The Human Intimacy Podcast

The Human Intimacy Podcast

Intimacy is a fundamental human experience that goes far beyond romantic relationships. Join us as we dive into the deep and multifaceted layers of human connection, exploring everything from friendship and family bonds to self-love and vulnerability. Through thought-provoking conversations with experts, personal stories, and practical advice, we’ll uncover the secrets to nurturing meaningful relationships in a fast-paced digital world. From exploring trust and fostering emotional intimacy to navigating conflicts and rediscovering oneself, we’re here to discover the essence of what it means to truly connect with others and ourselves. Whether you’re seeking to improve your relationships, gain insights into human behaviors, or simply crave a meaningful conversation that enriches your understanding of human connection, you won’t want to miss a single episode of The Human Intimacy Podcast.

Episodes

March 11, 2026 37 mins

When Recovery Means

Different Things to Each Partner

Summary:

One of the most difficult aspects of healing after betrayal is that both partners may believe they are working toward recovery, yet they may have very different ideas about what healing actually looks like.

In this episode of the Human Intimacy Podcast, Dr. Kevin Skinner is joined by MaryAnn Michaels and Geo...

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Empathy Overload: Why Feeling Too Much Can Hurt Your Relationship (And How Compassion Heals It) 📝 Episode Summary

In this powerful episode of the Human Intimacy Podcast, Dr. Kevin Skinner and MaryAnn explore a surprising truth: empathy—while essential—can sometimes be the very thing that keeps couples stuck.

Drawing on research from Stephen Porges and insights from polyvagal theory, Dr. Skinner explains how empathy activates the ...

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When Couples Feel Stuck: Breaking the Patterns That Keep You From Healing

What do you do when you’ve tried everything—therapy, groups, individual work—and you still feel stuck?

In this powerful conversation, Dr. Kevin Skinner and Maryanne Michaelis, LCSW, explore why couples get trapped in the same relational patterns and, more importantly, how those patterns can change.

This episode speaks directly to couples who feel hopeless, ex...

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Understanding Sexual Intimacy: Self-Awareness, Healing, and Connection in the Intimacy Triangle (Part 2) Episode Summary

In this concluding conversation on the Intimacy Triangle, Dr. Kevin Skinner and MaryAnn Michaelis explore the most complex and often misunderstood dimension of intimacy—sexual intimacy. Together, they examine how personal history, trauma, shame, cultural messaging, betrayal, and biology shape the way individu...

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    Summary

    In this milestone episode celebrating two years of the Human Intimacy Podcast, Dr. Kevin Skinner and MaryAnn Michaelis explore one of the most meaningful — and often misunderstood — dimensions of connection: physical and sexual intimacy.

    Many relationships struggle in this area, especially when trust has been disrupted or when couples have never learned how to build intimacy from a strong psychological and emotional foundat...

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    Spiritual Intimacy: Being Seen, Sharing Meaning, and Deepening Connection

    In this episode of the Human Intimacy Podcast, Dr. Kevin Skinner and MaryAnn Michaelis explore the often-misunderstood concept of spiritual intimacy. Moving beyond narrow definitions of religion, they discuss spirituality as a deeply human experience—how we make meaning, experience stillness, share vulnerability, and feel connected to something greater than...

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    Creative & Intellectual Intimacy: Growing, Playing, and Building Meaning Together Episode Summary

    In this episode of the Human Intimacy Podcast, Dr. Kevin Skinner and MaryAnn Michaelis explore creative and intellectual intimacy—two often overlooked but deeply powerful ways couples build connection, trust, and shared meaning.

    Rather than viewing intimacy as a checklist or a linear process, they describe it as a living, dynamic e...

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    Verbal & Emotional Intimacy: Using Your Voice to Create Deeper Connection Episode Summary

    In this episode of the Human Intimacy Podcast, Dr. Kevin Skinner and Maryanne Michaelis continue their exploration of intimacy by focusing on verbal and emotional intimacy. They discuss how curiosity, vulnerability, and emotional expression create deeper connection—while assumptions, fear, and unspoken emotions quietly erode it.

    Through p...

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    Psychological Intimacy: The Foundation of Trust, Safety, and Healing After Betrayal

    In this episode of the Human Intimacy Podcast, Dr. Kevin Skinner and MaryAnn Michaelis take a deeper dive into the seven types of intimacy, focusing specifically on psychological intimacy as the foundation of all connection. They explore how honesty, trust, loyalty, and commitment are disrupted by betrayal—and why secrecy and deception, more than b...

