Mind the Body is a podcast about the space between how we think, feel, and live in our bodies — and how trauma, culture, and relationships shape the way we experience the world. Hosted by psychodynamic psychotherapist and EMDR therapist Yvette Vuaran , the show unpacks how the body remembers, how the mind protects, and how understanding that connection can change the way we live and love.
🎧 Episode 26: Plato's New Cave - AI and Body Image What happens when the online images we encounter every day become so familiar that we stop questioning whether they're real? What if the greatest challenge of AI isn't simply that it changes how we look, but that it changes what we come to trust? In this episode of Mind the Body , I explore Plato's famous Allegory of the Cave through the lens of body image, attachment theory and psychoanalysis, asking what happens when algorithms become the shadows that shape our relationship with ourselves. Drawing on the work of Plato, Donald Winnicott and Alessandra Lemma, I explore why healing isn't about finding a better image of ourselves, but about reclaiming a relationship with our bodies from the inside out. In this episode, you'll learn: How Plato's Cave offers a powerful way of understanding body image in the age of AI. Why the AI beauty ideal is reshaping what we experience as beautiful, normal and true. Why being given an image of yourself is different from discovering who you are. How Donald Winnicott's concept of the transitional object helps explain how we build a relationship with both our body and the world around us. How healing begins through interoception, lived experience and reconnecting with your body. Key Takeaway: Learning to experience your body for yourself is the beginning of a different kind of relationship. It begins when you stop chasing the image you've been given and start the journey home to your body. Whether you're interested in psychology, body image, attachment, AI, philosophy or psychotherapy, this episode offers a different way of thinking about technology, identity and what it means to come home to yourself. Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
Rupture and Repair - The Cornerstone of Secure Love : Episode 25
🎧 Episode 25: Rupture and Repair – The Cornerstone of Secure Love Why do some relationships survive the hardest moments and become stronger, while others slowly unravel through misunderstandings that seem almost insignificant? What if the strength of a relationship isn't measured by the absence of rupture, but by what happens after it? In this episode of Mind the Body , I explore one of the most important findings in attachment research: that secure relationships are not built by avoiding rupture, but by learning how to repair it. Drawing on attachment theory, psychoanalysis, developmental psychology, and decades of relationship research, we explore why moments of disconnection are inevitable - and how they become the very experiences through which trust, security, and lasting intimacy are built. In this episode, you'll learn: Why rupture is not the opposite of connection, but the mechanism through which secure attachment develops. What Ed Tronick's groundbreaking infant research teaches us about lifelong relationships. The difference between confrontation ruptures and withdrawal ruptures. Why saying "sorry" isn't always the same as genuine repair. How attachment patterns influence the way we respond to rupture. What research from Jeremy Safran, Chris Muran, and John Gottman reveals about repairing relationships. Why secure relationships aren't conflict-free - they're relationships that know how to find their way back to one another. Takeaway: If moments of disconnection leave you questioning your relationships, this episode offers a different perspective. Ruptures don't have to signal the end of connection. When approached with openness, curiosity, and repair, they can become the very experiences that deepen trust and create more secure love. Resources - Free Download: The 7 Day Body Trust Reset Click here to download your free 7 day guide to help you reconnect with your body through small, practical daily practices. References: Gottman, J. (2011). The Science of Trust: Emotional Attunement for Couples . W. W. Norton. As reviewed in Greenspun, W. (2013). The Science of Trust: Emotional Attunement for Couples [Review]. Psychoanalytic Psychology , 30(2), 356–362. Miller-Bottome, M., Talia, A., Eubanks, C., Safran, J. D., & Muran, J. C. (2019). Secure in-session attachment predicts rupture resolution: Negotiating a secure base . Psychoanalytic Psychology , 36(2), 132–138. Safran, J. D., Muran, J. C., & Shaker, A. (2014). Research on therapeutic impasses and ruptures in the therapeutic alliance . Contemporary Psychoanalysis , 50(1–2), 211–232. Tronick, E. Z., & Gianino, A. F. Jr. (1986). The transmission of maternal disturbance to the infant . New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development , 1986, 5–11. Winnicott, D. W. (1965). The theory of the parent-infant relationship (1960). In The Maturational Processes and the Facilitating Environment . International Universities Press. Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
Loved, But Can't Feel It? Attachment Insecurity and Dissociation : Episode 24
