The Psychology of... Podcast

This interview is with Jill Nickens of  Akathisia Alliance for Education and Research

Akathisia is an extremely distressing neurological disorder characterized by severe agitation, an inability to remain still, and an overwhelming sense of terror. It is primarily a medication side effect. People with this condition can quickly become suicidal and even homicidal. Akathisia is far more common than has been reported in the past and remains dangerously under-diagnosed and under-reported today.

This podcast should not be used in the place of medical advise or psychological treatment. The goal is to help raise awareness about Akathisia. Please considering sharing with mental health and medical professionals in your circle.

In this episode Zac speaks with therapist, writer, and public speaker Stella O'Malley about safetyism, resilience, and childhood anxiety. Stella is a bold public thinker making waves from her home in Ireland. Her work, including her three books which are discussed in this interview, can be found at www.stellaomalley.com and on twitter @stellaomalley3 

Opinions expressed here are personal and may not reflect the opinions of the entire field of psychology or its professional associations and colleges.

In this episode Zac sits down with the President of Society for Academic Freedom and Scholarship in Canada, Mark Mercer. They discuss why there is a need for such a society, what are the forces that get in the way from freedom of expression and scholarship on campuses, and they make comparisons between Canadian and American institutions. Mark mentions how the legacy media rarely reports on issues of academic freedom making all the more important to share this episode and SAFS with others. Visit www.safs.ca to learn more.

In this episode Zac sits down with Dr. Clay Routledge, a professor and researcher who focuses on human flourishing, progress, and existential psychology. Clay provides a well needed perspective on how we can flourish. They discuss gratitude, perspective taking, and nostalgia and how these approaches lead to greater progress. They also discuss how difficult it can be talk about progress while many others in the world continue to suffer.

Please support his work by checking out the excellent new magazine Profectus as well his other works found on his website

In this episode Zac spoke with Lenore Skenazy from www.letgrow.org Lenore wrote the book Free Range Kids and is president of the non-profit organization Let Grow which counters the culture of overprotection. Experts from Dr. Peter Gray to Jon Haidt agree that by introducing acceptable levels of risk and resistance to our children's lives we can make significant improvements to mental health. If you are a parent or a teacher please listen to this episode and promote Let Grow in your community. Download the free education resource kit here. https://letgrow.org/program/educational-resources/

In this episode Zac speaks with Dr. Rima Azar, Health Psychology professor at Mount Allison University who recently was suspended without pay from her job due to comments she made on her personal blog.

We discuss 'cancel culture' which means different things to different people. The intention of the podcast is to discuss how to promote freedom of thought, speech. and inquiry while still considering the consequences of one's speech.

If you feel compelled to support Dr. Azar you can do so on financially here https://ca.gofundme.com/f/t88quc-raising-money-for-legal-fees

We are back with our first in person interview since the pandemic and I have to apologize to our listeners and our guest for the poor audio quality. We will be better next time. In today's episode Zac sits down with Psychologist Brad Moser to discuss the importance of fatherhood. In honour of Father's Day have a listen and share it with the dads in your life.

In this episode Zac discusses what it means to be a conservative in 2021 with independent scholar Bo Winegard. Bo has published articles on multiple topics and writes often for Quillette.

You can read more about Bo's work and support him on patreon by visiting his website at https://www.bmwinegard.com

This episode is not an endorsement of any specific political ideology but an attempt to discuss Bo's thesis that conservatism is actually the political ideology that most closely maps onto what we know about human behaviour and psychology.

In this episode we discuss topics like Jonathan Haidt's Moral Foundations Theory, cancel culture, bias in academia and media, and a movement called "ethnotraditionalism".

Today's episode is with Dr. Lynne Gots who is a clinical psychologist and assistant clinical professor in the department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Sciences at the George Washington University School of Medecine.

Her website can be found here https://cognitivebehavioralstrategies.com

In the episode we discuss Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and how it often interacts with morals. Often called scrupulosity, this is when obsessions are focused on morals and the fear of offending someone or God.

For today’s episode the guest is Gabriella Carafa who is a social worker in the greater Toronto, certified in perinatal mental health. She has experience working with individuals with disabilities and complex medical conditions. She works with individuals, children, families, and couples in her private practice. She has a special interest in parenthood for folks with disabilities including physical, intellectual, learning and/or episodic disabilities and has her own lived experience of disability.  

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About Our Guest

Gabriella  is a social worker who is certified in perinatal mental health. She has over seven years combined experience working with individuals with disabilities and complex medical conditions as well as supporting individuals in the perinatal period. She works with with children, adolescents, adults, families and couples in her private practice.  She has a special interest in parenthood for folks with disabilities including physical, intellectual, learning and/or episodic disabilities and has her own lived experience of disability.  Gabriella is passionate about sharing knowledge and experience by providing content interviews, professional workshops, creating invited blog content, and leading healthcare and social services training opportunities. Gabriella brings a diverse, unique, passionate and vibrant voice to the realities and intersections of mental health, ability & the perinatal experience.

Contact Info

Website - http://www.gabriellacarafa.ca

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Lethbridge Institute of Family Therapy

Web - https://www.lethbridgetherapy.com

Phone - 403-849-7827

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/lethbridgetherapy/