Inside Mental Health

There are lots of books written by doctors aiming to help people manage mental illness or families help their loved ones — all from a purely medical perspective. But today’s guest, NAMI's Dr. Ken Duckworth, wrote a book that, in part, shares the collected wisdom of regular people living with mental illness as well as the perspective of their family and friends. Join us as we discuss the National A...

A few decades after Max J. Friedman’s parents died, his grandson wanted to understand more about the family, including his grandparents, a pair of Holocaust survivors who met in a Swedish refugee camp. Friedman realized he knew very little about who his parents really were, especially about their lives before they met one another. They never spoke of their lives before the Holocaust and very littl...

Why do so many former NFL players seem to have mental health concerns when they retire? Could we be doing more to address their emotional needs during their playing days, and if we did, do they have the tools to take action? Former NFL player Derek Price became a doctor after retiring from play and now heads up Sierra Tucson, one of the nation’s largest mental health treatment centers in the count...

Why would someone cheat on their spouse? Would it surprise you to learn that according to Johns Hopkins University and Ashley Madison (yes, that Ashley Madison), the answer is not as simple as wanting more sex or being dissatisfied in the relationship.  New research tells us that the reasons vary from emotional connection to ego boosting to seeking adventure. But wanting to break up with a romanti...

We’ve all seen depictions of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in pop culture: characters like Sheldon Cooper from “The Big Bang Theory” or Detective Adrian Monk from “Monk.” Their compulsions are portrayed as annoying, but ultimately it just makes people with OCD appear quirky. However, those depictions don’t even scratch the surface of what OCD really is. Imagine being obsessed with images of...

What do human potential and self-actualization really mean? We hear buzzwords like this often, but how can we use these concepts to better our everyday lives? Can we use them as part of our educational system to help kids who are managing mental health issues to achieve more?  Dr. Scott Barry Kaufman, host of The Psychology Podcast, calls in to discuss all this and more on this week’s episode. To...

Does it seem like these days no one can take a joke? Every time you turn around, someone is getting offended and the soul who said the “offensive” thing is canceled, never to be heard from again.  But is that true? Has anyone actually ever been truly “canceled”? Join us as today’s guest, comedian and journalist Emma Arnold, explains what cancel culture is – and isn’t – and why she isn’t worried ab...

You are walking down the street, having a good day, when suddenly you remember something you did 10 years ago — something you regret. How do you deal with that?   Should you dwell and ruminate on it? Should you let it go and never think of it again? Or, as today’s guest suggests, should you try to learn from it and move on? Join us as Robert Leahy, a pivotal figure in the development of Cognitive...

A new survey reports that a whopping 14% (1 in 7) of American physicians note that they have used alcohol or a controlled substance while working. Additionally, 46% mentioned consuming alcohol or a controlled substance up to 12 hours before their shift. We can all guess that healthcare workers have been stressed out since the pandemic started, but what is going on? And, perhaps most importantly, i...

Existentialism is a philosophy that emphasizes the existence of the individual person as a free and responsible agent who determines their own development through acts of will. So, what is existential therapy and how can this philosophy be used to better our own lives through counseling?  Join us as today’s guest, Dr. Christopher S. Taylor, tells us more about this therapeutic practice and what ba...

A lot of people don’t want to volunteer. Who wants to give up a Saturday and not get paid for it? But what if volunteering and being of service to your community could not just improve the world, but also your mental health?  Join us as today’s guest, Travis Van Winkle, talks about how being of service led him to a profound emotional transformation. To learn more -- or read the transcript -- pleas...

Movie and TV star Romina D’Ugo shares what life is like for a woman in Hollywood. She also shares a deeply personal story of how a nude scene was sprung on her without her consent.   Society often paints people who identify as feminists as frigid or man hating. But, is that truly what the term means or has it been hijacked? Join us as Romina shares why feminism became important to her. To learn mo...

Our society has a difficult relationship with authority. Many of us were taught as children that it was important to show respect and defer to those above us. We are told to trust people in positions of power — people like doctors, clergy, and police officers.  But we also see daily evidence of these same people making errors or putting their needs above the facts. In that case, what is the averag...

