Send us a text In this episode we continue the discussion about recent advances in understanding and treating neuroplastic pain. Pain can exist on a spectrum between purely structural and purely neuroplastic, and many types of chronic pain might involve elements of both. We explore different clinical indicators that can point to the role of learnin…

Send us a text Recent developments in the area of neuropsychology have highlighted the role of neuroplasticity in the perception of chronic pain. In this episode we will first examine current research about neuroplasticity and how it relates to the perception of sensations within the body and the interpretation of these sensations as chronic pain. …

Send us a text Now we will take an in-depth look at one of the most controversial and difficult emotions for most people to experience: anger. Anger directed either at ourselves or in relation to other people is often at the core of many different issues that people bring into therapy. In today’s episode, we will start our exploration by delving fi…

Send us a text In this episode, we explore two fundamental principles in Clinical Psychology that have far-ranging implications for the way we feel, think, and relate to other people. These ideas are simple to understand, but they play an important role in diagnosing and treating a wide variety of mental disorders. First, we discuss the concept of …

Send us a text In this episode, we address the topic of Emotional Hijacking, a process where our emotions are stirred up in a way that we may struggle to make rational, healthy choices or engage in effective planning for our long-term benefit. We examine the meaning of the phrase, and we review and explain the neurophysiological basis behind the pr…

Send us a text I recently asked a group of people familiar with the podcast what subjects they would like to hear addressed in a future episode. With little hesitation, two people suggested the topic of Religious Trauma. This is a topic that comes up fairly regularly in therapy sessions. As a trauma specialist, I have met people who have been throu…

Send us a text It is impossible to go anywhere in life if we do not know where we want to go. In this episode, we explore a famous technique used throughout the history of psychotherapy to help people clarify their direction in life. Known by many names, this exercise is commonly referred to as the “Lottery Question.” By practicing this technique, …

Send us a text Although there are not as many books and resources about it, the topic of friendship comes up often in therapy. In a general sense, problems with friends and friendship fall into one of two broad categories: problems with the relationship dynamics in existing friendships, or the lack of friends and meaningful friendships. In this epi…

Send us a text This episode is an in-depth discussion of meditation as it is specifically used in Behavioral Health settings to produce positive effects on psychological well-being. First, we discuss what meditation is, starting with a good definition: that it is a practice in which an individual uses a technique to train attention and awareness, t…

Send us a text This second episode focusing on the experience of chronic pain focuses on how psychologists and counselors support the patient in pain treatment. We first discuss how a person being treated for chronic pain would come to also be in psychological treatment. There are two pathways: the patient may be referred by their treating physicia…

Send us a text In this episode we begin to explore the psychology of pain and pain management. We begin by discussing what pain is and what the function of pain is. We explore how acute, localized pain can develop into chronic, generalized pain. We then discuss the effect of chronic pain on the body and mind. Acute, localized pain will tend follow …

Send us a text In this fourth episode on the topic of trauma, we shift from discussing the impact of trauma exposure on individuals to a discussion of how it affects families and couples. First, we discuss the phenomenon of intergenerational trauma, in which the negative consequences of exposure are passed from the generation directly involved to s…

Send us a text In this episode we continue the discussion of trauma by focusing on the impact of early childhood traumatic exposure throughout the lifespan and into adulthood. Exposure to trauma in early childhood can carry through to adulthood and may present in one of the following experiences: obsolete decisions, misdiagnosis, and the “frozen se…

Send us a text In order to give hope and provide context to the healing process, in this episode we look at the three levels of coming back from a traumatic exposure: recovery, healing, and post-traumatic growth. In trauma recovery, the primary focus is on learning how to manage the symptoms that persist after exposure to traumatic stress. During t…

Send us a text In this episode we discuss the phenomenon of traumatic exposure in three parts. First, we define what trauma is and explore how the definition has changed and expanded over time. Second, we break down what is happening within our bodies when we are in the middle of a traumatic event. We discuss how the information associated with dan…

