An Evolving Man Podcast

Piers Cross
  • 5.0 (3)
  • MENTAL HEALTH
  • UPDATED BIWEEKLY

An Evolving Man Podcast looks at leadership, peak performance, psychology, healing trauma, boarding school syndrome, spirituality and complexhealing. Every week there will be an interview or a podcast around topics ranging from self-development, leadership, relationships, spirituality, education, and peak performance featuring authors and leaders in these fields.

  1. Home Alone vs UK Boarding School Culture: The Psychology of Separation | Piers Cross

    1D AGO

    Home Alone vs UK Boarding School Culture: The Psychology of Separation | Piers Cross

    This week I rewatched Home Alone — and realised it can be viewed as a surprisingly powerful study of child development, attachment, and the psychology of separation. Kevin is eight years old — an age that matters deeply in the UK context, because it has historically been an age when many children began boarding school. In this short reflection, I explore key moments in the film through a boarding-school lens, drawing on the work of Joy Schaverien and Nick Duffell. We reflect on: why “not knowing the basics” at eight is development — not failurethe confusion children experience when we warn them about strangers, then send them to live with strangersthe mother’s panic response and what it reveals about attachmentrupture and repair — and why apology matterswhy many ex-boarders don’t tell their parents what really happenedA gentle, thoughtful Christmas reflection — and a question for all of us:  What kind of childhood are we protecting… and what kind are we cutting short? --- Piers is an author and a men's transformational coach and therapist who works mainly with trauma, boarding school issues, addictions and relationship problems. He also runs online men's groups for ex-boarders, retreats and a podcast called An Evolving Man. He is also the author of How to Survive and Thrive in Challenging Times. To purchase Piers first book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Survive-Thrive-Challenging-Times/dp/B088T5L251/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=piers+cross&qid=1609869608&sr=8-1 For more videos please visit: http://youtube.com/pierscross For FB: https://www.facebook.com/pierscrosspublic For Piers' website and a free training How To Find Peace In Everyday Life: https://www.piers-cross.com/community Many blessings, Piers Cross http://piers-cross.com/

    15 min

  2. DEC 17

    The Mother Wound & Boarding School | Rupture, Repair, and the Cost of Separation | Piers Cross

    In this reflective episode, Piers Cross explores boarding school, the mother wound, and the lasting impact of early separation from parents — particularly as Christmas approaches. Inspired by a powerful public conversation between Amelia White and her mother, Piers reflects on how boarding school disrupts natural attachment, prevents rupture and repair, and often leaves relationships with parents — especially mothers — emotionally distant. Drawing on personal experience, clinical insight, and the work of Nick Duffell, Joy Schaverien, Suzanne Zeedyk, and Alex Renton, this episode explores why so many former boarders live far from home, struggle to trust caregivers, and carry grief that is rarely named. This is a compassionate, trauma-informed exploration of loss, responsibility, listening, and healing — and an invitation to reflect more deeply during the holiday season. For the conversation between Amelia and her mother: https://youtu.be/ZofjtmiMidw?si=uyEKeRDT-WrAUQj-  --- Piers is an author and a men's transformational coach and therapist who works mainly with trauma, boarding school issues, addictions and relationship problems. He also runs online men's groups for ex-boarders, retreats and a podcast called An Evolving Man. He is also the author of How to Survive and Thrive in Challenging Times. To purchase Piers first book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Survive-Thrive-Challenging-Times/dp/B088T5L251/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=piers+cross&qid=1609869608&sr=8-1 For more videos please visit: http://youtube.com/pierscross For FB: https://www.facebook.com/pierscrosspublic For Piers' website and a free training How To Find Peace In Everyday Life: https://www.piers-cross.com/community Many blessings, Piers Cross http://piers-cross.com/

    14 min

  3. DEC 10

    Protect Children: Boarding School Abuse & Mandatory Reporting | House of Commons Screening

    For the article in the Telegraph: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education-and-careers/2025/12/03/working-at-a-boarding-school-is-like-being-in-a-cult/  And for the letter to write to your MP: https://seenheard.org.uk/boarding-on-insanity-parliamentary-screening/  In this short solo episode, I share an update and a heartfelt thank you. On 19th January 2026, we’ll be hosting a special screening of our documentary Boarding on Insanity inside the House of Commons. We’re inviting MPs, charity leaders and the media to confront an uncomfortable truth: In England and Wales, it is still not a criminal offence for professionals in regulated roles to fail to report known or suspected child sexual abuse.In this episode I talk about: Why this screening matters so muchThe urgent need for effective mandatory reportingWhy a dedicated Child Protection Agency is essentialHow institutions often close ranks and punish whistleblowersWhat you can do today to help protect children👉 Please contact your MP. A simple template letter and guidance on how to find your MP are available via the link in the show notes. It only takes a few minutes and it genuinely makes a difference to how many MPs show up in January.  https://seenheard.org.uk/boarding-on-insanity-parliamentary-screening/   Thank you for your support, your courage, and your willingness to stand with survivors. Together, we can change this. --- Piers is an author and a men's transformational coach and therapist who works mainly with trauma, boarding school issues, addictions and relationship problems. He also runs online men's groups for ex-boarders, retreats and a podcast called An Evolving Man. He is also the author of How to Survive and Thrive in Challenging Times. To purchase Piers first book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Survive-Thrive-Challenging-Times/dp/B088T5L251/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=piers+cross&qid=1609869608&sr=8-1 For more videos please visit: http://youtube.com/pierscross For FB: https://www.facebook.com/pierscrosspublic For Piers' website and a free training How To Find Peace In Everyday Life: https://www.piers-cross.com/community Many blessings, Piers Cross http://piers-cross.com/

