My Therapist Said

What if surrender isn't about giving up, but believing in what you can't yet see?

Welcome to Season 3 of My Therapist Said! To kick us off, Stef is joined by Dr. Malaysia Harrell, therapist, military veteran, author, and coach, for a conversation about the art of surrender, trusting the unknown, and honoring every version of ourselves.

From a life-changing near-death experience to redefining success and letting go of perfectionism, Dr. Harrell shares how surrender transformed her relationship with herself and her purpose.

If you've ever felt caught between who you were and who you're becoming, this one's for you. Sometimes moving forward isn't about trying harder. Sometimes it's about letting go and trusting what comes next.

Connect with Dr. Malaysia Harrell:

🌐 Website: https://malaysiaharrell.com

📱 Instagram, Facebook & LinkedIn: @MalaysiaHHarrell

✉️ Email: [email protected]

📖 Book: God Has My Six

✨ Coaching: Aligned Success Academy

Are you a therapist with something to say? Share your experience anonymously here.

Follow along on Instagram and TikTok: @mytherapistsaidpod — New episodes every Wednesday and Friday.

What happens when the problem child becomes a therapist?

This week on My Therapist Said, Stef gets into the lifelong experience of being the family troublemaker, why dark humor has always been her love language, and how grief and laughter can exist in the same breath. From dead-parent jokes and teenage rebellion to career setbacks, comparison, and the uncomfortable feeling that you should be further along in life by now, we're covering it all. And somehow, we still find time to discuss the men of Love Is Blind.

If you've ever felt like the problem child, questioned your path, or wondered why everyone else seems to have life figured out, this one's for you. Sometimes there's no lesson, no solution, and no perfectly wrapped-up ending. Sometimes we're just figuring it out together.

Share your experience anonymously through Therapists Said: https://www.mytherapistsaid.me/therapistssaid

Follow along on Instagram and TikTok: @mytherapistsaidpod — New episodes every Wednesday and Friday.

What happens when you can accept your life, but you're having a really hard time digesting it?

This week, Stef shows up exhausted, makeup-free (eyebrows don't count), and a little more honest than she planned. This week included: crying at work, questionable luck, and an inconvenient power outage. Stef is unpacking the difference between accepting your circumstances and actually being okay with them. From learning to meet yourself where you are to navigating loneliness, sharing uncomfortable truths, and wanting your experiences to be acknowledged without being compared, this episode gets personal.

Plus, a little therapist advocacy, why sometimes "this fucking sucks" is exactly what someone needs to hear, and Bubs apparently discovering that he's a dog.

Therapists Said: Share your experiences anonymously and help amplify the voices of mental health professionals. Submit your story here.

Follow along on Instagram and TikTok: @mytherapistsaidpod — New episodes every Wednesday and Friday.

Hey, do you want to sit and talk about horror movies?

This week, Stef is revisiting her childhood obsession with The Sixth Sense, explaining why The Ring and The Grudge still haunt her, and making the case for why psychological horror beats unnecessary gore. Not a horror movie girly? Don't worry. There's also dating, starting over, and a little existential crisis sprinkled in.

And because this is My Therapist Said, naturally, horror movies lead to a heated rant about Headway, therapist reimbursement, and the nightmare of working in mental healthcare. What do psychological horror and therapy tech companies have in common? Apparently, more than anyone asked Stef to explain.

Therapists, this is for you. Write in: www.mytherapistsaid.me/therapistssaid

Follow along on Instagram and TikTok: @mytherapistsaidpod — New episodes every Wednesday and Friday.

What if the support you've been looking for has been surrounding you all along?

This week on My Therapist Said, Stef shares an unexpectedly emotional milestone: celebrating her 500th yoga class during one of the most overwhelming weeks of her life. What started as a difficult morning became a reminder of just how powerful community can be, how much we impact the people around us, and why celebrating ourselves matters.

She also explores support guilt: that uncomfortable feeling of being a burden when people care about you, and how to reframe receiving love as something that benefits both sides of a relationship.

And because this is My Therapist Said, there's plenty of chaos along the way, including television rants, questionable bedtime decisions, and Bubs continuing to test the limits of his Samantha's patience.