🎧 Episode 24: Loved, But Can't Feel It? Attachment Insecurity and Dissociation What happens when someone tells you they love you, and you know they mean it, but you simply can't feel it? Or when someone leaves the room and, despite knowing they'll return, it feels as though they've disappeared completely? In this episode of Mind the Body , I explore two often-overlooked patterns that emerge from attachment trauma and dissociation: Why love can be present but fail to register emotionally. Why absence can feel like abandonment, even in secure relationships. Drawing on philosophy, attachment theory, psychoanalysis, and contemporary trauma research, we look at how the body learns to protect itself - and how those protective responses can continue long after the original danger has passed. In this episode, you'll learn: Why dissociation is often an intelligent survival response rather than a disorder. The difference between not feeling love when it's present and not being able to hold onto love when someone is absent. How early caregiving shapes our ability to experience safety and connection. The concepts of psychic skin, the skin ego, and the protective shell. What object constancy is, and why it matters in adult relationships. Giovanni Liotti's theory linking trauma, dissociation, and disorganised attachment. Why healing happens not just through insight, but through reconnecting with the body. Takeaway: If you've ever wondered why you understand that you're loved but struggle to feel it, or why separation feels far more overwhelming than it seems to others, this episode offers a compassionate framework for understanding why. Resources - Free download: The 7 Day Body Trust Reset – A free 7-day guide to help you reconnect with your body through small, practical daily practices. References: Anzieu, D. (2016). The Skin-Ego: A New Translation (N. Segal, Trans.). Routledge. Bafna, A. R., Hurley, J., Nair, T. K., Moore, M. T., & Brumariu, L. E. (2026). Childhood adversity, perceived disorganised caregiving and dissociative symptoms in emerging adulthood. Journal of Infant, Child, and Adolescent Psychotherapy. Bick, E. (1968). The experience of the skin in early object relations. International Journal of Psychoanalysis 49:484-486. Claxton, G. (2015). Intelligence in the Flesh. Yale University Press. Liotti, G. (2004). T rauma, dissociation, and disorganized attachment: Three strands of a single braid. Psychotherapy: Theory, Research, Practice, Training , 41(4), 472–486. Mahler, M. S., Pine, F., & Bergman, A. (1975). The Psychological Birth of the Human Infant. Routledge. Nietzsche, F. (1883/1961). Thus Spoke Zarathustra. Tustin, F. (1990). The Protective Shell in Children and Adults. Routledge . Winnicott, D. W. (1958). The Capacity to Be Alone. International Journal of Psychoanalysis , 39:416-420. Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
Lost Boys - Why So Many Young Men Are at War With Their Bodies : Episode 23
🎧 Episode 23: Lost Boys - Why So Many Young Men Are at War With Their Bodies Why are so many young men struggling to feel at home in themselves? Why are increasing numbers turning to the gym, self-optimisation, or the online world in search of confidence, identity, and belonging? In this episode of Mind the Body , I explore the growing crisis in male body image through the lens of psychoanalysis, attachment theory, and developmental psychology. Drawing on the work of Alessandra Lemma, Donald Winnicott, Angela Connolly, Jean Knox, and Peter Fonagy, I examine why so many young men become disconnected from their bodies, and why shame so often finds expression through appearance. Ultimately, this episode explores why so many young men feel lost, how the search for identity becomes expressed through the body, and what it takes to truly feel at home in yourself. In This Episode: The psychology of the "Lost Boy" and why so many young men feel left behind How shame, body image, and identity become deeply intertwined Angela Connolly's concept of the false body-self and what it reveals about male body image How social media and online masculinity shape embodiment and belonging What helps young men feel at home in themselves A Question to Sit With: When you're trying to change your body, what are you hoping your body will change for you? References: Connolly, A. M. (2013). Out of the body: Embodiment and its vicissitudes. Journal of Analytical Psychology, 58 (5), 636–656. Fonagy, P., Gergely, G., Jurist, E., & Target, M. (2002). Affect regulation, mentalization and the development of the self. New York: Other Press. Knox, J. (2011). Self-agency in psychotherapy: Attachment, autonomy and intimacy. New York & London: W. W. Norton. Lane-Godfrey, G. (2026, June). Homeward Bound. Men's Health. Lemma, A. (2010). An order of pure decision: Growing up in a virtual world and the adolescent's experience of being-in-a-body. Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association, 58 (4), 691–714. Movember Institute. (2025). Young Men, Masculinity Influencers and Mental Health. Office for National Statistics. (2025). Families and households in the UK: 2025. Winnicott, D. W. (1958). Collected papers: Through paediatrics to psychoanalysis. London: Tavistock Publications. Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
The Hypervisible and The Unseen - Algorithms, Body Image and the Fragile Self : Episode 22
