Psyche Magazine
@psyche.co
A magazine to help you understand yourself and live well.
Have you noticed patterns in your life – themes or dynamics that seem to repeat even when you try to do things differently? This week’s Guide explores how schema therapy helps you identify these deep-rooted beliefs, understand the coping modes that keep them alive, and gently loosen their hold
How to stop your life playing on repeat | Psyche Guides
Those frustrating patterns you keep experiencing might be because of your schemas – and there’s a therapy that can help
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November 26, 2025 at 1:15 PM
Have you noticed patterns in your life – themes or dynamics that seem to repeat even when you try to do things differently? This week’s Guide explores how schema therapy helps you identify these deep-rooted beliefs, understand the coping modes that keep them alive, and gently loosen their hold
Marketers have become astonishingly skilled at shaping not just what we eat, but what we feel when we eat. In this video, the philosopher Barry C Smith unpacks how the brain distinguishes between liking and wanting, and how clever branding exploits that gap to keep us coming back for more
‘Sonic branding’ and other ways food marketing keeps you hooked | Psyche Videos
Why does a soda can make that distinctive ‘pop’? A philosophy professor explains how food marketing manipulates our senses
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November 26, 2025 at 11:15 AM
Marketers have become astonishingly skilled at shaping not just what we eat, but what we feel when we eat. In this video, the philosopher Barry C Smith unpacks how the brain distinguishes between liking and wanting, and how clever branding exploits that gap to keep us coming back for more
Does being autistic make me a better doctor than a friend? A doctor reflects on how recognising her autism has helped her see the strengths she brings to her work and the social barriers she faces. This compassionate, revelatory story broadens our sense of what empathy can look like
Does being autistic make me a better doctor than a friend? | Psyche Turning Points
In medicine, empathy came easy. In friendship, it fell apart. An autism diagnosis helped me understand why
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November 25, 2025 at 11:45 AM
Does being autistic make me a better doctor than a friend? A doctor reflects on how recognising her autism has helped her see the strengths she brings to her work and the social barriers she faces. This compassionate, revelatory story broadens our sense of what empathy can look like
Smartphone bans are all over the headlines, but what about the children who genuinely need their phones? This Note to Self shines a light on a group often overlooked: those who rely on their devices for health and wellbeing, and who are made more vulnerable by blanket calls for phone-free childhoods
The kids forgotten by calls to ban phones | Psyche Notes to Self
Campaigns calling for smartphone-free childhoods might be well meaning, but the choice is not so simple for all families
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November 25, 2025 at 11:15 AM
Smartphone bans are all over the headlines, but what about the children who genuinely need their phones? This Note to Self shines a light on a group often overlooked: those who rely on their devices for health and wellbeing, and who are made more vulnerable by blanket calls for phone-free childhoods
Today’s Idea by @trishedges.bsky.social draws on existential and social phenomenology to examine the shift from ‘we’ to ‘us’, showing how the first-person plural is shaped by power, social identity and the gaze of others – and how an ‘us’ can constrain, yet also galvanise collective action
The existential struggle between being a ‘we’ and an ‘us’ | Psyche Ideas
Sartre’s phenomenology reveals the shift from subject to object (and back) is not just grammar. It is a matter of power
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November 24, 2025 at 1:33 PM
Today’s Idea by @trishedges.bsky.social draws on existential and social phenomenology to examine the shift from ‘we’ to ‘us’, showing how the first-person plural is shaped by power, social identity and the gaze of others – and how an ‘us’ can constrain, yet also galvanise collective action
Panic isn’t a modern ailment. Humans have lived with it for centuries, long before medications such as benzodiazepines existed. So what did people in other eras and cultures do when terror struck, and how did they steady themselves?
buff.ly/7zR9MIq
buff.ly/7zR9MIq
November 24, 2025 at 12:04 PM
Panic isn’t a modern ailment. Humans have lived with it for centuries, long before medications such as benzodiazepines existed. So what did people in other eras and cultures do when terror struck, and how did they steady themselves?
