word, however if you're wanting healthy relationships in your life, it's one you should probably pay attention to. The cornerstone of Co-dependence is when we care too much what other people think about us. This keeps us limited, stuck and failing to grow and eventually impacts our relationships, keeping us stuck and miserable. Listen in to he...

In this episode of Psych for Life, I chat with Ella Zhang on alignment and congruence in great leadership. Ella is a passionate, strategic change maker, Organisational Development Consultant and executive coach with decades of experience in Fortune100 companies and start-ups. Her expertise includes leadership development, cultural transformation and talent development and last year she published h...

We can all relate to working with someone who seems just that little bit more difficult to manage. One minute everything may feel fine and the next, we wonder what we did wrong or how we misinterpreted instructions. The feeling you have to walk on eggshells or maybe just find yourself wanting to limit contact with this manager, co-worker or business colleague. So if this sounds familiar and you&ap...

Now more than ever, supporting our youth to thrive is essential. So in the latest episode of Psych for Life, I chat with "human behaviour expert" , Sabina Read on how best to support this. Sabina is a psychologist, speaker, media commentator, and life sherpa who works to help people become the architects of their own growth and freedom so they can ultimately "human better." Sab...

As explored in my previous episode on Loneliness and Solitude, loneliness is something we all experience at times in our lives. With our need to connect being innate, it's important to understand how connection impacts our wellbeing and happiness. So in this episode I discuss: what loneliness is, why connecting to the right people is critical and how to help yourself to connect when connectin...

There's no escaping that we live in a digital world. However, our digital habits are impacting our stress and relationships more than ever, so I chat with Dr Kristy Goodwin, about what we can do to tame them. Dr Kristy Goodwin studies what it takes to thrive in the digital world. Kristy is the author of Dear Digital, We need to talk where she decodes the neurobiology of peak-performance in a...

Burnout and unpaid overtime are a common problem, often leading to unhealthy work relationships and unhappy working environments. Often though, it's a tricky path to navigate if we find ourselves experiencing this. Do we want to ruffle feathers? What impact will it have on our job security? What are the long term impacts? These delicate issues are ones we all need to be able to manage, not ju...

In the latest episode of Psych for Life, I'm chatting with Dispute Resolution Practitioner and Counsellor, Rosemary Gattuso who specialises in trauma informed Family Dispute Resolution and Restorative Justice. Rosemary’s career began as a lawyer and then progressed away from the courts and towards mediation rooms. She became curious about how people manage personal crisis, adversity and self-...

So many people struggle to switch off at all and find themselves spending breaks (even lunch breaks, let alone holidays) on devices or madly trying to multi task lots of other seemingly must do tasks - which defeats the purpose of the break and then they wonder why they don't feel like they had a break at all. Does this sound familiar? Do you struggle to REALLY switch off? In this episode you...

In this episode, I welcome back Daniel Principe, a passionate youth advocate and educator. He champions boys across Australia to challenge culture and aspire to live courageous, respectful and empathetic lives. Having presented to tens of thousands of young people across Australia, Daniel is no stranger to the complex challenges that our distracting digital world presents to adolescents. Daniel pa...

It’s hard to believe this is my 100th Psych for Life podcast episode. I hope you’re enjoying listening to these eps as much as I am in making them! In honour of 100 eps, in this one I offer my top tips for thriving in our ever-changing world. These days – we are warned of more pandemics, economic and supply pressures and climate disasters. We live in what is known as VUCA times – volatile, uncerta...

Have you ever wondered why a work colleague or boss has you feeling like you're dealing with a family member? It's not as crazy as it sounds. In this episode of Psych for Life, I welcome Jennifer Nurick a licensed Clinical Psychotherapist, Counsellor, Energetic Healer, and author of “Heal Your Anxious Attachment”. She is the founder and voice of Psychotherapy Central and  has been workin...

In this episode, I welcome Gaj Ravichandra, a Peak Performance Coach, Registered Psychologist and the co-founder of Kompass Consultancy, a global Talent Management Consultancy that enables Performance Excellence. Gaj provides individual coaching on developing mental toughness, career pivots, finding purpose, opportunity and increasing mental resilience. Gaj helps people every day to map out their...

Loneliness....it is something we all can experience at various times in our lives. As humans our need to connect is innate, so when there is a gap between the connection desired and the actual lived experience, one can feel lonely. So in this episode I'll discuss all things loneliness, what it is, how it potentially impacts our health and wellbeing, and solutions for dealing with it when it&a...

Today I'm sharing the final episode in my 2024 Summer Series - some of my most popular Psych for Life episodes. I hope you enjoy it as much as my other listeners have. There is a lot of focus on the joy and gains of motherhood – however, with all the focus on what a woman gains when baby arrives, it’s easy to forget what they may lose – in particular the loss of a sense of self. The focus oft...

During January, I’ll be sharing my 2024 Summer Series - a replay of some of our most popular Psych for Life podcast episodes. I hope you enjoy them as much as my other listeners have. In this episode, I welcome back cognitive neuroscientist, Professor Mark Williams to chat about his fascinating new book, The Connected Species - How the evolution of the human brain can save the world. This book is...

During January, I’ll be sharing my 2024 Summer Series - a replay of some of our most popular Psych for Life podcast episodes. I hope you enjoy them as much as my other listeners have. In this episode, I chat with Sarah Rusbatch, a certified Women's Health and Wellbeing Coach, accredited Grey Area Drinking Coach and Key-Note speaker sharing her journey to Sobriety and impact of alcohol on ment...

During January, I’ll be sharing my 2024 Summer Series - a replay of some of our most popular Psych for Life podcast episodes. I hope you enjoy them as much as my other listeners have. You know that negative - often damning - voice inside your head? The one that says...you’re not good enough, you don’t deserve that, you’ll never get there! It's often referred to as our negative ego or inner cr...

As we quickly head towards the turn of the year, it is a natural time to take stock and reassess. Our unconscious mind naturally starts to do this most years, however, this year – more than many others - staying happy and empowered in these times of volatility and disruption – is a big challenge!. So in the last Psych for Life episode for 2023, we look at how to seize more control of our lives, si...

In this episode, I welcome back Australia's leading FInancial and Trauma Informed Financial Wellbeing Specialist, Jane Monica Jones. She is the co-founder of the Financial Wellbeing Company and author of The Billionaire Buddha and the Money Mental Health Card series. Jane has a passion for this sometimes challenging subject and works compassionately with clients and employees of organisations...

People often ask me - how can I know whether it is fear or my intuition talking to me? We would all like to be better equipped to tune into our intuition and let it drive our choices without being held back by fear. So tune in to this episode as I discuss all things intuition and fear. In this podcast you’ll learn: - What is fear and the difference between irrational and rational fear - How to kno...

In this episode I welcome psychologist, Carl Nelms. Carl is the founder of Blokes Psychology and has a passion for assisting men to overcome the stigma of reaching out for support. His vision is that by creating a service targeted towards males, more men can improve their psychological health and well-being, stop suffering in silence, and receive the support they desperately need, so they and thei...

In this time of increasing challenges and uncertainty, we are all needing to do more to look after our feelings, mental health and wellbeing. Self regulation – or self management - is a critical part of this. 'Glimmers' is a term coined by social worker Deb Dana, whose work centres around polyvagal theory – or how our daily feelings result from the state of our nervous system. This new c...

In this episode, I chat with Daniel Principe a youth advocate and educator with Collective Shout, a movement against the objectification of women and sexualisation of girls in the media, partnering with schools and communities to challenge the porn culture and the sexualisation of women and girls. Daniel has presented in hundreds of schools to students to assist parents and communities to raise he...