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Too Curious MDs
By Too Curious MDsHealth & Fitness
Too Curious MDs episodes
- Healing the Alarm: Dr. Russ Kennedy on Anxiety, Safety & the Inner Child Part 2
Anxiety isn’t caused by broken thinking. It’s driven by a nervous system stuck in alarm. In this episode of Too Curious MDs, Dr. Russell Kennedy explains how early life stress wires the body for survival, why the mind creates endless worry in response, and what restores real safety from the inside out.
Learn more about Dr. Kennedy’s work at https://www.theanxietymd.com
What’s one unasked or curious question from your own story, your healing journey, or your exploration of the science of anxiety, ketamine, or psychedelics?
Post it in the comments—your curiosity might just spark our next episode of Too Curious MDs.
Dr. Russell Kennedy is a physician, neuroscientist, and the author of the bestselling book Anxiety RX: A New Prescription for Anxiety Relief From the Doctor Who Created It.
Known as The Anxiety MD, he merges medical science, developmental psychology, and somatic practice to create an integrative framework for healing anxiety. Dr. Kennedy’s approach was born from his own struggle with anxiety and panic, shaped by early trauma and years in conventional medicine. His MBRX method helps people move from mental rumination to body-based safety through awareness, compassion, and reconnection.
Outside the clinic, he brings a unique twist to medicine—as a former stand-up comedian and certified yoga instructor, he infuses humor and humility into healing, reminding us that laughter, breath, and curiosity are also forms of medicine.
Dr. Russell Kennedy, MD
Website: https://dr-russ.com/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/theanxietymd
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theanxietymd
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drrusskennedy/
Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@theanxietymd
Author of "Anxiety Rx" – Get the book
Dr. Alya Ahmad, MD, FAAP
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alya-ahmad-md-0601b190/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shamynds/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shamynds
Website: https://shamynds.com/
Dr. Suraiya Simi Rahman, MD, FAAP
Website: https://palamedicine.com/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraiya-rahman-palamedicine/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pala_medicine/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/palamedicine.pasadena/
Too Curious MDs
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toocuriousmds?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TooCuriousMDs
Produced by DrTalks: https://drtalks.com/podcast-service/
1 hr 5 min - Healing the Alarm: Dr. Russ Kennedy on Anxiety, Safety & the Inner Child Part 1
Anxiety may not be a thinking problem at all. In this episode of Too Curious MDs, Dr. Russell Kennedy, known as The Anxiety MD, joins us to explain why anxiety is often a mind-story layered over a deeper bodily signal and how early experiences shape adult symptoms. We also explore inner child work, spirituality, psychedelics, physician burnout, and how curiosity can pull us out of fear and back into connection—with ourselves and our patients.
Learn more about Dr. Kennedy’s work at https://www.theanxietymd.com
What’s one unasked or curious question from your own story, your healing journey, or your exploration of the science of anxiety, ketamine, or psychedelics?
Post it in the comments—your curiosity might just spark our next episode of Too Curious MDs.
Dr. Russell Kennedy is a physician, neuroscientist, and the author of the bestselling book Anxiety RX: A New Prescription for Anxiety Relief From the Doctor Who Created It.
Known as The Anxiety MD, he merges medical science, developmental psychology, and somatic practice to create an integrative framework for healing anxiety. Dr. Kennedy’s approach was born from his own struggle with anxiety and panic, shaped by early trauma and years in conventional medicine. His MBRX method helps people move from mental rumination to body-based safety through awareness, compassion, and reconnection.
Outside the clinic, he brings a unique twist to medicine—as a former stand-up comedian and certified yoga instructor, he infuses humor and humility into healing, reminding us that laughter, breath, and curiosity are also forms of medicine.
Learn more about Dr. Kennedy’s work at https://www.theanxietymd.com
Dr. Russell Kennedy, MD
Website: https://dr-russ.com/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/theanxietymd
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theanxietymd
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drrusskennedy/
Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@theanxietymd
Author of "Anxiety Rx" – Get the book
Dr. Alya Ahmad, MD, FAAP
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alya-ahmad-md-0601b190/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shamynds/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shamynds
Website: https://shamynds.com/
Dr. Suraiya Simi Rahman, MD, FAAP
Website: https://palamedicine.com/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraiya-rahman-palamedicine/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pala_medicine/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/palamedicine.pasadena/
Too Curious MDs
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toocuriousmds?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TooCuriousMDs
Produced by DrTalks: https://drtalks.com/podcast-service/
53 min - Opening the Gift of Life: A Psychoanalyst's Perspective on Healing
In this episode of Too Curious MDs, Dr. Thomas Brod joins us to explore ketamine as a new kind of dreaming,’ ego dissolution, unitive experiences, and how safety, love, and loosening rigid defenses can open us back up to ourselves and the world.
