PTSD and Beyond

By ptsdandbeyond

Welcome to the PTSD and Beyond Podcast with Dr. Deb Lindh, where we give you insights into PTSD, trauma, healing, recovery, and beyond!

In each episode, we have a conversation with an inspiring... more

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FAQs about PTSD and Beyond:

How many episodes does PTSD and Beyond have?

The podcast currently has 562 episodes available.

PTSD and Beyond episodes:

March 26, 2026 When “No” Becomes the Wall: Boundaries, Protection, and the Path Back to Connection
We hear a lot about saying “no” as self-care. And that matters.
But what happens when everything becomes no?
In this episode, we explore when boundaries shift from intentional protection to automatic response. What starts as safety can become disconnection. This conversation brings a trauma-informed and neuroscience-based lens to understanding “no,” and how to move toward discernment, flexibility, and connection.
Key Takeaways:
1. Boundaries support connection, not replace it
2. Automatic “no” can be a protective pattern, not a conscious choice
3. The brain predicts safety based on past experiences
4. Psychological flexibility supports wellbeing and growth
5. Connection is essential to overall health
Reflection Questions:
Where has “no” become automatic?
Is this response coming from fear or alignment?
What would it look like to pause before responding?
If you or someone you know is struggling, support is available. In the U.S., you can call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. It is available 24/7 and free and confidential.
Follow, subscribe, and leave a review to support PTSD and Beyond. Join us on Ko-Fi to help keep these conversations going.
💖 If This Episode Resonated
Listen, subscribe, and share PTSD and Beyond® with someone who might need this message today.
Join our community where we remind one another:
We’re better together. We’re stronger together. Take what resonates and go beyond.
In Love and Healing,
Dr. Deb
Listen, Subscribe, & Share:
✨ Remember to hit subscribe so you never miss an episode!
💬 Loved this episode? Share it with someone who needs to hear this message today.
🌟 Leave a review! It helps us reach more people on their healing journey.
💌 Connect with us:
Website - Dr. Deb Lindh
Website - PTSDandBeyond
Ko-Fi Store - Buy a Cuppa Coffee
Insta - @DrDebraLindh
Insta - @PTSDandBeyond
X (formerly known as Twitter) - @DebraLindh
...more
17min
March 21, 2026 Leadership, Service, and the Power of Connection
In this episode of PTSD and Beyond, we welcome Christopher J. Allen, a military leader and veteran advocate dedicated to supporting service members, veterans, and their families.
This conversation centers on leadership in its most human form. Beyond titles, rank, or position, leadership is about presence, connection, and the willingness to check-in.
Christopher shares insights from his experience in service, highlighting the importance of everyday moments that build trust, strengthen connection, and create meaningful impact. We explore how small actions, like a conversation or a simple check-in, can serve as powerful protective factors in supporting mental health and preventing crisis.
This episode is a reminder that leadership and care often show up in the smallest moments.
What We Discuss -
• Leadership through presence, connection, and care
• The role of everyday conversations in supporting mental health
• Suicide prevention as a shared responsibility
• The importance of checking in with others and with ourselves
• The human side of service and leadership
• Building connection as a protective factor
Key Takeaways:
• Leadership is expressed through presence and genuine connection
• Small moments can have a meaningful impact
• Checking in is a simple but powerful act of care
• Mental health support begins with connection and awareness
💖 If This Episode Resonated
Listen, subscribe, and share PTSD and Beyond® with someone who might need this message today.
We’re better together. We’re stronger together. Take what resonates and go beyond.
In Love and Healing,
Dr. Deb
Listen, Subscribe, & Share:
✨ Remember to hit subscribe so you never miss an episode!
💬 Loved this episode? Share it with someone who needs to hear this message today.
🌟 Leave a review! It helps us reach more people on their healing journey.
Connect with Christopher Jay Allen
LinkedIn - Christopher Jay Allen
💌 Connect with us:
Website - Dr. Deb Lindh
Website - PTSDandBeyond
STORE - PTSD and Beyond
Ko-Fi Store - Buy a Cuppa Coffee
Insta - @DrDebraLindh
Insta - @PTSDandBeyond
X (formerly known as Twitter) - @DebraLindh