🎧 Episode 22: The Hypervisible and the Unseen - Algorithms, Body Image, and the Fragile Self What happens when we become more visible than ever before, yet feel increasingly unseen? And why does the digital world so often leave us feeling disconnected from ourselves rather than more understood? In this episode of Mind the Body , I explore the psychological impact of algorithms, AI, and social media through the lens of psychoanalysis, attachment theory, and body image. Inspired by a recent seminar by psychoanalyst Alessandra Lemma, I examine how our relationship with technology is reshaping not only the way we see ourselves, but the very development of the self itself. Drawing on the work of Alessandra Lemma, Donald Winnicott, Esther Bick, contemporary research on AI and adolescent mental health, and my own BTA Triangle framework (Body Image, Trauma, and Attachment), I explore why body image is ultimately not about appearance, but about recognition, embodiment, and the experience of feeling real. Ultimately, this episode asks what happens when the algorithm becomes our primary mirror, why visibility is not the same as being known, and how healing requires us to move from surveillance back into relationship. In This Episode: What Alessandra Lemma means by "hypervisible disappearance" The difference between being seen and simply being watched How algorithms become a false psychological container for the fragile self Why AI functions as a "psychic prosthesis" for unmet attachment needs How body image disturbance reflects a crisis of embodiment rather than appearance Why labels, metrics and online validation cannot replace genuine self-understanding How healing begins through relationships that restore curiosity, embodiment, and the experience of being truly known A Question to Sit With: When you reach for your phone, are you searching to be visible -or are you longing to feel truly seen? Free Resource: If this episode resonated with you and you'd like to begin rebuilding trust with your body, download my Free 7-Day Body Trust Reset References: Bick, E. (1968). The experience of the skin in early object relations . International Journal of Psychoanalysis , 49, 484–486. Lemma, A. (2009). Being seen or being watched? A psychoanalytic perspective on body dysmorphia . International Journal of Psychoanalysis , 90 (4), 753–771. Lemma, A. (2023). Psychotechnical Becomings: Psychoanalysis, Identity, Desire, and Mourning in the Age of AI and Digital Mediation . Routledge. Lemma, A. (2026, June 18). From Scrolling to Working Through: Adolescence, Algorithms and the Search for Coherence . Brent Centre Seminar, Dean's Yard, London. McBain, R. K., Cantor, J. H., Breslau, J., et al. (2026). AI chatbot use and disclosure for mental health among US adolescents and young adults . JAMA Pediatrics . Published online June 1, 2026. Winnicott, D. W. (1971). Playing and Reality . Tavistock. Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
Glass Skin - Cosmeticorexia, Looksmaxxing and the Face We're Really Looking For : Episode 21
🎧 Episode 21: Glass Skin - Cosmeticorexia, Looksmaxxing, and the Face We're Really Looking For Why are children as young as eight becoming obsessed with perfect skin? And what are we really looking for when we can't stop trying to improve our faces? In this episode of Mind the Body , I explore the emerging phenomena of cosmeticorexia and looksmaxxing through the lenses of psychoanalysis, attachment theory, and body image. Building on last week's discussion of glass skin as the aesthetic of the screen, I examine how AI-generated beauty ideals are reshaping our relationship with our own faces, and why the pursuit of perfection often reflects much older emotional wounds. Drawing on the work of Alessandra Lemma, Donald Winnicott, contemporary research on body dysmorphic disorder, and my own BTA Triangle framework (Body Image, Trauma, and Attachment), I explore why body image struggles are rarely just about appearance. Instead, they often reveal our deepest longing to feel seen, accepted, and loved. Ultimately, this episode asks what happens when the mirror becomes a place of endless self-surveillance rather than self-recognition, and why healing begins not by changing the face, but by changing the relationship we have with ourselves and with others. In This Episode: Why glass skin has become the beauty ideal of the AI age What cosmeticorexia and looksmaxxing reveal about attachment, trauma, and belonging How AI-generated beauty standards are reshaping body image The role of Winnicott's "mother as mirror" and Lemma's work on body dysmorphic disorder Why our wish to perfect the face is often a longing to be truly seen How secure relationships - not cosmetic perfection - offer the possibility of healing A Question to Sit With: When you look in the mirror, are you searching for a better face - or for the experience of feeling seen, accepted, and loved? References: BBC News. (2026). Cosmeticorexia: How girls are falling down a skincare rabbit hole. De Souza, R. (2026, May 27). Interview on Peston. ITV. King, V., Gerisch, B., & Schreiber, J. (2020). "...to really have everything completely perfect": On the psychodynamics of contemporary forms of body optimization. Psychoanalytic Psychology, 37 (2), 148–157. Lemma, A. (2009). Being seen or being watched? A psychoanalytic perspective on body dysmorphia. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 90 (4), 753–771. Vuaran, Y. (2024, November 26). Looksmaxxing and neurodiversity: A psychodynamic perspective . LinkedIn. Winnicott, D. W. (1971). Playing and Reality . Routledge. Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
Loving What Can't Leave You - AI Companions, Attachment Hunger, and the Body We Are Forgetting : Episode 20
