RJ and John sit down with “Rebecca.” Rebecca is the pseudonym of a new marriage and family therapy student. She is a young woman who has decided to embark on her education and training in psychology and counseling. This will be a multi-part series where we touch base with Rebecca time to time throughout her education and training. RJ and John both listen to her experience and offer advice.
Therapist, internet entrepreneur and cartoonist Victor Yalom, PhD joins us to talk about what he has learned from the greats. As someone who has had access to some of the greatest minds in the field he has some very interesting things to say about presence and being with clients in the here and now. Victor is also owner of the site Psychotherapy.net, a collection of articles, videos and so much more. He tells us how it all began with a simple recording of his mentor James Bugental.
The world with Coronavirus has posed challenges for therapists everywhere. With significant parts of the country in extensive lockdown many of us have switched our entire practices to an online format. Will this change therapy forever or is this just a slight adjustment - or are we all just suffering from Adjustment Disorder? RJ and John practice social distancing by logging on with psychiatrist Dr. Amir Ettekal to talk about what it’s like to do therapy and be with clients in a virtual space....
Dr. Martha Koo of the Neurowellness Spa in Manhattan Beach, CA sits down with the boys to talk about the FDA approved treatment of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (or TMS). Dr. Koo, a psychiatrist, talks about how TMS works and how it can help. She also discusses some of the other treatments her clinic offers including IV Ketamine and Photobiomodulation.
John and RJ sit down to talk with one of the lions of the field of psychotherapy, Dr. Moe Gelbart. An administrator, therapist and businessman, Dr. Gelbart recounts a long and successful career in psychotherapy and gives the boys insight into how he's helped people and made a good living in psychotherapy. This episode is exclusively sponsored by Ben Caldwell Labs, creating a more empowered, more effective generation of psychotherapists. Check them out at www.bencaldwelllabs.com ....
Suicide may be one of the most intense and difficult things for any therapist to work with. Norine VanderHooven, LCSW and Chair of the Youth Suicide Prevention Committee for the American Association of Suicidology joins us to talk about facts and strategies to use with clients expressing suicidal ideation. This episode is exclusively sponsored by Ben Caldwell Labs, creating a more empowered, more effective generation of psychotherapists. Check them out at www.bencaldwelllabs.com ....
Lesli Johnson, MFT joins us to discuss clinical issues around adoption. She brings her own personal perspective as someone who is adopted as well as a caring and passionate clinical approach to this subject. She discusses a concept known as the Ghost Kingdom and the challenges and trauma adoptees and adoptive parents face. Not many people specialize in this work but it touches almost everyone - therapist or not. Definitely a great listen. This episode is exclusively sponsored by Ben Caldwell Lab...
Dr. David Godot joins us to talk about the use of hypnosis and hypnotic practices in therapy. He also talks about his experience at the Adler Institute as well as Alfred Adler and his unique ideas about the formation of personality and how people see themselves. Find David Godot here: https://psychlab.us This episode is exclusively sponsored by Ben Caldwell Labs, www.bencaldwelllabs.com , creating a more effective, more empowered generation of mental health professionals....
Sara Schulting-Kranz joins us to talk about her transformation from married mother of three, who one day discovered “my husband is gay,” to life coach helping and leading people on journeys of their own transformation in the Grand Canyon and in the Sierras. Sara talks about the power of nature to heal and the amazing life changes she and her clients have gone through on such incredible treks. She also talks about what it was like to help blind para-olympian Shawn Cheshire hike the Grand Canyon r...
Dr. Ben Caldwell returns to the show to pick a bone with John about a statistic he quoted during our popular Sue Johnson interview. Ben discusses divorce and marriage and its current state in our society. We also touch on the ever emotional subject of Emotional Support Animals and how or if therapists should support their use.
Dr. Nazanin Moali, a licensed psychologist from Torrance, CA joins us to discuss two of her specialties, eating disorders in men and sex therapy. Dr. Moali host of the podcast, Sexology, brings a unique perspective to her work that she shares with John and RJ. This episode is sponsored by Ben Caldwell Labs at BenCaldwelllabs.com , creating a more empowered, more effective generation of psychotherapists.
There’s a knock on your door and a man hands you an envelope. You’ve been served a subpoena - now what? Nicol Stolar-Peterson, LCSW, BCD joins us to talk about getting therapists ready for court. She discusses her experience testifying and tells why she actually likes going to court. She also talks about the pitfalls most therapists fall into. This episode is sponsored exclusively by Ben Caldwell Labs, creating a generation of more effective, more empowered mental health professionals. Check the...
