Not Allowed to Die

When the dominos are falling in your brain and you are convinced everything good is going away, how do you slow down and realize this is just catastrophic thinking? Mariksa and I unpack that and how to start to believe in your value if you grew up with trauma in this episode.

In this episode Mariska and I talk about the challenge for therapists when clients talk around their issues and only bring up tough topics right when the session is about to end.

In this episode Mariska and I delve into several thorny ethical dilemmas I faced this week on a single case AND we talk about how I help my friends and family find therapists.

In this episode Mariska and I explore if it is ok for person to have a preference for a partner with a single certain trait, if that prevents them from dating someone who checks all the other boxes. We also explore ways of viewing self esteem more generally.

In this episode Mariska and I break down some client dreams and offer some out of the box methods of journaling for folks (like me) who struggle to journal conventionally.

In this episode Mariska and I explore a term that was new to me , High Functioning Depression, which I learned about on another podcast, A Slight Change of Plans: When Productivity Becomes Pathological | A Slight Change of Plans I observe how in my experience there is often a connection between this type of depression and substance abuse challenges.

In this episode Mariska and I talk about 3 simple (not easy) steps to become more successful in your own estimation. Which ultimately is the only view point that matters.

In this episode Mariska and I evaluate how well mental health challenges are portrayed in several films and tv shows. What did they get right, and wrong?

On this episode Mariska and I discuss how to help clients manage their grief about both the choices of terminating a pregnancy and giving a child up for adoption, as well as how a therapist may decide to disclose if they have been through one of these issues.

In this episode Dan reads two AI generated stories about therapy that he prompted. We also talk about how to use AI in a productive way to study for an exam.

In this brief episode Mariska and I share our thoughts on using AI to get life advice. More importantly we put out the call to ask listeners to write in to dmaiglerlcsw@gmail.com to tell us what kinds of questions you ask AI and how you decide which AI to use.

In this episode Mariska and I talk about several clients who have struggles with finding joy on a day celebrating family and Mothers in particular.

In this episode Mariska and I unpack hard conversations of talking about death with small children and some victories both for former client and the incredible feeling for a therapist when a client breaks through shame and shares their trust.

In this episode Mariska and I talk about what to do when someone you care about has run off a cliff and refuses to look down because they don't want to face reality and drop. How to help them see reality and hopefully have a softer landing.

In this episode Mariska and I discuss helping clients determine if their avoidance of life and issues is a healthy pause or something that might be building negative inertia to becoming their healthiest self.

In this episode Mariska and I are guests on the Mind Matters podcast where hosts Ben and Kabeer ask us questions about managing mental health challenges as a teen, and give us a chance to talk about Paws for Patrick.

In this episode Mariska and I talk about the incredible book Perks of Being a Wallflower and why I'm taking my kids to a museum about lynching for spring break.

In this episode Mariska and I discuss how I decide which clients can do 30 min sessions and also the challenges of collaborating with other providers (eg. couples counselors and psychiatrists).

Once again Mariska published a podcast without listening to make sure it was correct. This is the real episode where Markisa and I vent our frustration about a conservative social worker mischaracterizing trans people as if they are delusional just for existing.

In this episode Mariska and I discuss when therapists need to call their clients out and share hard truths with them, even when we know the clients may not want to hear it.

Mariska and I were guests on the social work bubble podcast to talk about ESAs.

Mariska and I were overjoyed to have Team Maigler Hall of Famer DaMonique back on the show. She works for the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services in helping to connect children and families with resources. This was a really enlightening conversation about the help DCFS can provide as opposed to the negative cliches that people think of when they hear about Child Protective Services...

In this episode Mariska and I cover some of the ethical challenges a therapist faces when deciding whether or not to report a case to DCFS. I review a situation a young therapist I am supervising shared with me.

This is my segment on the Trevor J. Brown show where we respond to questions from his listeners about mental health challenges or dilemmas. Don't worry, Mariska is still by my side even when I record with Trevor.

Audrey Grunst from Simply Bee and I partnered up to answer some questions about Emotional Support Animals. Mariska wasn't present for this one, which may explain why I may be less than perfect in my delivery. We realized there was one question we didn't answer so we tacked it on at the end.