York Festival of Ideas talk at the Quaker Meeting House, York, Saturday 1 June 2024
2024 “Reflections on Fear, Anxiety and Depression”
The online version of my York Festival of Ideas talk on Thursday 6 June 2024 was recorded on zoom and can be viewed via the following link:
Description
Michael Guilding reflects on his personal and professional journey as a counsellor and psychotherapist to understand the nature of fear.
Fear is the body’s response to threat. It evolved as a set of powerful physical reactions for surviving predators – not just the energy boost of fight and flight, but also energy collapse, similar to a faint. In modern life we face very different threats, but the same ancient, automatic fear responses are triggered. These reactions are not well adapted to dealing with many present-day threats, and they have a huge impact on our physical and mental health, our behaviour, our capacity to think clearly and our ability to relate to each other. Michael brings together the science of the body and lived experience, to illustrate the range and power of our fear reactions. He explains how these cause much human misery including anxiety and depression, and considers how we can free ourselves from the grip of unnecessary fear.
A version of this talk edited for radio was broadcast in Australia on the Big Ideas programme on ABC Radio National on Tuesday 13 August.
2025 “Reflections on Fear and Love”
The online version of this talk, given on 12 June 2025 can be seen on YouTube using the following link”
Description:
Fear and love are the two great forces that shape our lives as human beings. They are not abstract ideas, but powerful biological systems, constantly altering our body’s metabolism, our thoughts and our behaviour. Our fear responses are necessary for our self-defence, but we can get stuck in “fear-mode”, and this shuts down the biological systems which enable us to relate to and cooperate with others – undermining our capacity to love. Recently we have seen levels of fear and hostility rise throughout the world and a decrease in tolerance, and compassion. When fear is the dominant force in our life, we lose our ability to be sociable and we live in misery. When love is the dominant force, we feel a sense of connection to others and can experience joy and contentment. Michael Guilding, a retired psychotherapist, examines fear and love from the perspective of human biology, and reflects on what each of us might do to shift the balance between these forces.
2026 “Fear in the Therapy Room”
This talk will be given in-person at 2.00pm on Saturday 30 May 2026 in the Quaker Meeting House, Friargate, York. It will be repeated online on Thursday 4 June 2026. Tickets are free and booking links will be provided shortly.
Description
What exactly happens in the therapy room between client and therapist? Why might you contemplate undertaking therapy, and how might you go about choosing a therapist? Will it work, and how does it work, and might you end up disappointed? Is the rationale behind therapy a lot of aspirational hot air, or is it grounded in a scientific understanding of the human body and mind? Is it just an approach to alleviating distress, or is it a step towards living a fuller life? Michael Guilding, a retired psychotherapist with 30 years of clinical practice lifts the lid on the process of counselling and psychotherapy. Based on his book “Fear in the Therapy Room”, published this June, he uses the perspective of our biological fear-system, to examine what goes on in the room between therapist and client, what it feels like for both, and how this rather strange activity can sometimes be derailed and help no-one, but has the potential to heal trauma and enable transformative personal growth.