Back to Reality

Welcome back to The Dynamics of Everyday Life with your host, Julia! In this episode, I dive into the curious phenomenon of not being able to imagine life after a big event—be it a long-awaited holiday, Christmas, or any milestone. Why do we focus everything on the buildup and then feel lost or “blank” once it’s over? I take a psychodynamic lens to this universal experience, exploring our emotional need to create psychological boundaries through fixed points in time. [00:01:10] — Realization that this is a universal phenomenon, introduction to the concept of "back to reality," and distinction from Monday Blues/Sunday Scaries. [00:01:50] — Discussion of the struggle to imagine life beyond fixed points and common slump after big events. [00:02:32] — Psychodynamic perspective: Using events as psychological boundaries and containers. [00:03:18] — Defenses and avoidance strategies: procrastination masked as planning, with examples around holidays like Christmas. [00:04:01] — More about how we split time between "before" and "after" events, and the illusion of psychological space and control. [00:06:02] — School holidays analogy; personal anecdote about denial and last-minute preparations for back-to-school. [00:06:48] — September as a "new start," the myth of fresh starts, and the reality of post-event life. [00:08:15] — Personal example of keeping the post-event feeling alive, advice for self-compassion and reframing anxiety-driven habits. Upcoming Events: Webinar with Scott Warren: Exploring defense mechanisms around pricing for coaches (early September) Essential Psychodynamics for Coaches course starts again in September Weekly LinkedIn Live Sessions: Mondays at 2:30pm (unless it’s a bank holiday!) Find more resources, join live sessions, or connect about coaching and psychodynamics at DynamicsOfEverydayLife . Don’t forget to subscribe, and stay tuned for more episodes helping you demystify everyday psychology! Sign Up for your free Resource Sheet HERE Connect with Julia: Website LinkedIn Instagram