the radical center

Dr Val Thomas is a UK-based psychotherapist, writer and formerly a counsellor educator. Her specialism is applications of mental imagery. She is the author of two Routledge publications: Using Mental Imagery in Counselling and Psychotherapy (2015) and Using Mental Imagery to Enhance Creative and Work-Related Processes (2019). She co-founded and currently runs Critical Therapy Antidote, an internat...

Today we discuss the topic of "Sanism" and the idea of social behavioral norms and standards. We were joined again by Deborah Knox, a New York-based Solid Ground community member who closely tracks what has been happening in education, business, psychotherapy, medicine, and the arts with respect to Critical Social Justice- and is eager to find a healthy way forward. You can find her on T...

Cari Bartholomew from https://www.youtube.com/@CarobMarcelle joins Christine Sefein and myself to talk about a recent experience in which audience members attempted to silence her during a panel discussion about DEI at a university in Utah.

As a thank you to those who have been kind enough to support this project on Patreon- a reading of one of my favorite poems. https://www.patreon.com/theradicalcenter

Today we are joined by Deborah Knox, a New York-based Solid Ground community member who closely tracks what has been happening in education, business, psychotherapy, medicine, and the arts with respect to Critical Social Justice- and is eager to find a healthy way forward. You can find her on Twitter: @DeborahKnox We had a good discussion about the concept of activism, and what it means to be an &...

Christine joins me for another great discussion. If you are in graduate school for counseling now, what should you do? What are the political pressures? We spend some time also exploring our own influences and how our political views have evolved. I am always grateful to have opportunities to chat with Christine and enjoy the authentic and free-flowing exchange of ideas!

David, Jen, and I wade into the messy world of conceptualizing masculinity and femininity. Have women been taught to hate men? How does our culture represent what it means to be a man or a woman? Is gender neutral parenting a good thing? Find us, connect, and get more info about Solid Ground at: https://solidgroundsupport.com/ https://jodishaw.locals.com/ __________________________________________...

David is a Trainee Clinical Psychologist with a broad background working in mental health services in the UK. He has spoken out against authoritarian attempts to force adherence to CSJ ideologies at University. He began running an online peer support group for Counterweight, and is one of the founders of Solid Ground, which provides peer support for individuals who feel ostracized or silenced in t...

Kirsty Miller, PhD, is a lecturer based in Scotland. After completing a PhD in social and clinical psychology, her interests turned to investigating the dangers of groupthink and ideological conformity within academia. She is committed to open enquiry in science, is a member of The Heterodox Academy, The Society for Open Inquiry in the Behavioural Sciences, and is working towards protecting psycho...

Carob Bartholomew is a mother and an advocate representing multiple parent groups. She also speaks out regularly on her podcast, Be Not Afraid. As a former foster child who aged out of care and does not subscribe to the victim narrative, Cari finds herself in the center of this cultural battle. She works tirelessly to defend the virtues of meritocracy and resilience. She is an advocate for all chi...

Today we discuss the impact of social media on personal relationships. And yes, erotic vomiting. Find us, connect, and get more info about Solid Ground at: https://solidgroundsupport.com/ https://jodishaw.locals.com/ _____________________________________________________________________________________ If you would like to contact me, my website is: https://theradicalcenterconsulting.com/ and I hav...

From the live stream: Today we discuss the threats to Dr. Jordan Peterson's license if he doesn't undergo social media reeducation. What does this mean for licensed professionals everywhere? Find us, connect, and get more info about Solid Ground at: https://solidgroundsupport.com/ https://jodishaw.locals.com/ _________________________________________________________________________________...

Introducing Solid Ground! Our first live stream - an overview of our mission and a brief introduction to the team: Jodi, Jen, David, and Leslie. Beginning this week we are offering 4 weekly peer support groups to help connect people impacted by authoritarian ideologies in their personal and professional lives. Find us, connect, and get more info at: https://solidgroundsupport.com/ https://jodishaw...

