Most of us carry a story about how others see us, and that story is often wrong. Armand DiMele examines the gap between self-image and social reality, touching on trustworthiness, sarcasm as a defense, online dating personas, schadenfreude, and what it would take to simply be yourself.
Fixed mindset people treat setbacks as proof of permanent flaws; growth mindset people treat them as data. Dr. Carol Dweck, Professor and Author of “Mindset,” joins Armand DiMele to explore how these two orientations shape ambition, love, parenting, and even how we age.
No therapist can hand you the right formula for love, and Armand argues that freedom from definitions is the real gift. Neurotic love, dishonest love, unconventional love can all work. What matters is noticing your own sensations, from longing to satisfaction, and trusting what fits you.
The brain was supposed to be sealed off from the immune system, but new research suggests otherwise. Armand DiMele surveys evidence that bacterial infections, antibodies, and T cells can trigger OCD, depression, memory loss, and personality shifts, and that treating the infection sometimes cures the psychiatric symptom.
Armand DiMele breaks down what ‘crazy’ actually means, separating neurotic repetition (doing the same thing and expecting different results) from chemical and psychological states where a person loses touch with themselves entirely. He traces how fear of danger drives paranoia, withdrawal, and self-destruction.
Triangulation is both a normal developmental step and a source of lasting dysfunction. Armand DiMele traces how children get pulled into taking sides between parents, how gossip and confiding in friends repeat the same pattern, and why splitting the world into all-good and all-bad leaves people stuck. Callers share their own family triangle experiences.
Vainglory is subtler than plain boasting: the vainglorious person wraps genuine insight in passing self-flattery, steering every story back to their own greatness. Armand DiMele unpacks the pattern, argues it masks deep smallness, and makes the case for genuine humility as the rarer and more admirable quality.
Loneliness is not a feeling but a perception, Armand DiMele argues, shaped by how many connections we hold and whether we feel truly heard. With Linda Vanella, LCSW-R, he maps the spectrum from highly connected people to those who isolate as self-protection, and examines how shopping, affairs, and caretaking often mask the ache of disconnection.
Secrets shape every layer of life, from the truths we hide from ourselves to the ones buried inside families for generations. Armand DiMele examines why some secrets protect and others destroy, when revealing them heals, and when it causes further harm. Callers share their own long-held burdens.
Armand DiMele argues that the most powerful thing you can do is stop rushing toward answers and learn to sit with your own questions. Drawing on Zen koans, caller conversations about aging relationships and childhood sexual abuse, and a clip from The Jerk, he shows how the right question opens you to genuine self-knowledge.
