Jennifer Chaiken, LMFT and Emmalee Bierly, LMFT

ShrinkChicks

Health EN ↓ 338 episodes

Emmalee Bierly, LMFT and Jennifer Chaiken, LMFT, owners and co-founders of The Therapy Group (@thetherapygrp), bring you the ShrinkChicks Podcast. ShrinkChicks is on a mission to make therapy and therapeutic topics more relatable and accessible. Each Monday, Emmalee and Jen will explore different mental health topics and invite you to sit in on their insight, humor, and knowledge, leaving the psychobabble behind.

Be sure to visit the podcast's website and support the creator: art19.com

Author

Jennifer Chaiken, LMFT and Emmalee Bierly, LMFT

Category

Health

Podcast website

art19.com

Latest episode

Oct 26, 2026

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Episodes

NOvember with Dr. Lindsay Haston 22.11.2021

On this week's episode of ShrinkChicks, Emmalee and Jen are joined by one of their amazing clinicians from The Therapy Group, Dr. Lindsay Haston. Lindsay is a licensed psychologist dedicated to helping others feel more comfortable being themselves. She strives to assist clients in leading a more full and meaningful life while also managing the pain that inevitably comes with it. Aside from being a...

Em & Jen Explain Enmeshment 15.11.2021

Today on ShrinkChicks, Emmalee and Jen explain what enmeshment is. You might have heard similar terms used like codependency or fusion, as they can look incredibly similar. They go into what enmeshed relationships look like in families, in romantic partnerships, and even at work. Enmeshment and boundaries go hand in hand, and Emmalee and Jen walk us through how to start setting specific boundaries...

Your Burning Boundary Questions Answered 08.11.2021

Q & A part two! This week on ShrinkChicks, Emmalee and Jen continue to answer your questions, this time about setting boundaries in relationships and at work. Em and Jen give their insight about guilt trips and the functions behind them, highly critical parents, how to continue to set boundaries when receiving pushback, what to do when a loved one is in a bad relationship, anxiety regarding le...

The Return of Q & A 01.11.2021

The Q & A episodes are back! This week on ShrinkChicks, Em and Jen bring back their question and answer format episode. The theme today is life transitions and how to navigate them. Emmalee and Jen answer your questions about marriage and wedding advice, what to do when you have a lot on your plate (think: new job, new city, new relationship status), the identity crisis that many women experie...

If You Want To, You Should with Jared Freid 25.10.2021

This week on ShrinkChicks we give you some much needed comic relief from our guest: comedian Jared Freid! Jared is co-host of the U Up? Podcast, co-host of The Betchelor Podcast, host of the JTrain Podcast, and has a hysterical and relatable Instagram presence (@jaredfreid). Emmalee and Jen talk with Jared all about dating and relationships from a male's perspective. They ask Jared your questions...

Career Transitions & Trusting Your Gut with Nikki Cox 18.10.2021

On today’s episode of ShrinkChicks, Emmalee and Jen introduce you all to Nikki, their ShrinkChicks producer and Head of Operations of The Therapy Group! She talks about how she got her job (hint: she was a listener who DM’ed Em and Jen), the steps she took to make a major career shift, the biggest surprise about working for Emmalee and Jen, imposter syndrome, her fear of public speaking, what she’...

The Power of Fierce Intimacy with Terry Real 11.10.2021

Today on ShrinkChicks, Emmalee and Jen have the pleasure of sitting down with Terry Real, an internationally recognized Couples & Family Therapist, speaker, and best selling author. Terry has worked with thousands of women and men, parents and non-parents, to help them create the connection they desire in their relationships. Emmalee and Jen talk with Terry about honesty and how important it i...

Exploring The Decision to be Childfree 04.10.2021

This week on ShrinkChicks, we cover one of our most requested topics: Emmalee interviews Jen about her decision to be childfree. She asks Jen all of your questions including how she knew she didn't want kids, the way she brought it up to her now husband, the initial reactions of her family, in-laws and friends, and how she plans to handle things when she's elderly. They discuss why having doubts i...

Personal Self vs. Professional Self 27.09.2021

Today on ShrinkChicks, Emmalee and Jen explore the differences between our personal and professional selves. They talk about starting their business, imposter syndrome, authenticity in the workplace, different work environments, and how therapists are taught to be a blank slate. Emmalee and Jen share the fears they both had when deciding to start The Therapy Group and the story of when they got th...

The Communication Skills We Didn't Learn in School 20.09.2021

On this week’s episode of ShrinkChicks, Emmalee and Jen give us a glimpse into the communication skills we didn’t learn in school. We are ALL sometimes bad communicators, even two couples therapists. They highlight a portion of their Making The Most Of Your Marriage e-course: communication. Em and Jen take us through 15 different types of “bad” communication tactics that can appear in our relation...

Purity Culture Dropout with Erica Smith, M.Ed. 13.09.2021

Today on ShrinkChicks, Emmalee and Jen are joined by the amazing Erica Smith, M.Ed., sex educator and creator of the Purity Culture Dropout Program. Erica educates us all on purity culture and what it looks like in our world today.   They discuss Erica's path to becoming a sex educator and the work she does to help her clients recover from the effects of purity culture. They cover topics like dres...

What To Do When The World Is On Fire 06.09.2021

Spoiler alert: there’s no magic trick. After a few weeks of guests, today's episode of ShrinkChicks is just with Em and Jen! They give us an update on their lives and some things they've been facing, personally. They discuss how the world is on fire! And with that, the false sense of control that we can feel when we take in information, the emotion of fear and how it's been ever present over the p...

