Episodes
45. Second Thoughts After Ending Therapy
In this episode a listener recently ended a relationship with her therapist after she violated her trust. Now she is grieving the loss and wonders if she should go back. We would love to hear from you! You can email …
44. Who Sets the Agenda in a Therapy Session?
Who is responsible for setting the agenda in a therapy session? Angie wonders if it’s really up to her to bring up hard topics with her therapist. Chelsea’s therapist (8:48) doesn’t ask questions about her life, making her fe...
43. Love Languages; Therapist Not On My Side
On this episode Karol asks for our opinion on The 5 Love Languages: are they useful or are they harmful? The study we referenced from University of Toronto which summarizes recent attempts at empirically validating the "love ...
42. Marijuana Use Before Therapy?; Burned Out Therapist?; Holiday Bre…
Krystal’s therapist would prefer she not use marijuana before a session even though she thinks it would be helpful to loosen her "emotional logjam". Michael (17:02) questions his decision to be a therapist and whether he is a...
41. Final Session Revelation; Therapist Approached Me at Work
On this episode Tess’s psychiatrist revealed a shared diagnosis in their final session, making Tess wonder if withholding information is necessary. Lilith's therapist (16:50) visited her at work, leaving her feeling confused,...
40. Therapist Hiding; Prolonged Grief; Thank you note 2
On this episode a listener’s therapist hid behind a magazine after they saw each other in public. Yazmin (12:31) wonders if therapy could be helpful for the grief she’s experiencing a year after her husband died. The resource about prolonged...
39: Edges of Therapy; Too Smart for Therapy?; Thank You Note
On this episode Yolanda has a question about the moments before and after a therapy session. Lindsay specifically wonders about her preference for the relationship she has with her therapist at this periphery of the therapeut...
38. Therapist Asking For Feedback; Therapist Changing the Rules
On this episode Amalia is annoyed that her therapist asks for lots of feedback at the end of each session. Kim (12:30) wants to address the "elephant in the room" after her therapist cut off all communication between sessions without …
37. Therapist Rubbing My Back; Therapist on Vacation 2
On this episode a listener’s therapist has started rubbing her back when she’s upset and she wonders if this is normal. Then we return to questions about vacation: A listener (9:03) is upset by their therapist’s upcoming vacation and is …
36. Couple Seeing the Same Therapist; Therapist Discloses Religious I…
Alice and her husband see the same therapist individually and as a couple. The therapist told Alice’s husband they should get a divorce. At (12:43) a 17 year-old listener feels like there are things he can’t talk to his therapist …
35. First Therapy Session Not So Magical; Stalking My Therapist
Larissa was nervous during her first online therapy session with Betterhelp and wants some tips on how to be prepared for the next session. She was told the first session "is where the magic begins". An anonymous listener (16...
34. Fatherhood, Parenting; Transference in Psychotherapy
Danny has mixed emotions about Father's Day. He’s trying to balance his needs with the demands of parenting and wants to hear more about fatherhood. He’s also curious if being psychiatrists changes our views on parenting. Mic...
33. Therapist Hurts My Feelings; Ashamed of Therapy; Oprah Says Be Yo…
Therese’s feelings have been hurt by her therapist but she feels invalidated each time she brings it up. Candice (15:51) feels ashamed of being in therapy and wants to be more comfortable with the idea of talking to others ab...
32. A Good Therapy Session?; Realization of Abuse; Frozen at the End …
We have 3 listener questions. In the first question Keith wants to know how therapists determine whether a session is good or bad. Then Ellen (11:35) tries to make sense of her reaction after her therapist names something in ...
31. Supervision; The Favored Client; Therapist Lost Weight But I Didn…
In the first question a listener wonders why her therapist is talking about her in supervision. She's curious about what supervision is and how therapists make use of it. In the second question (23:47) a listener is concerned that she …
30. Late cancellation; Is Psychoanalysis Right For Me?; Therapy Frequ…
In the first question a listener feels slighted by her therapist's cancellation policy. We start by discussing these policies more generally. It's a little dry but the discussion gets better by 12:25 when we talk about our li...
29. Therapy Anxiety; Diagnosis; Good Enough Bond
In the first question, a listener gets really nervous around her therapist and wonders if it’s even worth it. Our second question (at the 16:40 minute mark) is from someone who wonders why her therapist isn’t talking about the diagnosis …
28. Crowdsourcing Decisions; Do I Need to Hate My Therapist?
In the first question a listener is struggling with her boyfriend's need to crowdsource information before making any decisions--from sharing personal details of their relationship with his family to checking Reddit to find t...
27. When Interpretations Don't Land Well
This episode is all about interpretations. We have questions from both sides of the therapy room. The first question comes from a listener who is a therapist. She wonders how to recover from the sting when an interpretation s...
26. Therapist's Office; Longing For My Therapist; Kids Leaving Footba…
A listener finds security in her therapist's office and wonders about the thought that goes into the decor of an office. Our second question (starting at the 16 minute mark) comes from someone longing for her therapist and is...
25. Therapist Says I'm Not Trying; Better But It's Not Me
Our listener in part 1 is worried because his therapist doesn't think he's trying hard enough to get better and he's afraid his treatment will end as a result. In part 2 (around 19 minutes) a listener says the antidepressant …
24. First Birthday: Questions About Us and the Show
To celebrate our first birthday, listeners ask us about the show. Among other things, we discuss our motivation for doing a podcast, what we've learned, and the experience of having patients listen to the show. It's self-indu...
23. Ending a Long Therapy; Discussion of the documentary _ Stutz _
In this episode we have a listener who has a question about terminating a long-term therapy. They ask, "How do you know when you're done?" We then discuss the new Jonah Hill documentary _ Stutts _ in which Jonah profiles …
22. FX _The Patient_
What can we learn about therapy from the FX original show _The Patient_ (streaming on Hulu)? We talk about internalizing your therapist, feeling held hostage (figuratively) by a patient and taking care of people where it may ...