🎧 Episode 20: Loving What Can't Leave You - AI Companions, Attachment Hunger, and the Body We Are Forgetting What happens when the thing that understands you best has no body of its own? In this episode of Mind the Body , I explore the growing phenomenon of AI companionship through the lenses of attachment theory, psychoanalytic thinking, and body image. Beginning with attachment hunger and limerence, I examine why AI relationships can feel so compelling, why they offer relief from some of the deepest anxieties of human connection, and what may be lost when intimacy becomes increasingly detached from the body. Drawing on the film Her , alongside the work of Donald Winnicott, Alessandra Lemma, Todd Essig, and contemporary conversations led by Esther Perel, I consider what AI companionship reveals about our longing to be known, our discomfort with vulnerability, and our cultural desire to transcend the limitations of being human. Ultimately, this episode asks what becomes of love, grief, and healing when connection no longer requires the risks of embodied relationship. In This Episode: Why AI companionship speaks so powerfully to attachment hunger What the film Her reveals about intimacy, grief, and the longing to be understood The fantasy of connection without vulnerability, loss, or bodily presence How grief, mourning, and real healing require human limitation Why embodied relationships remain essential to love and connection A Question to Sit With: What parts of being human - vulnerable, dependent, imperfect, embodied - might we risk losing if we begin to prefer connection that asks nothing of us in return? References: Amodei, D. (2026, May 19, 2026). The co-founders of Claude AI tell Oprah about the impact artificial intelligence has on your life . The Oprah Podcast. Essig, T. (2025). Psychoanalytic AI activism: Creatively and critically engaging the future. The American Psychoanalyst, 59 (1), 18–23. Jonze, S. (Director). (2013). Her [Film]. Annapurna Pictures. Lemma, A. (2026). Psychotechnical Becomings: Psychoanalysis, Identity, Desire, and Mourning in the Age of AI and Digital Mediation . Routledge. Perel, E. (2026, May 26, 2026). Oprah and renowned psychotherapist Esther Perel on what we really want in a relationship . The Oprah Podcast. Winnicott, D. W. (1953). Transitional objects and transitional phenomena: A study of the first not-me possession. International Journal of Psycho-Analysis, 34 , 89–97. Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
Limerence, Attachment and the Other We Create : Episode 19
🎧 Episode 19: Limerence, Attachment, and the Other We Create What happens when longing becomes more real than the person it is attached to? In this episode of Mind the Body, I explore the psychology of limerence - the intense, consuming experience of longing for another person who often remains emotionally unavailable, uncertain, or just out of reach. Drawing on attachment theory, psychoanalytic thinking, and Tennyson's The Lady of Shalott , I examine why limerence can feel so powerful, why it is rarely about the other person alone. Together, we explore how early attachment experiences shape our expectations of love, how the mind constructs an internal version of the other, and why healing requires more than understanding. Beneath limerence lies something deeper: grief, longing, and the possibility of creating a new experience of connection. In This Episode: What limerence is and why it can feel so consuming How attachment patterns shape romantic longing The internal world we create around the people we desire Why insight alone cannot resolve limerence The relationship between longing, grief, and healing What it means to turn from fantasy toward reality A Question to Sit With: What might my longing be trying to tell me about the kind of love, care, or recognition I needed long before this person appeared? References: Chefetz, R., Soffer-Dudek, N., & Somer, E. (2023). When Daydreaming Becomes Maladaptive: Phenomenological and Psychoanalytic Perspectives. Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy , 37, 319–338. Sperling, M. B. (1988). Phenomenology and Developmental Origins of Desperate Love. Psychoanalysis and Contemporary Thought , 11(4), 741–761. Tennov, D. (1979). Love and Limerence: The Experience of Being in Love . Stein and Day. Verhulst, J. (1984). Limerence: Notes on the Nature and Function of Passionate Love. Psychoanalysis and Contemporary Thought , 7(1), 115–138. Winnicott, D. W. (1974). Fear of Breakdown. International Review of Psycho-Analysis , 1, 103–107. Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
The Body We Are Leaving Behind - AI, the Machine Gaze, and the Foreclosure of Mourning : Episode 18
🎧 Episode 18: The Body We Are Leaving Behind - AI, the Machine Gaze, and the Foreclosure of Mourning What happens when technology begins to shape not only how we think, but how we experience our bodies? In this episode of Mind the Body , I explore how AI and algorithmic environments are transforming our relationship with embodiment, identity, and emotional life. Drawing on psychoanalytic theory, contemporary reflections on artificial intelligence, and my work as a psychotherapist, I examine how the machine gaze is reshaping self-perception, how AI-generated ideals can distance us from lived experience, and why mourning remains central to psychological growth. As technology increasingly promises optimisation, certainty, and escape from discomfort, I ask what may be lost when we become disconnected from the realities of being human: vulnerability, dependency, and mortality. In This Episode: How AI is changing our relationship with the body The impact of the machine gaze on self-image Why digital ideals can distance us from lived experience Mourning and psychological development What therapy offers that AI cannot Why healing remains an embodied process A Question to Sit With: What aspects of being fully human - vulnerable, embodied, and mortal - am I being encouraged to move away from, and what might it mean to return to them? References: Ammaniti, M. (2018). Implicit Knowledge from Infancy to the Psychotherapeutic Relationship . Psychoanalytic Inquiry , 38(2). Levy, A. (2026). The New Other: Alien Intelligence and the Innovation Drive . Karnac. Lemma, A. (2017). The Digital Age on the Couch: Psychoanalytic Practice and New Media . Routledge. Lemma, A. (2026). Psychotechnical Becomings: Psychoanalysis, Identity, Desire, and Mourning in the Age of AI and Digital Mediation . Routledge. Vuaran, Y. (2025). The Future of Therapy: Human Connection in the Age of AI . https://www.yvettevuaran.com/blog/the-future-of-therapy-human-connection-in-the-age-of-ai Winnicott, D. W. (1960). Ego Distortion in Terms of True and False Self . In The Maturational Processes and the Facilitating Environment . Hogarth Press. Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
