Learn more about Mandy Harvey

www.mandylharvey.com

Mandy talks about how to heal past wounds to help people thrive.

Kelly Ryan explores the impact of stress on her health and well being and how meditation can be used to make us all healthier. She founded Anchor Meditation with the goal of helping share what she has learned about the impact of meditation with others.

You can learn more about Anchor Meditation at

www.anchormeditation.com

Emily Kline Ph.D. is a psychologist working with adolescents and young adults, assistant professor of Psychiatry, and co-directs a mental wellness clinic at Boston University Medical Center.

In her new book, The School of Hard Talks, How to Have Real Conversations with Your (Almost Grown) Kids, Emily talks about how to have difficult conversations with kids as they get older.

In this episode you will learn:

Why parents get on their older kids nerves.

Understand how to suppress your "righting reflex"

How to better understand what a young person thinks and feels to help support them in navigating dilemmas.

How to handle conflicts in a way that nurtures the relationship.

Learn more about Dr. Emily Kline www.dremilykline.com

The School of Hard Talks https://www.amazon.com/School-Hard-Talks-Conversations-Almost/dp/1632174707

Dr. Pooja Lakshmin's new book Real Self-Care explores how faux self-care like bubble baths, pedicures, and yoga are nice but that principles around value-based decision making are true self care. How we make choices and set boundaries for ourselves has more of a ripple impact on our mental wellness than some of the actions we traditionally think about as self-care. Dr. Lakshmin is also the founder of an equity-based women's mental health program called Gemma.

Real Self-Care

Gemma Women's Mental Health

Dr. Pooja Lakshmin Instagram

Episode 109 Supporting Transgender and Gender Expansive Youth with Dr. Laura Anderson

Dr. Anderson has over 25 years working with and affirming gender expansive and transgender youth. I confess that the start of our episode that I had been hesitant to record an episode about this topic out of fear of not saying the right thing, but Dr. Anderson is welcoming in her approach and helped me better understand some terms and concepts that she has learned in her time working with families. 

Topics include:

What is the difference between gender, biological sex, and sexual attraction?

What do the terms non-binary and transgender mean?

How to stay curious and support your gender expansive loved ones.

How to manage fear-based parenting responses and maintain trust and communication.

What does the term gender expansive mean?

How does the gender binary hurt all of us?

“Parenting is a marathon.” Dr. Laura Anderson

Learn more about Dr. Laura Anderson

Website

Real World Podcast Parenting

Phone and Online Support for Transgender and Gender Expansive Youth

The Trevor Project

Episode 108 IFS and Connecting to True Self with Kelly Coulter, PLLC

In this episode:

I talk with Kelly Coulter about her use of the IFS (Internal Family Systems) framework to support clients in her private practice in Austin Texas. The IFS framework was developed by Dr. Richard Schwartz and acknowledges the multiple selves within an individual. This does not mean that someone has multiple personalities, but rather that within each of us we have different parts and in working with those parts we can better connect with our true selves. 

If this sounds confusing, take a listen to this episode and Kelly explains the basics of IFS and how this way of thinking about ourselves can help us better understanding ourselves. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, Stitcher, or on your favorite podcast platform

Quote

“We want to be able to observe our parts. What I love about IFS is we want you to embrace those parts and approach them with compassion.” Kelly Coulter PLLC

In this episode, we cover:

●     How traumatic wounds create disconnection from self.

●     How our parts create a way to manage this shame and distress.

●     The 8 Cs that are components of Self.

●     What are managers and fire fighters?

●     What are exiles, protectors, or the self-critic

●     How mapping parts can help explore how you are functioning.

Learn more about Kelly Coulter, PLLC:

·     Kelly Coulter Therapy

Resources discussed:

●     Book "No Bad Parts"

Connect with The Family Brain:

●     Megan Gipson’s Website

●     The Family Brain Podcast

●     The Family Brain Instagram

Rate, Review & Follow on Apple Podcasts:

Want to show your support for the show? Please consider following this show and leaving a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Following ensures you get the latest episode delivered directly to the top of your Apple Podcasts app. Thanks for your support.

