In this heartfelt and enlightening conversation, I sit down with Dr Michaela Swee—a board-certified clinical psychologist, clinical investigator at McLean Hospital, and faculty member at Harvard Medical School. Michaela brings together deep scientific insight, clinical wisdom, and a personal story of transformation: from aspiring actress to a leader in trauma-informed, compassion-focused care.

We explore how Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT) supports people struggling with shame, self-criticism, and complex PTSD, and how even small practices—like writing a compassionate letter to yourself—can have profound impact. Michaela shares findings from her research, reflections on her therapeutic work, and her passion for integrating creativity and courage into healing.

This episode is for anyone curious about the science of compassion, the nuance of emotional healing, or simply how to be a little kinder to ourselves and others.

🕰️ Timestamps:

00:00 – Introduction to Dr. Michaela Swee

01:30 – Early Morning Reflections

02:20 – Teenage Dreams and Career Path

05:39 – Journey into Psychology and Performing Arts

09:24 – Discovering Compassion Focused Therapy

17:10 – A Transformative Retreat Experience

23:02 – Self-Compassionate Letter Writing Study

36:00 – Impostor Syndrome and Career Trajectory

39:09 – Understanding Complex PTSD

41:16 – CFT for Complex PTSD

46:57 – Shame, Self-Criticism, and Compassion

50:39 – Therapeutic Techniques and Group Dynamics

01:01:59 – The Human Experience from a Therapist's Lens

01:08:03 – The Compassion Collective Podcast

01:10:43 – Final Reflections and Farewell

🧠✨ I hope you enjoy this rich and compassionate dialogue with Dr Michaela Swee.

LINKS:

Michaela's podcast Compassion Collective:

https://compassion-collective.com/

A Brief Self-Compassionate Letter-Writing Intervention for Individuals with High Shame (Swee et al., 2023)

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9992917/

Compassion-Focused Therapy for the Treatment of ICD-11-Defined Complex Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (Swee et al., 2024)

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38680060/

Say hi on social:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drstansteindl

Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/StanSteindl

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dr_stan_steindl/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stan-steindl-150a5264/

Website: https://www.stansteindl.com/

YouTube Video URL: https://youtu.be/6MDr-GbUr70

*Affiliate Disclaimer:

Note this description contains affiliate links that allow you to find the items mentioned in this video and support the channel at no cost to you. While this channel may earn minimal sums when the viewer uses the links, the viewer is in no way obligated to use these links. Thank you for your support!

Video hashtags:

compassion, trauma, selfcriticism, complexPTSD, selfcompassion, mentalhealth