Mind Dive

On this Season 2 premier of Mind Dive Podcast, hosts Dr. Bob Boland and Dr. Kerry Horrell dive into topics posed by their Menninger Clinic colleagues that have not yet been explored on the podcast.

In this mailbag episode, listen in as our hosts discuss topical questions on the minds of mental health professionals at The Menninger Clinic and their implications on clinical practice.

• A new social contagion—self-diagnosis of mental health disorders. Is TikTok to blame for young adults self-diagnosing attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and dissociative identity disorder (DID) before consulting a professional? 
• The real relationship between mental health and mass gun violence. Is psychiatry truly the answer to combatting this crisis? 
• Addressing the disconnect between physical and mental health. Should attending therapy be considered as important to your physical health as eating vegetables or hitting the gym? 

Bob Boland, MD, is Senior Vice President and Chief of Staff at The Menninger Clinic. Co-host of the Mind Dive Podcast, he is also Vice Chair of the Menninger Department of Psychiatry at Baylor College of Medicine (BCM). He also serves as Brown Foundation Endowed Chair in Psychiatry at BCM. 

Kerry Horrell, PhD, is a staff psychologist on Menninger’s Compass Program for Young Adults as well as the coordinator of the Youth Division. Co-host of the Mind Dive Podcast, she is also an assistant professor at BCM. 

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to never miss an episode of Mind Dive. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. 

Visit www.menningerclinic.org to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health. 

Listen to Episode 24: Racial Bias vs. Informed Patient Care with Dr. Carmen Black 

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to stay up to date on new Mind Dive episodes. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. If you are a new or regular listener, please leave us a review on your favorite listening platform! 

Visit The Menninger Clinic website to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health. 

Can we expect patients to trust modern medicine before addressing racial disparities in research and diagnoses? 

Dr. Carmen Black, Yale School of Medicine Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Director of Social Justice and Health Equity Education, Adult Psychiatry joins this episode of The Menninger Clinic’s Mind Dive podcast. This conversation with hosts Dr. Kerry Horrell and Dr. Bob Boland explores how clinicians can make a meaningful impact while still facing centuries of racial disparities that are sometimes difficult to spot in daily clinical practice. 

Dive in to hear approachable steps clinicians of any type can take to address inequity and racial bias in mental health care. 

“We are more powerful to delivery equity than we can image because the disparities are so great,” said Dr. Black. “It starts with being able to acknowledge it in real time.” 

Carmen Black, M.D. is a family-oriented African American physician and strong supporter of racial diversity in medicine. Her research interests focus on promoting racial diversity within academic medicine and addressing influences on poor patient care, specifically racial and mental health discrimination. 

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to never miss an episode of Mind Dive. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. 

Visit www.menningerclinic.org to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health. 

Listen to Episode 23: Brainwashing & Master Persuasion with Dr. Joel Dimsdale

Resources mentioned in this episode: 

Select publications by Dr. Carmen Black

The Menninger Clinic’s Continuing Education Black History Month Series

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to stay up to date on new Mind Dive episodes. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. If you are a new or regular listener, please leave us a review on your favorite listening platform! 

Visit The Menninger Clinic website to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health. 

How can good people make terrible decisions? To fully understand brainwashing, more formally known as “coercive persuasion,” mental health clinicians must dive into the potentially dangerous outcomes that can result from a mix of factors such as high stress situations, sleep deprivation and isolation.

On this episode of The Menninger Clinic’s Mind Dive podcast, Dr. Joel Dimsdale joins hosts Dr. Bob Boland and Dr. Kerry Horrell for a discussion on the history of brainwashing, the ease of slipping into Stockholm Syndrome and modern tools of persuasion—like social media—and the effects that clinicians need to be mindful of in patient care. 

Bringing a unique perspective to the conversation, Joel Dimsdale, MD, began his exploration of brainwashing and its pervasive role in the 20th century after living next door to the Heaven’s Gate religious group, led by Marshall Applewhite until the group’s highly publicized mass suicide in 1997. He is also the author of “Dark Persuasion: A History of Brainwashing from Pavlov to Social Media.”

