Why in the World

EPISODE #15 - Dr. Karen Maroda - The Analyst's Vulnerability

Every once in a while, as a psychotherapist you come across an author who’s work really resonates with you. It challenges, inspires, and makes a mark on your own way of practicing. For me, Dr. Karen Maroda is one of those authors.

Dr. Maroda is a psychologist and psychoanalyst in private practice in Milwaukee, WI. She is the Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the Medical College of Wisconsin and is the author of four books including:

1. The Power of Countertransference
2. Seduction, Surrender, and Transformation
3. Psychodynamic Techniques
4. The Analyst’s Vulnerability, which was just released earlier this year

I first read her work in 2005 while in Grad School to become a therapist and was immediately drawn in. I have returned to her books countless times throughout my career and almost always recommend them to therapists I supervise or consult with.

Throughout her work, but particularly in her new book, The Analyst’s Vulnerability (Great Title, BTW) there is a consistent call to therapists examine our own motivations for being therapists, to let go of the need to be perfect, to embrace our own humanity, and to show up with our patients in a deeply authentic, courageous and relational way. She often pushes against whatever the current popular fad in our field happens to be, and points out that we therapists are prone to avoid conflict by hiding behind our theories, techniques, and tools. In her new book she writes, “We have never focused on the natural conflicts that arise in any relationship, including the analytic one, in part because it would necessitate the examination of our own needs, desires, and shortcomings” (Maroda, 2022, p. 102).

In my opinion, this book is a must read for any psychotherapist who takes seriously the idea that our patients are far more than symptoms, thoughts, behaviors and who believe that our role in the work is far more dynamic than simply providing advice and solutions.

I hope you enjoy my conversation with Dr. Karen Maroda as much as I did! Thank you for listening.

Links for Dr. Maroda

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karen-j-maroda-ph-d-abpp-b1679263

Website: https://www.karenmaroda.com/

Why in the World Podcast on Instagram

Bryan Nixon is a psychotherapist and the founder and clinical director of Mindful Counseling GR in Grand Rapids, MI. He is also a teacher and facilitator in Relationally Focused Psychodynamic Therapy, a post-grad continuing education program for therapists.

Episode #17 - Dr. Galit Atlas - Emotional Inheritance

“The people we love and those who raised us live inside us; we experience their emotional pain, we dream their memories, we know what was not explicitly conveyed to us, and these things shape our lives in ways that we don't always understand.” - Dr. Galit Atlas (2022, p. 11)

Dr. Galit Atlas is a psychoanalyst and clinical supervisor in private practice in New York City. She is on the faculty of the New York University Postdoctoral Program in Psychotherapy & Psychoanalysis. Dr. Atlas has published three books for clinicians and numerous articles and book chapters that focus primarily on gender and sexuality. Her New York Times publication “A Tale of Two Twins” was the winner of a 2016 Gradiva Award. A leader in the field of relational psychoanalysis, Dr. Atlas is a recipient of the André François Research Award and the NADTA Research Award. She teaches and lectures throughout the United States and internationally.

I first encountered her work in 2018 in her book Dramatic Dialogue which was co-authored with her life partner, the late Lew Aaron. I found her writing to be both accessible and honoring of the unending complexity and mystery that emerges in each therapeutic relationship.

I had the good fortune of sitting down with her via Zoom to discuss her latest book, Emotional Inheritance: A Therapist, Her Patients, and the Legacy of Trauma. This is her first book written for the general public and she has done a beautiful and heart-ful job of taking complex psychoanalytic ideas and making them relatable by way of the clinical and personal tales that fill the pages. I couldn't put this book down and would strongly encourage you to get a copy. she also narrated the audiobook if that is more your style.

Thank you for listening and please enjoy my conversation with Dr. Galit Atlas.

If you enjoy this podcast, I would be extremely grateful if you would take a moment to give it a rating on iTunes.

Find Dr. Atlas online:

Instagram: @galit_atlas

Facebook Author Page: Galit Atlas

Website: https://www.galitatlas.com/

New Book: Emotional Inheritance: A Therapist, Her Patients, and the Legacy of Trauma

Links:

Relationally Focused Psychodynamic Therapy (RFPT) - Post-grad continuing education program for psychotherapists that I teach in and mentioned at the end of this episode. We have opened enrollment for the Fall 2022 cohort. If you’re a therapist and want to learn more, I’d love to chat with you! Send me an email at: [email protected]. Relationally Focused Psychodynamic Therapy (RFPT) is an evidence-based treatment approach with strong roots in depth psychology (particularly contemporary Relational Psychoanalysis), dialogical philosophy, and neuroscience. As of December 2018, the Society for the Advancement of Psychotherapy has set forth policy recommendations that evidence-based therapy relationships and responsiveness be taught as frequently as other evidence-based treatments. (Reference: Norcross, J. C., & Lambert, M. J. (2019). Psychotherapy Relationships that work III. Psychotherapy, 55,4, p. 303-315). The RFPT certificate program is a direct response to these policy recommendations.