WTF is a Pelvic Floor with Gina Cunningham 30.08.2021

Welcome to Pelvic Floor Health 101! This week on ShrinkChicks, Emmalee and Jen are joined by Pelvic Floor Physical Therapist, Gina Cunningham. She clues us in to what a pelvic floor actually is and why pelvic floor health matters. Gina explains the reasons why someone might need pelvic floor physical therapy and takes us through what a typical evaluation looks like. She answers some of your questi...

Being a Nurse is F*cking Hard with Katie Duke 23.08.2021

Trigger Warning : death and serious illness. Healthcare workers are on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic and the stories shared in this episode, from an inside, firsthand perspective, are heavy and potentially triggering.  On today's episode of ShrinkChicks, Emmalee and Jen have a powerful conversation with Katie Duke, who worked on the frontlines of the COVID-19 crisis as a Nurse Practitio...

Feeling Our Feelings with Scout Sobel 16.08.2021

This week on ShrinkChicks, Emmalee and Jen sit down with Scout Sobel (@scoutsobel): co-host of the Okay Sis Podcast, host of SCOUT Podcast, founder of Scout's Agency and most recently an author! They discuss Scout's diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder, why the diagnosis felt so isolating, and how it impacted her especially as it related to a career. Scout explains the importance of finding the right the...

Challenging the Stories We Tell Ourselves About Ourselves 09.08.2021

Today on ShrinkChicks, Emmalee and Jen discuss a type of therapy called Narrative Therapy. They explain what Narrative Therapy is, how it's used with clients, and how we can begin to challenge the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves. They talk about where these stories can originate, the roles we take on in our families of origin such as "the shy one," the narratives Em and Jen learned to be...

Social Media's Effect on Our Mental Health 02.08.2021

On this week's episode of ShrinkChicks, Emmalee and Jen dive into the topic of social media and the apps we spend so much time on. They discuss the positives and negatives of social media, comparing ourselves to someone else's highlight reel, the things that exist beyond the highlight reel, why Jen is struggling with the idea of posting pictures of her summer so far, and being conscious of our fee...

Parts of Ourselves that are Healed vs. The Parts that are Still Healing 26.07.2021

Today on ShrinkChicks, Emmalee tells Jen two stories from her weekend that Jen is hearing for the first time on air. Hint: you won't believe them, either! In processing these stories, Emmalee and Jen discuss how some parts of ourselves can feel healed while others can feel like a work in progress. They talk Mom shaming, society's expectations of Mom's and women and how those expectations are wildl...

How To Stay Connected To Friends Through Different Life Stages 19.07.2021

In this week's episode of ShrinkChicks, Emmalee and Jen answer the question: what do you do when your friends are in a different stage of life than you? Such as being the only mom in your group of friends, the only single friend, the only married friend, the only childfree friend, or in financially different places than your friends, the list goes on. They discuss the grief process that comes alon...

The Myth of Magical Thinking 12.07.2021

Today on ShrinkChicks, Emmalee and Jen catch up. They check in to see how each other is doing (hint: it's been a tough few weeks) and dive into the topic of magical thinking, which is one of many cognitive distortions. For instance: I will be happier once I get married. Or my life will magically improve once I lose X amount of weight. They discuss the myth of magical thinking, how happiness is an...

Healing After NXIVM with India Oxenberg 05.07.2021

In today's episode of ShrinkChicks, Emmalee and Jen have the privilege of sitting down with actress, author, and film producer India Oxenberg. They discuss India’s experience with the NXIVM cult, challenge the stigma associated with people who fall victim to predators and/or high control groups, the grooming and coercion that occured, and how she's been working to heal and find herself again since...

Expectations in Relationships 28.06.2021

Today's episode is ALL about expectations. Emmalee and Jen discuss the expectations we have in different relationships: romantic, platonic, at work, and with our families. They share expectations they have in their own relationships, how to voice these expectations, and why we need to give ourselves space to grieve the expectations that may go unmet. They also talk wedding planning conflict and ex...

People Pleasing & Boundary Setting with Dr. Cassidy Freitas 21.06.2021

Emmalee and Jen sit down with the incredible Dr. Cassidy Freitas, fellow Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist and Podcaster. The three of them dig into boundaries, people pleasing, and how to set boundaries as a people pleaser. They discuss where people pleasing can originate, where to start when addressing our people pleasing tendencies, how to shift from being a perfectionist to a “good enou...

Can I Talk To My Therapist About This? 14.06.2021

This week, Emmalee and Jen talk through the topics that can be hard to bring up in therapy. From our sex lives and sexual fantasies to depression, lying, or speaking negatively about our parents. They explain why we avoid sharing certain topics with our therapists and give their perspectives from both sides of the couch (hint: they’ve done the same in their own therapy).  On Dear Em & Jen, the...

Two Moms, One Donor, and 80 Siblings with Callie Fraser, MSS, LSW 07.06.2021

In today's episode, Emmalee and Jen are joined by one of The Therapy Group's wonderful clinicians, Callie Fraser, MSS, LSW. Callie (@calliefrasercounseling) shares her lived experience of growing up with the knowledge that her Moms used a sperm donor to bring her into this world. She recounts teaching her friends about sperm donors at a young age, explains the process of choosing a donor, discusse...

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