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    The 7 Types of Intimacy: Reclaiming Connection in a Disconnected World Episode Summary

    In this milestone 100th episode of the Human Intimacy Podcast, Dr. Kevin Skinner and MaryAnn Michaelis reflect on two years of conversations—and over 50,000 downloads—by returning to the very heart of their work: human intimacy.

    This episode introduces Dr. Skinner’s Intimacy Triangle (or Pyramid), a framework he developed more than 20 years ago t...

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    Nine Simple Practices That Strengthen Relationships Summary

    In Episode #99 of the Human Intimacy Podcast, Dr. Kevin Skinner and MaryAnn Michaelis celebrate their 99th episode by sharing nine powerful practices couples can use to strengthen connection, deepen trust, and build meaningful intimacy. Each principle is grounded in years of clinical experience, neuroscience, and relationship research—while remaining practical and accessi...

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    The Gift of Your Presence: Why Showing Up Matters More Than You Think

    In this heartfelt Human Intimacy Podcast episode, Dr. Kevin Skinner and MaryAnn Michaelis explore the powerful impact of truly being present in the lives of the people we love. During a season filled with busyness, distraction, and endless to-do lists, they invite listeners to slow down and consider the deeper message presence communicates: You matter. I see you...

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    The Stories We Tell Ourselves: How Meaning, Shame, and Assumptions Shape Our Relationships Summary

    In this episode of the Human Intimacy Podcast, Dr. Kevin Skinner and licensed clinical social worker Marianne Michaelis explore the powerful—and often invisible—stories we tell ourselves about who we are and how others see us. Even when people share the same experience, their interpretations can be radically different, shaped by pas...

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    Emotional Ownership: Understanding and Responding to Your Inner World Summary

    In this timely episode, Dr. Kevin Skinner and MaryAnn Michaelis explore one of the most essential—and most avoided—skills in relationships: emotional ownership. As the holiday season intensifies stress, loneliness, old family wounds, and relational tension, the ability to understand and take responsibility for our internal world becomes even more vital.

    ...

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    The Somatic Experience: How the Body Stores Trauma and the Path to Physiological Healing

    In this powerful episode of the Human Intimacy Podcast, Dr. Kevin Skinner and MaryAnn Michaelis, LCSW, explore the essential connection between trauma, physiology, and healing through a somatic lens. Drawing on the work of Peter Levine, Bessel van der Kolk, Deb Dana, and polyvagal theory, they highlight how trauma is not only a psychological e...

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    The Transformative Power of Gratitude: How Noticing the “Why” Deepens Connection

    In this Thanksgiving-week episode of the Human Intimacy Podcast, Dr. Kevin Skinner and MaryAnn Michaelis explore the healing power of gratitude—both in everyday life and in relationships. What begins as a simple conversation about what they’re grateful for quickly deepens into an exploration of why certain people, moments, and memories hold meaning. Dr...

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    Seeing Your Blind Spots:

    Why We Make the Choices We Do

    In this powerful and reflective episode of the Human Intimacy Podcast, Dr. Kevin Skinner and MaryAnn Michaelis explore why people make choices that go against their values—especially in the aftermath of trauma, betrayal, and emotional flooding. Drawing from clinical experience, Internal Family Systems (IFS) languag...

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    The Cost of Judgment:

    Seeing Ourselves and Others Through Compassion

    Summary: In this episode of the Human Intimacy Podcast, Dr. Kevin Skinner and MaryAnn Michaelis explore the nature of judgment—how we judge ourselves, others, and the world around us. They unpack how the brain’s natural tendency to predict and protect can lead us to make judgments based on incomplete s...

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    Resilient Couples: How to Stay Strong Through Life’s Hardest Challenges

    Summary: In this inspiring episode of the Human Intimacy Podcast, Dr. Kevin Skinner and MaryAnn Michaelis, LCSW, explore what it means to build resiliency as individuals and as couples—especially in the face of life’s most difficult challenges. Drawing from personal experiences, research, and decades of clinical work, they discuss the essential components o...

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    Permission to Feel: Creating Safety for Emotional Intimacy Episode Summary

    In this powerful episode, Dr. Kevin Skinner and MaryAnn Michaelis explore one of the most important — and misunderstood — aspects of healing after betrayal: emotional experience and expression.

    Many of us have been conditioned to suppress emotions, especially those that feel scary, overwhelming, or “unacceptable” — such as anger, fear, grief, or shame. Oft...

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