Therapy For Real Life Podcast

The holidays are upon us, which usually includes a lot of happy celebrations. This year, however, canceled plans, shelter in place, and abundant caution are called for to reduce the spread of COVID-19. The holidays can also bring a lot of difficult emotional triggers, such as painful memories, grief for family members who can’t be with us, or challenging dynamics with those who are with us. Listen to Therapy For Real Life host Anna Lindberg Cedar MPA, LCSW as she describes tiny self-care actions that you can take in the midst the holiday ups and downs. Personalize your own self-care plan so that you can enjoy the upcoming holidays to their fullest. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. TherapyForRealLife.com This is a rebroadcast of an episode that was released last year prior to the current global pandemic and includes minor updates.

Host Anna Lindberg Cedar, MPA, LCSW talks with Lisa Feldman Barrett, PhD who explains how neuroscience can help you better understand your physical needs and their associated moods. Dr. Barrett shares the analogy of the “body budget” to explain that the brain’s core function is to regulate complex needs in the body. She goes on to describe how difficult moods can serve as an abstraction of these needs, giving you important cues to care for yourself. Dr. Barrett explains that a difficult mood may not necessarily be the sign of a psychological defect, and shares suggestions for how individuals can use emotional intelligence to better interpret their physical needs. Listen in for a discussion of how to understand your own body budget and survive in an environment that constantly saps the body’s resources. Dr. Barrett’s latest book, “Seven and a Half Lessons About the Brain” will be released the same week that this episode airs. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. TherapyForRealLife.com

Randy Wolbert, LMSW, CAADC, CCS joins the Therapy For Real Life Podcast to discuss where behavior therapy and mindful spiritual practices align. Randy shares his own path to Zen, which overlaps with a long career in providing Dialectical Behavior Therapy, clinical supervision, and DBT trainings around the world. Host Anna Lindberg Cedar, MPA, LCSW asks Randy to explain how DBT's core theories trace back to Zen. Randy gives examples of the many dialectical tensions that arise in mindfulness practice.  Listeners will enjoy this discussion of mindfulness concepts whether they are curious from psychological or spiritual perspectives. Today's show explains that total wellness can be one and the same. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. Therapy For Real Life. Learn more: TherapyForRealLife.com or WorkshopsForRealLife.com . 

Get organized in your self-care with the Therapy For Real Life Podcast by learning about tools from Problem Solving Therapy in today’s episode. Host Anna Lindberg Cedar MPA, LCSW helps you get strategic in your approach to self-care by setting up simple routines to support decision making. Anna explains why stress is so disorienting and how feeling competent with problem solving can help protect your mood. Learn from concepts adapted from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to help you improve your own self-care routine and get started during this episode. Finish today’s show by practicing a guided meditation to help you make up your mind in spite of stress. Make self-care part of something radically better in your life. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. TherapyForRealLife.com [This episode was originally broadcast in January of 2020.]

Christie Tate was at the top of her class in law school when she started to fantasize about her own death. Tate shares her experiences in her book, Group: How One Therapist and a Circle of Strangers Saved My Life. Therapy For Real Life Host Anna Lindberg Cedar MPA, LCSW interviews the author about how group therapy helped her find intimacy in her most important relationships and recognize when her needs aren’t being met. Tate describes how her relationships in group therapy became fundamental to understanding herself. Contemplate the risks that you would be willing to take in pursuit of healthier relationships as you consider the tensions in intimacy that this episode explores. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. Therapy For Real Life. Learn more: TherapyForRealLife.com or WorkshopsForRealLife.com .

Anne Helen Petersen is the author of "Can't Even: How Millennials Became The Burnout Generation" and joins the Therapy For Real Life Podcast for a discussion of the systems that cause burnout. Petersen describes the sensation of burnout as life’s "one long never-ending to-do list." The author previously described her personal experience with burnout in a 2019 BuzzFeed piece that went viral and provoked tired sighs of recognition around the world. Host Anna Lindberg Cedar MPA, LCSW talks with Petersen about why millennials get blamed for their own burnout, what’s lacking in current definitions of burnout, and why burnout has become so pervasive. Petersen shares examples of ways to resist burnout culture by creating mutual aid and systems of sustainability. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. Therapy For Real Life. Learn more: TherapyForRealLife.com and WorkshopsForRealLife.com .