Dr. Thomas Brod is a psychoanalyst and ketamine clinician who weaves together neuroscience, depth psychology, and poetics in his work with patients. An English major who always knew he would become a psychoanalyst, he later immersed himself in neurofeedback and EEG, bringing a brain-based curiosity to questions of dreaming, consciousness, and change.
With thousands of hours of ketamine-assisted psychotherapy, Dr. Tom has developed a distinctive approach that blends psychoanalytic treatment with a focus on consciousness, dreaming, and brain-based insights. His evolving invocation, ‘Open the Gift of Life’, guides patients through ketamine journeys to loosen defenses, rediscover awe, and reconnect with the ordinary as sacred.
Dr. Thomas M. Brod, MD
Website:DrThomasBrod.info
Website: EEGym.com
LinkedIn: Linkedin.com/in/thomasbrodmd
Dr. Alya Ahmad, MD, FAAP
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alya-ahmad-md-0601b190/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shamynds/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shamynds
Website: https://shamynds.com/
Dr. Suraiya Simi Rahman, MD, FAAP
Website: https://palamedicine.com/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraiya-rahman-palamedicine/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pala_medicine/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/palamedicine.pasadena/
Too Curious MDs
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toocuriousmds?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TooCuriousMDs
Produced by DrTalks: https://drtalks.com/podcast-service/
1 hr 1 min - Reclaiming Your Story: A Ketamine Therapy Transformation
In this episode of Too Curious MDs, Lindsey joins us to share her experience with the ketamine-assisted psychotherapy program at ShaMynds. Tune in as she talks about how childhood and relationship trauma shaped her life, how ketamine-assisted psychotherapy and equine therapy helped her reclaim safety, trust, and self, and how that healing journey led her to become a therapist-in-training who now helps others find their own path forward.
Lindsey Phipps is a trauma survivor and therapist-in-training whose life has been shaped by both early childhood trauma and an abusive relationship during her formative years. After years of feeling unsafe, fragmented, and stuck in PTSD patterns, she entered a ketamine-assisted psychotherapy program at ShaMynds and experienced a profound shift in her sense of power, safety, and self, an experience she describes as life-saving.
Inspired by that journey, she returned to graduate school in March 2024 to become a therapist and is now in an internship, practicing as a therapist trainee. With an undergraduate degree in equine science and hands-on experience in equine-assisted psychotherapy, she blends her love of horses with a passion for trauma-informed care, ecotherapy, and ketamine-assisted psychotherapy. Lindsey is committed to helping others heal without being re-traumatized, using nature, animals, and carefully paced inner work to support people walking a path she knows intimately.
Dr. Alya Ahmad, MD, FAAP
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alya-ahmad-md-0601b190/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shamynds/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shamynds
Website: https://shamynds.com/
Dr. Suraiya Simi Rahman, MD, FAAP
Website: https://palamedicine.com/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraiya-rahman-palamedicine/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pala_medicine/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/palamedicine.pasadena/
Too Curious MDs
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toocuriousmds?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TooCuriousMDs
Produced by DrTalks: https://drtalks.com/podcast-service/
1 hr 13 min - When Pets Mirror Their Humans: The Hidden Health Connection
Your pet feels your stress more than you think. In this episode of Too Curious MDs, Dr. Nadine Encarnacion joins us to explore the connection between our mental health and the physical and emotional wellness of our pets. Tune in as we dive into how animals often mirror their humans’ stress, illness, and environment, and how caring for ourselves can also help heal our furry family members.
Dr. Nadine Encarnacion is a licensed veterinarian and intuitive strategist who has spent over a decade on the front lines of veterinary medicine, from kennel attendant and emergency room team lead to a licensed doctor of veterinary medicine. Known for her keen pattern recognition, she weaves clinical expertise with trauma awareness and body-based intuition to spot what others miss in the exam room. She helps pet parents understand how their own stress, habits, and environments shape their animals’ health, teaching a form of ‘intuitive self-defense’ that includes reading the room, grounding the nervous system, and caring for the human–animal bond as a shared ecosystem.
Dr. Nadine Encarnacion
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/nadine-encarnacion-3b28b197
Dr. Alya Ahmad, MD, FAAP
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alya-ahmad-md-0601b190/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shamynds/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shamynds
Website: https://shamynds.com/
Dr. Suraiya Simi Rahman, MD, FAAP
Website: https://palamedicine.com/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraiya-rahman-palamedicine/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pala_medicine/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/palamedicine.pasadena/
Too Curious MDs
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toocuriousmds?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TooCuriousMDs
Produced by DrTalks: https://drtalks.com/podcast-service/
58 min - Energy Powerhouse: Mitochondria and More!
