Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Digital media is changing the way young people experience—and express—mental health struggles, particularly depression. Child and adolescent psychiatrist, Dr. Meredith Gansner, joins us to discuss themes in her new book Teen Depression Gone Viral. 🔍 Topics We Explore: What inspired Teen Depression Gone Viral and the choice to focus on digital media’s role Current trends in teen depression—what’s driving the rise? Why are so many teens turning to social medi...
Jun 16, 2025•1 hr 5 min•Season 6Ep. 9
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! At first glance, perfectionism looks like an asset; however, the same internal drive that fuels greatness can also erode well-being, leaving success feeling empty and unsatisfying. In this episode, we are joined by Dr. Heather Wheeler , psychologist and former elite athlete, to explore the psychology of perfectionism in high achievers. In this conversation we cover: Defining perfectionism: What is it and is it ever adaptive? Early Conditioning: The role of c...
Jun 02, 2025•58 min•Season 6Ep. 8
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Dr. Chris Taplin,a psychiatrist and founder of Ottawa’s TMS Life clinic, joins us for a deep dive into one of the most promising frontiers in psychiatric care: Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation, or TMS. As clinicians, many of us have encountered the heartbreak of treatment-resistant depression — watching clients struggle despite best-practice psychotherapy and pharmacology. TMS offers a non-invasive, evidence-based alternative that is reshaping how we approa...
May 05, 2025•55 min•Season 6Ep. 7
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! In this episode, I’m joined by Dr. Joe Pierre, psychiatrist and author of False , to explore why people believe things that aren’t true—and why challenging those beliefs is rarely as simple as presenting the facts. Drawing from research in psychiatry, cognitive science, and social psychology, Dr. Pierre unpacks the emotional, identity-based, and relational roots of misinformation and conspiratorial thinking. Whether you’re a clinician, educator, or simply so...
Apr 21, 2025•57 min•Season 6Ep. 6
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! In this episode, I’m joined by Dr. Scott Waltman and Kasey Pierce coauthors, along with Trent Codd, Ed.S of The Stoicism Workbook - to explore how ancient Stoic philosophy can offer powerful tools for managing today’s challenges. From emotional resilience and anxiety to self-compassion and values-driven living, we unpack how timeless Stoic principles can help you navigate stress, uncertainty, and personal growth. Whether you’re a mental health professional, ...
Apr 07, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Season 6Ep. 5
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Building emotional security and navigating conflict with intention often defines the success of our closest relationships. Join us for an in-depth discussion with psychologist Dr. Betsy Chung to explore these and other topics explored in her new book T he Couple Skills Workbook: Manage Conflict, Increase Trust & Intimacy, and Build a Better Relationship . In this conversation we cover: how a lack of emotional security in one’s childhood impact their roma...
Mar 24, 2025•52 min•Season 6Ep. 4
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! In this episode, we sit down with Donna Jakson Nakazawa to explore a topic at the core of many people's therapeutic journeys: recovering from the impact of adverse childhood experiences. Her new book, The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) Guided Journal , offers a compassionate, science-backed approach to understanding how trauma shapes our lives—while providing actionable steps to rewire the brain for healing. Whether dealing with childhood trauma, chron...
Mar 10, 2025•56 min•Season 6Ep. 3
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Many of us accept freewill as an undeniable truth, assuming that we are the architects of our own decisions and destiny. Yet, a growing body of scientific research challenges this notion, suggesting that our sense of freewill may be more of an illusion than reality. This emerging perspective carries profound implications, urging us to reconsider the foundations of personal responsibility, ethics, and the way we govern our society. Dr. Yona Bouskila joins us ...
Feb 24, 2025•58 min•Season 6Ep. 2
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Whether it's in our personal relationships, at work, or even with ourselves, boundaries are essential for our well-being and peace of mind. Yet, many of us - even clinicians I might add - at times struggle with this practice, often feeling overwhelmed, guilty, or unsure of how to start. In this episode, we are joined by Dr. Sharon Martin discuss insights from your new book "Better Boundaries Guided Journal" which offerings practical advice and thoughtful dis...
Feb 10, 2025•57 min•Season 6Ep. 1
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! While most of us intuitively believe that our assessment of our lives is largely objective and a direct result of what has been happening to us, it's clear that subjective perceptions of objective events play a significant role in shaping the ultimate emotional experience of those events. This highlights the importantly interplay between personality traits and life satisfaction, raising questions about how much flexibility we have to change, reinterpret even...
