SEEN IN FULL

Content warnings: This episode includes discussions of addiction and child abuse. If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse. Please take care of yourself while listening, and if you need to, don’t be afraid to reach out and ask for help. Call 1-800-662-HELP (4357) or text your zip code to HELP4U (435748) This episode features an unfiltered, deeply human conversation with journa...

On this episode of Seen In Full, Dr. Desai is joined by physician, writer, and national leader in clinician wellbeing Dr. Jillian Horton for a thoughtful conversation about burnout, resilience, and the emotional toll of working in high-stakes professions. Drawing from her own experiences, Dr. Horton reflects on how healthcare systems shape—and often strain—the people within them. Together, they ex...

In this episode, Dr. Dhaval Desai is joined by author and educator Sophie Lucido Johnson for a thoughtful conversation about loneliness, kinship, and the human need for deeper connection. Drawing from her book Kin:The Future of Family, Sophie explores why the nuclear family often isn’t enough to sustain us emotionally, how modern life has reshaped the structures of friendship and community, and wh...

Content Warning: This episode briefly discusses suicide and suicidal thoughts. Listener discretion is advised. If you’re struggling, you can call or text 988 in the U.S., or find local support at https://findahelpline.com/. On this episode of Seen In Full, Dr. Desai sits down with comedian and Steve Harvey Morning Show co-host Kier “Junior” Spates. Kier opens up about the emotional weight he’s car...

In this episode, Dr. Desai sits down with Icebox founder Alia Alston for a powerful, deeply human conversation about chronic pain, resilience, and the healing potential of curiosity. Alia opens up about the life-altering drunk-driving accident she survived at 18, the years of nerve damage and spinal injury that followed, and her exploration of natural healing methods that ultimately led her to dis...

In this episode of Seen in Full, Dr. Desai speaks with Abbey, a former second-grade teacher who left the classroom after experiencing severe burnout. Abbey describes reaching her breaking point in May, facing emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and physical symptoms including weight gain and elevated cortisol from chronic stress. She explains how scripted curriculum stripped away teacher agen...

In this episode of Seen in Full, Dr. Desai sits down with Jeff Dauler, a radio veteran who spent 15 years on Atlanta's Bert Show before leaving the industry in 2015. Jeff describes radio as a "toxic and dysfunctional" industry where success is never enough—even when his shows consistently ranked #1, the pressure and lack of recognition eroded his confidence. A pivotal lunch with Jeff Foxworthy cha...

In this deeply personal conversation, Dr. Dhaval Desai sits down with Brenda Wood, the legendary Atlanta journalist whose poise and professionalism made her a household name for decades. But behind the camera, Brenda faced heartbreak, loneliness, and a long journey toward healing and self-acceptance. She opens up about the toxic relationship that nearly broke her, the lessons she learned through t...

What happens when the system you’ve spent 14 years training to serve stops serving you? In this moving conversation, Dr. Dhaval Desai talks with Dr. Jeanne Hatcher, a highly specialized ENT surgeon, about the breaking point that changed everything. After years of dedication to medicine, Dr. Hatcher found herself standing at the edge of the ocean, wondering if she could keep going. Instead of walki...

A physician, father, husband, and author, Dr. Desai has spent his career helping others heal. But during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, while caring for patients and raising two young children with his wife - also a doctor - he found himself unraveling. The pressure, the fear, and the weight of responsibility became too heavy to carry quietly. When he realized he could no longer feel joy, ev...