Conversations With a Wounded Healer

Fans of the pod already know that I fangirl hard for Dr. Jennifer Mullan and Decolonizing Therapy , the global movement she created to "radically reimagine the old mental health paradigm. If you're new here, allow me to introduce you to the future as envisioned by this badass author, speaker, organizational consultant, teacher, course creator, and community builder. Dr. Jennifer describes herself...

Onyx Fujii's contribution arrives by way of the Kintsugi Therapist Collective (co-founded with CWH guest Asher Pandjiris), and I'm in awe of what they have created: a virtual community offering "embodied care, support, wisdom, and resources to trans and non-binary, BIPOC, chronically ill, and disabled mental health providers."  One of this conversation's "off-camera" revelations is that Onyx joine...

If the Moon could speak, what would it tell us? Creative Lunar Guide April Miller McMurtry says that the great orb is transmitting intel to us all the time; we just need to become more fluent in its language. Her work speaks to the part of me that loves it's-okay-to-say-witchy mindfulness.  April's tools for engaging with energetic patterns are more robust than a daily tracking log and more inclus...

The last 2.5 years (and counting) have opened floodgates of reckoning, especially within therapeutic spaces, and I'm so here for it! So, too, is Asher Panjiris, who rightfully points out that our profession is overdue for an overhaul. Yasss! Asher claims a lot of different identities: psychotherapist, queer parent, human to two dogs, and the host of Living in This Queer Body. They're also co-found...

Happy anniversary! You and I have gone through a lot over the last five years. Progress! Stagnation! Rage! Exhilaration! And, would you believe, 200 conversations with wounded healers? A line-up of humans so generous of spirit that their insights echo throughout my body long after the recording session ends. There's something to this idea of embodied wisdom, the way we physically understand what o...

College. If your origins story includes a collegiate stint, the word either ushers in a flood of autumnal-toned nostalgia or overwhelming anxiety. Which camp you occupy depends, in part, on the support you received from professors and administrators while attending school. Wouldn't it be great if all guidance counselors approached their task as Carrie Young did when she occupied the office, full o...

Are you now, or have you ever been disabled? That's not a trick question. Artist, art therapist, and disability activist Bri Beck asserts that disability exists along a complex spectrum –– visible, hidden, physical, developmental, temporary, persistent, evident at birth, resulting from trauma –– rather than a simple binary. And yet… Even with close proximity to it, so much uneasiness surrounds dis...

Dropping this convo alongside recent pop culture reminders (hello, little mermaids and Emmy Award-winners!) that representation matters because it heals. Rico Ricketson created an entire platform around that idea. He's the founder and CEO of MH3 , a subscription-based resource that partners with corporations to provide mental health education featuring the voices and experiences of diverse health...

I've had a lot of conversations with a lot of amazing folks. Believe me when I say there's something special about the frequency from which Rusia Mohiuddin operates. She's tapped into a universal rhythm that, in simplest terms, is the deep understanding that people are the source of all power. If that level of embodiment comes across as too lofty for the "average" person to access, allow Rusia to...

The longest, most important, and, let's be honest, most frustrating relationship of our lives is the one we have with ourselves. How amazing, then, to connect with someone who gets the struggle and sits alongside us in that space. Mia Park is one of those people for me. For a lot of folks. A talented, multidimensional artist based in Chicago, she's fueled by a boundless enthusiasm for community en...

I do not like CBT. Don't worry; I won't break into a salty Dr. Seuss-esque rhyme deriding cognitive behavioral therapy (although I could). But then Charles Small, LCSW, would kindly call me and my objections to CBT in rather than out. I know this because that's how he's handled my grumbling in the past. He's one of those rare souls who can debate without derision, urging folks (like me) to hit pau...

Liz Dubé, MA, MS, has one of the best professional introductions on the planet. "I want to heal the world one bedroom at a time." For the record, Liz is a certified sex therapist, not a sex surrogate. In other words, she gets talky with her clients, not touchy. If visions of the Netflix show "Sex Education" come to mind or Dr. Ruth Westheimer answering embarrassing questions on her weekly radio sh...

"Movement is life." When Kira Macoun utters that phrase midway through our conversation, she's referencing both our physical and sacred selves. Whether she intended to or not is not up for debate because this woman embodies forward motion in all aspects of her life. Kira, a functional fitness specialist and somatic movement educator, is co-owner of Comfy Fitness, the online group and personal trai...