Therapists, this is for you. Write in: www.mytherapistsaid.me/therapistssaid

Follow along on Instagram and TikTok: @mytherapistsaidpod — New episodes every Wednesday and Friday.

What does support actually look like when you stop speaking in generalities and get specific about what you need?

This week, Stef is officially recording post-work and somehow that leads us from 9:30 PM French toast and learning how to take care of yourself, to the tiny ways people make us feel loved, why mental illness and accountability can exist at the same time, and a very necessary 90 Day Fiancé debrief.

Plus: American Horror Story, Bubs demanding more intuitive systems, and a man who may genuinely be five feet away from his own brain.

Submit anonymously to Therapists Said: mytherapistsaid.me/therapistssaid

Follow along on Instagram and TikTok: @mytherapistsaidpod — New episodes every Wednesday and Friday.

What happens when you realize you’re allowed to become a different version of yourself?

Stef is back with the full wedding recap: narrowly avoiding a conga line, getting pulled over in rhinestones, and realizing just how much can change when you let yourself evolve with your life. But underneath the chaos, this episode is really about friendship, grief, and what it feels like to be deeply seen by the people you love.

Stef reflects on learning to receive love, missing her parents during the moments she wishes she could celebrate with them, and realizing that sometimes taking care of yourself means becoming someone new.

Plus: a speeding ticket, a suspiciously accurate prediction about Stef’s future NYC husband, and Bubs has apparently decided to eat an entire tree.

💚 Therapists Said: Submit anonymously to Therapists Said at www.mytherapistsaid.me/therapistssaid 💚

Follow along on Instagram and TikTok: @mytherapistsaidpod — New episodes every Wednesday and Friday.

What happens when you realize the version of you that used to work… doesn’t really fit anymore?

This week, Stef is coming off her best friend’s wedding weekend and thinking about addiction, alignment, and the power of finding people who make it easier to become who you’re trying to be. She reflects on what it means to change your relationship with substances without turning it into an all-or-nothing identity — and why it's important to remember that people can be more than "one thing".

There’s crying in the dirt, unconditional friendship, finding the OCD girlies in the wild, suspicious signs from the universe, and the realization that maybe growth isn’t always about becoming someone new. Sometimes it’s about finding the people, choices, and environments that feel more aligned with who you already are.

Want to add your voice to the conversation? Submit anonymously to Therapists Said at www.mytherapistsaid.me/therapistssaid

Follow along on Instagram and TikTok: @mytherapistsaidpod — New episodes every Wednesday and Friday.

Hi! Content note: This episode includes conversations about addiction, substance use, and overdose.

What if understanding addiction required the rest of us to do a little more of the work?

This week, Stef gets into what it actually means to love someone with addiction—why sobriety has to belong to the person choosing it, how expectations can complicate recovery, and why understanding addiction shouldn’t fall entirely on the person struggling with it. Plus, an unexpectedly emotional conversation about grief, the universe owing her something good, men who refuse to say “I don’t know,” 90 Day Fiancé, and the healing powers of a really good latte.

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance use, SAMHSA’s National Helpline offers free, confidential, 24/7 treatment referral and information at 1-800-662-HELP (4357). You can also find treatment resources at FindTreatment.gov.

Therapists Said is a space for therapists to anonymously share what’s really happening behind the scenes of the mental health field. Add your voice here: https://www.mytherapistsaid.me/therapistssaid

Follow along on Instagram and TikTok: @mytherapistsaidpod — New episodes every Wednesday and Friday.

Where’s the line between talking honestly about drug use and turning it into a moral issue?

This week, Stef gets into the way society talks about addicts, why “just say no” leaves out basically all of the nuance, and what it could look like to de-moralize conversations about addiction altogether. Plus, a chicken breast analogy that somehow explains drug use better than most public health messaging, some thoughts on blurred lines in podcasting, and a story about losing a literal tooth on a bar floor.

Therapists Said is a space for therapists to anonymously share what’s really happening behind the scenes of the mental health field. Add your voice here: https://www.mytherapistsaid.me/therapistssaid

Follow along on Instagram and TikTok: @mytherapistsaidpod — New episodes every Wednesday and Friday.