I'm excited to announce Mind Tricks Radio, Episode 24: Anxiety in Achievers: Fear of Failure/Fear of Success, with Dr. Dimitrios Tsatiris.  Dr. Tsatiris specializes in the field of anxiety management. We had a lively and engaging discussion about anxiety related thinking and behavior among Achievers, and how Achievers often over-focus on fears of failure and fears of success. 

Dr. Tsatiris is a clinical assistant professor of psychiatry at Northeast Ohio Medical University. He studies and writes about the interface of anxiety and achievement. His Psychology Today blog “Anxiety in High-Achievers” is viewed by more than 20,000 readers per month. 

To read more of his work, you can follow him at dimitriostsatiris.com, on Twitter and Instagram @drdimitrios.

In this Episode, I interviewed Dr. Brock Eide about The Dyslexic Advantage, a bestselling book written by him and his wife, Dr. Fernette Eide.  The Dyslexic Advantage opened my eyes to the unique cognitive strengths of individuals with dyslexia that are often overlooked.   As children with dyslexia develop, they often feel punished for their struggles with reading and writing without the acknowledgement of their strengths, and their self-esteems can suffer as a result.

I discussed with Dr. Brock Eide aspects of learning and brain physiology for individuals with dyslexia, and he presents a compelling argument why the "dyslexic brain" presents an evolutionary advantage for humans by giving some individuals unique sets of cognitive strengths.  In fact, he argues that at least 20% of all people fall somewhere on the dyslexic processing style spectrum. 

Brock Eide is co-author of the bestselling book The Dyslexic Advantage and The Mislabeled Child. He is an international authority who has lectured and written widely on dyslexia and learning differences, and has been a consultant to the President’s Council of Bioethics and a visiting lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Education. He is co-founder of the 501c3 non-profit dyslexicadvantage.org, and is currently CEO of Neurolearning, SPC, a company that makes a dyslexia screening test app and other tools to help people with dyslexia.

With the most recent round of conflict in Israel, I wondered what it was like for Israeli psychologists who treat war related trauma and PTSD on the front lines. I reached out to Clinical Psychologist, Dr. Seifan Weinberg, who is the Deputy Director of the Clinical Unit at NATAL -- an apolitical nonprofit organization that specializes in the field of war and terror related trauma.  He treats veterans and civilians who suffer from trauma and PTSD related to war and conflict in Israel.

Dr. Weinberg described his life in Israel as a psychologist, and the challenges he faces treating veterans and civilians who have been exposed to trauma. I was impressed by Dr. Weinberg's commitment to the patients he serves while also being exposed to the potential of personal harm, as well has his sense of optimism and hope for peace and security in Israel.

Dr. Weinberg received his academic degrees from Bar Ilan University in Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv.  He lives in the settlement of Matan with his wife Hadar and 4 children.

Today I met with Dr. Ronald Riggio, a Social/Personalty Psychologist and researcher at Claremont McKenna College who specializes in research on Leadership and Non-Verbal Behavior. Dr. Riggio explained the ways people understand each other and communicate non-verbally.  When one has a greater awareness and cultivates such skills, he or she can gain a great advantage at interacting and dealing with people in almost any social or interpersonal setting. Dr. Riggio is a prolific blogger on topics of psychology, and his writings can be found on the Psychology Today website: (https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/cutting-edge-leadership).

I hope you enjoy the interview! Please be sure to like, review, and share this podcast episode -- it really helps in getting the word out about Mind Tricks Radio. Thank you!

Ronald E. Riggio, Ph.D. is the Henry R. Kravis Professor of Leadership and Organizational Psychology and former Director of the Kravis Leadership Institute at Claremont McKenna College and a Visiting Scholar at Churchill College, Cambridge University. He received his B.S. in Psychology from Santa Clara University, and his M.A. and Ph.D. in Social/Personality Psychology from UC Riverside. Dr. Riggio is a leadership scholar with more than two dozen authored or edited books and more than 250 articles/book chapters.  He is part of the Fullerton Longitudinal Study, examining leadership development across the lifespan (from 1 year of age and through middle adulthood).  Besides research on leadership development, he has been actively involved in training young (and not so young) leaders. His website is: www.riggioleadership.org

I enjoyed an engaging interview with Dr. Albert "Skip" Rizzo, a pioneer and leader in the development and use of Virtual Reality in psychotherapy and other medical applications.  We discussed the history of Virtual Reality Therapy (VRT), and current uses for treating everything from anxiety disorders to autism spectrum disorders. Dr. Rizzo really blew my mind with his newest innovative VRT project -- integrating VRT with psychedelic assisted psychotherapy.

Dr. Rizzo is Director for Medical Virtual Reality at the Institute for Creative Technologies, and Research Professor at USC Davis School of Gerontology and USC Keck School of Medicine Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences.

