Back from the Abyss: Psychiatry in Stories

By Craig Heacock MD

Medicine

What's Back from the Abyss: Psychiatry in Stories about?

How do we find a way out of the darkest depths of despair? Psychiatrist Dr. Craig Heacock hosts a deep dive into powerfully moving stories of hope and healing, as well as topical explorations of psychopharmacology, psychotherapy, and psychedelics.

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What does it take to fill t...

12.01.2023

Saj Razvi returns to BFTA to discuss a listener letter, which leads to an exploration of treatment resistance, developmental trauma, the absence of experience ("the void") vs dissociation as experience. Saj and Craig also explore attachment vs love, whether trauma ...

Back from the Abyss: Psychiatry in Stories episodes:

12.01.2023 What does it take to fill the void? Developmental trauma and dissociation with Saj Razvi Saj Razvi returns to BFTA to discuss a listener letter, which leads to an exploration of treatment resistance, developmental trauma, the absence of experience ("the void") vs dissociation as experience. Saj and Craig also explore attachment vs love, whether trauma ...
11.17.2023 Ketamine-- Lessons from 3000 Sessions Some of the most basic questions about ketamine are still under investigation— Which patients are ideal responders? What is the therapeutic dose range? Is there a meaningful dose/response curve? Are fully dissociative treatments necessary for optimal efficacy? How important is ...
11.03.2023 Love and Therapy-- A Conversation with Dr. Adele LaFrance Is there a role for love in therapy, whether in the traditional psychotherapeutic context and/or in the psychedelic space? And if we were to more consciously invite love into therapy, how could we do this in a safe and boundaried ...
10.20.2023 Holding on to hope-- Caring for adult children with serious mental illness, Part 2 Dave and Laurie sit down with Dr. H to share their journey through the denial, fear, grief, and eventual acceptance of their son’s life-altering psychiatric illness. NAMI Family to Family support https://www.nami.org/Support-Education/Mental-Health-Education/NAMI-Family-to-Family BFTA on Instagram. @backfromtheabysspodcast https://www.instagram.com/backfromtheabysspodcast/ BFTA/ Dr. H ...
10.06.2023 What will happen when we're gone? Caring for adult children with serious mental illness One of the tragic truths of psychiatry is that the sickest patients more often than not either don’t realize they are ill, or are convinced that treatment will do nothing. No group of patients better exemplifies this than those with ...
09.22.2023 Psychedelic Psychiatry-- The Swiss Model Dr. H sits down with Dr. Julia King Olivier, a Swiss psychiatrist and co-founder of the Compassionate Care Center in Geneva, Switzerland, to explore the fascinating landscape of psychedelic-assisted therapy there. Julia is one of a small group of physicians ...
09.09.2023 When THC turns on you-- Cannabis, THC concentrates, and psychiatric breakdown Dr. H's patient Lindsey shares her story of self-medicating her anxiety and depression with cannabis, then steadily building tolerance and moving on to THC concentrates. This led to full-blown dependence and a spiral downward into daily bouts of terrible nausea, ...
08.27.2023 Healing the Wounds of Sexual and Spiritual Abuse In this season 5 opener, Craig sits down with Shelly Winemiller, a Colorado-based trauma therapist, to witness her powerful story of reclaiming her body and spirit from the nightmare of clergy sexual abuse. Shelly Winemiller http://www.oasisforhealing.com/meet-shelly BFTA/ Dr. H https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/
06.26.2023 BFTA Summer Special at Psychedelic Science 2023 with Dr. Hillary McBride Craig sits down with Dr. Hillary McBride, a psychologist, researcher, author, and podcast host (Other People's Problems) to explore all things psychedelic. Dr. Hillary McBride https://hillarylmcbride.com/ Roots to Thrive-- a model of ketamine group therapy used by Hillary at Katalyst ...
05.17.2023 Chris and Craig in Fishbowl #4 BFTA's co-conspirators explore what they learned this season, their favorite episodes, ideas/plans for season 5, whether BFTA has become too psychedelic-heavy, and what they most value in each other. BFTA on Instagram. @backfromtheabysspodcast https://www.instagram.com/backfromtheabysspodcast/ BFTA/ Dr. H https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/