Why in the World Podcast on Instagram

Bryan Nixon is a psychotherapist and the founder and clinical director of Mindful Counseling GR in Grand Rapids, MI. He is also a teacher and facilitator in Relationally Focused Psychodynamic Therapy, a post-grad continuing education program for therapists.

In this episode I sit down with my friend and fellow psychotherapist, April Kaiserlian. April is a Licensed Master of Social Work in private practice in Grand Rapids, MI and is a Mindfulness teacher and co-founder of the Grand Rapids Center for Mindfulness. We discuss themes of turning towards suffering rather than numbing or avoiding. April references the poem Birdwings by Rumi that I wanted to post here for you to read. Let these words in:

Birdwings

Your grief for what you've lost lifts a mirror

up to where you're bravely working.

Expecting the worst, you look, and instead,

here's the joyful face you've been wanting to see.

Your hand opens and closes and opens and closes.

If it were always a fist or always stretched open,

you would be paralyzed.

Your deepest presence is in every small contracting and expanding

the two as beautifully balanced and coordinated

as birdwings.

--Rumi

Connect with April

Web:

https://www.aprilkaiserlian.com/

https://www.grandrapidscenterformindfulness.com/

IG:

https://www.instagram.com/aprilkaiserlian/

Bryan Nixon is a psychotherapist and the founder and clinical director of Mindful Counseling GR in Grand Rapids, MI. He is also a teacher and facilitator in Relationally Focused Psychodynamic Therapy, a post-grad continuing education program for therapists.

In this episode I sit down with my friend Jenny Bremer just days before she packed up her life in Grand Rapids, MI, jumped into her car with her dog and drove to Santa Fe. It was such a rich conversation exploring themes of self-awareness, unconscious patterns, suffering, freedom, and truth.

Connect with Jenny:

Web: Remembered Practice I’m Just Curious Podcast

IG: https://www.instagram.com/rememberedpractice/

https://www.instagram.com/theimjustcuriouspodcast/

Bryan Nixon is a psychotherapist and the founder and clinical director of Mindful Counseling GR in Grand Rapids, MI. He is also a teacher and facilitator in Relationally Focused Psychodynamic Therapy, a post-grad continuing education program for therapists.

In this episode I chat with my life-long friend, Dr. Scott Graves to discuss action, hope, empowerment, and love in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic that currently has us all huddled up in a much more isolated way than we are typically used to. We explore how to care for ourselves physically, emotionally, and spiritually in such an unprecedented time. Dr. Scott is an acupuncture physician and holds a master's in counseling and theology. He is the founder of Triune Wellness Center in Orlando, FL and is the creator of the online course entitled Total Gut Transformation (www.TotalGutTransformation.com).

If you are finding yourself overwhelmed by the stress, anxiety, and isolation that is currently coursing through all of humanity right now, consider the following options:

1. Schedule a confidential online therapy session with one of our amazing therapists at Mindful Counseling GR (if you are a Michigan resident). For those of you who are out of state, you can find local therapists in your area who are also able to do video sessions during this time. Most insurance carriers are covering online sessions presently. If you have questions about what online therapy is like, check out this one minute video that helps to demystify the experience.

2. Reach out to Dr. Scott for an online appointment from anywhere in the US and get a FREE copy of his Complete Cold and Flu Guide. Additionally, you can pick up a copy of The Sedona Method on Amazon mentioned in the episode.

3. Download the Metafi App for free. It is a wonderful tool for tracking, and journaling your emotional experiences as they arise as bodily sensations in order to help to soothe and learn from them. Metafi was created by Mindful Counseling GR therapist, Benjamin Reisterer.

Additionally, many great yoga studios are putting their classes online for free. Moving your body is a great way to deal with stress. Use Google to search for free online yoga classes.

Bryan Nixon is a psychotherapist and the founder and clinical director of Mindful Counseling GR in Grand Rapids, MI. He is also a teacher and facilitator in Relationally Focused Psychodynamic Therapy, a post-grad continuing education program for therapists.