...more
53min
March 15, 2026Regret, Rejection, and Resilience
Anxiety often shows up when we are standing in front of a decision or when a lived experience feels like it might repeat itself. In these moments, the mind begins scanning for threat, danger, and risk.
What if this doesn't work out?
What if it happens again?
What if I fail?
Fear of rejection can become very loud and can create hesitation, avoidance, and sometimes complete inaction.
In this episode of PTSD and Beyond, Dr. Deb explores the connection between regret, rejection, and resilience and how anxiety can influence the way we approach decisions in our lives.
Drawing on mindfulness practices and neuroscience, this conversation explores how the brain processes perceived threat and how reflective awareness can help interrupt anxiety loops. When we shift the question we are asking ourselves, we may discover a new way to move forward with clarity and courage.
Resilience is not the absence of anxiety. Resilience is the ability to move forward even when uncertainty and fear are present. When action is taken with awareness, anxiety may still exist, but it no longer holds the same power.
If you or someone you know is struggling, support is available. In the U.S., you can call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. It is available 24/7 and free and confidential.
Follow, subscribe, and leave a review to support PTSD and Beyond. Join us on Ko-Fi to help keep these conversations going.
💖 If This Episode Resonated
Listen, subscribe, and share PTSD and Beyond® with someone who might need this message today.
Join our community where we remind one another:
We’re better together. We’re stronger together. Take what resonates and go beyond.
In Love and Healing,
Dr. Deb
Listen, Subscribe, & Share:
✨ Remember to hit subscribe so you never miss an episode!
💬 Loved this episode? Share it with someone who needs to hear this message today.
🌟 Leave a review! It helps us reach more people on their healing journey.
💌 Connect with us:
Website - Dr. Deb Lindh
Website - PTSDandBeyond
Ko-Fi Store - Buy a Cuppa Coffee
Insta - @DrDebraLindh
Insta - @PTSDandBeyond
X (formerly known as Twitter) - @DebraLindh
...more
25min
March 13, 2026 From the Fire to the Phoenix: A Conversation with Firefighter and Author Cody Mecham
In this powerful episode of PTSD and Beyond, Dr. Deb welcomes firefighter and author Cody J. Mecham, whose story is one of resilience, courage, and rising from life’s most difficult moments.
Cody is the author of Burning It Down and Rise from the Ashes, two deeply personal books that explore pain, purpose, and the journey of rebuilding life after hardship.
In Burning It Down, Cody shares a raw and honest memoir about what it feels like to stand in the ashes of loss and struggle while searching for meaning and a way forward. The book is described as a conversation and a lifeline for anyone who has ever felt broken, exhausted, or uncertain about what comes next.
Through his experiences as a firefighter and through his personal journey, Cody speaks openly about mental health, trauma, resilience, and the strength it takes to rebuild after life’s hardest moments.
This conversation is about courage, healing, and the reminder that even when life feels like it has burned everything down, something new can still rise.
💖 If This Episode Resonated
Listen, subscribe, and share PTSD and Beyond® with someone who might need this message today.
We’re better together. We’re stronger together. Take what resonates and go beyond.
In Love and Healing,
Dr. Deb
Listen, Subscribe, & Share:
✨ Remember to hit subscribe so you never miss an episode!
💬 Loved this episode? Share it with someone who needs to hear this message today.
🌟 Leave a review! It helps us reach more people on their healing journey.
Books by Cody Mecham
• Burning It Down
• Rise from the Ashes
Available on Amazon.
💌 Connect with us:
Website - Dr. Deb Lindh
Website - PTSDandBeyond
STORE - PTSD and Beyond
Ko-Fi Store - Buy a Cuppa Coffee
Insta - @DrDebraLindh
Insta - @PTSDandBeyond
X (formerly known as Twitter) - @DebraLindh

