Mission Accomplished! Dear Feeling Good Podcast fans, I am profoundly sad to say goodbye to my beloved friend and terrific podcast host, Dr. Fabrice Nye, who is leaving the podcast to start his own show this spring. I wish him well on his new podcast he'll be releasing soon. I'll share the specifics when they become available so loyal fans can tune in and follow him! What a joyous experience it has been working with Fabrice for the last three years. He proposed the idea of a weekly podcast in th...
Mar 25, 2019•38 min•Ep. 133
Today's Ask David questions. Do depression and anxiety result from medical illnesses, like thyroid problems? Do we REALLY create our own interpersonal reality? What if you're being raped? Are you saying that's your fault? How can that be? I struggle with anxiety. Why is it a mistake to try to "calm down?" How do you deal with entitlement? I think my patients should do what I tell them to do! After all, I'm a highly trained professional! How do you deal with racism, sexism, and other societal bar...
Mar 18, 2019•47 min•Ep. 132
Debbie asks: Can you use TEAM-CBT to help people with medical disorders, such as Parkinsonism or Cancer? Here is the promised link to Stirling Moorey's book on Cognitive Therapy for cancer patients . Here is the link the first episode of live therapy with Marilyn , a woman who was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer a couple days before her session with David and Dr. Matthew May. You may also want to listen to podcasts 50 to 52 and 59 , which also feature David and Matt working with Marilyn. Mari...
Mar 11, 2019•32 min•Ep. 131
If you're my patient, and you want help, I will ask you what specific problem you want help with. These are the four most common problems I see: depression, anxiety, relationship conflicts, or habits and addictions. Then I'll ask you to zero in on one specific moment when you were struggling with that problem. For example, if you want help with depression and low self-esteem, I'll ask you to describe one moment when you were feeling down. It could be any moment at all—it might even be right now,...
Mar 04, 2019•40 min•Ep. 130
In this role-reversal of the traditional Feeling Good Podcast, Dr. David Burns and his special guest, Dr. Rhonda Barovsky, interview Dr. Fabrice Nye, your beloved podcast host, on the topic of Mindfulness and Meditation, which are currently popular with the therapeutic community. Fabrice answers questions like these: What's mindfulness? How does it differ from meditation? What's the history of mindfulness as well as meditation? Did it originate with the Buddha, or did it date back even earlier? ...
Feb 25, 2019•31 min•Ep. 129
You CAN Defeat Shyness! Lately, I've gotten lots of emails from podcast fans who struggle with shyness, which is categorized in DSM5 (The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) as "Social Anxiety Disorder." This is one of my favorite things to treat, since I struggled with practically EVERY type of social anxiety early in my life, so I really know how it feels and how to defeat it. It's incredibly common. In fact, when I give workshops for mental health professionals, I sometimes...
Feb 18, 2019•34 min•Ep. 128
Can the Five Secrets of Effective Communication Help Us in this Era of Intensely Polarized Politics? Clearly, the nation is intensely divided, and passions on both sides of the political divide are characterized by hostility, frustration, and mistrust. Can the Five Secrets of Effective Communication help us communicate with colleagues, friends and loved ones who may have radically different political beliefs? Find out on this edition of the Feeling Good Podcast, as the David and Fabrice respond ...
Feb 11, 2019•48 min•Ep. 127
Learning to use the Five Secrets skillfully requires strong motivation and lots of practice, but the benefits can be tremendous. The Five Secrets have transformed my clinical work as well as my personal and professional relationships. And they've also had a huge impact on my teaching. But there are even more communication techniques that can be immensely helpful. In this podcast, we discuss three advanced techniques : Changing the Focus. This technique can be tremendously helpful when there's an...
Feb 04, 2019•27 min•Ep. 126
More Great Questions from Listeners Kevin asks: After your initial improvement from treatment or from reading your book, Feeling Good, what can one do moving forward to give yourself "booster shots?" Umatsagir asks a related question: I feel great right after reading your book, Feeling Good, but the effect diminishes over time. What should I do? Umatsagir also asks: Is there an anxiety masterpiece equivalent of your book, Feeling Good? Kyle asks: What can I do, as a therapist, about the passive ...
Jan 28, 2019•28 min•Ep. 125
I hope you've enjoyed these episode on Common Therapist Errors, and I apologize in advance if any of the ideas I'm proposing in today's podcast seem "over the top" or simply off base. I teach with great passion, but I'm not always right! Fortunately, my esteemed host, Dr. Fabrice Nye, challenges me quite a bit, and he is almost always right. Hopefully, you will enjoy our dialogue and the chance to think a bit more critically about psychotherapy. And when you find I've made an error, or said some...
