144. Dr. Nicole LePera on Intergenerational Trauma, Anxiety, Ego States, & Advice for Teens
Today's guest is Dr. Nicole LePera, a clinical psychologist, author, podcaster, and creator of the "Holistic Psychologist" platform that has amassed over 6.5 million followers on Instagram. Dr. LePera shares her holistic psychology approach—which involves a united philosophy of mental, physical, and spiritual wellness—with her mass audience to equip people with interdisciplinary healing tools. In this episode, we discuss what it means to treat mental health holistically and how it can make therapy more effective, how intergenerational trauma is passed on and how teens can begin to heal from it, what ego states are and how they can be impacting your mental health, what anxiety can look like in the body and how you can start to teach your body to be peaceful, and her number one piece of advice for teens.
143. EXPOSURE THERAPY: Exactly How to Reduce Anxiety, OCD, & Avoidance
Today's solo episode is all about exposure therapy! We discuss what exactly exposure therapy is, how it works, and who can benefit from it, the four different types of exposure therapy, my most embarrassing experiences with exposure therapy and how they ultimately lowered my anxiety, and a step-by-step method for how you can try out exposure therapy yourself. This episode is a MUST LISTEN if you struggle with anxiety and are looking for manageable ways to reduce it!
142. ADHD Explained: Advice for Teens & Adults with ADHD feat. Kristen Carder
Today's guest is Kristen Carder— an ADHD expert, top podcast host, and internationally-recognized mindset coach for adults with ADHD. In this episode, we discuss differences between presentations of ADHD in adults, children, and teens, the most common symptoms of ADHD, how parents can best support their children and teens with ADHD, the ADHD spectrum and why certain people are under-diagnosed, advice for someone who has recently been diagnosed with ADHD, difficulties that students with ADHD can face at school, resources for people looking to learn more about their ADHD diagnosis, and opinions on popular online discussions about ADHD.
141. Losing a Loved One to Suicide: What Alexandra Wyman Wants You to Know
Today's guest is Alexandra Wyman— an author, podcaster, speaker and grief navigator. After losing her husband to suicide, Alexandra wrote The Suicide Club: What to Do When Someone You Love Chooses Death to offer a road back to peace and joy for anyone who has lost someone close to them to suicide. In this episode, we discuss Alexandra's journey to becoming an advocate for people whose loved ones died by suicide, what the initial days of grieving a suicide can be like and ways others can best offer support during these times, boundaries she wished she had set while grieving and reminders she wishes she had heard, maintaining your personal identity while grieving, tools and resources that are helpful throughout the grieving process, and thoughts on how people react to suicides in the news and popular misconceptions about suicide.
140. Q+A: Trusting Yourself, Willfulness, Advocating for Your Needs, & Building Healthy Relationships
In today's solo episode, I am answering a bunch of your questions! I share my tips on how to advocate for your needs with others, why we sometimes look for unhealthy attention and how to avoid this behavior, how to cope when someone needs space from you, how to build trust with yourself, what to talk about in therapy sessions, and how to navigate a loved one's willfulness.
139. A Therapist's Guide to Why We Get Stuck & Ways to Move Forward feat. Britt Frank
Today's guest is Britt Frank—a licensed psychotherapist, trauma specialist, speaker, award-winning adjunct instructor, and author of The Science of Stuck. In this episode, we discuss why people get stuck in the first place, signs you may be getting stuck with your personal goals or relationships, the truth behind laziness, the neuroscience behind getting stuck and pursuing goals, how to set and prioritize achievable goals, how to make promises to yourself that reduce shame, and tips that stop you from being stuck.
138. How to Survive a Panic Attack - SOLO EP
Today's solo episode is all about how to cope when you are experiencing a panic attack or other forms of intense anxiety. We discuss three DBT distress tolerance skills that will help you stop a panic attack in its tracks: The STOP skill, the TIPP skill, and the ACCEPTS and IMPROVE skill. If you struggle with anxiety, this is a MUST LISTEN & I share a coping skill that is 100% effective, every single time!!
137. The Hidden Dangers of Social Media Use: Mental Health Risks for Teens Online & How Parents Can Help feat. Dr. Lisa Strohman
Today's guest is Dr. Lisa Strohman—an attorney, clinical psychologist, and author who has widely become known for her advocacy and education around mental wellness as it relates to our digital lives. She is also the founder and director of Digital Citizen Academy, one of the first organizations to address the global issue of technology addiction and overuse. In this episode, we discuss the dangers of technology use and how teens can use social media in healthier ways, the symptoms of screen addiction, the worst social media platforms for mental health, and advice for parents on setting technology boundaries and helping their teens avoid dangers online.
136. TEEN TREATMENT PROGRAMS: Tips for Parents & Teens on Finding the Right Treatment Program ft. Dr. Justin Mohatt
Today's guest is Dr. Justin Mohatt— an internationally recognized, double Board-Certified Psychiatrist at Ohana, a program for child and adolescent behavioral health at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula. In this episode, we discuss advice for both parents and teens on different types of teen mental health treatment programs. For parents, we share tips on how to find the right treatment program for your child, including how to start the search process, program must-haves and red flags, how to motivate your teen to seek treatment, and how families can participate in the treatment process. For teens, we share what to expect when starting a mental health treatment program and how you can benefit most from residential treatment.