buff.ly/7zR9MIq
buff.ly/7zR9MIq
What can we learn by taking transcendent UFO stories seriously? A filmmaker takes a leap of faith when he decides to risk ridicule and make a serious film about UFO sightings. Watch the full documentary here buff.ly/t0sD89o
November 20, 2025 at 4:31 PM
What can we learn by taking transcendent UFO stories seriously? A filmmaker takes a leap of faith when he decides to risk ridicule and make a serious film about UFO sightings. Watch the full documentary here buff.ly/t0sD89o
The first thing to remember is that the great philosophers were only human. Then you can start disagreeing with them.
For #worldphilosophyday, we’re sharing this delightful Guide which offers tips on how to read philosophy to gain a richer perspective and dive deep into wonder buff.ly/kEPprRr
For #worldphilosophyday, we’re sharing this delightful Guide which offers tips on how to read philosophy to gain a richer perspective and dive deep into wonder buff.ly/kEPprRr
How to read philosophy | Psyche Guides
The first thing to remember is that the great philosophers were only human. Then you can start disagreeing with them
buff.ly
November 20, 2025 at 2:45 PM
The first thing to remember is that the great philosophers were only human. Then you can start disagreeing with them.
For #worldphilosophyday, we’re sharing this delightful Guide which offers tips on how to read philosophy to gain a richer perspective and dive deep into wonder buff.ly/kEPprRr
For #worldphilosophyday, we’re sharing this delightful Guide which offers tips on how to read philosophy to gain a richer perspective and dive deep into wonder buff.ly/kEPprRr
This delightful Note To Self from our production editor Freya Howarth reflects on the unexpected comfort she finds in the worn-in, the flawed and the deeply human textures of vintage, and what these lovingly imperfect pieces taught her about loosening her grip on perfection
Vintage clothes: a balm for my perfectionism | Psyche Notes to Self
Loose threads, tugged seams and torn hems. How wearing vintage clothes helps me accept the discomfort of imperfection
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November 20, 2025 at 1:30 PM
This delightful Note To Self from our production editor Freya Howarth reflects on the unexpected comfort she finds in the worn-in, the flawed and the deeply human textures of vintage, and what these lovingly imperfect pieces taught her about loosening her grip on perfection
What happens when medicine reaches its limit but a parent’s love does not? In this story of Amber Freed, as told to Lina Zeldovich, a mother recounts her dauntless crusade to help produce a cure for her son’s rare disease after doctors told her there was nothing to be done
Doctors said nothing could save my son. I refused to accept that | Psyche Turning Points
Doctors said my son would die. I wouldn’t believe them, raised millions of dollars and travelled the world for a cure
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November 20, 2025 at 11:15 AM
What happens when medicine reaches its limit but a parent’s love does not? In this story of Amber Freed, as told to Lina Zeldovich, a mother recounts her dauntless crusade to help produce a cure for her son’s rare disease after doctors told her there was nothing to be done
Therapy shouldn’t leave you feeling unseen or uneasy. If the approach feels off or you sense a lack of fit, it’s worth paying attention to. This Guide shows you how to work through doubts and find the support that helps you thrive
How to deal with doubts about your therapist | Psyche Guides
It’s not wrong to wonder whether your therapist is helping – it could be a useful signal. Here’s what to do next
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November 19, 2025 at 8:00 PM
Therapy shouldn’t leave you feeling unseen or uneasy. If the approach feels off or you sense a lack of fit, it’s worth paying attention to. This Guide shows you how to work through doubts and find the support that helps you thrive
How do we uphold our commitment to publishing trustworthy essays? Aeon’s senior production editor explains the meticulous editorial processes that safeguard our standards, from rigorous fact-checking and testing narrative coherence to clarifying complex ideas without losing nuance buff.ly/dOdEheS
November 19, 2025 at 2:37 PM