Jan 21, 2019•36 min•Ep. 124
I was concerned that our recent "Ten Most Common Therapist Errors" show might antagonize people, but we got quite a lot of positive and encouraging feedback from listeners, which was surprising to me. As a result, Fabrice and I decided to take a chance and publish two more shows on common therapist errors this week and next week. We hope you like these shows! Make sure you let us know what you think, and let me apologize in advance if I come across as annoying or overly cynical. All of the error...
Jan 14, 2019•46 min•Ep. 123
Do you have trouble saying "no"? Lots of people do—and it can sometimes get you into trouble. In spite of many best-selling books on assertiveness, like Manuel J. Smith's classic book, "When I Say No I Feel Guilty," many people still have trouble saying no . For example, you may have led someone on in a romantic relationship because you were afraid of saying no and breaking the other person's heart. Or, you feel burned out, because you're always giving, giving, giving because you can't—or won't—...
Jan 07, 2019•52 min•Ep. 122
Answers to Great Questions from Listeners Like YOU! Dylan asks: Do you believe in Freud's "secondary gain," in which patients resist change because they benefit from their symptoms? Juleann asks: Is Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) a real thing? Ismail asks: Should I use the Daily Mood Log just when I'm upset, or at the end of the day, or when? Do I have to stop what I'm doing when I get negative thoughts so I can write them down and work on them? Abe asks: What about negative thoughts that are...
Dec 31, 2018•48 min•Ep. 121
This is David and Fabrice's top ten list for the worst errors therapists make. 1. Failure to Measure (symptoms, empathy and helpfulness). Research shows that therapists' perceptions of how their patients feel, or feel about them, are not accurate. TEAM therapists measure symptom severity at the start and end of every therapy session with brief accurate scales that assess depression, suicidal urges, anxiety, anger, relationship satisfaction, and happiness. This allows therapists to see, for the f...
Dec 24, 2018•49 min•Ep. 120
How can you get rid of Self-Defeating Beliefs ? Although any of the 100 + TEAM-CBT methods can be used to modify an SDB, four methods will be highlighted in today's show. Cost-Benefit Analysis Semantic Method Experimental Technique Feared Fantasy For more information on how to change SDBs, you might want to watch the extremely popular David and Jill FB Live show on Overcoming Perfectionism (recorded on November 11, 2018). What research has been done on SDBs? This topic was not discussed in the s...
Dec 17, 2018•52 min•Ep. 119
Rajesh asked: Is it possible to change an SDB? Does the mere knowledge of an SDB change it? How long does it take to change an SDB? How do you change SDBs? Nikola asked: Aaron Beck said the SDBs never really go away. They just get activated and deactivated and activated again. Does this mean that depression is an incurable disease that will keep coming back over and over again? What's the point in battling against a core belief if it cannot be changed? Fabrice and I appreciate your questions--th...
Dec 10, 2018•34 min•Ep. 118
I recently did two terrific interviews (Podcasts #92 and #111) with Stephanie James on her superb radio show and podcast, The Spark . Today, Fabrice and I are bringing you my third and final interview with Stephanie, as we describe how to convert conflicted relationships into loving, rewarding ones. Stephanie said it was her favorite interview, although all three were really fun for me. Today you will once again hear how dynamic, warm and positive she is! My first interview with Stephanie was on...
Dec 03, 2018•1 hr 35 min•Ep. 117
This dynamic interview covers the integration of TEAM-CBT with Christianity as well as Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, the Muslim faith, and more. Mike, Fabrice and I describe many areas of overlap, as well as some potential conflicts, between the teachings and methods of TEAM-CBT and religious beliefs. Mike and I suggest that religion and TEAM-CBT are, in fact, attempting to do the exact same things using slightly different language and symbolism. We strongly agree that at the moment of recovery, ...
Nov 26, 2018•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 116
Fabrice and I were thrilled to interview our dear friend and colleague, Stephen Pfleiderer, who is the first therapist in the world using TEAM-CBT techniques in the treatment of habits and addictions, including life threatening addictions, like intravenous heroin or meth marijuana alcohol binge eating procrastination smoking internet porn and more Stephen begins with his personal story of excessive beer drinking starting in high school through his junior year in college when he hit a personal cr...
Nov 19, 2018•43 min•Ep. 115
Rebroadcast of a fabulous interview David did recently for "The Upgrade" Podcast (sponsored by the popular Life Hacker website with hosts Melissa Kirsch and Alice Bradley on a range of topics, including: Why did you write Feeling Good: The New Mood Therap y? Is depression caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain? What's your experience with electro-convulsive therapy (ECT)? Why did you give up your research career in biological psychiatry? How can you tease out your negative thoughts when you...
