It not about celebs, its about you (Psychologies)

Member Name: yellowroses

Product:	Psychologies
Date:	22/02/09 (204 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Interesting articles, meatier than other glossys

Disadvantages: Same adverts, same content

I have spent quite a bit of time in hospital over the past few years and have read just about every womans magazine there is.I would say Psychologies is a little different to most with perhaps more meat on its bones. After reading several copies I decided to subscribe and have kept my subscription past the initial 12 months.

***** The magazine *****

A glossy magazine available in two sizes the standard A4 and a smaller A5 size. The A5 size is designed to 'fit in your handbag'. I personally still get the A4 size as I often read it in bed and find it easier to manage but it is personal preference and you do have a choice.
The magazine is published monthly and like I said I get mine delivered yet it is available at larger newsagents such as W H Smiths.


***** Regular features *****

Editors letter - Like most magazines the editor Maureen Rice introduces the topics and issues covered in the edition.

Letter page - Readers comments on previous editions with a prize for the winning letter of the month, usually cosmetics.

Your questions - An agony aunt type slot. The 'agony aunt' is a clinical psychologist who answers questions mainly focused on relationships. I have Febrary's edition in front of me and the questions in this edition are: How do we tell the children we have to move somewhere smaller because we can no longer afford our mortgage. I want to contact my sons father two years after having a son he didnt want her to have because the child reminds her of him and lastly someone who is gay but has fallen in love with a straight friend. To be honest I often skip these pages they are not really any different to other 'problem pages' although the replies are probably more detailed as less letters are answered.


Thought Leader - This is a column usually written by an author on someone whose work has influenced them. In this issue it is Terry Pratchet writing about GK Chesterton (I'd never heard of him before) This column is usually worth a read and unlike columns I have read in other magazines

What makes you tick? - Basically this is a question and answer session with a celebrity. Not perhaps the same trashy quality you would find in a celeb magazine as the questions tend to be deeper for example 'What's the best advie you have been given?' and 'If you could come back in another life would you come back as a man or a woman?' I read this feature occassionally, it is ok but it really depends on your interests. If you are looking for the latest celebrity gossip you wouldn't find it here but if you want to find out what celebrity's think of other issues outside of the celeb culture then this might interest you.


Fast Therapy - A reader has a one hour session with therapist Benjamin Fry to get to the route of an issue they are having and part (well i'm guessing part' of their conversion is written over a three page spread and followed by a review three months later. I feel kind of mixed about this feature. It makes a good read and perhaps if they are discussing an issue you can relate you to may be able to empathise with the reader. I must admit I often read this part first, I think i am also interested (nosey) as to how other people think and feel about themselves. Another part of me thinks it is a little too neatly packaged. Benjamin usually tries to set some goals for example group therapy, keeping a journal, talking or writing to friends and family. In this edition he suggests a month of kickboxing and flower arranging. Sounds bizarre written out of context but he is trying to get her to release her anger and get in touch with her emotions. Part of me thinks this feature is wrong and equatable with chat shows such as the Jeremy Kyle show or Trisha. What I mean by this is that if you feel that badly about things would you want the world to see them either on TV or published in a magazine or would you seek counselling privately.

Other typical features are aimed at getting you to reconnect with nature and recognise the world as more than what you are worrying about.
A heartfelt story (usually from a woman) on some struggle they have lived through for example leaving children behind to focus on their careers, living with self harm or an illness like M E. You get the idea. This to me is them trying to get you to say wow my life really isn't that bad.

Self portrait is usually another celebrity analysing their life and journey through photos.


Think Tank - The bulletin board (Bite sized news) Music, film and book reviews including recomended reads to the book club. There is online discussion about the featured book on the website and in the magazine. The book clubs reads are fiction but there are also recomendations and reviews on psychology classics.

***** Parts that are not found in other magazine *****

Dossier - Every month they take a different topic on how you can improve your own live. The copy I have in front on me is a life audit. How did I get here, What am i doing here and where do i want to get to kind of thing. The have in the past been dossiers on how to increase confidence, move up the career ladder, be happier. It is generally worth a read but I can't say I have ever followed the steps all the way through and after studying psychology I alwasys take quizz results with a super size dose of salt. I have read some dossiers and thought why havent i done that before or thats a good idea. Yet I get this image in my head of someone a little neurotic following the advice to the letter and ending up depressed because the extreme claims have not materialised losing sight that it is only a magazine and not a magic wand. Perhaps this image is due to a friend of mine. She bought an issue about emotional eating and at first was unrealistically positive that she was going to stop comfort eating and lose stones. Of course her optimism was short lived because emotions are not about answering a few questions and reaching an epiphony.

The five senses - This section is probably one of my favourites. Beauty news, views, tips and reviews. Question and answer section. Travel news and recomended destinations. It deals with food, health, beauty and tips for breaking old habits.

One off articles by psychologists and therapists. These generally make for an interesting read.

Instead of publishing pictures of size zero celebritys and telling us about their latest new diet this magazine is more likely to explain the weight loss traps and pit falls. Providing suggestions of ways to get around them. This I feel is a better, well more ethically correct, way of discussing weight loss. However they still use very thin models in their adverts and exceptionally beautifully made up ones, in a magazine which I believe aims at empowering woman to make them feel comfortable in their own skin is a little contradictory.


***** Overall Impression *****

It wasn't until I began reviewing this that I realised how many parts of it I would happily skip past without reading. Yet there are also interesting articles. The magazine in my opinion is aimed at the slighty older reader than myself. It covers a wide area of topics and often has interesting articles on philosophy, history, anthropology and todays society.

Don't let the name of this magazine put you off. I think the name is harsh and yes although there is a lot of input from psychologists and review of psychology related journals. It is in english, you don't need a degree in psychology to understand it. Saying that though it is much more reading than you average magazine. 162 pages for £3.30 a month or £25 a year is not too bad in my opinion. It has a broad spectrum of articles so there will inevitably be at least one you enjoy.
Check out the website www.psychologies.co.uk and see if it is one for you before parting with your cash.

Summary: .....