05.04.2023 Brothers across the divide: Treatment-resistant depression, faith, and compassion In this final story of season 4, Craig speaks with Wayne, a longtime patient of his who has battled treatment resistant depression and crippling anxiety for many years. Wayne's story highlights a few crucial things— the fact that sometimes you ...
04.20.2023 The 10 Best Psychiatric Medications Can you treat >95% of all patients with mood, anxiety, and psychotic disorders with just ten meds? Dr. H says YES. Here he posits his top ten, based on efficacy, safety, tolerability, and cost. BFTA on Instagram. @backfromtheabysspodcast https://www.instagram.com/backfromtheabysspodcast/ BFTA/ ...
04.06.2023 A bridge between the Western and Indigenous ways— The curandera, plant medicine, and spirit Craig sits down with Ana, a Mexican medicine woman, or curandera. Ana shares a unique perspective and an earned wisdom that is particularly relevant today as we enter a veritable renaissance of plant medicines and psychedelics, while also trying to ...
03.23.2023 Psychedelic Assisted Therapy: Ketamine vs MDMA vs Psilocybin Dr. H explores how to think about psychedelic assisted therapy with ketamine, MDMA, and psilocybin in terms of patient selection, ideal indications, psychiatric diagnosis, trauma history, medical comorbidities, medication interactions, cautions, and contraindications. This episode comes from a recent interview ...
03.09.2023 What's the deal with Psychiatry? What's hopeful, what's gone amiss with Dr. Will Van Derveer Dr. H sits down with Dr. Will Van Derveer of the Integrative Psychiatry Institute and Higher Practice podcast in a wide-ranging exploration of what's good (and not so good) in current psychiatric practice. They explore topics including: •Problems with diagnostic ...
02.23.2023 Trauma in the Transference—Repairing the therapeutic relationship The magic of psychotherapy is that it brings forth transference— the patient’s most important and formative relationships, typically with early caregivers, are unconsciously re-enacted in the therapy room. And this transference necessarily creates countertransference, the therapist’s unconscious reactions to the ...
02.09.2023 The lives I didn’t get to live- Shame, psychedelics, and owning one’s story Thirty years ago, a 10 year old boy was found stabbed to death in a park…the same park where 18 year old Stephanie and three young men were seen riding bikes the night before. Stephanie and the others were repeatedly ...
01.26.2023 Thinking Through Emotions— DBT Part 2 After years of crippling anxiety, substance abuse, mood instability, and loss, Daniel had finally found the path to impending fame and success beyond his dreams. Then everything fell apart, and he was forced to face the fact that he lacked ...
01.12.2023 DBT, Self-Harm, and Suicidality with Dr. Kelly Sonnenfeld Here Dr. H sits down with Dr. Kelly Sonnenfeld, a psychologist and DBT expert, in this first of a two part look at dialectical behavior therapy, or DBT. This episode is a primer on DBT-- what DBT is, how it ...
12.29.2022 Why psychiatric illness strikes young (and what to do about it) Most medical illnesses appear later in life, as organ systems fail and the decades of wear and tear eventually erode the body's innate homeostatic mechanisms. Psychiatric illness, however, is profoundly different. Here Dr. H explores six central reasons why serious ...
12.15.2022 Psilocybin comes to Colorado Last month marked a fairly momentous occasion in Colorado, the statewide passage of Proposition 122, the Natural Medicines Health Act. Coloradoans voted, by a tally of 53 to 47%, to approve both the decriminalization of psilocybin, DMT, ibogaine, and mescaline, ...
12.01.2022 The way out of psychosis-- Psychopharmacology as magic Psychiatric meds so often get demonized in the media, including the podcast world, and while psych meds are far from perfect and often cause problematic side effects, they also literally save people’s lives every single day. Steve grew up as ...
11.17.2022 Abortion in Three Acts Three women. Three stories. One must listen. Act 1- Sarah Music by Dori Lewis Act 2- Karen Music-- Karen and Craig, "Waterfall of Wisdom" by Fia Act 3- Elizabeth BFTA/ Dr. H https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/