How do we uphold our commitment to publishing trustworthy essays? Aeon’s senior production editor explains the meticulous editorial processes that safeguard our standards, from rigorous fact-checking and testing narrative coherence to clarifying complex ideas without losing nuance buff.ly/dOdEheS
Willpower and resistance are overemphasised – which contributes to the negative judgments that people face about weight. In this Idea, professor of philosophy Matthew C Haug argues that we should rethink what self-control is in light of the effects of drugs like Ozempic
The Ozempic era should change how we think about self-control | Psyche Ideas
Struggling to manage weight can seem like a failure of raw willpower. GLP-1 drugs highlight how misguided that view is
buff.ly
November 19, 2025 at 1:15 PM
Willpower and resistance are overemphasised – which contributes to the negative judgments that people face about weight. In this Idea, professor of philosophy Matthew C Haug argues that we should rethink what self-control is in light of the effects of drugs like Ozempic
Can ‘visualising’ success really improve outcomes? This BBC Ideas shows how mental imagery can genuinely boost performance – from exercise to entrepreneurship – and offers practical tips for using it in everyday goal-setting and decision-making @ox.ac.uk
From sports to business, mental imagery can boost outcomes | Psyche Videos
Visualisation activates similar brain areas as real-life experiences. Here’s how to use mental imagery to improve results
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November 19, 2025 at 11:15 AM
Can ‘visualising’ success really improve outcomes? This BBC Ideas shows how mental imagery can genuinely boost performance – from exercise to entrepreneurship – and offers practical tips for using it in everyday goal-setting and decision-making @ox.ac.uk
Reposted by Psyche Magazine
I had a lot of fun writing this piece for @psyche.co, which just reminded me that people have always had to deal with criticism from others -- and the key is to be creative about how you deal with your haters.
psyche.co/ideas/get-me...
psyche.co/ideas/get-me...
Get medieval on your haters: lessons from Beowulf and Chaucer | Psyche Ideas
When your reputation is at stake, get medieval on your haters: lessons from Beowulf, Margery Kempe and Geoffrey Chaucer
psyche.co
November 16, 2025 at 4:09 PM
I had a lot of fun writing this piece for @psyche.co, which just reminded me that people have always had to deal with criticism from others -- and the key is to be creative about how you deal with your haters.
psyche.co/ideas/get-me...
psyche.co/ideas/get-me...
As a Korean adoptee, I’d never expected to meet a blood relative. Then a 23andMe email landed in my inbox
After my adoptive family imploded, I met my first blood relative | Psyche Turning Points
As a Korean adoptee, I’d never expected to meet a blood relative. Then a 23andMe email landed in my inbox
buff.ly
November 17, 2025 at 7:15 PM
As a Korean adoptee, I’d never expected to meet a blood relative. Then a 23andMe email landed in my inbox
After years spent living in her head, the Psyche author Nancy Uddin found her way back to herself through exercise. In today’s Life Story, Nancy reflects on her journey from chaos to stability, and how she rebuilt a sense of home within her own body buff.ly/2NJFeHa
How strength training saved me from my own mind | Psyche Turning Points
When grief and distraction spun my mind out of control, only the strain of my muscles could keep it intact
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November 14, 2025 at 11:30 AM
After years spent living in her head, the Psyche author Nancy Uddin found her way back to herself through exercise. In today’s Life Story, Nancy reflects on her journey from chaos to stability, and how she rebuilt a sense of home within her own body buff.ly/2NJFeHa
We often tend to blame the most vulnerable for being greedy, rather than taking aim at the ‘greedy systems’ that are responsible for driving inequality. Explore the history and politics of our attitudes to greed in this Psyche Idea
Blame the ‘greedy bastards’, and you protect the greedy systems | Psyche Ideas
The most vehement and damaging charges of ‘greed’ get directed at precisely those who are being stripped of everything
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November 13, 2025 at 1:30 PM