Just Jen and myself today and a bit of a goofy live stream due to my technical issues. Thank you to all who joined us and thanks for your patience! We had a little discussion about the absence of beauty in modern life, and a nice little chat about how to ground ourselves despite the seemingly all encompassing authoritarianism. Find us, connect, and get more info about Solid Ground at: https://soli...

Today Christine and I talked about imposter syndrome, intuition, and the counseling process, and the nuclear family as a basis for moral development.      If you would like to contact me, my website is: https://theradicalcenterconsulting.com/ and I have a substack account at: https://theradicalcenter.substack.com/  I am on twitter @JLeslieElliott  If you wish to contr...

Great conversation with Christine Sefein, covering a variety of topics including the value of childhood innocence and the need for nuance in discussions of identity.  Christine recommends the book "Undoctrinate"  by Bonnie Snyder: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/57057945-undoctrinate   If you would like to contact me, my website is: https://theradicalcenterconsulting.com/ and I...

Former Antioch University professor of counselor education Christine Sefein came on to catch up and tell us about the upcoming Critical Therapy Antidote podcast.  Great discussion which included a discussion sparked by a viewer contribution in the chat about the role of trauma in mental health.   If you would like to contact me, my website is: https://theradicalcenterconsulting.com/ and...

I am joined again by Christine Sefein, former professor in the counseling graduate program at Antioch Los Angeles.  Christine discusses her decision to leave behind a rewarding career due to growing concerns about how "social justice" ideology was impacting her courses.    If you would like to contact me, my website is: https://theradicalcenterconsulting.com/ and I have a substack a...

Fantastic conversation with Christine Sefein, a former professor at Antioch in Los Angeles.  I hope to have Christine on again next week to continue the discussion.  (And apologies for the lighting on my end- I am in a hotel temporarily due to a frozen pipe bursting at home!)   If you would like to contact me, my website is: https://theradicalcenterconsulting.com/ and I have a...

"Therapy is a very powerful tool because it invites us to accept the nature of reality as it is, rather than as we'd like it to be, and to grieve the fact that reality is as imperfect as it is.  And then to move forward in the face of that." - Ben Harris.   Ben Harris is a psychotherapist in private practice in London, the  British Channel Islands and online. He read Philosophy, Pol...

"Social Justice" is a process of deconstructing, dismantling, and replacing Western cultural norms and values with a process of perpetual comparison for the purposes of establishing social hierarchies. It is a philosophy of anti-resilience where resentments are encouraged and rewarded.  Existing and historical cultural systems and structures are considered hopelessly flawe...

Alec Zeck, host of The Way Forward podcast, joined me for a discussion about the illusion authority, the importance of being authentic, and letting go of fear.     Links:  Study Alec mentioned about the strongest risk factors for death: https://www.cdc.gov/pcd/issues/2021/pdf/21_0123.pdf   Alec’s telegram channel: https://t.me/thewayforwardformankind   Alec’s website:...

Jenny joins me for a discussion about her new foray into Coaching, not instead of, but in addition to her clinical counseling practice.  We also discuss the theme of reality denial and how it is impacting numerous aspects of contemporary culture including the "fat-liberation" movement, gender, covid, etc!  I thought this was a fascinating  discussion and I hope you will, too.  ...

Mary Horn is an LMHC who operates a group practice specializing in OCD  and anxiety.  She is also a devout Born Again Christian and a  conservative woman.  She talks about her experiences as a counselor  navigating a profession that is becoming increasingly orthodox in its  far-left "social justice" ideology, and respecting her clients' and  interns' worldviews w...

Dr. Aaron Kindsvatter is a former professor of counselor education.  Not long ago he left his tenured position to start a private practice in Burlington Vermont.  This video is the second in a series of conversations I am having with Aaron, and here he offers a brilliant and concise analysis of the "truth game" versus the "power game" in an educational setting, and how we can r...