    8 min
  4. Boarding School, Neurodiversity & Shame: Adverse School Experiences | Ian Keys & Piers Cross AEM#146

    DEC 5

    Boarding School, Neurodiversity & Shame: Adverse School Experiences | Ian Keys & Piers Cross AEM#146

    In this episode of An Evolving Man Podcast (AEM #146), I speak with Ian Keys, an ex-boarder, youth worker and newly qualified counsellor, about what really happens when neurodiverse children move through a schooling system that doesn’t understand them. Ian started boarding school at 11 and left with no qualifications, convinced he was “thick”. Decades later, after working with excluded teenagers, forest school groups, neurodivergent young people and national-level athletes, he began to see the truth: the problem was never his intelligence – it was the environment. Together we explore: How dyslexia and neurodiversity show up in the classroom – and how easily they are misreadBoarding school syndrome, dissociation and the survival strategies children developThe idea of Adverse School Experiences (ASEs) and how they sit alongside ACEsShaming practices (like “being sent to Coventry”) and their long-term impact on self-worthWhat Scandinavian education offers as a different model: attachment, play, nature and trustPractical ways adults can begin to heal and “rewrite the story” after harmful schoolingThis episode is for ex-boarders, neurodivergent adults, therapists, teachers, parents – and anyone who suspects that school left deeper marks than they realised. 🔗 Find out more about Ian’s work and writing on adverse school experiences via his website  http://www.iankeys.co.uk/  If this conversation resonates, please share it with someone who might need to hear it. --- Piers is an author and a men's transformational coach and therapist who works mainly with trauma, boarding school issues, addictions and relationship problems. He also runs online men's groups for ex-boarders, retreats and a podcast called An Evolving Man. He is also the author of How to Survive and Thrive in Challenging Times. To purchase Piers first book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Survive-Thrive-Challenging-Times/dp/B088T5L251/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=piers+cross&qid=1609869608&sr=8-1 For more videos please visit: http://youtube.com/pierscross For FB: https://www.facebook.com/pierscrosspublic For Piers' website and a free training How To Find Peace In Everyday Life: https://www.piers-cross.com/community Many blessings, Piers Cross http://piers-cross.com/

    1 hr

  5. DEC 3

    Are Boarding Schools Ending? The Quiet Collapse No One Is Talking About | Piers Cross

    Are boarding schools reaching the end of the road? To contact your MP to get them to attend the House of Commons screening please visit here: https://seenheard.org.uk/boarding-on-insanity-parliamentary-screening/  In today’s episode, I reflect on last week’s conference honouring Dr Joy Schaverien and share surprising insights from conversations with people working inside the current boarding school system. Many schools appear to be moving into survival mode — and the strategies they’re using may be accelerating their decline. We look at: • Why prep schools are being pushed back into the pipeline  • How trauma patterns influence leadership decisions  • Why emotional intelligence is the future of education  • What AI, neuroscience and attachment theory reveal about outdated schooling models  • The growing national movement calling for child safety and systemic reform With a major screening of Boarding on Insanity inside the Houses of Parliament this January, momentum is shifting fast. The next decade may bring profound change to how we educate and protect children. If this episode resonates, please share it — and consider writing to your MP using the link in the show notes. Change happens when we act together. --- Piers is an author and a men's transformational coach and therapist who works mainly with trauma, boarding school issues, addictions and relationship problems. He also runs online men's groups for ex-boarders, retreats and a podcast called An Evolving Man. He is also the author of How to Survive and Thrive in Challenging Times. To purchase Piers first book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Survive-Thrive-Challenging-Times/dp/B088T5L251/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=piers+cross&qid=1609869608&sr=8-1 For more videos please visit: http://youtube.com/pierscross For FB: https://www.facebook.com/pierscrosspublic For Piers' website and a free training How To Find Peace In Everyday Life: https://www.piers-cross.com/community Many blessings, Piers Cross http://piers-cross.com/

    13 min

  6. NOV 26

    Honouring Joy Schaverien: A Landmark Event on Boarding School Trauma | Piers Cross