Research shows that even a 20 minute mini-vacation can help alleviate stress during times of crisis or burnout. Host Anna Lindberg Cedar MPA LCSW describes how to adapt Dialectical Behavior Therapy concepts into actionable self-care strategies. This episode explains the importance of adapting pleasure during moments of crisis to sustain oneself for difficult times ahead. Anna describes her own pandemic vacation and invites you to design one too using creativity in the context you have. Learn how these same self-care strategies have been used to help folks cope with harsh conditions, such as living in detention, recovering from trauma, or living with fear of future harm. Start scheduling your own pandemic vacation to adapt these self-care strategies for your own life. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. TherapyForRealLife.com [This episode was originally broadcast in April of 2020.]

Grounding exercises are a way to stabilize strong emotions during stress, anxiety, or trauma recovery. Grounding allows you to focus your attention on a single sensation in the present moment, and can be used to calm the mind and body after a stressful event. Listen in as burnout prevention therapist Anna Lindberg Cedar MPA LCSW explains the basics of grounding, and gives you a list of 15 example grounding exercises. Practice along with the Therapy For Real Life podcast as you try out what grounding exercises work best to help you feel calm, safe, and relaxed. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. Learn more: TherapyForRealLife.com [This episode was originally broadcast in April of 2019.]

Our definition of “normal” is going through a dramatic shift as we move most of our personal and work interactions online as a result of COVID-19 containment efforts. Decreased in-person interaction and increased use of technology can exacerbate feelings of isolation and burnout. It is not uncommon to hear folks say, “I don’t feel like myself anymore.” Therapy For Real Life Podcast host Anna Lindberg Cedar, MPA, LCSW shares research-backed tips to help you protect a sense of self with healthy boundaries and safely navigate productivity and relationships online. In this episode, participate in a few simple guided meditations and reflect on your own priorities as you structure your time. Reserve a time for calm. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. Therapy For Real Life. Learn more: TherapyForRealLife.com or WorkshopsForRealLife.com .

Therapy For Real Life Podcast welcomes clinical psychologists Danyelle Dawson, Yara Mekawi, and Natalie Watson-Singleton for a discussion of anti-racism and organizational psychology. Today’s panel co-founded The D.E.A.R. Project and recently published an article on Medium titled “How To Not Be A Karen: Managing The Tensions Of AntiRacist Allyship.” (Found here: https://bit.ly/31fqsLT ). The panelists share their perspectives on integrating research-backed therapy methods with anti-racist education and allyship. The group discusses the limitations of individual therapy and push for strategies that promote broader systemic change. Dialectical Behavior Therapy was originally developed by Marsha Linehan, PhD, who is known for adapting mindfulness concepts into her research-backed work to help individuals “build a life worth living.” Host Anna Lindberg Cedar, MPA, LCSW invites today’s guests to critique the bounds of current therapy best practices through an anti-racist lens. This is not therapy. This is Real Lif

Therapy For Real Life Podcast welcomes speech and language expert Professor Katherine Kinzler to the show to discuss her book — How You Say It: Why You Talk The Way You Do And What It Says About You. She shares research from social psychology and beyond to improve understanding about the complex ways we express identity through speech and language. Professor Kinzler talks with host Anna Lindberg Cedar, MPA, LCSW about practical ways that individuals can make sense of their own language context and support healthy cross-cultural conversation. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. Therapy For Real Life. Learn more about self-care and burnout prevention tools at: TherapyForRealLife.com or WorkshopsForRealLife.com .

Host Anna Lindberg Cedar, MPA, LCSW continues this two-part series of Relationship Superpowers (drawn from Dialectical Behavior Therapy) to share effective communication strategies. Learn how mindfulness can boost your effectiveness in communicating your needs more clearly. Personalize research-backed methods to improve communication and understanding in your relationships. Stay tuned for future episodes that will include expert interviews to deepen our understanding of effective communication to get our needs met. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. Learn more: TherapyForRealLife.com or WorkshopsForRealLife.com .