Nov 12, 2018•23 min•Ep. 114
1. Steven asks about the best route to take if you want to learn and practice TEAM-CBT? Is the degree important? What's the best degree? Should you go to school to become a psychologist, clinical social worker, addiction counselor, psychiatrist, professional counselor, pastoral counselor, marriage and family therapist, life coach, or what? There are so many degrees and potential paths that my head is spinning! 2. Sandy asks how to overcome long-standing, entrenched perfectionistic tendencies. 3....
Nov 05, 2018•39 min•Ep. 113
One of the goals for our Feeling Good Podcasts is to bring the TEAM-CBT techniques to life for mental health professionals, patients, and the general public as well. I (David Burns) use more than 50 Techniques when I'm working with individuals with depression, anxiety disorders, relationship problems, or habits / addictions. Today we will compare and contrast the four Truth-Based Techniques, including: Examine the Evidence The Experimental Technique The Survey Technique Reattribution These were ...
Oct 29, 2018•37 min•Ep. 112
This is the second of three interviews with Stephanie James on her superb radio show and podcast, The Spark . Stephanie is an experienced therapist and dynamic radio personality from Colorado. She is co-authoring a book on how to live a "spark-filled life." This interview with Stephanie focused, in part, on the evolution of the new TEAM-CBT from traditional Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). Stephanie asks Dr. Burns questions on a wide range of topics, including: How would you treat a case of s...
Oct 22, 2018•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 111
Fabrice and David address several challenging questions submitted by individuals who listen to the Feeling Good Podcasts . Richard: Do you have to get along with everybody ? How do you deal with a sociopath? Dave: Positive distortions can trigger mania, addictions, narcissism, and violence--but how can you get rid of them? Julia: What can you do if you've been depressed all of your life and wake up every morning with your mind flooded with negative thoughts? I spend two hours trying to dispute t...
Oct 15, 2018•50 min•Ep. 110
A podcast listener asked about what techniques David is the most proud of. We briefly discuss each one on today's podcast. So here they are! The list of Ten Cognitive Distortions The Disarming Technique and Law of Opposites The Externalization of Voices plus Acceptance Paradox The two classic Uncovering Techniques: the Individual and Interpersonal Downward Arrow The Feared Fantasy and Acceptance Paradox The Experimental Technique for extremely rapid treatment of patients with Panic Attacks My pu...
Oct 08, 2018•37 min•Ep. 109
David emphasizes that there are two issues. First, can your "self" be validly judged as not good enough, as inferior or even worthless? Or, can your "self" be validly judged as more worthwhile, or even superior? And is it really true that some people are more worthwhile, or less worthwhile, than others? Do more worthwhile, or less worthwhile human beings exist? Second, do we even have a "self?" Fabrice talks about the history of the concept of ego. For example, Freud divided the human mind into ...
Oct 01, 2018•59 min•Ep. 108
Fabrice and David are pleased to chat with Dr. Taylor Chesney who is an expert in the treatment of children and teenagers with TEAM-CBT. Taylor was a member of Dr. Burns' Tuesday group at Stanford and his Sunday hiking group for two years before returning to her home in New York in 2014. She opened the Feeling Good Institute NYC, where she and her colleagues offer individual and intensive treatment as well as training for mental health professionals (in person and online). Today she reveals the ...
Sep 24, 2018•49 min•Ep. 107
This is the second podcast on relationship problems. with Dr. Helen Yeni-Komshian. In today's podcast, we address four questions from listeners like you: Our marriage lacks intimacy. What can I do? A podcast fan named David explains that his relationship with his wife is no longer intimate; he complains that they only talk about day to day things on a superficial level. David wants to know if he needs to inject some conflict into the relationship to make it more meaningful or exciting. Why is my...
Sep 17, 2018•49 min•Ep. 106
We have invited Dr. Helen Yeni-Komshian to join Fabrice and me for two consecutive podcasts on questions listeners have asked about troubled relationships. In today's podcast, we address a question from Mary about how to deal with a husband who constantly complains and exaggerates how awful things are at work, in politics, and in the world. But when Mary tries to dismiss his statements in an effort to "keep the peace," it just gets worse. His complaints escalate! This is a common problem and you...
Sep 10, 2018•40 min•Ep. 105
David describes research on the relationship between physical pain and negative emotions such as depression, anxiety, and anger. Does pain cause depression? Or does depression cause or amplify pain? And what can we do to help patients with physical pain and intense negative emotions? In addition, why do so many individuals struggle with somatic problems, such as physical pain, dizziness, or fatigue, when there is no apparent organic cause for the pain? Is there any hope?
Sep 03, 2018•21 min•Ep. 104