Drs. Paul and Nancy Aikin join us to talk about their workshop for parents and teens called “Hold Me Tight, Let Me Go”. Based on Dr. Sue Johnson’s Hold Me Tight workshop, and adapted for parents and teens, this group approaches parents and teens from an attachment standpoint and helps them connect and hear each other in ways many of them never imagined possible. This workshop is available as a curriculum for therapists to use and as part of this podcast they are offering a 5% discount to a train...
As founder and CEO of the Milton H. Erickson Foundation Dr. Jeffrey Zeig has gathered together some of the greatest minds and most dominant personalities in the history of psychotherapy. The foundation’s Evolution of Psychotherapy conference is perhaps the largest gathering of its kind anywhere in the world. Bringing together dynamic speakers and curious professionals it is, as Dr. Zeig calls it, “the Woodstock of therapy”. Dr. Zeig joins us to talk about the conference and his history with his ...
Dr. Steven Lawrence joins us to discuss what happens when doctors are more focused on medication than on the actual patient. Taking a very patient-centered approach Dr. Lawrence talks about what he calls “Psychotropic Blindness” and what happens when psychiatrists see the side effects of certain medications in children and adolescents as emerging problems that require treatment. Dr. Lawrence highlights medications such as anti-depressants, anti-psychotics and stimulant medication used for ADHD....
Dr. Susan Johnson joins us to talk about her pioneering work in Emotionally Focused Therapy. EFT is a way to practice couples counseling that is overwhelmingly supported by scientific research. Dr. Johnson talks about attachment theory as the basis for EFT but also talks about some of the other frameworks she has drawn from. She talks not only about how EFT works, but why it works, especially in a world that seems to be filled with divorce and where our very views of relationships appear to be c...
How do you keep a family together even as it’s coming apart? How do you help protect children from the trauma of a nasty divorce? Divorce mediator Barry Davis sits down with us to talk about an alternative to expensive, divisive and often traumatic litigated divorces. His approach is one that allows families to often make the best of what can be a very, very bad situation.
Human emotions are a tricky thing. Some of us are good with them, some of us are not, but few of us really understand them fully. Adrian Hall, MFT joins us to talk about what she calls, the Human Emotional System. As we grow up, she tells us, we learn about math, science, history and our biological systems, but no one teaches us about our emotions and this can cause problems for us later. Adrian discusses her practice of psychotherapy and how she works with people to do that learning now....
Jason Gipstein, MFT sits down with us to talk about writing a book on what he calls self communion. Jason talks about how he developed this method of psychotherapy and how it can help people. Not only does he discuss it’s application to issues like anxiety and depression he also talks about how it can be used to help people move forward and continue to grow.
John and RJ sit down to discuss the status of the show and how they've really just been kind of lazy about the whole thing... well, maybe not entirely. This is actually a fun conversation about not only the status of the show but about what's it's like dealing with personal stress and working as a psychotherapist.
We know therapy works, but as it turns out fewer people are using it. What are the reasons for this and can an individual therapist make a living in this otherwise rewarding field? Is it possible to turn things around? Dr. Benjamin Caldwell sits down with us to talk about his book “Saving Psychotherapy.” He has a plan and some straightforward advice about how you can take action now to help save psychotherapy.
Dr. Ettekal joins us to talk about collaborating with therapists and some of the things he worries about when working with patients. He also talks about his approach to medication and psychotherapy.
Dr. Jacob Insler joins us to talk about sports and perfomance psychology. Dr. Inlser works with athletes to help them perform better or to overcome obstacles in their game.
Cutting can be one of the most challenging things any therapist deals with. Angela Kahn, MFT sits down with us to talk about her unique team-based approach to family therapy when treating self-injury. She discusses the two primary kinds of self-injury, how to distinguish between them and how she and her team approach assessment, conceptualization and treatment.
John and RJ discuss what scares us and why we love Halloween so much.
Dr. Marjorie Rand, MFT joins us to talk about her work using body psychotherapy. She also touches on her 40-year career and her experiences learning from and working with some of the great names in the field.
Nadine Macaluso, LMFT, PhD joins us to talk about her practice using the NeuroAffective Relational Model (NARM) to work with clients. She also touches on what lead to her to becoming a therapist and what it’s like to have a part of her life portrayed in a Hollywood movie.
Kristen Zaleski, PhD, LCSW joins us to talk about working with survivors of military sexual trauma. Dr. Zaleski is a therapist in private practice, researcher and professor.
Jody Echegary, PsyD joins us to talk about how media affects personality development, interpersonal relations and the therapeutic relationship. This far ranging discussion goes in depth on the importance of understanding media in therapy and what it can tell us about who we are.
Shana Diskant talks to us about her work as a Marriage and Family Therapist. She mixes family therapy and behavior work when working with children. Shana began her therapy career woring with victims of traumatic brain injury and still uses what she learned there to help families.
