We all want to feel that we fit into a social group. But how does this play out when it comes to trends? From ‘mob wife energy’ to ‘cottagecore’, rapidly-evolving microtrends put more aesthetic-driven content in front of us than ever before, and it can feel hard to keep up. In this episode, we explore the ways that social media, fast fashion and ‘dopamine culture’ can pressure us to buy, how microtrend fatigue is giving way to a new type of self-expression, and how we can healthily navigate our own consumption of microtrends.

We explore:

• The 5 stages of a trend, and how microtrends are different
• How world events influence microtrends
• Why social contagion, social conformity, and individual expression influence our behaviour
• Why social media and fast fashion have led to an explosion in microtrends
• The role of ‘dopamine culture’ on our brains
• Microtrend fatigue, and how ‘vibes’ might be replacing them
• When to buy, and when to wait

Watch on Netflix

Follow Jemma on Instagram: @jemmasbeg

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @thatpsychologypodcast

Subscribe on Substack: @thepsychologyofyour20s

For business: [email protected] 

The Psychology of your 20s is not a substitute for professional mental health help. If you are struggling, distressed or require personalised advice, please reach out to your doctor or a licensed psychologist.

The Psychology of your 20s is not a substitute for professional mental health help. If you are struggling, distressed or require personalised advice, please reach out to your doctor or a licensed psychologist.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's our 400th episode! Today is a special episode. Feeling stuck, behind, or like you’re wasting your 20s is not a rare experience. But you might just be focusing on the wrong milestones... In this episode, we break down 15 unconventional things I think everyone should do in their 20s and the psychology behind why. 

Some of the bucket list items we discuss: 

• The best money lessons you learn through experience 
• The importance of yearly challenges and quitting the things you depend on
• The plan you can make for your life, today
• Why we all need to do a social audit 
• Solitude, relationships and the love you should find in your 20s

Happy listening!

Watch on Netflix

Follow Jemma on Instagram: @jemmasbeg

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @thatpsychologypodcast

Subscribe on Substack: @thepsychologyofyour20s

For business: [email protected] 

The Psychology of your 20s is not a substitute for professional mental health help. If you are struggling, distressed or require personalised advice, please reach out to your doctor or a licensed psychologist.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

  We all know exercise is ‘good for us’, but why is it that a walk can calm your brain, why a workout can feel like emotional release, or why movement can become either self-care or self-punishment. In this episode, we unpack the psychology of exercise – what’s happening to our brains over time, where the ‘exercise as antidepressants’ claim came from, and what happens when it crosses into obsession.

We explore:
•        The role of endorphins and endocannabinoids
•        How movement can regulate our emotions
•        Identity and motivation in exercise
•        How exercise changes our brains
•        The role of exercise in treating depression
•        How to build a healthier relationship with exercise

Watch on Netflix

Follow Jemma on Instagram: @jemmasbeg

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @thatpsychologypodcast

Subscribe on Substack: @thepsychologyofyour20s

For business: [email protected] 

Our favourite sources: 

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10813489/

https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/56/2/101.abstract

https://insight.jci.org/articles/view/126190

The Psychology of your 20s is not a substitute for professional mental health help. If you are struggling, distressed or require personalised advice, please reach out to your doctor or a licensed psychologist.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Feeling stuck in your 20s is a rite of passage, but it's can also feel deeply hopeless when nothing in your life seems to be moving or changing in the way you want it to. In today's episode, we break down some of the reasons we feel stuck and the five things you can do in the next 6 months to change that, including: 

• The 10 minute mind map tool to get you out of a funk 
• Why you need to stop asking other people for advice
• The 6 month challenge project 
• Plus so much more

Happy listening! 