...more
31min
March 06, 2026 Understaning Childhood Trauma with Dr. Wendy B. Smith
In this powerful conversation, Dr. Deb sits down with Wendy B. Smith, a trauma expert, licensed clinical social worker, and former clinical professor of social work, to explore the lasting effects of childhood trauma and the pathways toward healing.
With more than three decades of psychotherapy experience working with survivors of childhood maltreatment, Dr. Smith brings deep insight into how early experiences shape development, relationships, and life trajectories.
Dr. Smith is also the author of Before Their Crimes: What We’re Misunderstanding About Childhood Trauma, Youth Crime, and the Path to Healing, a groundbreaking book that examines the connection between adverse childhood experiences and later behavior through interviews with individuals who committed crimes as teenagers.
Together, Dr. Deb and Dr. Smith explore how childhood trauma affects brain development, identity formation, and the ways people move through the world. They also discuss the powerful role of human connection, understanding, and compassion in the healing process.
This conversation is a reminder that behind many behaviors are stories of pain, survival, and resilience. When we begin to understand those stories, we open the door to healing.
In this episode we discuss:
• What childhood trauma actually does to the developing brain and nervous system
• The long term impact of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs)
• Why trauma in childhood can shape behavior later in life
• The role of connection, empathy, and accountability in healing
• Why understanding the story behind behavior matters
💖 If This Episode Resonated
Listen, subscribe, and share PTSD and Beyond® with someone who might need this message today.
We’re better together. We’re stronger together. Take what resonates and go beyond.
In Love and Healing,
Dr. Deb
Listen, Subscribe, & Share:
✨ Remember to hit subscribe so you never miss an episode!
💬 Loved this episode? Share it with someone who needs to hear this message today.
🌟 Leave a review! It helps us reach more people on their healing journey.
💌 Connect with Dr. Wendy B. Smith:
Website - Dr. Wendy B. Smith
LinkedIn - Dr. Wendy B. Smith
Book - Before Their Crimes
Insta - Wendy B. Smith
💌 Connect with us:
Website - Dr. Deb Lindh
Website - PTSDandBeyond
STORE - PTSD and Beyond
Ko-Fi Store - Buy a Cuppa Coffee
Insta - @DrDebraLindh
Insta - @PTSDandBeyond
X (formerly known as Twitter) - @DebraLindh