Episode 107: Healing from Narcissistic Abuse and Complex Trauma with Ingrid Clayton PHD

Ingrid Clayton’s new memoir “Believing Me, Healing from Narcissistic Abuse and Complex Trauma” details her childhood experiences that as an adult she came to understand as complex trauma and relational abuse. As a therapist, Ingrid shares her own story and sheds light on the similar feelings and coping strategies that spring from childhood abuse. 

In this episode:

Ingrid talks about the process of writing her memoir and how important it was for her for the book to be a memoir, so that her story could help others who may have had similar experiences not feel so alone. We talk about how complex trauma is rooted in relational abuse and how emotional abuse can be harder to name that something like physical abuse that may leave a mark. Her book gives language to this type of abuse that happens within families. 

Children can often blame themselves for abuse because they are dependent on their caregivers to survive. The body and mind of a child may blame themselves as a protection because acknowledging an unsafe caregiver can feel even worse. 

We talk about the use of gaslighting to make children and adults question their own memories of experiences, and how that takes root in the nervous system. Gaslighting was the word of the year in the Websters dictionary for 2022, so that suggests that emotional abuse is becoming more understood and discussed. The World Health Organization has made CPTSD Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and official diagnosis, but it is still not a part of the DSM in the United States meaning that it is not a recognized diagnostic code. 

We talk about how trauma lives in the body and how that can make it hard to identify through thinking about it. It lives on a subconscious level. The body creates coping strategies and does what it was designed to do which is keep you safe. However, once the abusive situation is no longer a threat, those coping strategies can show up in situations and in relationships that cause distress and do not serve you any longer. We talk about the various therapeutic modalities that can be used to treat CPTSD and how curiosity is the key in each one. 

Ingird shares that through the process of putting this book out into the world, she has discovered that her experiences are heartbreakingly more common than she realized, and through that she has discovered a community of survivors.  

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, Stitcher, or on your favorite podcast platform

 Quote

“Maybe I had to become my own therapist, and that is both magical and heartbreaking. Just like everything else.” Ingrid Clayton, PHD

In this episode, we cover:

●     Define Complex Trauma

●     Explore how relational abuse can be hard to identify

●     Why children often blame themselves for abuse

●     How trauma lives in the body

●     Discuss the term gaslighting and its impact

●     Ways to explore past trauma through therapy

Learn more about Ingrid Clayton PHD:

●     Book: "Believing Me"

●     Ingrid Clayton PHD

Resources discussed:

●     Book "The Body Keeps the Score"

●     Book Peter Levine and Somatic Therapy

●     EMDR Therapy

Connect with The Family Brain:

●     Megan Gipson’s Website

●     The Family Brain Podcast

●     The Family Brain Instagram

Rate, Review & Follow on Apple Podcasts:

Want to show your support for the show? Please consider following this show and leaving a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Following ensures you get the latest episode delivered directly to the top of your Apple Podcasts app. Thanks for your support.

Episode 106: Money and Love with Abby Davisson

Abby Davisson is the co-author of the new release Money and Love, An Intelligent Road Map For Life’s Biggest Decisions. In our conversation, Abby explains The 5Cs, a framework she learned as a student at Stanford Business School, that serves as a research based guide in navigating big life choices. We talk about how money and love are intertwined, and how often in the decision-making process we can lose sight of this. If you ever wished Google would answer some of these big life questions for you, this is an episode you won’t want to miss. 

In this episode:

We talk about how the 5Cs were a revelation to Abby as a graduate student, and how Abby along with her coauthor Myra Strober, who was the Stanford professor she took this class from, wanted to share the framework outside of higher education to help more people navigate these complicated life choices. 