135. Q+A: Self-Care, School Burnout, Social Media, Seeking Help, & More!
In today's solo episode, I am answering a bunch of your questions! I share my tips on avoiding social media addiction, finding a self-care routine, taking mental health breaks and avoiding burnout, dealing with imposter syndrome, coping with your child's depression as a parent, experiencing medication side effects, reaching out for help when struggling with suicidal ideation, and caring for your mental health when on your period.
134. ELLIE ZEILER’s Advice for Teens: Mental Health, Relationships, Confidence, Social Media, & More!
Today's guest is Ellie Zeiler, an 18-year-old social media influencer, model, actress, and podcaster who boasts almost 11 million followers on TikTok. In this episode, we discuss Ellie's experiences as a social media creator and her advice for teens, including how to find your identity and build self-confidence, overcome bullying, use social media in a healthy way, become more independent, navigate relationships with friends and family, and stay on top of your mental health.
133. EATING DISORDERS: Signs, Symptoms, Social Media, & Support Systems feat. Dr. Sam DeCaro
Today's guest is Dr. Sam DeCaro— a licensed psychologist who provides individual, family, and couples therapy. Dr. DeCaro also served as an Assistant Clinical Director at the Renfrew Center for Eating Disorders and currently shares her eating disorder expertise as a writer and speaker. In this episode, we discuss common risk factors for eating disorders, signs that someone may be developing an eating disorder, ways that parents and loved ones can support someone with an eating disorder, how social media can affect body image and contribute to eating disorders, common eating disorder myths, and eating disorder resources that people can turn to for help.
132. 10 Coping Skills You NEED to Know - DBT Education
Today's solo episode is all about coping skills! I discuss all of my favorite DBT coping skills geared toward tolerating distress and regulating emotions and share how you can easily do them at home. These coping skills include the TIPP skill, Opposite Action skill, STOP skill, Check the Facts skill, and ABC skill.
131. Why We Struggle with Our Emotions & Ways to Build Emotional Intelligence feat. Jay Fields
Today's guest is Jay Fields, an educator, coach and author who has taught the principles of embodied social and emotional intelligence to individuals and organizations for twenty years. In this episode, we talk all about emotional regulation, including emotional difficulties faced by college students, how your childhood and parents can impact your ability to emotionally regulate and form healthy relationships, ways to improve your relationship between your body and your emotions, tips for managing your nervous system and building better emotional habits, and the power of self-empathy.
130. Making Goals and Getting Motivated: Easy Ways to Increase Productivity & Achieve Your Ambitions feat. Kate Stone
Today's guest is Kate Stone, an actress, founder of the HeartSpeak Empowerment School, college coach, and creator of The 30-Day Motivation Text Challenge. In this episode, we discuss how to create and prioritize goals, why people struggle to be motivated and achieve their goals, hacks and mantras for boosting daily motivation, why teenagers in particular can struggle with motivation, and how teens can make goals that boost their self-esteem and college admissions chances.
129. New Years Resolutions For Your Mental Health: SMART Goals, My 2023 Intentions, + More
Today's solo episode is all about new year's resolutions and goals for 2023! I cover why people with anxiety tend to set unrealistic goals, shifting your mental health goals from being results-based to actionable steps, types of mental health goals to set for this year, SMART goals, and my resolutions/intentions for 2023!
128. Ally Petitti on Anxiety, Health and Childhood Struggles, & Advice for Teens
Today's guest is Ally Petitti—host of the popular podcast Trying To Figure It Out. On her podcast, Ally discusses toxic friendships, toxic relationships, mental health, and more. In this episode, we discuss how she started her podcast and her mental health journey, her advice for teenagers whose parents have divorced, her traumatic health experience, how she manages her anxiety through exposure therapy and EFT, and her tips for teens on mental health and starting college.
127. Getting Through Grief: Tips for Processing Grief and Healing Your Heart feat. Sharon Brubaker
Today's guest is Sharon Brubaker—a certified life coach and credentialed Grief Specialist who has studied grief and healing for over 16 years. Sharon specializes in helping grieving women process their thoughts and emotions. In this episode, we discuss different ways in which people can grieve, the inaccuracies of the five stages of grief, tips on how to cope, ask for help, and heal when experiencing grief, advice on helping a loved one who is experiencing grief, and how our education system has failed to teach children about grief.
126. YOUR MENTAL HEALTH TOOLKIT for the Holiday Season (Navigating Finals Stress, Family Relationships, Seasonal Depression, + Body Image)
Today's solo episode is all about managing your mental health during the holidays! I answer your questions on continuing healthy habits over winter break, recharging and recovering from burnout over the holidays, navigating the stresses of studying for finals, managing fears of disappointing your parents, dealing with seasonal depression, and improving your body image and self-confidence during the holiday season.
125. Tips for Teens: Relationships, College Apps, Finals Stress & More! feat. Talk With Zach
Today's guest is Zach Gottlieb, who is the 16-year-old founder of Talk With Zach. Talk With Zach is a Gen-Z movement and community that hosts important conversations to change the culture, inspire activism, and make the world a better place. In this episode, we discuss navigating friendships and romantic relationships as a teen, unique mental health struggles faced by teenage boys, the dangers of social media, college application process tips, and advice for parents on how to support their teens.