Shrinking It Down: Mental Health Made Simple

We're kicking off 2023 with a special episode of Shrinking It Down featuring *you* our listeners. What questions do you have about the mental health of a child or teen in your life?

Dr. Gene Beresin and Dr. Khadijah Booth Watkins will answer them on January 19!

E-mail your questions: [email protected]

Message us your questions: Instagram (instagram.com/mghclaycenter) or Facebook (facebook.com/massgeneralclaycenter)

Leave a voice mail with your questions: (617) 643-1590 (press # to skip the message)

We'll see you back here on January 19, and the Third Thursday of every month: Be There, or Be Square (TikTok).

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How do social issues intersect with youth sports? Tune in to this bonus episode of Shrinking It Down, featuring Dr. Jonathan Jenkins of the Sport Psychology Program at Mass General, for a thoughtful conversation on how societal concerns, including systemic racism, continue to impact our all of our young athletes.

Media List

• Jonathan Jenkins, Psy.D, CMPC (LinkedIn)
• The NBA took a stand against police violence. But a second message quickly became clear (CNN)
• Our Definition of Social Justice (John Lewis Institute for Social Justice)
• Dr. Chester Pierce (MGH Global Psychiatry)
• 10 Important Steps for Parenting Young Athletes (MGH Clay Center)
• Inside the lack of racial diversity in lacrosse (The Daily Orange)
• Title IX 50 year later: Why female athletes are still fighting for equality (On Point, WBUR)

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Sports can be such a positive space for young people to let off steam, learn important life skills, and build long lasting relationships. There are times, though, when it can be too much, injury strikes, or someone doesn’t make the team they were hoping to.

Dr. Jonathan Jenkins joins Gene and Khadijah to discuss all things sports psychology and how best to support our young people in an important area of their lives. Whether your child dreams of being a professional or just likes to play for fun, tune in to learn how parents can promote a healthy mindset around sports and physical activity. 

Media List

Follow along with the conversation.

• Dr. Jonathan Jenkins, Psy.D CMPC (Ruderman Foundation)
• Ted Lasso (YouTube)
• MGH Sport Psychology (Mass General Hospital)
• Getting to the Finish Line: Will You Choose Endurance or Resilience? (MGH Clay Center)
• Unorganized Youth Sports Is Missing From Society (T-Ball America)
• How to Support Youth Athletes When a Sports Injury Derails Their Season (MGH Clay Center)
• 10 Important Steps for Parenting Young Athletes (MGH Clay Center) 
• Massachusetts Role in Making Golf More Inclusive (WCVB)

Subscribe and tune in the 3rd Thursday of every month for new episodes. Like what you hear? Leave us a review!

Episode produced by Bianca Dempsey

Edited by Sara Rattigan

Music by Gene Beresin

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*Content Warning: This episode contains segments of discussion that may be difficult for some audience members to hear. Content such as descriptions of self-harm methods are included.

Self-harm is a rising mental health concern that tends to begin in the teenage years. But what are some of the causes and what can we do to help our kids who are struggling? In this episode, very special guest Dr. Blaise Aguirre of McLean Hospital joins Gene and Khadijah to unpack why some kids engage in self-injury, what some of the warning signs are to look out for, and what parents can do at home to manage if their child is self-harming.

View the episode transcript here.

Media List

Follow along with the conversation.

• Blaise Aguirre, MD (McLean Hospital)
• 3East Continuum of Care (McLean Hospital)
• Dialectical Behavior Therapy – DBT (Cleveland Clinic)
• 'DBT For Dummies' Offers Insights On Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (MSNBC)
• Brain Changes Found in Self-Injuring Teen Girls (Ohio State University News)
• Children Who Cut Themselves (MGH Clay Center)
• Borderline Personality Disorder: A Case of Suffering, Drama and Hope (MGH Clay Center)
• What If My Child Has OCD? (MGH Clay Center)
• Low Self-Esteem: Where Does It Come From and What Can Adults Do to Help? (MGH Clay Center)
• Being an Emotional Sponge (MGH Clay Center)
• 200 Dad Jokes (Men’s Health)

Episode produced by Bianca Dempsey

Edited by Sara Rattigan

Music by Gene Beresin

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As Dr. Gene Beresin always says, music is a universal language. To kick off our new podcast season, and in honor of Gene’s new book, Music, today we’ll look into the ways music can help us heal. Special guest Marisabelle Díaz-Falcón, a board-certified music therapist at Massachusetts General Hospital joins Gene and Khadijah to talk about the ways music therapy helps kids (and adults!) in the hospital. Backed by science, the benefits of music therapy are plentiful, and we’re here to give you tips on how to bring some of these benefits home!

Media List

Follow along with the conversation.

• "Better When I’m Dancin'" by Meghan Trainor (YouTube)
• Music (Arts for Health) (Amazon)
• Marisabelle Díaz-Falcón, MT-BC (MGH)
• End of Summer Playlist 2022 (MGH Clay Center)
• Music Therapy (Mass General for Children)
• Community Music Center of Boston (CMCB.org)
• Center for Music Therapy (Berklee College of Music)
• Trauma: What Parents Should Know (MGH Clay Center)
• Gate Control Theory of Pain (YouTube)
• Just for fun: Gene’s Mug (Google)

Like what you hear? Leave us a review and subscribe wherever you stream!