Dr. Dimsdale is a distinguished professor emeritus and research professor in the department of psychiatry at UC San Diego. He is also an active investigator and past president of the Academy of Behavioral Medicine Research, the American Psychosomatic Society and the Society of Behavioral Medicine. 

“Much of my work reflects that I feel coercive persuasion—brainwashing—is not an old wives tale,” said Dr. Dimsdale. “It still exists in the modern day, and we have to be on the lookout for it.” 

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to never miss an episode of Mind Dive. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. 

Visit www.menningerclinic.org to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health. 

Listen to Episode 22: Preventing Shame & Loneliness in Childhood Trauma with Dr. Melissa Goldberg Mintz

Resources mentioned in this episode: 

“Dark Persuasion: A History of Brainwashing from Pavlov to Social Media” by Dr. Joel Dimsdale 

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to stay up to date on new Mind Dive episodes. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. If you are a new or regular listener, please leave us a review on your favorite listening platform! 

Visit The Menninger Clinic website to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health. 

A majority of children in the U.S. will experience some type of adverse event before their 18th birthday that could traumatize them. Most will heal naturally, but what can parents expect when their child does not? 

Joining this episode of The Menninger Clinic’s Mind Dive Podcast is Dr. Melissa Goldberg Mintz, childhood trauma expert and author of the bestselling book for parents, “Has Your Child Been Traumatized?” Dive in with hosts Dr. Bob Boland and Dr. Kerry Horrell for this exploration into how clinicians can help parents and guardians prevent shame, secrecy and loneliness from taking hold of a child as they process their experience. 

Dr. Melissa Goldberg Mintz is an author, psychologist and parent who has worked with traumatized children, adolescents and families for over ten years. 

“Even though clinicians are trained in the gold standard of treatment, our one-hour session each week won’t have as much of an impact on a traumatized child as what’s going on at home,” said Dr. Mintz. “The single best way a child can deal with their emotional pain from an adverse event is through connecting with a caregiver they feel close to.” 

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to never miss an episode of Mind Dive. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. 

Visit www.menningerclinic.org to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health. 

Listen to Episode 21: OCD From the Front Lines with Dr. Wayne Goodman, Dr. Eric Storch

Resources mentioned in this episode: 

Has Your Child Been Traumatized? How to Know and What to do to Promote Healing and Recovery by Dr. Melissa Goldberg Mintz, Foreword by Dr. Jon Allen 

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to stay up to date on new Mind Dive episodes. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. If you are a new or regular listener, please leave us a review on your favorite listening platform! 

Visit The Menninger Clinic website to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health. 

Commonly misunderstood and misused as shorthand for perfectionism or some personal fixation, the reality of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is much more complex for patients and their clinicians than the general public may realize. 

This episode of The Menninger Clinic’s Mind Dive podcast features nationally recognized OCD experts Dr. Eric Storch and Dr. Wayne Goodman of Baylor College of Medicine (BCM). Dive in with hosts Dr. Bob Boland and Dr. Kerry Horrell to explore the realities of intrusive thoughts for patients with OCD, what is known or surmised about the causes, plus the future of the “brain pacemaker” and more on the lifechanging strides in treatment, such as deep brain stimulation. 

Wayne Goodman, M.D., serves as Chair of the Menninger Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at BCM and specializes in OCD and deep brain stimulation. He is also the principal developer of the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS), the gold-standard for assessing OCD, and co-founder of the International OCD Foundation.

Eric Storch, Ph.D., is a professor and McIngvale Presidential Endowed Chair in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at BCM. Dr. Storch also serves as Vice Chair and Head of Psychology at BCM while co-directing the Obsessive Compulsive and Related Disorders Program.

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to never miss an episode of Mind Dive. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. 

Visit www.menningerclinic.org to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health. 