Invited In - AI, Attachment, and Emotional Truth : Episode 17
🎧 Episode 17: Invited In - AI, Attachment, and Emotional Truth What happens when we begin turning to AI for emotional reassurance, certainty, and answers that once belonged to human relationships? In this episode of Mind the Body , I explore AI through the lens of attachment and psychoanalytic thinking. As more people use AI to process conflict, loneliness, self-doubt, and relational pain, I examine what may be lost when emotional complexity is replaced with immediate interpretation and certainty. I explore how AI can soothe discomfort while also bypassing the vulnerability, ambiguity, and mutuality required for genuine healing. In This Episode: AI through the lens of attachment and psychoanalytic thought Why our capacity to stay with uncertainty matters for emotional growth How AI is designed to reduce ambiguity and provide reassurance The difference between validation and emotional truth How AI may reinforce emotional avoidance and relational self-protection Why healing still depends on embodied human connection A Question to Sit With: What emotional uncertainty am I trying to escape when I seek immediate answers or reassurance from AI? References: Hendrix, H. (2020). Getting the Love You Want: A Guide for Couples (Revised Edition). Simon & Schuster UK. Levy, A. (2026). The New Other: Alien Intelligence and the Innovation Drive. Karnac. Levy, A. & Orbach, S. (2026). Amy Levy and Susie Orbach Discuss AI in Psychoanalysis [YouTube interview]. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6KygDzwzrJ8&pp=0gcJCU8Co7VqN5tD&ra=m Lemma, A. (2026). Psychotechnical Becomings: Psychoanalysis, Identity, Desire, and Mourning in the Age of AI and Digital Mediation. Routledge. Project Hail Mary (2026 film). Vuaran, Y. (2025). The Future of Therapy: Human Connection in the Age of AI. [Blog post] https://www.yvettevuaran.com/blog/the-future-of-therapy-human-connection-in-the-age-of-ai Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
Body Image in Survival Mode - The Impact of Insecure Attachment on How You See Your Body : Episode 16
🎧 Episode 16: Body Image in Survival Mode - The Impact of Insecure Attachment on How You See Your Body Why can a difficult moment in a relationship suddenly leave you feeling intensely critical of your body? In this episode of Mind the Body , I explore how insecure attachment can place body image into survival mode. When relationships feel uncertain through withdrawal, criticism, distance, or emotional disconnection, the nervous system can respond as though connection itself is under threat. For some, that distress gets expressed through the body: self-criticism intensifies, the urge to control appearance grows, or the desire to disappear takes over. I explore how these protective patterns develop, why the body often becomes the place where relational anxiety is carried, and what healing looks like through building inner safety and safe connection. In This Episode: How insecure attachment impacts body image The six survival patterns that can shape body image distress Why the body carries relational memory How perfectionism, control, and withdrawal function as protection The 3-R healing framework: Recognise, Reflect, Rewire Why healing happens through building safety in relationship A Question to Sit With: What relational fear might be underneath your body image distress? References: Fonagy, P. & Target, M. (2002). Early intervention and the development of self-regulation. Psychoanalytic Inquiry , 22(3), 307-335. Marriott, S. & Kelley, T. (2024). Secure Relating: Holding Your Own in an Insecure World . Harper Collins Publishers. Parnell, L. (2013). Attachment-Focused EMDR: Healing Relational Trauma . W.W. Norton & Company. Schnackenberg, N. (2020). Body image issues 1/5: Early attachment. PESI UK. Retrieved from https://www.pesi.co.uk/blogs/body-image-issues-1-5-early-attachment/ Siegel, D. (2015). The Developing Mind: How Relationships and the Brain Interact to Shape Who We Are (2nd ed.). Guilford Press. Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
The Body at the Edge of Love - Body Image Disturbance in the Space Between Us : Episode 15
🎧 Episode 15: The Body at the Edge of Love – Body Image Disturbance in the Space Between Us Why does body image disturbance often get louder just as closeness becomes possible? In this episode of Mind the Body , I explore the relationship between body image disturbance, attachment, shame, and emotional intimacy. When someone begins to matter to us - whether in romance, friendship, or vulnerability - the body can suddenly feel more exposed. Self-criticism may intensify, old insecurities can reappear, and the urge to hide can become surprisingly strong. Drawing on attachment theory, psychoanalytic thinking, and contemporary work on shame, I explore why these experiences can emerge so powerfully in moments of closeness. We look at how early relational experiences shape the way we experience being seen, why the body often becomes the place where relational fears are expressed, and how body image disturbance may function as a protective response at the edge of connection. In This Episode Why body image disturbance often intensifies in moments of closeness How attachment patterns shape our experience of being seen Why the body carries relational memory The connection between shame, vulnerability, and body image disturbance How self-criticism can function as protection Why healing often happens through safe relationships A Question to Sit With: What might your body be trying to protect you from when closeness begins to feel possible? References: Bowlby, J. (1989). The Making and Breaking of Affectional Bonds . Routledge. Brown, B. (2013). Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead . Penguin. DeYoung, P. (2015). Understanding and Treating Chronic Shame: A Relational/Neurobiological Approach . Routledge. Granieri, A., & Schimmenti, A. (2014). Mind–body splitting and eating disorders: A psychoanalytic perspective. Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, 28 (1), 52–70. Lemma, A. (2009). Being seen or being watched? A psychoanalytic perspective on body dysmorphia. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 90 (4), 753–771. Orbach, S. (2009). Bodies . Profile Books. Steele, M., Steele, H., & Beebe, B. (2017). Applying an attachment and microanalytic lens to “embodied mentalization”: Commentary on “Mentalizing homeostasis: The social origins of interoceptive inference” by Fotopoulou and Tsakiris. Neuropsychoanalysis, 19 (1), 59–66. Winnicott, D. W. (1971). Playing and Reality . Routledge. Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
Coming Home to Your Body - Healing After Complex Trauma : Episode 14
🎧 Episode 14: Coming Home to Your Body – Healing After Complex Trauma What happens when the body no longer feels like home? In this episode of Mind The Body , I explore how complex trauma shapes the nervous system, disconnects us from the body, and affects the way we experience ourselves, relationships, and the world around us. Drawing on the work of Judith Herman, Caroline Garland, Ruth Lanius and colleagues, and Gabor Maté, I discuss why disconnection from the body develops as a survival response, how trauma is stored in the body, and why healing needs to happen at the sensory and nervous system level. In This Episode How complex trauma affects the body and nervous system Why disconnection from the body develops as a survival response The relationship between trauma, body image, and relationships How EMDR and somatic approaches support healing A Question to Sit With Where in your life might your body be trying to come home? References: Herman, J. (1992). Trauma and Recovery . Basic Books. Garland, C. (Ed.). (2002). Understanding Trauma: A Psychoanalytic Approach . Karnac Books. Lanius, R. A., Harricharan, S., Kearney, B. E., & Pandev-Girard, B. (2025). Sensory Pathways to Healing from Trauma: Harnessing the Brain’s Capacity for Change . The Guilford Press Haverly, C., & Young, E. (2026). Trauma-Informed Bodywork . North Atlantic Books Content Note This episode discusses complex trauma and childhood relational trauma. Please listen with care. Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
The Constructed Self, The Disconnected Self - On feeling lost, hidden, and finding your way back : Episode 13
🎧 Episode 13: The Constructed Self, The Disconnected Self - On feeling lost, hidden, and finding your way back Something feels off, but it’s hard to name. In this episode of Mind the Body , I explore two experiences I hear often: “I don’t know who I am anymore” and “I just feel lost.” While they sound similar, they speak to different kinds of disconnection - one psychological, one deeply embodied. Here, I look at how the self we present to the world can slowly take over, until it’s the only place we know how to live from. Drawing on psychoanalytic thinking, clinical experience, and the impact of social media, I explore how the gap between who we are and who we show can quietly widen over time. We also move into what happens when parts of the self go into hiding, how early relationships and shame shape what feels safe to express, and how the body holds what cannot be spoken. And finally, what it means to find your way back, through real connection. In This Episode: The difference between feeling lost and losing contact with who you are, and how these experiences take shape over time How the “constructed self” develops, and why it can begin to replace something more real What happens when parts of the self go into hiding, and how that disconnection is felt in the body Why being seen is not the same as being known, and what actually allows the self to return A Question to Sit With: What moments in your life make you feel out of touch with who you are? Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
The Changing Body - Perimenopause, Identity and What We're Really Carrying : Episode 12