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It's nearly time for a new season of Shrinking It Down! Co-hosts Gene Beresin, MD, MA and Khadijah Booth Watkins, MD, MPH have some great mental health topics and great guests in store for you. But until then, Hold On....

Beginning October 20, tune in the 3rd Thursday of every month for new episodes. Subscribe wherever you stream. See you soon!

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*Content warning: Some of the conversation today includes topics that some listeners may find sensitive including sexuality, gender identity, and violence towards members of the LGBTQIA+ community.

What is gender identity? How is it different from sexual orientation? And why are pronouns so important? We talk through all of these questions and more in this week’s episode. Gene and Khadijah are joined by special guest, Marshall Forstein, MD, DLFAPA, to discuss some of these common terms we are hearing more and more every day and give tips on how to have conversations with your kids about all of these topics. Tune in for one of our favorite episodes yet!

Media List

Follow along with the conversation.

June is LGBT Pride Month (youth.gov)

Reflections on Becoming a Father as a Gay Man (MGH Clay Center)

How and why to discuss Juneteenth with your children (The Washington Post)

LGBTQ+ Glossary (It Gets Better Project)

How To Talk To Your Kids About Internet Pornography (MGH Clay Center)

The Impact of Reality TV On Our Teens: What Can Parents Do? (MGH Clay Center)

Getting to the Finish Line: Will You Choose Endurance or Resilience? (MGH Clay Center)

Supporting Your Child in the Face of Trauma (MGH Clay Center)

What is Family Therapy? (MGH Clay Center)

Pink Freud & The Transitional Objects - 2020 AACAP Virtual Meeting - YouTube (YouTube)

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May is Mental Health Awareness Month! Leading up to this month, we received questions from our Instagram followers. In this podcast miniseries, Dr. Gene Beresin and Dr. Khadijah Booth Watkins answer them.

Today's question: How does Schizophrenia affect a young person and their caregivers?

Dr. Abigail Donovan of the Mass General First Episode and Early Psychosis Program joins to help answer.

Media List

• Abigail Donovan, MD (Massachusetts General Hospital)
• First-Episode and Early Psychosis Program (Massachusetts General Hospital)
• What Is Family Therapy? (MGH Clay Center)
• Psychosis in Children and Teens (MGH Clay Center)
• What Is the Schizophrenia Spectrum? (VeryWell Health)

Tune in to "You Ask, Our Docs Answer!" each Tuesday in May for a short episode. Have a question for our docs? E-mail us or tag us on Instagram!

Thank you for all you do to support the young developing minds in your life. It really makes a difference.

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May is Mental Health Awareness Month! Leading up to this month, we received questions from our Instagram followers. In this podcast miniseries, Dr. Gene Beresin and Dr. Khadijah Booth Watkins answer them.

Today's question: How do you find out if your teenager has undiagnosed ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder)?

Dr. Gagan Joshi of the Mass General Bressler Cetner for Autism joins to help answer.

Media List

• Gagan Joshi, MD (Massachusetts General Hospital)
• Alan & Lorraine Bressler Clinical Research Program (Facebook)
• A Closer Look at High-Functioning Autism, featuring Robyn Thom, MD – Shrinking It Down (MGH Clay Center)
• Webinar: “Autistic Burnout,” featuring Sue Ann Pien (MGH Aspire on Facebook)
• Request an Appointment (Bressler Clinical and Research Program)
• Social Responsiveness Scale, Second Edition (CAR Autism Roadmap)

Tune in to "You Ask, Our Docs Answer!" each Tuesday in May for a short episode. Have a question for our docs? E-mail us or tag us on Instagram!

Thank you for all you do to support the young developing minds in your life. It really makes a difference.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We all know that parents and other adults tend to be the last people teenagers want to talk to about their problems. At this stage of life teens are more likely to reach out to friends in times of need. With this in mind, Valerie Grison-Alsop, founded Give Us the Floor, a nonprofit organization that promotes peer support for teens, by teens. Give Us the Floor launched an app that provides a safe, anonymous space for teens to reach out to each other for support, with guidance from trained teen advisors as well as adult advisors.

This week, Gene and Khadijah are very pleased to welcome Valerie as a special guest, as well as Julia Esposito, a Junior Adult Advisor and former participant of Give Us the Floor. They talk about the benefits of peer-to-peer support and why their app has been so successful in helping teens improve their mental health and overall well-being.  

Media List

Follow along with the conversation.

• Give Us the Floor (Give Us the Floor)
• Being an Emotional Sponge: Supporting Young People Who Are Supporting Friends (MGH Clay Center)
• Give Us the Floor FAQs (Give Us the Floor)
• Helping Others Shows Differential Benefits on Health and Well-being for Male and Female Teens (Springer)    
• There Are All Sorts of Ways of Making Things Better (MGH Clay Center)
• Massachusetts Actually Has 12 Seasons (americasbestpics.com) 

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