Today's episode discusses how midlife often makes you feel a sense of urgency... you know you don't have infinite time left on the planet, and you want to make the most of it. Here's how to use this realization to effect positive change, versus an unhealthy, impulsive "midlife crisis." Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/drpsychmomshow/subscribe and you'll get all my awesome bonus episodes! Most recent: "Sure, Don't Live Parallel Lives... But Also Don't Be A...
Jul 06, 2025•17 min•Season 4Ep. 191
Today's episode discusses a common problem I hear about in session: "My wife cuddles the dog more than me," or "My husband is obsessed with training/playing with the dog" or other forms of a spouse preferring the pet to you. We discuss evolutionary reasons for women especially getting really into pets at midlife, and how different attachment styles handle this, as well as how to handle this conflict in a way that sets you up for success instead of leading to empathic ruptures! Subscribe if you l...
Jul 03, 2025•14 min•Season 4Ep. 190
This term is all over the internet... what does it mean? Often, a range of dynamics fall under this umbrella, and I will discuss the factors going into a woman identifying this way in today's episode! Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/drpsychmomshow/subscribe and you'll get all my awesome bonus episodes! Most recent: "Sure, Don't Live Parallel Lives... But Also Don't Be A Two Headed Codependent Hydra." For my secret Facebook group, the "best money I've eve...
Jun 30, 2025•16 min•Season 4Ep. 189
I have a wonderful guest today, who is a well respected physician in my community. I ask every question you ever wanted to ask about perimenopause, menopause, hormones, drive, and issues that impact drive in a woman's 40's and beyond! She taught me so much I didn't know, including all about clitoral adhesions, the impact of birth control on hormones and even a method I never heard of, how to combat medication side effects, and so much more. Dr Christine Vaccaro is a double board certified and fe...
Jun 27, 2025•50 min•Season 4Ep. 188
This video podcast discusses how important it is for you to model a loving relationship for your children! And a discussion of how you can use your kids as a motivation to do hard things... with a personal example from my early 20's. Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/drpsychmomshow/subscribe and you'll get all my awesome bonus episodes! For my secret Facebook group, the "best money I've ever spent" according to numerous members: https:/...
Jun 21, 2025•10 min•Season 4Ep. 186
By request from Facebook group member (join us: facebook.com/groups/drpsychmom), here's an interesting episode on the impact on your marriage of identifying with your opposite gender parent. You have one real template for relationships: the one you saw growing up. If you're not similar to your same-gender parent, this may make you feel like your current relationship is inferior. This episodes discusses why and how this happens and how to think more clearly about this issue! Follow me on Substack...
Jun 18, 2025•14 min•Season 4Ep. 185
Facebook live where I discriminate between therapy as massage and therapy as the gym. And I took a question about a guy with an avoidant wife and how he thinks therapy is just making him more avoidant!
Jun 16, 2025•21 min
Which type of people get into a situation like this? What background leads to assuming that sexual attraction just won't be part of your relationship? Today's YouTube live turned video podcast helps you understand more about this dynamic that I see in therapy! Remember, always reach out for therapy or coaching with me or the awesome Best Life Behavioral Health providers by emailing info@bestlifebehavioralhealth.com or me directly at samantha@drpsychmom.com!
Jun 15, 2025•15 min
It is an epiphany to many clients that their parents were likely depressed, and not just "quiet," "irritable," "detached," or "angry." Today's episode can help you make links between your upbringing and your current life, especially if you struggle with low self-esteem, marital issues, anger or overall overwhelm. Follow me on Substack! https://substack.com/@drpsychmom1 Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://creators.spoti...
Jun 15, 2025•17 min•Season 4Ep. 184
I created my LOVE acronym for parents in conflict with their adult children, but it can be used for all relationships where you love someone, but they keep telling you they don't feel loved by you. Instead, they may have said they feel criticized, judged, or that you are not interested in them. Today we discuss the acronym and specific phrases to use for each! Remember, it is Like, Open, Validation, Empathy! Follow me on Substack! https://substack.c...
Jun 12, 2025•19 min•Season 4Ep. 183
Many men think they are great at receiving feedback, but the reality is that they aren't, at least not within their marriages. Here's how it feels for women to be married to men who cannot receive feedback, and how working on this skill can improve your relationship... in bed and out of bed! Follow me on Substack! https://substack.com/@drpsychmom1 Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/drpsychmomshow/subscribe a...
