Holding Space

In this episode I'm sharing an incredible event aimed at bringing awareness to perinatal mood and anxiety disorders. Did you know that 1 in 5 moms and 1 in 10 dads will suffer with a perinatal mood or anxiety disorder? The Climb Out of the Darkness is the world's largest event raising funds and awareness for perinatal mental illness like postpartum depression and postpartum anxiety. For this episode I sat down with the local San Diego Climb team: Dr. Daniel Singley, a local San Diego psychologist specializing in early fatherhood and a Board member of Postpartum Support International; Jennifer Varela, sleep coach and current President of the Postpartum Health Alliance; and Julie Lopez, attorney-at-law, who is a proud survivor of postpartum depression and postpartum anxiety.

We talk about the event, the impact of sleep during the postpartum period, paternal mental health, and Julie shares her story that brought her to put on the Climb here in San Diego. For more information on the Climb, you can find them on Facebook, on the Postpartum Health Alliance, and at Postpartum Support International. To donate, click here. 

Did you connect with that episode? The best way to support Holding Space podcast is to subscribe and leave a review! Podcast reviews are the best way to make sure the podcast reaches those who need it most, and I read each and every one. To connect with Dr. Cassidy or learn more about her private practice, visit www.drcassidymft.com.

In this episode I sit down with Dr. Kim Van Dusen, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and Registered Play Therapist. Together we explore the power of play as a bridge to connection with our children. We share some of our own stories of how we have used play in our work and as parents and discuss how play shows up as an important ingredient to whole-hearted living and wellness for both children and adults! To find more about Dr. Kim's work as a parenting educator, you can find her here!

Did you connect with that episode? The best way to support Holding Space podcast is to subscribe and leave a review! Podcast reviews are the best way to make sure the podcast reaches those who need it most, and I read each and every one. To connect with Dr. Cassidy or learn more about her private practice, visit www.drcassidymft.com.

In this episode, I sit down with Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Janelle Nelson. Janelle and I explore both the brutal and beautiful experiences of intimate partner relationships. We discuss the need to deconstruct the shame that is often experienced within marital and intimate partner struggles, and offer ideas of how couples can transform through connection. We discuss how it can take courage to stay in a relationship and work on it, and it can also take courage to leave when that is being called for. To find more information on Janelle's work, click here!

Did you connect with that episode? The best way to support Holding Space podcast is to subscribe and leave a review! Podcast reviews are the best way to make sure the podcast reaches those who need it most, and I read each and every one. To connect with Dr. Cassidy or learn more about her private practice, visit www.drcassidymft.com.

In this episode I sit down with fashion designer Rachel Pally. Rachel shares with us how she built her business by hearing the "no's" and showing up anyway. We discuss how becoming a mother has transformed her, the myth of balance, and how she has reclaimed "self-care" by personalizing it to work for her life now. We also explore the importance of friends that you can share your shame stories with, the double edge sword of social media, and Rachel shares her experiences with therapy. Rachel keeps it real, and the world of curated filtered perfection could FOR SURE use more of that! www.rachelpally.com

Did you connect with that episode? The best way to support Holding Space podcast is to subscribe and leave a review! Podcast reviews are the best way to make sure the podcast reaches those who need it most, and I read each and every one. To connect with Dr. Cassidy or learn more about her private practice, visit www.drcassidymft.com.

In this episode I sit down with Rebecca Ching, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and owner of Potentia (an integrative mental health center in San Diego). Rooted in the research and practice of Brené Brown, Rebecca has completed training to become a  Daring Way™ Facilitator and Consultant. In today's episode we talk about scarcity, abundance, and the power of "enough." Some resources (beyond Brené Brown) mentioned in the episode are: selfleadership.org, You are the One You've Been Waiting For, The Body Keeps the Score, and Dan Siegel's work. 