He conducts research on the design, development and evaluation of virtual reality (VR) systems targeting the areas of clinical assessment, treatment rehabilitation and resilience. This work spans the domains of psychological, cognitive and motor functioning in both healthy and clinical populations. Dr. Rizzo received the American Psychological Association’s 2010 Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Treatment of Trauma. Rizzo is working with a team that is creating artificially intelligent virtual patients that clinicians can use to practice skills required for challenging clinical interviews and diagnostic assessments. His cognitive work has addressed the use of VR applications to test and train attention, memory, visuospatial abilities and executive function. In the motor domain, he has developed VR game systems to address physical rehabilitation post stroke and traumatic brain injury and for prosthetic use training. He is currently designing VR scenarios to address social and vocational interaction in persons with autistic spectrum disorder. Rizzo is currently examining the use of VR applications for training emotional coping skills with the aim of preparing service members for the stresses of combat.

At 8:07 am Hawaii Standard Time, on Saturday, January 13, 2018, the residents of Hawaii were alerted via the Emergency Alert System and Wireless Emergency Alert System by television, radio, and cellphones that an incoming ballistic missile was on its way to the islands. Text messages on cell phones read: “Ballistic missile threat inbound to Hawaii. Seek Immediate Shelter. This not a drill.”  What followed was 38 minutes of confusion, terror, and disbelief, as residents struggled to make sense of what was happening.  Then, after 38 minutes, the State released a new message: There is no missile threat or danger to the State of Hawaii. Repeat. False Alarm.”

I had the pleasure of interviewing Rob and Keiko Feldman, who co-directed the award-winning documentary This Is Not A Drill: 38 Minutes That Changed Lives.  Rob and Keiko reflected upon the experiences of the individuals they interviewed for their film.  The stories were heartwarming and moving, as Rob and Keiko learned how people coped with the terrifying event while it was happening, and how they found personal meaning in the aftermath of the incident after the "false alarm" message was sent.

For more information about This Is Not A Drill, check out the film's official website at https://www.thisisnotadrillmovie.com

The film is currently not available for public viewing, but a distribution deal is in the works, so stay tuned!

Shari Brown met with me today to discuss the complicated and nuanced topic of multiple minority identities, in particular, the intersection of racial/ethnic identity with gender/sexual identity.  Shari is an advanced doctoral student in Clinical Psychology at University of Hawaii at Manoa, whose clinical, research and mentorship experiences are focused on LGBTQ+ and BIPOC populations. Shari is originally from Jamaica and identifies as a Black Queer immigrant. These identities inform their interest in and perspectives on these topics.

Today I interviewed Dr. Zeal Okogeri, who spoke with me about kindness, compassion, and generosity which he illustrates in his four published books. His most recent book, You Can Never Go Wrong By Being Kind, is an anthology of real life stories on the transformative potential of kindness and compassion.

Dr. Okogeri spoke with me about his colorful and happy childhood growing up in a small village in Nigeria, which was interrupted for three years by a brutal civil war.  Though tragic on an epic human level, Dr. Okogeri saw examples of kindness and compassion everywhere he went.

As an adult, Dr. Okogeri has been a teacher and author in the fields of self-development and spiritual growth for more than 25 years. Through his writings, teachings and storytelling, he inspires awareness. Dr. Okogeri has also served as a doctor of chiropractic medicine for 20 years, during which time he treated thousands of patients from all cultural backgrounds and walks of life.

Dr. Okogeri leads weekly classes on kindness storytelling and meditation, during which participants share stories about how they were transformed by unexpected kindness from people, especially strangers; and how their gifts of kindness transformed others.  

He is currently raising funds for Support Kindness, a non-profit organization aimed at promoting kindness and compassion throughout the world. Learn more about Support Kindness though Dr. Okogeri's GoFundME campaign: https://gofund.me/53982600

In Episode 16, I interview Dr. Rebecca Gladding, author of the book, You Are Not Your Brain, The 4-Step Solution for Changing Bad Habits, Ending Unhealthy Thinking, and Taking Control of Your Life co-written with Dr. Jeffrey Schwartz. Dr. Gladding served as a clinical instructor and attending psychiatrist at UCLA and was featured in A&E's critically acclaimed series Obsessed. She is Founder & Medical Director of Mindful Wellness Maui. She is an expert in anxiety, depression, mindfulness and the Four Steps. 

Dr. Gladding speaks with me about Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, or OCD and her work in treating the disorder through methods she’s developed and are highlighted in You Are Not Your Brain.

After a nearly one year hiatus from Mind Tricks, I've started a new series of episodes with lively and informative guests on topics related to psychology.

Episode 15 is particularly tasty, as I interview Ethnobotanist and Chocolatier, Dr. Nat Bletter, who discusses his love for medicinal plants, and in particular, the psychoactive properties of plants.  Dr. Bletter talks about chemical complexities of chocolate and his Hawaii based company Madre Chocolate.  He then discussed psychoactive properties of other plants that are commonly used as mood enhancers, anxiolytics, and cognitive boosters.

As an experienced gardener, grower, grafter along with his enthusiasm for enjoying the outdoors, exploring exotic fruits, and cultivating local food to enjoy all the flavors of life, this has led him to start Natty by Nature (http://www.nattybynature.net) for edible landscaping, foraging, and cooking on O’ahu and his YouTube channel on medicinal and edible plants.