Jun 06, 2025•17 min•Season 4Ep. 181
The idea of "silent divorce" has been all over popular media. Here's what it is, who is at risk, who can repair and how, and the attachment dynamics that are often at risk of this! Follow me on Substack! https://substack.com/@drpsychmom1 Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/drpsychmomshow/subscribe and you'll get all my awesome bonus episodes! Most recent subscriber episode: "When Women Pre-Initiat...
Jun 03, 2025•14 min•Season 4Ep. 180
I am in the process of potentially writing a book about estrangement, and came across the statistic that 50% of people would be open to repairing an estrangement if they received an apology. This is positive for the many parents who struggle with feeling that estrangement with their child is "hopeless" or "impossible." In today's episode, I cover the role of therapy in parent-adult child estrangement, how to think about your adult child's request that you go into therapy, and more! Follow me on ...
May 31, 2025•15 min•Season 4Ep. 179
Not the most flattering podcast episode you'll ever hear if you have inlaw issues... but the most realistic, practical, and (should you choose to really introspect about it) useful one! Covered: who usually has inlaw issues, why, and how to rethink your situation! Follow me on Substack! https://substack.com/@drpsychmom1 Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/drpsychmomshow/subscribe and you'll get all my awe...
May 25, 2025•18 min•Season 4Ep. 177
I work with many couples who are in their second marriage, and often the man is older and has kids already. In some of these marriages, the woman views the second marriage as a "redo" and he views it as a "second act," which can lead to conflict and hurt feelings. Today's episode goes into depth about these perspectives, helping each partner empathize with the other, and giving you helpful reframes to make your relationship the best it can be! Follow me on Substack! ...
May 22, 2025•16 min•Season 4Ep. 177
The transition from women's 30's to 40's can feel very significant. Here's a deep dive into aging, how couples can accept the reality of life moving in one direction, how our larger social and family context can help or hinder our ability to navigate this transition, and how happy couples stay close and connected in their 40's and beyond! Follow me on Substack! https://substack.com/@drpsychmom1 Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/dr...
May 20, 2025•19 min•Season 4Ep. 167
Why do pursuing women stop in their 40's? How does the avoidant attachment man feel about it? And what else characterizes the post-pursuing midlife woman? All this and more on today's episode! Follow me on Substack! https://substack.com/@drpsychmom1 Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/drpsychmomshow/subscribe and you'll get all my awesome bonus episodes! Most recent subscriber episode: "The Random Couple Reframe: How...
May 16, 2025•16 min•Season 4Ep. 175
What is it like to be divorced from someone who is secure, avoidant, preoccupied, or fearful avoidant? Today's episode goes into depth about what I've seen in 15 years of practice about the easiest and most difficult, as well as details about how each partner operates in terms of conflict, remarriage and more! Follow me on Substack! https://substack.com/@drpsychmom1 Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/drpsychmomshow/subscrib...
May 13, 2025•16 min•Season 4Ep. 174
If your partner does something nice, like doing the laundry or giving you a kiss, and you react with TREMENDOUS SHOCK, this is passive aggressive. Your partner feels reprimanded and is much less likely to do this nice thing again. Here's why you do this and what to do instead! Follow me on Substack! https://substack.com/@drpsychmom1 Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/drpsychmomshow/subscribe and you'll get all my aw...
May 10, 2025•16 min•Season 4Ep. 173
In today's episode, I go in depth into one of my favorite topics: mental load. Is the problem really mental load/emotional labor? What is underneath this convenient trope in many couples that I see? Often depression, anxiety, ADHD, codependency, and enabling. Great episode if you hate the term "mental load"... even greater if you love it but want to interrogate that love a little more in case it's covering up things that you would benefit from thinking harder about! Follow me on Substack! ...
May 07, 2025•23 min•Season 4Ep. 172
Today we have a special treat! An interview with Matthew Fray, who wrote the viral post that every woman my age remembers.... "She Divorced Me Because I Left Dishes By The Sink" ! We discuss relationships, divorce, ADHD, male and female perspectives on relationships, and more! Matthew Fray is a relationship coach and author of the book This is How Your Marriage Ends . His down-to-earth approach to human relationships and personal reflections on his own marriage and divorce have been featured in ...