Nov 11, 2024•58 min•Season 5Ep. 18
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Compulsive reassurance seeking can be a challenging issue for both clients and therapists to manage. Clients are often highly adept—sometimes knowingly, sometimes unknowingly—at eliciting excessive reassurance from therapists and family members. At the same time, resisting the urge to seek reassurance can feel nearly impossible for clients. In this episode, Amanda Petrik-Gardner, LCPC, joins us to discuss core themes from her new book, "The Compulsive Reassu...
Oct 28, 2024•54 min•Season 5Ep. 17
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Behavioural activation is one of the best, if not the best treatments for depression. Clinical psychologist and author, Dr. Nina Josefowitz joins us for an in-depth discussion of themes contained in her new book The Behavioural Activation Workbook for Depression . In this discussion we cover: The basic premise of behavioral activation and how it differs from other depression treatments. The negative feedback loop of depression and why it is so challenging to...
Oct 14, 2024•1 hr 22 min•Season 5Ep. 16
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Navigating relationships with emotionally immature parents can evoke very strong reactions, which can be difficult to navigate. In many clinician's experience, when this topic comes up, people tend to react in one of three ways: defending their parents as perfect, blaming them for all their struggles, or questioning their own perceptions entirely - all of which can create stuck points. Author and psychologist, Dr. Lindsay Gibson, who has written and lectured...
Sep 30, 2024•57 min•Season 5Ep. 15
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Assessing & treating adult ADHD can be both very challenging as well as highly rewarding for client and clinician alike. Psychologist & author, Dr. Russell Ramsay joins us for an in-depth discussion of the assessment and treatment of adult ADHD building on themes in his new workbook, The Adult ADHD and Anxiety Workbook. In this discussion we cover: why Dr. Ramsay wanted to write a workbook focused on both ADHD and anxiety and why individuals with ADH...
Jul 08, 2024•1 hr 29 min•Season 5Ep. 14
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Many clinicians experience a sense of helplessness around effectively managing calls from loved ones of an individual living with a mental illness who is not willing to engage in treatment. There is frequently an impression that little can be done until the affected individual wants to change. Dr. Alec Pollard joins us for a discussion of he and his co-authors new book "When a Loved One Won't Seek Mental Health Treatment". In this conversation we cover: why ...
Jun 24, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Season 5Ep. 13
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Dialectical behavior therapy or DBT is a wonderful suite of tools that help people to be more effective with respect to managing their emotions and becoming more interpersonally effective. These are challenges that often loom especially large for those who are highly sensitive. Emma Lauer, LCSW joins us for a discussion of her workbook DBT Skills for Highly Sensitive People . In this conversation we cover: what inspired Emma to speak about the implementation...
Jun 10, 2024•52 min•Season 5Ep. 12
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! In addition to being a topic that appears frequently in the realm of pop psychology, emotional intelligence is a subject of serious, rigorous academic inquiry. Clinical psychologist & author, Dr. Stephanie Catella joins for us for a discussion of core-themes in her new book The Emotional Intelligence Skills Workbook: Improve Communication and Build Stronger Relationships. In this conversation we cover: why Dr. Catella wanted to create a workbook specific...
May 27, 2024•53 min•Season 5Ep. 11
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Bipolar disorder is often thought of as a mental disorder that is treated exclusively with medication when in fact there are a number of evidence-based psychotherapeutic techniques that can be used to complement traditional pharmacotherapy. Dr. Holly Swartz joins us for a discussion of the core themes in her new book, Social Rhythm Therapy for Bipolar Disorder. In this conversation we cover: a brief overview of bipolar disorder what Social Rhythm Therapy (SR...
May 13, 2024•54 min•Season 5Ep. 10
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Challenges related to attachment in relationships - especially in the context of romantic relationships - can evoke very strong emotions and behavioral urges that can often backfire, sometimes causing the very thing we fear most; namely, the dissolution of a relationship. Psychologist, author, speaker & teacher, Dr. Leslie Becker-Phelps joins us for a discussion of her latest release, The Insecure In Love Workbook . In this discussion we cover: what insp...
Apr 29, 2024•55 min•Season 5Ep. 9
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! The last decade has seen the ascendency of a number of "public intellectuals" who have come under increasing scrutiny around allegations of misinformation, conspiracy mongering, grifting & intellectual inconsistency. Importantly, many have achieved "guru" status with millions of followers and devotees on YouTube and other social media platforms. Professors & podcasters, Drs. Matt Browne & Chris Kavanagh joins us for a conversation in which we cov...