11.03.2022 From Beauty Queen to Psychedelic Guide Raised in an abusive misogynistic home amidst deep shame and the purity culture of her parents' faith, Micah's journey carried her though Southern pageant culture, anorexia, estrangement, birth trauma, and, eventually, connection and acceptance and grace. Micah Stover http://www.micahstoverconsulting.com/ BFTA ...
10.20.2022 Autism Spectrum Disorder-- A journey from alienation to attachment Anne grew up always feeling on the outside-- outside her family, her peers, her species. She knew something was "wrong", but a diagnosis would not arrive until she was well into adulthood. Meanwhile she became an expert in studying the ...
10.06.2022 Psychedelics, Psychosis, and Risk Reduction This is a talk that Dr. H gave in Denver at the Nowak Society in Aug. 2022. Medicalization and/or legalization of psilocybin is likely coming to Colorado soon, with other psychedelics soon to follow. This will foster both a new ...
09.22.2022 Understanding ADD/ADHD with Dr. Jeremy Sharp Dr. H sits down with Dr. Jeremy Sharp, Director of the Colorado Center for Assessment and Counseling and host of The Testing Psychologist podcast, for an exploration of the psychological and psychiatric aspects of ADD/ADHD. Dr. Jeremy Sharp https://www.coloradocac.com/about/dr-jeremy-sharp/ The ...
09.08.2022 Finding a way back to each other: Addiction, a mother, and her daughter In this season 4 opener, we hear the unforgettable story of a mother and daughter torn apart by addiction, then slowly finding the path of compassion, acceptance, and grace. BFTA on Instagram. @backfromtheabysspodcast https://www.instagram.com/backfromtheabysspodcast/ BFTA/ Dr. H https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/
07.23.2022 BFTA Summer Special-- Trauma, Spirit, and Psychedelics with Laura Mae Northrup Craig sits down with Inside Eyes creator Laura Northrup for a wide-ranging discussion where they explore topics including: •Trauma as a spiritual wound •How psychedelics can help reach the realm of trauma •Why psychedelic trauma therapy can be so profoundly ...
06.02.2022 Fishbowl 3 Chris and Craig celebrate season 3, discuss the results of the listeners poll (with a surprising reveal of their unconscious motivation for producing BFTA), offer their curated episode sampler plates, and then settle into a detailed deconstruction of the Psychedelic ...
05.19.2022 Psychedelic Somatic Therapy with Saj Razvi Saj Razvi returns to BFTA to share and discuss a mind-blowing audio recording of a ketamine-facilitated somatic therapy session. This session was from a recent training workshop with experienced trauma therapists, and Saj uses a somatic exercise-- staring into the ...
05.05.2022 Psychotherapy Twice Told One of Craig's heroes is Dr. Irvin Yalom, a psychiatrist and writer— Yalom's books inspired him in the early years of learning to become a psychiatrist. Today’s story concept was sparked by Yalom's book “Every day gets a little closer—A ...
04.21.2022 MDMA, MAPS, and Cover Story's Power Trip-- Another perspective The podcast Cover Story just released a series called Power Trip, an expose of the dark side of the psychedelic treatment world. The series highlights the stories of a few women, including the co-host, who were sexually assaulted in psychedelic ...
04.07.2022 Working with families and psychiatric illness Dr. H sits down with Dr. Usha Udupa, a Colorado-based child and adolescent psychiatrist, to explore the complexities of working with patients in the context of the family. They discuss topics such as: How and when family members should be ...
03.24.2022 Attachment and Adoption Part 2– Ridghaus and the Six Word Adoption Memoir This is the second in our two part series on adoption and attachment wounds. Ridg and his girlfriend Rebecca got pregnant when he was 19, and they made the difficult decision to give their son up for adoption. Fast forward ...
03.10.2022 From Seoul to Wichita-- Attachment trauma and adoption This is the story of Shae, who was adopted as a baby from South Korea and raised in Wichita Kansas in a family of Swedish descent. From her initial attachment wounds, subsequent heartbreak, and later a shocking revelation in late ...
02.24.2022 The nature of gender-- A story of transitioning Autumn was assigned male at birth, but she sensed from a very young age that something was not right. This is her journey through denial, awakening, and then transitioning both hormonally and surgically. Autumn brings a fascinating and thoughtful perspective ...