We often tend to blame the most vulnerable for being greedy, rather than taking aim at the ‘greedy systems’ that are responsible for driving inequality. Explore the history and politics of our attitudes to greed in this Psyche Idea
In ‘Psychedelic in the Sky’, the US filmmaker Matthew Salton takes a leap of faith, embarking on a project to take the UFO phenomenon seriously. His stylish vapourwave animation takes viewers on a thought-provoking journey into social psychology and spirituality
What can we learn by taking transcendent UFO stories seriously? | Psyche Videos
A filmmaker takes a leap of faith when he decides to risk ridicule and make a serious film about UFO sightings
buff.ly
November 13, 2025 at 11:15 AM
In ‘Psychedelic in the Sky’, the US filmmaker Matthew Salton takes a leap of faith, embarking on a project to take the UFO phenomenon seriously. His stylish vapourwave animation takes viewers on a thought-provoking journey into social psychology and spirituality
My husband was in crisis and our home faced wildfire. When it came, I saw the cost of holding the line by Moonshine Matthiessen
Defensible space
A wildfire showed me caring for my husband was burning me out
psyche.co
November 12, 2025 at 11:05 PM
My husband was in crisis and our home faced wildfire. When it came, I saw the cost of holding the line by Moonshine Matthiessen
Can an entire society be mentally ill? A perspective from 1960
Erich Fromm on mental health
Can an entire society be mentally ill? A perspective from 1960
psyche.co
November 12, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Can an entire society be mentally ill? A perspective from 1960
Does psychology truly improve wellbeing? Or merely help us adjust to an ‘insane’ system? In this 1960s video, the social psychologist, psychoanalyst and philosopher Erich Fromm explores the nature of mental health
Can an entire society be mentally ill? A perspective from 1960 | Psyche Videos
Does psychology truly improve wellbeing? Or merely help us adjust to an ‘insane’ system? Erich Fromm on mental health in 1960
buff.ly
November 12, 2025 at 1:45 PM
Does psychology truly improve wellbeing? Or merely help us adjust to an ‘insane’ system? In this 1960s video, the social psychologist, psychoanalyst and philosopher Erich Fromm explores the nature of mental health
‘I desperately needed someone to care about how I was doing – but as we bounced from emergency to emergency, it seemed like there was no time to process my own trauma.’
How a wildfire showed me caring for my husband was burning me out
How a wildfire showed me caring for my husband was burning me out
A wildfire showed me caring for my husband was burning me out | Psyche Turning Points
My husband was in crisis and our home faced wildfire. When it came, I saw the cost of holding the line
buff.ly
November 12, 2025 at 11:01 AM
‘I desperately needed someone to care about how I was doing – but as we bounced from emergency to emergency, it seemed like there was no time to process my own trauma.’
How a wildfire showed me caring for my husband was burning me out
How a wildfire showed me caring for my husband was burning me out
Use AI thoughtlessly and it dulls your mind. But with a strategic approach, it can be a powerful tool. This Psyche guide gives you practical techniques including directive vs nondirective prompts, using AI for critique, and keeping thinking in-house rather than outsourcing to AI
How to use chatbots to make you smarter, not dumber | Psyche Guides
Use AI thoughtlessly and it dulls your mind. But with a strategic approach and the right prompts, it can be a powerful tool
buff.ly
November 11, 2025 at 11:30 AM
Use AI thoughtlessly and it dulls your mind. But with a strategic approach, it can be a powerful tool. This Psyche guide gives you practical techniques including directive vs nondirective prompts, using AI for critique, and keeping thinking in-house rather than outsourcing to AI
Renaissance artists paid uncommon attention to Jesus’ nether regions. What does this breach in modesty reveal about art?
A lesson from the Son of Man’s manhood | Psyche Notes to Self
Renaissance artists paid uncommon attention to Jesus’ nether regions. What does this breach in modesty reveal about art?
psyche.co
November 10, 2025 at 7:49 PM
Renaissance artists paid uncommon attention to Jesus’ nether regions. What does this breach in modesty reveal about art?