The episode I mentioned: How to feel like yourself again

The book I mentioned: The Anatomy of a Breakthrough

Watch on Netflix

Follow Jemma on Instagram: @jemmasbeg

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @thatpsychologypodcast

Subscribe on Substack: @thepsychologyofyour20s

For business: [email protected] 

The Psychology of your 20s is not a substitute for professional mental health help. If you are struggling, distressed or require personalised advice, please reach out to your doctor or a licensed psychologist.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When we think about office politics, you might think gossip, favouritism, or power plays - the kind of behind-the-scenes drama that makes work feel draining. But office politics isn’t just about one-upmanship or ambition. At its core, it’s a very human process: how people build trust, navigate competition, and influence decisions in the workplace.

In this episode, we break down the ‘unwritten’ dynamics of office politics - why they exist, how they affect your daily work life, and what you can do to navigate them without compromising your values.

We explore:
•        The types of influence and power at work that you can leverage for yourself
•        Why office politics feels inevitable
•        How to recognise unspoken rules and social dynamics
•        Advice on office gossip
•        The 5 things you should be doing at work to get ahead (ethically)

If you want to go into the office with less dread and more clarity, this episode is for you.

Watch on Netflix

Follow Jemma on Instagram: @jemmasbeg

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @thatpsychologypodcast

Subscribe on Substack: @thepsychologyofyour20s

For business: [email protected] 

The Psychology of your 20s is not a substitute for professional mental health help. If you are struggling, distressed or require personalised advice, please reach out to your doctor or a licensed psychologist.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Homesickness is more than just “missing home", it's a deep sense of nostalgia, grief, longing and also, as psychology will tell us, a unique kind of stress response. In this episode, we break down the psychology of homesickness: why our brains react so strongly when we leave familiar places, how place attachment shapes our sense of identity, and why nostalgia can make the past feel more perfect than it really was.

We explore:

• What happens to your body and mind when you're away from home

• The psychology of place attachment and why certain locations feel like part of us

• Why homesickness often is delayed

• When homesickness is something to listen to ... and when it’s not

• 7 practical strategies to help you feel more at home in a new place

Whether you’ve just moved across the world, across the country, or you’re feeling unexpectedly nostalgic for a life chapter that’s ended, this episode is for you.

Watch on Netflix

Follow Jemma on Instagram: @jemmasbeg

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @thatpsychologypodcast

Subscribe on Substack: @thepsychologyofyour20s

For business: [email protected] 

The Psychology of your 20s is not a substitute for professional mental health help. If you are struggling, distressed or require personalised advice, please reach out to your doctor or a licensed psychologist.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The idea that depression is caused by a “chemical imbalance” is one of the most widely accepted explanations in modern mental health ... but is it actually true?

In this bonus episode, we unpack where the chemical imbalance theory came from, how it became the dominant narrative around depression, and why many researchers today believe the story is far more complicated. Including: 

• The academic and applied history of this theory 

• What research says about antidepressants vs placebo

• Why the “low serotonin” explanation may be too simple

• The psychological and social drivers of depression

• Why meaning, connection, and environment matter for mental health

• Why depression treatment often works best when it’s multi-layered

Happy listening!

Watch on Netflix

Follow Jemma on Instagram: @jemmasbeg

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @thatpsychologypodcast

Subscribe on Substack: @thepsychologyofyour20s

For business: [email protected] 

The Psychology of your 20s is not a substitute for professional mental health help. If you are struggling, distressed or require personalised advice, please reach out to your doctor or a licensed psychologist.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When one person tries to get closer to someone else, and the other person pulls away in response, they might be experiencing a pursuer-distancer dynamic. This can create a very painful cycle, where communication breaks down, each side blames the other, and ultimately, nobody has their needs met. In this episode, we explore the stages of a pursuer-distancer cycle, unpack why we’re drawn to relationships like this, and learn how to break the cycle so we can enjoy more happy, fulfilled relationships.

We explore: 

• What the pursuer-distancer dynamic looks like
• The psychology of why romantic opposites ‘attract’
• What’s going on in the mind or a pursuer and distancer
• Pursuer-distancer burnout - and when the pursuer final quits...
• How we can heal a pursuer-distancer cycle
• Can pursuer-distancer dynamics work in our 20s?