    In this episode, I share reflections on the upcoming event The Silent Damage of Boarding School — a special day honouring the life and work of Dr Joy Schaverien, whose research into Boarding School Syndrome has transformed the field of trauma and psychotherapy. I walk through what the event includes, who will be speaking, and why Joy’s contributions continue to be so influential across psychology, counselling, and survivor communities. The online version of the event still has tickets available. Featuring speakers: Helen Odell-Miller, Alex Renton, Graham Music, and Zachary Fair — plus the premiere of a new 25-minute film from my interview with Joy. --- Piers is an author and a men's transformational coach and therapist who works mainly with trauma, boarding school issues, addictions and relationship problems. He also runs online men's groups for ex-boarders, retreats and a podcast called An Evolving Man. He is also the author of How to Survive and Thrive in Challenging Times. To purchase Piers first book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Survive-Thrive-Challenging-Times/dp/B088T5L251/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=piers+cross&qid=1609869608&sr=8-1 For more videos please visit: http://youtube.com/pierscross For FB: https://www.facebook.com/pierscrosspublic For Piers' website and a free training How To Find Peace In Everyday Life: https://www.piers-cross.com/community Many blessings, Piers Cross http://piers-cross.com/

    6 min

  7. NOV 19

    "I Was Terrified!" Fear and Boarding School | Piers Cross

    For the link to Nicky Moxey and Dr Linda Devereux's book Worlds Away From Home:  https://amzn.eu/d/9sE6I0j Fear is one of the most overlooked experiences in boarding school life.  In this episode, Piers reflects on his own memories of fear and explores why so many ex-boarders still carry hypervigilance and survival patterns into adulthood.  Drawing on research from Suzanne Zeedyk, Nick Duffell and Emma Seppälä, along with real stories from former boarders, Piers explains how fear shapes the nervous system — and how we can begin to heal.  A compassionate, grounded discussion for anyone exploring boarding school syndrome or emotional recovery.  --- Piers is an author and a men's transformational coach and therapist who works mainly with trauma, boarding school issues, addictions and relationship problems. He also runs online men's groups for ex-boarders, retreats and a podcast called An Evolving Man. He is also the author of How to Survive and Thrive in Challenging Times. To purchase Piers first book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Survive-Thrive-Challenging-Times/dp/B088T5L251/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=piers+cross&qid=1609869608&sr=8-1 For more videos please visit: http://youtube.com/pierscross For FB: https://www.facebook.com/pierscrosspublic For Piers' website and a free training How To Find Peace In Everyday Life: https://www.piers-cross.com/community Many blessings, Piers Cross http://piers-cross.com/

    17 min
  8. Emotional Fitness: From Dissociation to Emotional Mastery | Corey Corpodian | Piers Cross AEM #145

    NOV 14

    Emotional Fitness: From Dissociation to Emotional Mastery | Corey Corpodian | Piers Cross AEM #145

    In this transformative conversation, Piers Cross speaks with Corey Corpodian — author, orthodontist, and host of the Unleash Success Podcast — about how to master your emotions, build resilience, and lead with authenticity. After achieving every external marker of success, Corey found himself deeply unfulfilled. A life-changing health scare set him on a new path toward emotional fitness — a discipline of daily exercises that rewire the brain and strengthen mental and emotional resilience. Together, they discuss: How to transform emotional pain into purposeWhy EQ can be trained and strengthened over timeThe link between leadership, vulnerability, and emotional fitnessTools for reconnecting with your emotions after trauma or disconnectionHow to develop a growth mindset through consistent awareness and reflectionA conversation filled with science, story, and wisdom — for anyone ready to move beyond emotional survival and into emotional mastery. --- Piers is an author and a men's transformational coach and therapist who works mainly with trauma, boarding school issues, addictions and relationship problems. He also runs online men's groups for ex-boarders, retreats and a podcast called An Evolving Man. He is also the author of How to Survive and Thrive in Challenging Times. To purchase Piers first book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Survive-Thrive-Challenging-Times/dp/B088T5L251/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=piers+cross&qid=1609869608&sr=8-1 For more videos please visit: http://youtube.com/pierscross For FB: https://www.facebook.com/pierscrosspublic For Piers' website and a free training How To Find Peace In Everyday Life: https://www.piers-cross.com/community Many blessings, Piers Cross http://piers-cross.com/

    58 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

An Evolving Man Podcast looks at leadership, peak performance, psychology, healing trauma, boarding school syndrome, spirituality and complexhealing. Every week there will be an interview or a podcast around topics ranging from self-development, leadership, relationships, spirituality, education, and peak performance featuring authors and leaders in these fields.

Information

  • Creator
    Piers Cross
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2025
  • Episodes
    271
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2025 An Evolving Man Podcast
  • Show Website
    An Evolving Man Podcast

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