What if you could mimic exercise… without exercising? In this episode of Too Curious MDs, Dr. Sundeep Dugar joins us to explore mitochondria as the true engine of human life. He shares the story behind discovering a new endogenous mitochondrial steroid and a plant compound that mimics exercise by boosting mitochondrial biogenesis.
Dr. Sundeep Dugar is a veteran drug discoverer with more than three decades of experience developing therapies across oncology, cardiovascular, and metabolic disease. He is the co-founder of BlueOakNx and has held leadership roles at Schering-Plough, Bristol-Myers Squibb, and Johnson and Johnson, where he contributed to major milestones, including the acquisition of Scios and the global licensing of Xarelto.
Best known as the co-inventor of the blockbuster cholesterol-lowering drugs Zetia and Vytorin, he has earned multiple awards recognizing his contributions to chemistry and pharmaceutical innovation. He received his doctorate from UC Davis and completed postdoctoral research at ETH Zurich and Cornell University. His current work focuses on mitochondrial health and the discovery of natural compounds that support cellular energy and resilience.
Sundeep Dugar, PhD
Website: blueoaknx.com
Facebook: facebook.com/blueoaknx
Instagram: instagram.com/blueoaknx
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/blueoaknx
Dr. Alya Ahmad, MD, FAAP
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alya-ahmad-md-0601b190/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shamynds/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shamynds
Website: https://shamynds.com/
Dr. Suraiya Simi Rahman, MD, FAAP
Website: https://palamedicine.com/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraiya-rahman-palamedicine/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pala_medicine/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/palamedicine.pasadena/
Too Curious MDs
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toocuriousmds?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TooCuriousMDs
Produced by DrTalks: https://drtalks.com/podcast-service/
1 hr 18 min - Ketamine as a Spiritual Technology with Philip Wolfson
Is psychedelic therapy safe for teens? The answer is layered and essential to understand. In this episode of Too Curious MDs, Dr. Philip Wolfson joins us to share how ketamine-assisted psychotherapy can help adolescents move from suicidality, trauma, and arrested development toward autonomy, balance, and kindness. We also talk about the risks, boundaries, and ethics of working with a powerful medicine in young people.
Dr. Philip Wolfson is a psychiatrist, psychotherapist, and long-standing leader in psychedelic medicine whose career spans more than five decades. Trained at Brandeis University and NYU School of Medicine, he brings deep expertise in family systems work, group therapy, forensic psychiatry, and alternatives to traditional inpatient care.
A pioneer in the early legal days of MDMA psychotherapy and a founding member of the Heffter Research Institute, he later served as Principal Investigator for the MAPS-sponsored MDMA study for people with life-threatening illnesses. His writing on psychedelics, spirituality, politics, and trauma has shaped conversations far beyond psychiatry, and his practice continues to blend contemplative traditions with clinical innovation.
Dr. Wolfson has also led projects in complementary medicine, earned multiple patents in herbal therapeutics, and founded a major green-lighting technology company. He brings a rare mix of scientific rigor, artistic creativity, and spiritual depth to the field and to every patient and family he serves.
Dr. Philip WolfsonWebsite: philwolfsonmd.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/philip-e-wolfson-md-85ba6833
Dr. Alya Ahmad, MD, FAAP
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alya-ahmad-md-0601b190/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shamynds/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shamynds
Website: https://shamynds.com/
Dr. Suraiya Simi Rahman, MD, FAAP
Website: https://palamedicine.com/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraiya-rahman-palamedicine/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pala_medicine/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/palamedicine.pasadena/
Too Curious MDs
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toocuriousmds?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TooCuriousMDs
Produced by DrTalks: https://drtalks.com/podcast-service/
1 hr 2 min - Breaking The Cycle: A Veteran's Journey of Healing, Purpose and Transformation
Ketamine didn’t erase his past—it gave it purpose. In this episode of Too Curious MDs, Pranil Shankar, a veteran, author, and advocate, shares how ketamine-assisted therapy helped him break long-standing cycles of fear and grief after decades of trial-and-error care. He emphasizes the importance of safety, trust, and integration practices such as journaling and meditation in transforming one's purpose, relationships, parenting, and community service.
Pranil Shankar is a veteran, author, entrepreneur, and mental-health advocate whose healing journey with ketamine-assisted therapy inspired his book Breaking the Cycle. After two decades of conventional care, he found transformation through a therapeutic process emphasizing safety, trust, and integration. Pranil donates all proceeds from his book to efforts that prevent school shootings and protect children. Professionally, he works in security and safety and founded Spade Security Services to bring advanced protective tools to communities. He also serves his city through arts and civic boards, focusing on building safer, more connected neighborhoods.