A note that this episode contains content about abusive relationships.

Listen now!

ORDER MY BOOK: https://www.psychologyofyour20s.com/copy-of-book 

Follow Jemma on Instagram: @jemmasbeg
Follow the podcast on Instagram: @thatpsychologypodcast
For business: [email protected] 
 
The Psychology of your 20s is not a substitute for professional mental health help. If you are struggling, distressed or require personalised advice, please reach out to your doctor or a licensed psychologist.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you heard someone described as stoic, you would probably imagine they were unemotional and repressed, with a stiff upper lip. But stoicism has a PR problem. In fact, stoicism can teach us a lot about letting go of outcomes, being more tolerant of others, and how to live a more fulfilled life. In this episode, we unpack the core pillars of this ancient philosophy, recognise how it has influenced world leaders to chronic pain patients, and explore how we can apply it in our day-to-day lives.  

We explore:
• The ancient origins of stoicism 
• Why people are turning to stoicism today
• The four cardinal virtues of stoicism - wisdom, justice, courage and temperance
• Why stoic mindsets scientifically impact the treatment of pain, palliative care, and more
• How stoicism can be one of the most empowering mindsets to adopt in our 20s

Listen now or watch on Netflix!

ORDER MY BOOK: https://www.psychologyofyour20s.com/copy-of-book 

Follow Jemma on Instagram: @jemmasbeg
Follow the podcast on Instagram: @thatpsychologypodcast
For business: [email protected] 
 
The Psychology of your 20s is not a substitute for professional mental health help. If you are struggling, distressed or require personalised advice, please reach out to your doctor or a licensed psychologist.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We often dismiss the small, playful things we do to keep life joyful: collecting trinkets, baking for no reason, blowing bubbles, looking for magic. They’re labelled childish, unnecessary, or unserious. But psychology and neuroscience tell a very different story.

Today, we're breaking down the psychology of whimsy, including:

• What “whimsy” actually is and why it’s trending again
• How play helps regulate your nervous system
• The neuroscience of stress, imagination and brain plasticity
• The science of beauty and the brain (neuroaesthetics)
• Why small acts of joy can be psychologically protective
• 15 whimsy activity ideas 

Listen now! 

Watch on Netflix

Follow Jemma on Instagram: @jemmasbeg

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @thatpsychologypodcast

Subscribe on Substack: @thepsychologyofyour20s

For business: [email protected] 

The Psychology of your 20s is not a substitute for professional mental health help. If you are struggling, distressed or require personalised advice, please reach out to your doctor or a licensed psychologist.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We like to think we’re making conscious choices all day long - but a lot of what drives our reactions, habits, and gut feelings happens outside of awareness. The conscious vs. unconscious mind is a useful way to understand why you can know what you want, and still do the opposite. In this episode, we break down what the conscious and unconscious mind actually mean in psychology, where the idea came from, why it can feel unsettling to face, and how to build more influence over your impulses and automatic patterns. 

We explore:
•        The difference between deliberate thinking and automatic processing
•        Freud’s topographical model
•        The importance of the unconscious mind
•        The responsibilities of the conscious and unconscious
•        How to spot unhealthy unconscious patterns 

Watch on Netflix

Follow Jemma on Instagram: @jemmasbeg

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @thatpsychologypodcast

Subscribe on Substack: @thepsychologyofyour20s

For business: [email protected] 

Our favourite sources: 
https://www.nature.com/articles/nn.2112

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/chapter/bookseries/abs/pii/S0065260106380021?via%3Dihub

https://acmelab.yale.edu/sites/default/files/1999_the_unbearable_automaticity_of_being.pdf

The Psychology of your 20s is not a substitute for professional mental health help. If you are struggling, distressed or require personalised advice, please reach out to your doctor or a licensed psychologist. 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.