Did you connect with that episode? The best way to support Holding Space podcast is to subscribe and leave a review! Podcast reviews are the best way to make sure the podcast reaches those who need it most, and I read each and every one. To connect with Dr. Cassidy or learn more about her private practice, visit www.drcassidymft.com.

In this episode I sit down with Renata Cameron, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and founder of the modernized mommy and me support group Milestones. Renata and I discuss building a support tribe, sorting through the noise of information, introvert motherhood, and getting comfortable in the "gray." Renata shares her own personal struggle with perfectionism, and her relationship with "good enough." For more information on Renata's mommy and me support groups, click here!

Did you connect with that episode? The best way to support Holding Space podcast is to subscribe and leave a review! Podcast reviews are the best way to make sure the podcast reaches those who need it most, and I read each and every one. To connect with Dr. Cassidy or learn more about her private practice, visit www.drcassidymft.com.

Death has no respect for the differences we have created among us; we will each be touched by it. Those left behind often report feeling disconnected from the events of the world, as if the one who died took a part of them with. For a period of time people check in, give their condolences, share memories. Slowly, but often not slowly enough, people stop asking. There is an expectation that death is something to get over, something to move on from. We are to be sad, of course, but we are expected to say goodbye and let go. In this episode Dr. Cassidy explores how the discourses of "letting go" and "saying goodbye" actually challenges our grief process. Instead of letting go, what if the result of grieving was to restore what has been lost?

Did you connect with that episode? The best way to support Holding Space podcast is to subscribe and leave a review! Podcast reviews are the best way to make sure the podcast reaches those who need it most, and I read each and every one. To connect with Dr. Cassidy or learn more about her private practice, visit www.drcassidymft.com.

In this episode I sit down with journalist and activist Tamara Taggart. In Tamara's ted talk "The Two Conversations that Changed My Life" she described two pivotal moments in her life, one where she was told her son has down syndrome, and the other when she was told she had cancer.

In this episode we discuss the power of hope, where it showed up, how she cultivated it when it wasn't offered, her discovery of resiliency in vulnerability, and her empowering experience of advocacy. A third pivotal moment in Tamara's life was the recent loss of her longheld job as a news anchor. Tamara shares how she is holding space for intention as she moves through this new transition. To follow Tamara's journey, you can find her on social media here.

Did you connect with that episode? The best way to support Holding Space podcast is to subscribe and leave a review! Podcast reviews are the best way to make sure the podcast reaches those who need it most, and I read each and every one. To connect with Dr. Cassidy or learn more about her private practice, visit www.drcassidymft.com.

In this episode I sit down with Robin Kaplan, founder of the San Diego Breastfeeding Center and author of Latch. Robin has her Masters in Education and is an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant. In this episode Robin debunks some breastfeeding myths, explains why so many women find themselves struggling when it comes to breastfeeding, explores the role of partner support, discusses the relationship between breastfeeding and intimacy, shares useful tips on transitioning back to work while breastfeeding, and answers tough questions like, "in our well-meaning efforts to support lactacting moms, did we take the idea of breast is best too far?" To read more about Robin's services and work, go to www.sdbfc.com, or buy her book Latch here!

Did you connect with that episode? The best way to support Holding Space podcast is to subscribe and leave a review! Podcast reviews are the best way to make sure the podcast reaches those who need it most, and I read each and every one. To connect with Dr. Cassidy or learn more about her private practice, visit www.drcassidymft.com.

In this episode I sit down with Dr. Christine Sterling, OB/GYN. Dr. Sterling discusses her approach to pregnancy care, where she supports women in preparing for life beyond birth. Dr. Sterling shares how each specific trimester offers a unique opportunity to cultivate empowering self-care habits, build a strong tribe, and begin the beautiful connection to your baby.

Did you connect with that episode? The best way to support Holding Space podcast is to subscribe and leave a review! Podcast reviews are the best way to make sure the podcast reaches those who need it most, and I read each and every one. To connect with Dr. Cassidy or learn more about her private practice, visit www.drcassidymft.com.