Pranil ShankarWebsite: spadesecurityservices.com/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/pranilshankar/
Dr. Alya Ahmad, MD, FAAP
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alya-ahmad-md-0601b190/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shamynds/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shamynds
Website: https://shamynds.com/
Dr. Suraiya Simi Rahman, MD, FAAP
Website: https://palamedicine.com/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraiya-rahman-palamedicine/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pala_medicine/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/palamedicine.pasadena/
Too Curious MDs
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toocuriousmds?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TooCuriousMDs
Produced by DrTalks: https://drtalks.com/podcast-service/
43 min - From PTSD to Peak Performance: Rebalancing the Brain with TMS
Can tuning your brain’s rhythm unlock healing? In this episode of Too Curious MDs, Dr. Kevin Murphy joins Drs. Simi Rahman and Alya Ahmad to explore how personalized transcranial magnetic stimulation (Peak Logic pTMS) is redefining brain care—from PTSD and autism to chronic pain and peak performance. Discover how this data-driven approach uses EEG-guided frequencies to restore balance, optimize function, and bridge the gap between neuroscience and human experience.
Kevin Murphy, MD, is a board-certified radiation oncologist who specializes in treating tumors of the central nervous system (CNS), or brain and spinal cord. Dr. Murphy founded the Stereotactic Radiosurgery Program at UCSD in 2005. His expertise includes using novel technologies such as frameless stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS), intensity modulated stereotactic radiosurgery (IM-SRS) and hypo-fractionated stereotactic radiosurgery to treat brain tumors in both adults and children.
Dr. Murphy has co-authored several book chapters and many abstracts and peer-reviewed articles on behalf of UCSD. His work has appeared in the Journal of Neuro-Oncology, Translational Cancer Research, and Practical Radiation Oncology, among others. He is a frequent speaker at both national and international medical conferences, having over 100 invited lectures in 23 countries.
More recently, Dr. Murphy founded PeakLogic, a medical software company, and MindSet Treatment Center, both based in San Diego. He has gained wide expertise over the last 5 years in the emerging field of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), and has created a proprietary, personalized approach to rTMS treatment termed PrTMS. Dr. Murphy uses PrTMS at MindSet and is well regarded by Navy SEALs veterans and pro athletes who have an interest in maintaining high-level human performance.Dr. Alya Ahmad, MD, FAAP
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alya-ahmad-md-0601b190/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shamynds/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shamynds
Website: https://shamynds.com/
Dr. Suraiya Simi Rahman, MD, FAAP
Website: https://palamedicine.com/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraiya-rahman-palamedicine/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pala_medicine/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/palamedicine.pasadena/
Too Curious MDs
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toocuriousmds?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TooCuriousMDs
Produced by DrTalks: https://drtalks.com/podcast-service/
1 hr 14 min - Music, Neuroscience, and Community
Can music, mindfulness, and psychedelics rewire the brain—and your identity? In this episode of Too Curious MDs, Dr. AZA Allsop joins us to explore how music, mindfulness, and psychedelics intersect to accelerate identity change, neuroplasticity, and healing. He also shares findings from his music–mindfulness research and a vision for scalable and community-based group interventions.
Dr. AZA Allsop is an artist, neuroscientist, and psychiatrist whose work bridges social cognition, music-mindfulness, and psychedelics to relieve mental suffering and boost overall health. He studied biology, philosophy, and jazz studies at North Carolina Central University, earned his doctor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, doctorate in neuroscience at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and was an Emerson Scholar at Berklee College of Music. At Yale, he completed a psychiatry residency, served as co-chief resident of the Clinical Neuroscience Research Unit, and earned certification in psychedelic therapy and research. He is currently an assistant professor of psychiatry at Yale and director of the Center for Collective Healing at Howard University. A teacher of meditation, yoga, and music, he also co-founded organizations that fuse arts, science, and community to drive social change.
Dr. AZA Allsop, MD, PhD
Website: www.azalab.org
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/azaallsopmdphd
Instagram: www.instagram.com/azathemessenger
Twitter: x.com/azaallsop
Dr. Alya Ahmad, MD, FAAP
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alya-ahmad-md-0601b190/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shamynds/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shamynds
Website: https://shamynds.com/
Dr. Suraiya Simi Rahman, MD, FAAP
Website: https://palamedicine.com/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraiya-rahman-palamedicine/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pala_medicine/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/palamedicine.pasadena/
Too Curious MDs
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toocuriousmds?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TooCuriousMDs
Produced by DrTalks: https://drtalks.com/podcast-service/
56 min
About Too Curious MDs
From the publisher's feed
Curiosity fuels discovery, and in medicine, it’s the key to transformation. Too Curious MDs explores the frontiers of healing through narrative medicine, integrative therapies, psychedelics, and patient-centered care.
Hosted by Dr. Alya Ahmad and Dr. Suraiya Simi Rahman, this podcast challenges the boundaries of traditional medicine, uncovering the untold stories, ethical dilemmas, and groundbreaking research shaping the future of healthcare.
Join the journey—because medicine is more than science; it’s a story.