Listen to Episode 20: Healing Adult Mother-Daughter Relationship with Lacey Tezino, Angela Koreth

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to stay up to date on new Mind Dive episodes. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. If you are a new or regular listener, please leave us a review on your favorite listening platform! 

Visit The Menninger Clinic website to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health. 

Family therapy traditionally focuses on adults with younger children. When the strong influence of the mother-daughter relationship is considered, how can clinicians tell the time is right for their adult women patients to work on relationship strengthening and intentional bonding with their mother? With such a diverse array of women wearing the title of mother, daughter, or both simultaneously, the answer to healing can begin with a face-to-face conversation and lead to a months-long healing journey.

This episode of The Menninger Clinic’s Mind Dive podcast features founder of Passport Journeys Lacey Tezino on her mission to make mother-daughter healing more accessible for patients in therapy through her background in the intersection of technology and healthcare, all in honor of the healing journey she took with her own late mother. Lacey is joined by Angela Koreth, a member of the Passport Journeys Clinical Advisory Board and licensed professional counselor-supervisor and program director of The Menninger Clinic’s Partial Hospital and Intensive Outpatient Programs. 

Join hosts Dr. Kerry Horrell and Dr. Bob Boland as these four professionals from all corners of the mental health field explore how clinicians can utilize the relevancy of the entire family system when working with a patient in crisis. Dive into this conversation on how to sow hope that the ship has never sailed for mother-daughter duos to build stronger relationships as long as the desire to heal the relationship remains. 

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to never miss an episode of Mind Dive. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. 

Visit www.menningerclinic.org to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health.

Listen to Episode 19: Borderline Personality Disorder, Unpacking Causes & Treatments with Dr. Lois Choi-Kain

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to stay up to date on new Mind Dive episodes. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. If you are a new or regular listener, please leave us a review on your favorite listening platform! 

Visit The Menninger Clinic website to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health. 

Identifying what causes borderline personality disorder (BPD) is as difficult as understanding the creation of the personality itself. In this podcast, our expert describes BPD as instability in four key areas: interpersonal relationships, emotions, behavior, and cognition/sense of self. The treatment complexities of this disorder can be intimidating for clinicians. 

We’ll explore a variety of questions about BPD, such as whether a certain psychiatric history make someone more vulnerable to this disorder. Are issues with attachment at a young age to blame? What is the relationship, if any, to trauma?

Dive into this episode of Mind Dive podcast from The Menninger Clinic as hosts Dr. Kerry Horrell and Dr. Bob Boland are joined by one of the most accomplished minds in the evolution of borderline personality disorder treatment, Lois W. Choi-Kain, MEd, MD. 

As director of the Gunderson Personality Disorders Institute at McLean Hospital, Dr. Choi-Kain is an expert in one of the best known treatments for BPD, dialectical behavioral therapy. In this discussion, psychiatrist and psychotherapist Dr. Choi-Kain explores the challenges of working with your patient to achieve emotional regulation.

“The steps forward are necessarily messy for everyone involved, but the right treatment provides a clearer understanding of why the patient reacts the way they do and what it does to the people around them,” said Dr. Choi-Kain.

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to never miss an episode of Mind Dive. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. 

Visit www.menningerclinic.org to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health.

Listen to Episode 18: Eating Disorder Treatment is a Family Affair with Empowered U

Resources Mentioned in this Episode: 

McLean Hospital’s General Psychiatric Management for Borderline Personality Disorder Online Training 

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to stay up to date on new Mind Dive episodes. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. If you are a new or regular listener, please leave us a review on your favorite listening platform! 

Visit The Menninger Clinic website to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health. 

When considering the success of any mental health treatment for youth or adolescent patients, clinicians have to factor in one dilemma: I will likely not be as influential in my patient’s life as their immediate family unit. When dealing with the life-threatening reality of an eating disorder, the roles of parents and siblings have a much bigger impact on a patient’s recovery. 

This episode of Mind Dive Podcast from The Menninger Clinic features practitioners of family based treatment in eating disorders at Empowered U Recovery, clinical psychologist Dr. Terry Fassihi, social worker Janice Poplack and registered dieticians and certified eating disorders specialists Jill Sechi and Brandi Powell. 