There’s a common misconception that, due to asylum closures, only “dangerous” people get committed to a psychiatric wards and hospitals. We also believe that forcing someone with mental illness into treatment is rare. However, millions of Americans are subjected to psychiatric detention or forced treatment every year.  Often well meaning family members are trying to “help,” but end up traumatizing...

There’s a common misconception that, due to asylum closures, only “dangerous” people get committed to a psychiatric wards and hospitals. We also believe that forcing someone with mental illness into treatment is rare. However, millions of Americans are subjected to psychiatric detention or forced treatment every year.  Often well meaning family members are trying to “help,” but end up traumatizing...

Can you name a millionaire tech mogul with bipolar disorder? Well, you can now. Today’s guest is Paul English, the tech mogul best known as the founder of travel website Kayak.  As more and more celebrities in the arts publicly share their bipolar disorder diagnoses many people in the business world still choose to conceal their illness due to stigma and discrimination.  Join us as Paul tells us h...

Dr. Kay Redfield Jamison believes that medication is an overused option and that many people can make great strides recovering from “mental suffering” using therapy, art, and meaningful hobbies. She also shares that we can learn a lot by understanding the lessons learned from resilient people who came before us. Using numerous historical examples, Dr. Jamison takes us on a journey of understanding...

There is a lot of stigma against people with diagnosed borderline personality disorder (BPD), even within the mental health community. People living with a borderline diagnosis are unfairly characterized as difficult and overly dramatic, and many feel that people with BPD reject needed treatments or interventions because “they don’t want to get better.” In this episode, we ask why people living wi...

We all know that the COVID pandemic has taken a toll on healthcare workers. But how was their mental health before the pandemic?  Today’s guest, Dr. Rola Hallam, has opened 7 hospitals in Syria as part of her humanitarian work. Dr. Hallam shares with us that compassion fatigue isn’t really about compassion or fatigue, it’s more likely trauma from having large amounts of empathy. To learn more -- o...

In honor of mental health awareness month, we want to welcome you to the first ever Inside Mental Health podcast clips show. Listen now to hear some great insights from some of the best guests of the past year. Featuring clips from Jennette McCurdy, Alanis Morissette, Wil Wheaton, Brooke Burke, Dr. Phil and Paul Gilmartin – there is something for everyone. Our host, Gabe Howard, combed through hou...

Most parents (and other adults) want to be able to talk to teenagers and young adults about mental health and mental illness. But, uncertainty and awkwardness often stop well-intentioned people from broaching the subject.  In this episode, we discuss how to have these conversations with the young people in our lives by inviting Dr. Laura Erickson-Schroth, chief medical officer of The Jed Foundatio...

Children and teenagers are expressing unprecedented levels of anxiety and many experts believe there is currently a crisis of anxiety in the United States. If that is true, what can adults — who may also be managing anxiety — do to help young people?     While many experts believe social media and news outlets play a role, we have to accept that these things are here to stay — so what is our next...

12-step programs like Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous dominate the recovery space. In fact, when most people think of someone in recovery, they typically assume they are part of a 12-step program. But, what if the traditional 12-step programs don’t work for you? For example, if you are an atheist, don’t like the idea of a sponsor, or want a program driven by self-empowerment, are ther...

ADD / ADHD are typically discussed as a controversial diagnosis. Some people — including experts — feel that these conditions are over diagnosed, underdiagnosed, or simply don’t exist. ADD / ADHD have been used to attack parents, defend behavior challenges, and seemingly everything in between. But what is the real story? Join us as today’s guest, Dr. Theresa Cerulli, explains the challenges in hel...

Dallas Roquemore, aka Lil Dallas, is a personal friend of — and has worked with — famed rapper, Mozzy. While Dallas’s rap career started out very strong, it was derailed when he went to prison at age 16 and was incarcerated for the next 11 years.   Join us as restored citizen and prison reform and reentry advocate Lil Dallas tells us what life in prison is really like, what he thinks might help mo...