Given the recent reversal of Roe v. Wade, honest insight into and support for modern-day parents or child caregiving are more necessary than ever. Although recorded weeks before the ruling, this conversation seems incredibly prescient.  Allison Staiger, LCSW, is spiraling. "Have you heard of that term before? Spiral-linear?" she asks. I hadn't but given her definition, it's a concept I'm down with...

Here's a hot take for you: The teachings of a privileged white dude from the past can help us sort through our modern existential crises. OK, in the world of Jungian psychology, my pithy opening salvo is far from controversial; it's indisputable. One of the folks translating Carl Jung's classic analytical foundation into a contemporary application is Satya Doyle Byock, LPC.  At The Salomé Institut...

My guest Kerri Kelly landed on the perfect summation for this episode: "It's gonna be juicy y'all!" And it is, since our discussion centers on whiteness. Ha––leave it to whiteness to center itself here, there, everywhere. In this instance, however, whiteness and the cacophony of capitalism that almost always accompanies it, is drowned out by Kerri's challenging, meaningful call-in. And she keeps t...

The magic of great photography is that it uncovers emotions on both sides of the lens. But what if subject and audience are the same? That exposure arrives with all sorts of charged, squishy feelings––including a healthy dose of healing. That's what I'm experiencing as I circle back to the beautiful new collection of branding images my guest Meagan Thomas took of me. Meagan is a boudoir photograph...

It's not every day that I speak with an animal psychic. Allow me to head off any skepticism by saying this is no "talk to the animals" farce. If you've ever experienced the special bond from loving an animal, you likely shared moments of complete synchronicity, as if you both spoke a common language. When that beloved animal passes, the loss is immense. Overwhelming. I say this as someone who has...

If I had to pick one word to describe this conversation with Dr. Barbara Shabazz, PsyD, my choice is easy: intentionality. And possibility. And community. And… Y'all know by now that I refuse to play nice with arbitrary limits!  I could turn to the 20k folks who follow her over on IG for additional superlatives. Not to mention the clients who seek Barbara's guidance via Intentional Activities , he...

Where organized religion goes, the need for therapy often follows. There's no shortage of examples in which Christianity's original pitch––to love and care for one another––has gotten corrupted by those delivering Jesus' message.  But what if you're called to fight for your faith? What if you believe that your generation is the breath of fresh air its stagnant lungs need? Or, what if you want to o...

What a time to be alive, huh? I say so with tongue firmly planted in my cheek because when crisis cycles like the one we're currently in arise, instinct often overrides my ability to analyze. I rush for the deep end with an overwhelming need to do everything, even as I realize I've stretched myself too thin to do anything. Raise your hand if you've been there; done that. Val Jencks, MS, LMFT, LCPC...

I have long wished for one complete website where I could find information about every trauma modality––the who, what, where, why, and how of trauma-informed care if you will––because I want training in all of them!  The truth is, whether we're therapists, specialized healers, or lightworkers, there's a reason why we call what we do practice: we never arrive at a place of absolute knowing.  Shelby...

This one has all the hallmarks of those "very special episodes" from TV days gone by. Awesome guest? Check. Witty banter? Check. A lesson on the power of vulnerability? Check. We're talking *chef's kiss* from start to finish, not least because I get to publicly gush over my friend Rayell Grayson, LCPC, CADC. Knowing Rayell brings me so much joy on the daily. I'm proud to be in her orbit and utterl...

If you look up the word "radical", you'll find definitions for its noun- and adjective-based usages. Marvin Toliver, MSW, LCSW , embodies both. He's a self-respecting bisexual man of color who refuses to bear the crushing weight of racist, capitalist, heteronormative systems. Instead, Marvin advocates fiercely for marginalized folks and won't accept anything less than complete liberation and revol...

Oh, nothing, just me and Heidi Savell, LCSW , my new fave polyamory coach, replacing capitalism with divine feminine energy, repairing acute attachment wounds, and returning agency to anyone frustrated by the limits of monogamous relationships.  OK, before we go any further into this convo, let me emphatically state that neither Heidi nor I have anything against monogamy. Furthermore, monogamists...