Ask Kati Anything

Narcissism, narcissistic abuse, and NPD get thrown around constantly online, and most of what circulates is wrong. In this episode, licensed marriage and family therapist Kati Morton walks through what narcissistic personality disorder actually is (all nine DSM criteria, and why five or more are required for a diagnosis), the difference between covert and overt narcissism, and the specific behavior patterns that make a relationship abusive: love bombing, gaslighting, trauma bonding, DARVO, flying monkeys, isolation, and intermittent reinforcement. She also covers the gray rock method, the signs you're walking on eggshells in your own home, and how healing from narcissistic abuse actually works.

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Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is deeply misunderstood, heavily stigmatized, and far more complex than just "being emotional". In this episode of Ask Kati Anything, licensed marriage and family therapist Kati Morton breaks down the official BPD diagnostic criteria from the DSM, explaining how BPD symptoms actually present in real life, therapy offices, and everyday relationships. She explores the underlying fear of abandonment, idealization and devaluation (splitting), identity disturbances, and why BPD so frequently overlaps with PTSD, trauma, and ADHD. Plus, discover actionable evidence-based BPD treatment options like Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Schema Therapy, and Mentalization-Based Therapy (MBT) to help manage emotional dysregulation, navigate relationship boundaries, and work toward long-term remission.

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Navigating attachment dynamics and discussing sensitive, taboo topics in therapy can feel daunting, but understanding how your attachment style influences your mental health is a major step toward healing. In this episode, licensed therapist Kati Morton dives deep into attachment theory, explaining the four primary attachment styles—secure, anxious, avoidant, and disorganized—and how they shape your adult relationships and sessions with your therapist. Kati also addresses how to bring up political differences or uncomfortable topics without fear of judgment, and answers your most pressing community questions.

https://www.youtube.com/@askkatianything

https://www.youtube.com/@katimorton

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In this episode of Ask Kati Anything, licensed therapist Kati Morton breaks down why eating disorders are rarely actually about the food or your body. We look at what’s really happening behind the strict rules, rituals, and need for control, and how these behaviors often show up as survival mechanisms to protect us from deeper stress, trauma, and overwhelm. Whether you’re struggling with restrictive eating, binging, purging, orthorexia, or just feel completely exhausted by your relationship with food, this conversation is here to give you clarity, reduce the shame, and help you understand what your brain is actually trying to tell you.

REBOUND: visit www.hellorebound.com/askkatianything & check your insurance or get matched with a therapistONESKIN: Get 15% off OneSkin with the code KATI at www.oneskin.co/KATI

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Do you think about your therapist between sessions? Check their social media? Spiral when they cancel? A licensed therapist explains why attachment to your therapist happens, why it's actually part of the process, and the exact signs that tell you when it's crossed into unhealthy territory.

Rebound offers virtual, evidence-based treatment for PTSD with trauma-specialist therapists, in-network with most major insurance plans in all 50 states. Check your insurance or get matched: Head to https://hellorebound.com/askkatianything to check your insurance or get matched with a therapist.

Psychotherapy and Therapeutic Relationship https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK608012/

⁠⁠⁠ASK KATI YOUR QUESTION

X https://twitter.com/KatiMorton

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Do you sleep enough and live a balanced life on paper, yet still feel completely wiped out by Tuesday? You aren't "bad at adulting"—your nervous system is likely dealing with an invisible, compounded burden.

In this episode, we break down the three overlapping systems that drive modern exhaustion: cognitive load from constant decision fatigue, emotional labor from managing the people around us, and threat system exhaustion caused by chronic hyper-vigilance. We also discuss why physical sleep cannot fix cognitive or emotional burnout, how perimenopause/menopause can stack onto these existing stressors, and why our modern "always-on" remote culture is making it harder to disconnect. Learn how to reclaim your energy by setting better boundaries, creating end-of-day rituals, and giving your brain the "boredom" it desperately needs to recover.