...more
41min
February 27, 2026 Tackling Trauma, Building Resilience, Overcoming Life’s Challenges
Why does someone who has led in extreme, high-pressure environments write a book about mindfulness and resilience?
In this episode, I sit down with Ash Alexander-Cooper, OBE - former elite military commander and author of Mindful Soldier, to talk about the lived experiences that shaped his leadership and the lessons earned along the way.
We explore why he wrote the book, what real-world leadership under pressure taught him about responsibility and resilience, and how he now works with leaders to build steadiness from the inside out.
Each chapter of Mindful Soldier includes practical tools and exercises, making this more than a story. It is a guide people can actively apply in their own lives and leadership.
We also discuss the individuals and organizations this work has already impacted.
Grounded. Practical. Reflective.
💖 If This Episode Resonated
Listen, subscribe, and share PTSD and Beyond® with someone who might need this message today.
We’re better together. We’re stronger together. Take what resonates and go beyond.
In Love and Healing,
Dr. Deb
Listen, Subscribe, & Share:
✨ Remember to hit subscribe so you never miss an episode!
💬 Loved this episode? Share it with someone who needs to hear this message today.
🌟 Leave a review! It helps us reach more people on their healing journey.
💌 Connect with Ash Alexander-Cooper:
Website - Ash Alexander-Cooper
LinkedIn - Ash Alexander-Cooper
Book - Mindful Soldier
Insta - Ash Alexander-Cooper
💌 Connect with us:
Website - Dr. Deb Lindh
Website - PTSDandBeyond
STORE - PTSD and Beyond
Ko-Fi Store - Buy a Cuppa Coffee
Insta - @DrDebraLindh
Insta - @PTSDandBeyond
X (formerly known as Twitter) - @DebraLindh
...more
37min
February 20, 2026 The Physiology of Bullying and Trauma-Preventative Leadership
This conversation explores workplace bullying through a lens that goes far deeper than behavior. We examine the physiology of harm, the nervous system impact of chronic workplace stress, and how leadership either contributes to trauma or actively prevents it.
Liza Collins is a trauma preventative leadership coach, consultant, and number one best selling author of The Physiology of Bullying. With more than three decades of experience across healthcare systems in the UK and internationally, her work bridges lived experience, neuroscience, and relational leadership practice.
In this episode, we explore:
• What chronic workplace harm does to the nervous system
• How bullying reshapes identity, health, and self trust
• The difference between surviving a toxic system and restoring agency
• Why leadership responsibility extends beyond performance metrics
• What trauma preventative leadership actually looks like in practice
This conversation moves beyond surface level discussions about difficult personalities. It addresses power, safety, and the biological cost of sustained psychological threat.
For anyone navigating workplace harm, leading teams, or building cultures of psychological safety, this episode offers insight, clarity, and grounded perspective.
💖 If This Episode Resonated
Listen, subscribe, and share PTSD and Beyond® with someone who might need this message today.
We’re better together. We’re stronger together. Take what resonates and go beyond.
In Love and Healing,
Dr. Deb
Listen, Subscribe, & Share:
✨ Remember to hit subscribe so you never miss an episode!
💬 Loved this episode? Share it with someone who needs to hear this message today.
🌟 Leave a review! It helps us reach more people on their healing journey.
💌 Connect with Liza Collins:
Website - Liza Collins
LinkedIn - Liza Collins
Book - The Physiology of Bullying
💌 Connect with us:
Website - Dr. Deb Lindh
Website - PTSDandBeyond
Ko-Fi Store - Buy a Cuppa Coffee
Insta - @DrDebraLindh
Insta - @PTSDandBeyond
X (formerly known as Twitter) - @DebraLindh
...more
51min
February 13, 2026 Battle Tested and Built with Amanda Anderson
In this episode, Dr. Deb talks with Amanda Anderson, speaker and resilience strategist, about what it really means to rebuild after trauma, burnout, and major life disruption. This conversation moves beyond surface motivation and explores practical mindset shifts, personal truth, and intentional growth after hardship.
Together, we explore surviving versus living with purpose, how adversity reshapes identity, and tools that support lasting inner change.
Listeners will walk away with grounded insight, real talk on resilience, and practical ways to move forward with clarity and strength.
💖 If This Episode Resonated
Listen, subscribe, and share PTSD and Beyond® with someone who might need this message today.
We’re better together. We’re stronger together. Take what resonates and go beyond.
In Love and Healing,
Dr. Deb
Listen, Subscribe, & Share:
✨ Remember to hit subscribe so you never miss an episode!
💬 Loved this episode? Share it with someone who needs to hear this message today.
🌟 Leave a review! It helps us reach more people on their healing journey.
💌 Connect with Amanda Anderson:
Website - Amanda Anderson
LinkedIn - Amanda Anderson
💌 Connect with us:
Website - Dr. Deb Lindh
Website - PTSDandBeyond
Ko-Fi Store - Buy a Cuppa Coffee
Insta - @DrDebraLindh
Insta - @PTSDandBeyond
X (formerly known as Twitter) - @DebraLindh