The 5Cs are…drum roll…

1.     Clarify what is important to you: to make an effective decision you must first understand what you truly want and what you don’t

2.    Communicate: as you clarify what you want, open a two-way dialogue with others involved in the decision

3.    Consider a Broad Range of Choices: few decisions are strictly either/or, and one key to better decision-making is broadening your alternatives

4.    Check in with Friends, Family, and Other Resources, sharing your thought process or reaching out to others can bring new insights

5.    Consequences: weigh the short-term and long -term consequences of different choices before you make a final decision. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, Stitcher, or on your favorite podcast platform

Quote: “Everyone deserves the resources and skills to enjoy both love and money.” Abby Davisson

In this episode, we cover:

●     How life choices are constantly evolving

●     How the change in gender roles and family structure has changed

●     Why big life choices feel overwhelming

●     How to approach a partner to engage in the process

●     The benefits of slowing down to make more deliberate choices

Learn more about Abby Davisson and Money and Love:

https://www.moneylovebook.com/

https://www.abbydavisson.com/

Connect with The Family Brain:

●     Megan Gipson’s Website

●     The Family Brain Podcast

●     The Family Brain Instagram

Rate, Review & Follow on Apple Podcasts:

Want to show your support for the show? Please consider FOLLOWING THIS PODCAST

Following ensures you get the latest episode delivered directly to the top of your Apple Podcasts app.

RATE THIS PODCAST Rating the show helps spread the word and is such a kind motivator for me! Thanks for your support. 

Episode 105: Boundaries Over the Holidays with Juliane Taylor Shore

Juliane Taylor Shore joins The Family Brain Podcast to talk about her work in helping people understand neuroscience, boundary setting and how both impact our relationships. Juliane breaks this information down in to digestible bites and helps make the term neurobiology not sound so intimidating. One of my big take aways from this conversation is that in addition to setting more action oriented boundaries like I will not continue to clean your clothes if you leave them on the floor, we can also set energetic boundaries in helping keep our minds clear of energy that is not ours to carry. If you think this sounds interesting but you wish I was explaining it better, please listen to this episode. I promise that Jules explains it in ways that will get you excited to try something new. 

In this episode we cover:

What are boundaries and how do we get them!?

How setting boundaries can bring us closer in our relationships.

Basic information about the brain and connection.

Ways to self soothe when overstimulated. 

A practical exercise to develop energetic boundary skills.

How it is normal to struggle with setting boundaries.

You can learn more about Juliane Taylor Shore

Website

Instagram

Why Does My Partner? Podcast

Resources

The Whole Brain Child by Daniel Siegel

The Art of Gathering by Priya Parker

Quote:

“The mind is a bridge between me and other people and in that relational space I transform others through my influence, and I let their influence in through me to transform.”

-Juliane Taylor Shore

“I think that ultimately boundaries are about kindness and clarity.”-Juliane Taylor Shore

Episode 104: The Mind Body Connection in Therapy with Grace Mackey

I discovered Grace Mackey via Instagram @elevateyourtheapy and love the engaging way she shares what she has learned about the mind/body connection. Grace has her master’s in counseling and provides talk therapy, yoga therapy, and Reiki. She is passionate about how yoga, spirituality, and therapy can help heal simultaneously. I was thrilled to connect with her to learn more about her work. In my own private practice, I am starting to notice some of the restraints of talk therapy alone, and I love learning about the mind/body interventions that Grace uses when working with clients.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, Stitcher, or on your favorite podcast platform

Quote:

“How do we pay attention to the body and work with the nervous system so we can actually calm the mind...and sometimes vice versa.” Grace Mackey

In this episode, we cover:

● How stress shows up in our bodies.

● Ways that mind/body work is used to treat chronic pain.

● How to learn more about polyvagal theory and nervous system realignment. ● Ways to stay connected to your nervous system.

Learn more about Grace Mackey

• Elevate Therapy Wellness Website • Instagram

Resources Mentioned in this Episode:

·      Book: The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk

·      Book: The Polyvagal Theory in Therapy by Deb Dana

·      Book: The Mind Body Prescription by Dr. John Sarno

·      App: Curable App for Pain

Connect with The Family Brain:

● Megan Gipson’s Website

● The Family Brain Podcast

● The Family Brain Instagram

Rate, Review & Follow on Apple Podcasts: Want to show your support for the show? Please consider following this show and leaving a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Following ensures you get the latest episode delivered directly to the top of your Apple Podcasts app. Use this link for easy way to connect to review the show- send me some love! https://ratethispodcast.com/familybrain