🎧 Episode 12: The Changing Body - Perimenopause, Identity and What We're Really Carrying Something is happening that remains largely unspoken, yet deeply felt. In this episode of Mind The Body , I explore the psychological and relational experience of perimenopause - a biological transition that also reshapes identity, visibility, and self-perception. This conversation moves beyond symptoms to examine what it means to inhabit a changing body in a culture that equates a woman’s worth with youth. Drawing on clinical experience, psychoanalytic thinking, and research on body image, I look at how this transition can surface long-held questions about worth, desirability, and belonging, and why, for some women, it can feel less like a passage and more like a quiet unravelling. We also explore the emotional context behind the rising use of GLP-1 medications in midlife women, asking what might sit beneath the desire to change the body at this particular moment in time. In This Episode: How perimenopause reshapes a woman’s relationship to her body and sense of self Why this transition can activate deeper questions of worth, identity, and attachment The difference between true acceptance and a quiet withdrawal from the body What may sit beneath the urge to “fix” the body, and why it often isn’t about the body at all The emotional and cultural context behind increasing GLP-1 use in midlife A Question to Sit With: What is this moment in your body bringing up for you? References: Szymona-Pałkowska, K., Adamczuk, J., Sapalska, M., Gorbaniuk, O., Robak, J. M., & Kraczkowski, J. J. (2019). Body image in perimenopausal women. Menopause Review, 18 (4), 210–216. Murphy, M. B., Lane, A., Cuskelly, G., & Heavey, P. M. (2025). Experiences of weight and body shape changes during perimenopause. Women & Health, 65 (10), 861–870. Kolod, S. (2022). I’m not myself today: Dialogues with Philip Bromberg . Contemporary Psychoanalysis, 58 (2–3), 321–334. eMarketer (2025). Twice as many US consumers now using GLP-1s. Retrieved from https://www.emarketer.com/content/twice-many-us-consumers-now-using-glp-1s Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
The Hunger That Isn't Just Hunger - On “Skinny Jabs” and What Goes Quiet Within : Episode 11
🎧 Episode 11: The Hunger That Isn't Just Hunger - On “Skinny Jabs” and What Goes Quiet Within What happens when hunger disappears, and what else might go quiet alongside it? In this episode of Mind The Body , I explore the psychological and relational meaning of hunger in the context of GLP-1 medications like Ozempic and Mounjaro. While these drugs are often discussed in terms of weight loss and appetite suppression, this conversation looks at what hunger represents beyond biology. I build on psychoanalytic thinking, including the work of Susie Orbach, alongside attachment theory and my clinical work, to explore how hunger is one of our earliest forms of communication - shaped by our relationships, our histories, and our sense of whether it is safe to need. I also explore what happens when the body changes faster than the psyche can follow, and whether the silencing of hunger can, for some, echo earlier experiences of having to suppress need in order to feel acceptable or safe. In This Episode: Why hunger has never been just about food, but about need, longing, and early attachment How GLP-1 medications may interrupt a deeper psychological conversation with the body What happens when physical transformation outpaces psychological integration Why rapid body change can surface anxiety, grief, or a loss of identity The difference between symptom relief and deeper psychological healing A Question to Sit With: What would it mean to listen to your hunger, rather than silence it? Invitation: If you’d like to go deeper, you can join the Mind the Body newsletter here. Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
Pretty Hurts - What Cosmetic Surgery Tells Us About Childhood Trauma : Episode 10
🎧 Episode 10: Pretty Hurts – What Cosmetic Surgery Tells Us About Childhood Trauma What drives the desire to change the body, and why can it feel so urgent? In this episode of Mind The Body , I explore the link between cosmetic surgery, childhood trauma, and body image. While cultural pressures like beauty standards and social media are real, research suggests something deeper may also be at work. A 2024 study found that women seeking cosmetic procedures reported significantly higher levels of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), including abuse and neglect, and higher rates of anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem than matched controls. Drawing on the work of psychoanalyst Alessandra Lemma, I explore how the body can become a way of communicating experiences that were never put into words, and why altering the body may not resolve what sits beneath it. In This Episode: What research shows about the link between cosmetic surgery and childhood trauma (ACEs) Why the desire to change the body may be carrying experiences that don’t yet have language How early relationships shape body image, self-worth, and the sense of being “enough” Why changing the body doesn’t necessarily change how you feel internally or in relationships A Question to Sit With: When the urge to change the body feels urgent, it may be carrying something deeper, something that hasn’t yet been put into words. Mentioned in This Episode: Lemma, A. (2010). Under the skin: A psychoanalytic study of body modification . Routledge. Faezi, F., & Amiri, S. (2024). Adverse childhood experiences and mental health issues in patients seeking cosmetic surgery: A case-control study . JPRAS Open . Content Note This episode discusses childhood trauma and adverse experiences. Please listen with care. Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
The Virtual Body - Gaming, Chronic Illness & Escape : Episode 9