02.10.2022 Twenty years in psychiatry: Insights and clinical pearls Dr. H distills down his 20 years of clinical experience into just under an hour of musings, lessons learned, and insights. "Sometimes the why really isn't crucial" (Essay from the NYT about addiction) https://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/19/health/psychology/19essa.html BFTA on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/backfromtheabysspodcast/ BFTA/ Dr. ...
01.27.2022 The Dark Side of Psychedelics Devin found out the hard way that psychedelics can have a very dark side. This is a story of discovery and of joy…of connection and dancing and jam bands….and it’s also a story of two psychotic breaks, sexual assault, and ...
01.14.2022 Treatment resistant depression: Ketamine vs ECT vs TMS with Dr. Daniel Fisher ECT (electroconvulsive therapy) has long been the last stop for severe and treatment resistant depression, but now there are at least two other good options for those who don't respond to meds and therapy. Dr. Dan Fisher, an ECT expert, ...
12.31.2021 Ketamine in context-- From substance abuse to psychedelic therapy Expectation, set, setting, dosage, and route of administration provide the context and scaffolding for psychoactive drugs. An IV morphine drip can make unbearable pain completely manageable, while IV heroin, which is immediately converted to morphine once it crosses the blood ...
12.16.2021 Conversation with an underground psilocybin therapist As we are now coming to realize the impressive potential of psychedelics to treat trauma and depression, we also have to face the fact that they are still illegal. This reality has led to an explosion of underground therapy, a ...
12.02.2021 Body dysmorphia, disordered eating, and embodiment Body dysmorphia is the disorder of imagined ugliness, a type of delusional OCD that can lead to severe depression, eating disorders, compulsive body alterations, and suicidality. As a young child, Georgina was a "cute kid", not particularly self-conscious, and able ...
11.18.2021 Hold on to memories-- The aftermath of suicide with Doug Friedman Doug Friedman, the co-host and producer of the podcast Your Mental Breakdown, contacted Craig last spring and said that he was ready and wanting to tell his abyss story-- that of his wife’s death and his journey of recovery thereafter. ...
11.04.2021 Doing the loving thing-- An exploration of marriage with Jeff Pincus Here Craig sits down with Jeff Pincus, a nationally recognized couples therapist and trainer from Boulder, they explore why it’s so challenging to be an effective marriage therapist, why we are all destined to marry the wrong person (hint….our partners ...
10.21.2021 When meds don't work: Diagnostic confusion, trauma, sleep, hormones, and mistaken expectations When psychiatric meds work well, it can be nothing short of miraculous. Yet so often, patients accumulate a long list of med failures, leading to a sense of deep frustration and even hopelessness. Here Dr. H explores five central reasons ...
10.07.2021 The Secret Sauce-- Treating PTSD with MDMA An amazing healing journey deserves a detailed post-game analysis and deconstruction. Here Elizabeth, a participant in the MAPS MDMA study, sits down with Craig and co-therapist Karen Cooper to look back at what were the crux moves and essential ingredients ...
09.23.2021 Craig and Antonio Sacre talk shop Craig sits down with LA-based Cuban American storyteller, author, BFTA super-advisor, and longtime dear friend Antonio Sacre to explore the art and power of storytelling, their personal abyss moments, friendship and vulnerability, and their shared love of air conditioning. Antonio ...
09.09.2021 I felt the world too much-- On being a highly sensitive person Life would be so much easier if we each came with an individual instruction manual, to both guide us and also warn us of how our inherited temperament and predilections might cause us great suffering. The first page of Emily's ...
08.24.2021 Where did our son go? A family faces schizophrenia Just after starting his career, Dr. H met Matthew, a middle school student in the midst of a horrifying psychotic break. Here Dr. H sits down with Meg and Phil, Matthew's parents, to explore their 15 year journey of grief, ...

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