Mentioned in this episode:

• The impact of cognitive load and "context switching"

• Why "people pleasing" is a form of exhausting emotional labor

• Understanding threat system exhaustion and hyper-vigilance

• The role of hormone changes (estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone) in energy levels 


• Tips for creating effective end-of-day work/life boundaries

3 Key Topics/Chapters:

• 04:15: The Reality of Cognitive Load & Decision Fatigue

• 10:30: Why Emotional Labor and People Pleasing Drains You

• 19:14: Threat System Exhaustion: When Your Body Braces for Danger

Support Our Sponsors

• BiOptimizers - Heat and summer travel can deplete your body's magnesium, making it harder to recover and relax 👉 Get 15% off your entire order + a FREE travel-size bottle of Digestive Enzymes: ⁠https://bioptimizers.com/kati use code: KATI

• Rebound - Trauma doesn’t just fade on its own. If you’ve been hitting a wall in your life or relationships, Rebound offers virtual, evidence-based treatment from trauma specialists who are in-network with most major insurance plans. 👉 Check your insurance or get matched with a specialist: ⁠http://hellorebound.com/askkatianything

PARTNERSHIPS

Disclaimer: This podcast is for educational purposes and is not a substitute for professional therapy or medical advice.

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Have you ever felt like you’re trying so hard to communicate, but the harder you try, the more things seem to fall apart? Whether it’s that heavy feeling of being misunderstood, the exhausting cycle of the silent treatment, or the fear that you’re accidentally pushing the people you love away—I want you to know: you aren't broken.

Most of us are just running on a communication "blueprint" we didn't choose. In today’s episode, we’re peeling back the layers of why we fall into these traps. We’re talking about:

Why "stonewalling" and passive aggression are actually defense mechanisms (not just "bad behavior").

The difference between being "anxious" versus "avoidant" in a conflict.

How to use the DEAR MAN technique to finally ask for what you need.

Why "repairing" after a fight is actually more important than being perfect.

You don't have to be perfect to have a healthy relationship. You just need to be willing to learn a different way.

Episode Sponsor:

Reddit - Interested in finding a community that you really love and can trust? Download the Reddit app today!

Mentioned in this episode:

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Why does your brain feel like it's working against you when you're depressed? In this episode, licensed marriage and family therapist Kati Morton answers deep viewer questions to unpack what is actively happening in the body and brain during depressive episodes and periods of suicidal ideation.

We challenge the traditional "chemical imbalance" framework to look at the modern science of mental health: how different regions of the brain communicate, why your HPA axis can get stuck in a chronic stress response, and the clinical data pointing to systemic inflammation as a primary driver of depressive symptoms. Plus, Kati breaks down the absolute differences between clinical depression, situational sadness, grief, and passive vs. active suicidal thoughts.

What We Cover:

The DSM-5 Checklist: The 9 diagnostic criteria for Major Depressive Disorder.

The Serotonin Myth: Why modern psychiatric research is moving away from looking at single chemical levels.

The Inflammation Connection: Active clinical trials utilizing anti-inflammatory pathways to treat mental health.

Your Audio Action Plan: How to implement behavioral activation, circadian light exposure protocols, and cognitive tools to stop internal negative loops.

Special Thanks to Our Sponsor: Go to hellorebound.com/AskKatiAnything to check your insurance or get matched with a virtual trauma specialist today. Real, evidence-based trauma treatment is within reach.

If you are in immediate danger or experiencing a mental health crisis, please call or text 988 (US) or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741. In the UK, you can reach the Samaritans at 116 123. You do not have to fight this alone.

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Do you feel like you're spiraling when your heart starts racing? Kati Morton breaks down why your body is misinterpreting normal sensations as a threat and how you can break the loop.

In this episode of Ask Katie Anything, licensed marriage and family therapist Kati Morton explores the reality of panic disorder and why it feels so physically life-threatening. We discuss the seven stages of the panic loop, the "suffocation alarm" theory developed by Donald Klein, and why typical advice like "just breathe" can sometimes make anxiety worse. You'll learn specific, science-backed grounding techniques—including the temperature shock method, vagus nerve stimulation, and the "labeling" technique—to help you navigate moments of high intensity.

Episode Sponsors

BiOptimizers - If you're ready to finally sleep great and feel like yourself again, head to https://bioptimizers.com/kati and use my exclusive code KATI to get 15% off any order.

Reddit - Interested in finding a community that you really love and can trust? Download the Reddit app today!

Rebound - Offering virtual treatment for PTSD. Rebound is not a general therapy app where trauma is just one checkbox. Their therapists are trauma specialists. Head to https://hellorebound.com/askkatianything to check your insurance or get matched with a therapist

Chapters:

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