Send us a text In this episode we conclude our two-part look at the process of psychotherapy. We discuss how therapy can be seen to fail when a patient participates but does not experience any relief from their symptoms and how therapy can be seen to be “stuck” when the patient does not feel any sense of progress in their treatment. We examine the …

Send us a text In this episode we begin a two-part look at the process of psychotherapy. We define the process of talk therapy, and we discuss the roles and responsibilities of both the person seeking therapy and the person providing therapy. We explain the difference between the use of the terms “client” and “patient” and examine the context behin…

Send us a text Part Two: The Power of Patterns In the second part of this two-part series on relationships, we look at how repeating patterns of conflict are created in relationships, and we look at how to identify and address these negative cycles. First, we discuss how our earliest experiences as infants with our caregivers condition the neurophy…

Send us a text Part One: Attachment Theory In honor of February and Valentine’s Day, we begin a two-part exploration into how our past affects the quality of our relationships. In Part One, we begin by discussing attachment theory. Since its introduction in the 1950s and its refinement over the years, attachment theory has become the dominant view …

Send us a text Self esteem is a way of describing how we think and feel about ourselves and our worthiness. While low self-esteem (or low self-confidence) is not a specific diagnosis or separate pathology, it is often a component of mental health diagnoses. In addition, low self-esteem is a common complaint that comes up in the course of psychother…

Send us a text Have you made resolutions in the past, only to fall back into the same old patterns a little while later? Why do get trapped into patterns of failure? If we are to make changes for the better in our lives, we need to understand why we keep doing the same actions over and over again, even when we know they will result in failure. When…

Send us a text During this season, it is natural to evaluate the past year and to think about our plans for the new year. In the process of self-assessment, we should avoid the tendency to focus only on the negatives. Where we put our attention tends to expand and become confirmed by the information we filter into our conscious attention. Cognitive…

Send us a text The holiday season can be a time for happiness and creating good memories, but it can also be a time of stress. Unrealistic expectations, a lack of structure, and over-indulgence can put pressure on us and our ability to cope. If we travel to spend time with family we haven’t seen in a while, old family dynamics and dysfunction can t…

Send us a text Human beings learn by making mistakes and learning from them. Living in relationship with other people, we will inevitably end up hurting others and being hurt by other people. Therefore, it is crucial for our development and social survival that we understand and apply the technology of forgiveness. We must understand the process of…

Send us a text Communication is a shared process of conveying information between people. The goal of communication is to get our needs met. When communication breaks down, it often causes resistance, defensiveness, and anger between people. By learning an improved strategy, we can learn to identify and express our needs with others in a way that c…

Send us a text Once we have learned how to get some relief from repetitive negative thoughts, it frees us up to use our minds to improve important areas of our life. People have intuitively known for a long time that the quality of our thoughts impacts the body—for better or worse. Advances in research into neuroimmunology and epigenetics have show…

Send us a text Negative thinking can affect our mood, impact our behavior, and compromise our ability to effectively use our mind. When our mind is working for us, it helps us to solve problems, to generate creative ideas, and to organize and manage information and our time. When it is repeating distressing pictures or statements, our mind can beco…

Send us a text In this brief introduction to the Peace, Love, & Psychology podcast, I answer 3 general questions: Who am I? Why did I start this podcast? What do I hope you will get out of listening to it? Enjoy! Support the show Thank you for listening! Please subscribe and share with your friends. Recorded and edited at Studio 970West, Grand Junc…

Send us a text In this episode, we explore the meaning of emotions and discuss 4 common "negative" emotions that people often seek therapy about: sadness, fear, anger, and guilt. We discuss what these emotions are trying to tell us about our reality, and we cover some basic strategies for understanding these emotions. We also spend some time talkin…

Send us a text In Episode 2, we delve more deeply into the mechanisms behind compartmentalization: Resistance and Stress Intolerance. We explore what is happening when we push emotions away and discuss practical Mind and Body approaches to help us learn to tolerate emotions in order to hear what they are trying to tell us about our reality. Support…