...more
34min
February 07, 2026 Understanding Trauma Across the Lifespan with Dr. Frank Putnam
Understanding Trauma Across the Lifespan with Dr. Frank Putnam
Content Note: This episode includes discussion of trauma, child maltreatment, and dissociation; please listen at your own pace and care for your wellbeing while engaging.
In this episode, Dr. Deb Lindh sits down with Dr. Frank Putnam, a renowned psychiatrist, researcher, and national leader in the study of trauma, child maltreatment, and its lifelong effects. With a career spanning decades of clinical work and groundbreaking research, Dr. Putnam has been instrumental in advancing the field of traumatic stress studies and mentoring generations of trauma scientists.
Dr. Putnam’s work began early in his career at the National Institute of Mental Health, where he first encountered the profound effects of child abuse on psychological and biological development. This experience shaped his lifelong focus on understanding trauma’s impact from childhood into adulthood and highlighted the importance of early research to inform healing-informed practice.
His pioneering research on dissociation and dissociative disorders helped transform the field from case-based observations into evidence-based science, including influential publications and the co-authorship of tools widely used in trauma research.
Today, Dr. Putnam continues to research and advocate for trauma-informed approaches that acknowledge the complex ways early adversity shapes health outcomes across the lifespan. He is also recognized for his decades of mentorship and service, including the establishment of the Frank W. Putnam Trauma Research Scholars Program, which supports emerging trauma researchers whose work has great potential to contribute meaningfully to the field.
In this conversation we explore:
• What we currently understand about how trauma affects development from childhood through adulthood
• How early research in child maltreatment and dissociation reshaped scientific thinking about trauma
• The importance of rigorous trauma research and mentorship in broadening the field
• What trauma professionals and survivors alike can take from decades of evidence-based work
Whether you’re new to the trauma conversation or deeply embedded in healing work, this episode offers clarity, context, and hope grounded in decades of research and human experience.
💖 If This Episode Resonated
Listen, subscribe, and share PTSD and Beyond® with someone who might need this message today.
We’re better together. We’re stronger together. Take what resonates and go beyond.
In Love and Healing,
Dr. Deb
Listen, Subscribe, & Share:
✨ Remember to hit subscribe so you never miss an episode!
💬 Loved this episode? Share it with someone who needs to hear this message today.
🌟 Leave a review! It helps us reach more people on their healing journey.
💌 Connect with Dr. Frank Putnam:
Website - Dr. Frank Putnam
Book - Old Before Their Time, and others
💌 Connect with us:
Website - Dr. Deb Lindh
Website - PTSDandBeyond
Ko-Fi Store - Buy a Cuppa Coffee
Insta - @DrDebraLindh
Insta - @PTSDandBeyond
X (formerly known as Twitter) - @DebraLindh
...more
43min
January 30, 2026 The Life Hack Playbook in Real Life with Anne Karber
In this episode, Dr. Deb is joined by Anne Karber, author of The Life Hack Playbook, for a practical conversation about simplifying life, reducing overwhelm, and building peace through intentional daily choices.
Anne shares grounded insights on clarity, boundaries, habit change, and creating a life that supports wellbeing rather than burnout. This conversation centers on realistic tools, sustainable growth, and how small shifts can create meaningful long term change.
This episode is for anyone feeling overwhelmed, stretched thin, or disconnected from what matters most, and looking for grounded ways to create more peace, purpose, and stability in everyday life.
If you or someone you know is struggling, support is available. In the U.S., you can call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. It is available 24/7 and free and confidential.
Follow, subscribe, and leave a review to support PTSD and Beyond. Join us on Ko-Fi to help keep these conversations going.
💖 If This Episode Resonated
Listen, subscribe, and share PTSD and Beyond® with someone who might need this message today.
Join our community where we remind one another:
We’re better together. We’re stronger together. Take what resonates and go beyond.
In Love and Healing,
Dr. Deb
Listen, Subscribe, & Share:
✨ Remember to hit subscribe so you never miss an episode!
💬 Loved this episode? Share it with someone who needs to hear this message today.
🌟 Leave a review! It helps us reach more people on their healing journey.
💌 Connect with Anne Karber:
Website - AnneKarber
Book - The Life Hack Playbook
Podcast - Let's Get Naked Podcast
Facebook - Let's Get Naked Podcast
Instagram - Let's Get Naked Podcast
💌 Connect with us:
Website - Dr. Deb Lindh
Website - PTSDandBeyond
Ko-Fi Store - Buy a Cuppa Coffee
Insta - @DrDebraLindh
Insta - @PTSDandBeyond
X (formerly known as Twitter) - @DebraLindh

...more
35min

FAQs about PTSD and Beyond:

How many episodes does PTSD and Beyond have?

The podcast currently has 562 episodes available.

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