Join this episode alongside hosts Dr. Bob Boland and Dr. Kerry Horrell for advice for clinicians and parents about the realities of eating disorders and the importance of solidarity from the family system in a successful treatment and recovery journey. 

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to never miss an episode of Mind Dive. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. 

Visit www.menningerclinic.org to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health.

Listen to Episode 17: The Care and Treatment of Transgender Patients with Dr. Jack Drescher

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to stay up to date on new Mind Dive episodes. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. If you are a new or regular listener, please leave us a review on your favorite listening platform! 

Visit The Menninger Clinic website to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health. 

Similar to obstacles faced by LGBTQ+ individuals throughout the decades in healthcare, patients and practitioners find themselves amidst a social clash around the care and treatment of transgender people, particularly transgender youth. While the subject has become politicized overall, Jack Drescher, MD, stresses the importance of mental health clinicians and consultants respecting the subjectivities of their patient’s gender identity and unique journey, no matter the social climate. 

Dr. Drescher joins hosts Kerry Horrell, PhD, and Bob Boland, MD, for this episode of The Menninger Clinic’s Mind Dive podcast to discuss the current state of mental health treatment for transgender individuals. Dr. Drescher serves as a clinical professor of psychiatry at Columbia University, where he also serves as a faculty member at Columbia’s Division of Gender, Sexuality and Health. 

Dive in as Dr. Drescher and our hosts discuss how the general public, through some of its youngest members, has come to hold the complexities of sexuality, gender and gender incongruence at top of mind. Dr. Drescher gives advice to clinicians on how to navigate social conversation of an issue so widely discussed while remaining as a helpful, patient and supportive figure for those in your  care. 

“There’s a sensationalistic focus on this subject. I’ve seen in many consultations, when there’s a transgender patient on an inpatient unit, everyone forgets everything they know about their field because they’re so focused on why this case is different,” said Dr. Drescher. “That is a disservice because transgender people just aren’t so different from everybody else in all other aspects of their lives.” 

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to never miss an episode of Mind Dive. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. 

Visit www.menningerclinic.org to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health.

Listen to Episode 16: Do You Know The Signs of Sex Addiction? with Dalanna Burris

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to stay up to date on new Mind Dive episodes. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. If you are a new or regular listener, please leave us a review on your favorite listening platform! 

Visit The Menninger Clinic website to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health. 

By nature, sex is one of the most serious and delicate conversations a therapist can have with their patient. When they’re possibly experiencing sex addiction, the challenge only increases. From its roots in intimacy disorder to the modern problem of near-unrestrained access to pornography, a sex addiction diagnosis can be a challenging conclusion for both patient and clinician to arrive at.

Joined by Menninger Clinic behavioral addictions specialist Dalanna Burris, LPC, LCDC, SCAT, hosts Dr. Kerry Horrell and Dr. Bob Boland dive into this episode of Mind Dive podcast to explore various facets of sex addiction. Listen to hear the complexities of sex addiction’s ties to other issues such as religious shame and substance abuse. Also hear about how clinicians can best approach one of the most delicate subjects in psychology.

“A key part of treating our patients is checking ourselves at the door and being able to separate from our morality or what we may believe is right or wrong,” said Burris. “When approaching the topic of sex, we must sit with someone without judgement because they’ll be able to feel it in the treatment, regardless of what you say. If you’re able to have this conversation and be open, it can be a great relief for your patient.”

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to never miss an episode of Mind Dive.

Visit www.menningerclinic.org to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership roles in mental health.

Listen to Episode 15: Informatics and Patient Privacy with Dr. John Torous

Follow The Menninger Clinic on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to stay up to date on new Mind Dive episodes. To submit a topic for discussion, email [email protected]. If you are a new or regular listener, please leave us a review on your favorite listening platform! 

Visit The Menninger Clinic website to learn more about The Menninger Clinic’s research and leadership role in mental health.