Apr 15, 2024•1 hr 19 min•Season 5Ep. 8
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Mindfulness is an area of clinical and intellectual focus which has grown tremendously in popularity and includes many secular practices such as breath work, body scanning & self-compassion. OICBT psychologist Dr. Kiran Vadaga joins us for an in-depth conversation in which explore observations around the importance, and potential benefits, of being a more mindful observer of our feelings (particularly those which are pleasant. In this conversation we cov...
Apr 01, 2024•1 hr 15 min•Season 5Ep. 7
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! CBT interventions are often favoured for being empirically supported; however, it is not always clear how efficacy of these interventions maps to the actual functioning of the brain. Esteemed neuropsychologist and psychoanalyst, Dr. Mark Solms, joins us for an in-depth discussion of the clinical implications of his research into the biological underpinnings of consciousness as discussed in in his wonderful book, The Hidden Spring: A Journey to the Source of ...
Mar 18, 2024•1 hr 30 min•Season 5Ep. 6
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! There has been increasing discussion of the metabolic basis of mental disorders and the potential benefit a low-carb/ketogenic approach could hold with respect to the treatment of mental disorders. Psychiatrist Dr. Georgia Edes joins us for a discussion of major themes of her new book Change Your Diet, Change Your Mind . In this conversation we cover: why Dr. Edes wanted to write this book the underlying evidence to suggest that there is likely a fundamental...
Mar 04, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Season 5Ep. 5
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Female involvement with the criminal justice system can prompt significant internal dissonance as well as challenge conceptualizations around female violence, motherhood, mental illness etc. Forensic psychotherapist Anna Motz joins us for a fascinating discussion of her book “ If Love Could Kill: The Myths & Truths of Women Who Commit Violence ”. In this discussion we cover: why Anna wanted to write this book and the underlying message of the title (“If ...
Feb 19, 2024•1 hr 10 min•Season 5Ep. 4
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Host note: folks, I invite you to pay very close attention to what Dr. Hollis has to say...could change your life. Jungian/Depth psychology provides a wonderful framework for exploring questions related to meaning and the self that can at time fall outside of boundaries of what is typically explored in cognitive behavioural therapy. Esteemed author and Jungian analyst Dr. James Hollis joins us for an in-depth discussion of core themes explored in his new boo...
Feb 05, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Season 5Ep. 3
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Existential boredom is a challenge for many that can lead to a pathological engagement with shallow amusements (which may only deepen the despair and lead to more boredom). Dr. Kevin Gary joins us for a discussion of some of the core themes covered in his book Why Boredom Matters: Education, Leisure, and the Quest for a Meaningful Life. In this discussion we cover: why Dr. Gary wanted to write this book situational vs. existential boredom comparing and contr...
Jan 22, 2024•59 min•Season 5Ep. 2
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Understanding the evolutionary significance of depression can quite helpful in its conceptualization and treatment. Founder in the field of evolutionary medicine, Dr. Randy Nesse, joins us for an encore discussion in which we consider how striving, motivation and desire for control can play into the evolution of depressive symptoms. In this conversation we cover: why failure to give up an unachievable goal may be a central cause of some forms of depression a...
Jan 08, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Season 5Ep. 1
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! For many mental health clinicians, crafting resilience is an afterthought to managing the day-to-day demands of their professional life. Psychologist, consultant & author, Dr. Marie-Hélène Pelletier, joins us to discuss some of the themes explored in her new book: The Resilience Plan: A Strategic Approach to Optimizing Your Work Performance and Mental Health. the ethos behind the Resilience Plan what is burnout and what makes someone vulnerable some of t...
Dec 04, 2023•1 hr•Season 4Ep. 19
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Music is an under-explored tool with respect to the provision of psychotherapy as well as the crafting of peak experiences. Clinical counsellor, performance coach and opera singer, Dr. Fiona McAndrew, joins us for an eclectic, wide-ranging discussion in which explore: Fiona's alternating journey between psychology and music a window into the psychological life of a top tier opera singer music as tool to evoke and access emotions and spiritual experiences the...
Nov 20, 2023•1 hr 17 min•Season 4Ep. 18
Comments or feedback? Send us a text! Mental health professionals have increasingly been seeing clients seeking services related to anxiety and depression stemming from serious, negative changes that have been occurring in our climate. Psychologist and professor, Dr. Susan Clayton, who is one of the world's authorities on how the environment impacts upon psychological factors joins us for a discussion in which we cover: how the environment & climate impacts upon psychological well-being and ...
Nov 06, 2023•54 min•Season 4Ep. 17