May 05, 2025•52 min•Season 4Ep. 171
After reading the book Us, After by Rachel Zimmerman ( https://amzn.to/4239BfW ), I wanted to dive into the topic of when a parent commits suicide and how this impacts adult children later on. In today's episode, we cover how kids think of this, how depression hijacks your brain to make this seem like the best option, what to do if you are severely depressed and have had these thoughts, and a reframe that has been useful for many of my clients over the years who have kids and who struggle with s...
Apr 28, 2025•23 min•Season 4Ep. 169
Introverts aren't scared of people or embarrassing themselves. If you are, you likely have social anxiety, which can constrict the lives of your children and spouse. Here's a different perspective on social anxiety vs introversion, how to work on it using exposure principles, and how to eventually learn to engage in a more open and enthusiastic way vs being paralyzed by the thought that you may do something wrong or weird. Follow me on Substack! https://substack.com/@drpsychmom1...
Apr 25, 2025•18 min•Season 4Ep. 168
If you're used to the initiation style that women use in porn, and don't have much non-honeymoon stage experience with other women, you may well miss the signals that your wife is open to having sex. Covered in this episode: how she may be initiating, the impact of confident momentum in bed, and the limitations of some men's demand that their wives "communicate more directly." Follow me on Substack! https://substack.com/@drpsychmom1 Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https...
Apr 19, 2025•15 min•Season 4Ep. 166
Some children have to act like parents or even spouses to their own parents. How and why does this manifest, and how does it impact later adult intimate relationships for these kids? Follow me on Substack! https://substack.com/@drpsychmom1 Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/drpsychmomshow/subscribe and you'll get all my awesome bonus episodes! Most recent subscriber episode: "People Pleasing Daughters Of Covertly Narcissistic Mothers" For ...
Apr 14, 2025•15 min•Season 4Ep. 165
No, your spouse doesn't make you depressed or not depressed. If you think this, it is related to your attachment style, not your depression or even your relationship. One of the hardest things to learn for people with preoccupied or fearful-avoidant attachment, but the only thing that can actually help you heal and grow as a person. Follow me on Substack! https://substack.com/@drpsychmom1 Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/drpsychmomshow/subsc...
Apr 11, 2025•17 min•Season 4Ep. 164
Often preoccupied attachment men think that the only possible response to a sex decreasing in frequency over a long relationship is depression and panic. This isn't the case, nor is that a healthy response when preoccupied attachment women think that their husband needs to listen to them talk for hours so that they don't get upset. What is a more balanced and healthy view of relationships over time? Subscribe here to get 200 extra episodes! Latest is "People Pleasing Parentified Daughters Of Cov...
Apr 08, 2025•18 min•Season 4Ep. 163
My experience helping a friend message on Bumble! Very practical dating advice if you struggle with having your guard up or with anxiety. Here's Carol!! She lives in Maryland and is looking forward to hearing from you :) https://www.instagram.com/thehungryfoodiesmom?igsh=eGxveG1jeXdwbmp2&utm_source=qr Follow me on Substack! https://substack.com/@drpsychmom1 Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/drpsychmomshow/subscribe and you'll get all my awe...
Apr 03, 2025•16 min•Season 4Ep. 161
A really practical and direct overview of how many preoccupied men (and women) make their relationships worse without understanding how. And of course, what to do instead! Follow me on Substack! https://substack.com/@drpsychmom1 Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/drpsychmomshow/subscribe and you'll get all my awesome bonus episodes! Most recent subscriber episode: "Vibrators: Are They Contributing To Distance In Your Sexual Relationship?" For my ...
Mar 31, 2025•17 min•Season 4Ep. 160
Walking on eggshells: how does this dynamic originate on both sides, how do I see it manifest, and what can you do about it in order to break the cycle for your kids? Follow me on Substack! https://substack.com/@drpsychmom1 Subscribe if you love the DPM show! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/drpsychmomshow/subscribe and you'll get all my awesome bonus episodes! Most recent subscriber episode: "Vibrators: Are They Contributing To Distance In Your Sexual Relationship?" For my secret ...
Mar 28, 2025•15 min•Season 4Ep. 159