🎧 Episode 9: The Virtual Body: Gaming, Chronic Illness & Escape When the body becomes a source of pain, unpredictability, or shame - where does the self go? In this episode of Mind The Body , I explore gaming, chronic illness, and body image, and why virtual worlds can feel like relief when the body feels difficult to live in. For some, the virtual body offers a return to a self interrupted by chronic illness - something echoed in Gabrielle Zevin’s novel Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow , where gaming becomes a space of identity beyond limitation. For others, it might resemble what psychoanalyst Esther Bick described as a ‘second skin’ - a way of holding the self together when an internal sense of containment feels fragile or underdeveloped. Drawing on Winnicott’s idea of transitional space, I explore how virtual worlds can offer both refuge and restoration. Gaming can function in this way, but only when it allows movement between the virtual self and the lived body, rather than replacing one with the other. In this episode, we explore: Why gaming can feel like a safe place to go when your body feels painful, unpredictable, or hard to be in How virtual worlds can act as a kind of ‘holding space’ when you don’t feel fully held within yourself (Esther Bick’s ‘second skin’) How gaming can become a bridge between identity, chronic illness, and the self you feel you’ve lost or can’t access What your avatar choices might reveal about identity, grief, and body image Key Question: When you step into a virtual body… What are you stepping toward, and what are you setting down? Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
The Body as Stage - Chronic Illness, Body Image & Body Grief : Episode 8
🎧 Episode 8: The Body as Stage - Chronic Illness, Body Image & Body Grief What happens when your body changes in ways you didn’t choose, and you no longer recognise yourself within it? Over the past seven episodes, we’ve explored how body image is shaped by culture, trauma, attachment, and neurodiversity. In this episode, we turn toward chronic illness and the psychological rupture that can occur when the body itself becomes unfamiliar, unpredictable, or altered. Drawing on psychoanalytic thinkers including Joyce McDougall, Donald Winnicott, and Wilfred Bion, alongside the work of Gabor Maté and writer Sophie Strand, this episode explores a central idea: Illness doesn’t just affect the body. It can become a stage on which something older, unspoken, and unresolved is finally given form. If you’ve ever felt estranged from your body, or like your body is holding something you can’t quite name, this episode offers a way to begin thinking about that experience. In this episode, we explore: How chronic illness can rupture the relationship between psyche and soma Why body grief emerges in the gap between who you were and the body you now inhabit How the body in breakdown can come to be experienced as a “bad object” Why medical encounters can sometimes deepen disconnection rather than hold it How the body can carry what was never able to be spoken or known Why body image disturbance in illness is often not new, but newly visible The difference between grieving what illness has taken vs. something older and unmetabolised What it means to create the conditions in which the body’s story can finally be known Key Insight: The body is extraordinarily faithful. It holds what the mind cannot. Healing is not only about grieving what illness has taken, it is about creating the conditions in which what the body has been carrying can finally begin to be known. This episode is for you if: You are living with chronic illness or ongoing health changes You feel disconnected, alienated, or at odds with your body You’re navigating shifts in identity, appearance, or capacity You’re interested in psychoanalytic or depth-oriented understandings of the body You sense there is more to your experience than what can be medically explained Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
Why Your Body Feels Different - Neurodiversity, Sensory Overload & Belonging: Episode 7
🎧 Episode 7: Why Your Body Feels Different: Neurodiversity, Sensory Overload & Belonging Over the past six episodes, we’ve explored how body image is shaped by culture, trauma, and attachment. In this episode, we explore the missing piece: neurodiversity and how differences in sensory processing, interoception, and regulation shape how the body actually feels, not just how it is perceived. Drawing on the work of neuroscientist Mark Solms, Stephen Porges’ polyvagal theory, Damian Milton’s concept of the double empathy problem , and Christopher Bollas’ idea of the unthought known , we explore how internal experience, nervous system states, and relational understanding intersect. In this episode, we explore: How neurodiversity shapes the internal experience of the body Why sensory discomfort is often mistaken for body image issues What interoception is and how it affects emotion, hunger, and self-awareness The impact of masking and the concept of the “false body” The physical cost of suppressing natural regulation and needs How neurodivergence shows up in intimacy and relationships The mismatch between neurotypical expectations and neurodivergent needs The “double empathy problem” and relational misunderstandings Why honouring sensory needs is key to connection and body trust Key insight: What is often labelled as a body image problem may actually be a mismatch between your nervous system and the environment you're trying to function in. Free Resource If you’re ready to begin gently rebuilding trust with your body, download the 7 Day Body Trust Reset - a series of short daily audio practices designed to help you reconnect with safety and compassion. Take a breath, stay curious, and explore what it truly means to Mind The Body. Join the Community Subscribe or follow the show so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a friend who’s exploring body image healing, the mind–body connection, emotional healing, and the patterns that shape how we see ourselves. Connect or learn more: www.yvettevuaran.com Sign up for my Mind The Body Newsletter Follow @mindthebodypodcast @yvettevuaran