Good communication is an exercise in reality acceptance. Host Anna Lindberg Cedar, MPA, LCSW shares her thoughts on the need for effective listening skills right now as part of broader systemic change. This episode is the first in a two-part series of Relationship Superpowers (drawn from Dialectical Behavior Therapy). Learn how to use mindful self-care skills to improve communication and understanding in your relationships. Most importantly, learn what it takes to show others that they have been authentically heard. Stay tuned for the second half of the series in next week’s episode: How To Ask For What You Want. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. Learn more: TherapyForRealLife.com

Intense feelings can overwhelm our ability to make good decisions during a crisis or difficult mood. It is common to feel stuck or unsure of what to do when mixed feelings arise. Therapy For Real Life host Anna Lindberg Cedar MPA, LCSW shares practical mood tracking tips to help you make sense of the seasons of your mood and take strategic action. This episode includes interactive self-care exercises drawn and adapted from Dialectical Behavior Therapy, including the foundational Wise Mind meditation practice, to help you develop greater self-awareness to better respond to your own needs. Mood tracking is not a replacement for therapy, but is often used in self-care practices to boost holistic burnout prevention. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. TherapyForRealLife.com . Learn about workplace workshops and self-care events: WorkshopsForRealLife.com .

Therapy For Real Life Podcast defines burnout and gives practical ways to interrupt systems of burnout in this re-broadcast of one of the series’ most popular episodes. Host Anna Lindberg Cedar MPA, LCSW critiques current definitions and expands the concept of burnout to make it more inclusive and intersectional. This episode deconstructs burnout as a social concept to highlight the role that systems of oppression play in our daily experiences of burnout. Anna cautions listeners against over-pathologizing individuals who experience burnout, and to focus on practical ways to interrupt that process of burnout instead. Tune into this conversation to personalize what successful burnout prevention looks like for you and your community. This is not therapy. This Is Real Life. Learn more about self-care and therapy resources: TherapyForRealLife.com or get in touch to discuss burnout prevention training for your team: WorkshopsForRealLife.com [This episode was first broadcast in October of 2019. Many of the startling

Self-care and political action are both essential for true burnout prevention to become a meaningful reality in our daily lives. Yet, political strife and injustice, combined with the immediacy of the issues we face, can lead to a feeling of overwhelm, stuckness, and despair about one's relationship to power. Therapy For Real Life host Anna Lindberg Cedar MPA, LCSW explains that self-care is a powerful tool for justice when it is used in an intersectional way. Learn practical ways to infuse research-backed self-care into your efforts to create change in your life, in your community, and in your relationships.  Burnout prevention is ultimately a choice of values. How will you ensure burnout prevention in your own efforts to create a more just and peaceful world? This if not therapy. This is Real Life. TherapyForRealLife.com . Learn about Therapy For Real Life's online self-care and burnout prevention training options: WorkshopsForRealLife.com . 

Therapy For Real Life Podcast asks: “How can you tell the difference between anxiety and fear?” Take a moment now to do your own mood check as you learn about functional vs unhealthy signs of anxiety and stress. Learn how to interrupt the anxiety cycle as host Anna Lindberg Cedar MPA, LCSW translates therapy research into actionable self-care strategies for everyday use. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. Learn more about therapy resources, self-care tips, and burnout prevention services at TherapyForRealLife.com . [This episode was originally broadcast in September 2019.]

What is a mood? Therapy For Real Life Podcast host Anna Lindberg Cedar MPA, LCSW breaks down biopsychosocial theory to explain how a mood is inseparable from the context around us. Tune in to learn how Dialectical Behavior Therapy frames the biological, psychological and contextual factors that make up a mood. Then, think about the resources that you have available in your context to help you regulate your moods in an integrated way.... because: Self-care goes everywhere. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. TherapyForRealLife.com

Families are struggling to create a sense of normalcy during these unprecedented and challenging times. Therapy For Real Life Podcast show host Anna Lindberg Cedar MPA LCSW adapts burnout prevention concepts into self-care strategies for the whole family in this special episode for parents. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. TherapyForRealLife.com

Research shows that even a 20 minute mini-vacation can help alleviate stress during times of crisis or burnout. Host Anna Lindberg Cedar MPA LCSW describes how to adapt Dialectical Behavior Therapy concepts into actionable self-care strategies. This episode explains the importance of adapting pleasure during moments of crisis to sustain oneself for difficult times ahead. Anna describes her own pandemic vacation and invites you to design one too using creativity in the context you have. Learn how these same self-care strategies have been used to help folks cope with harsh conditions, such as living in detention, recovering from trauma, or living with fear of future harm. Start scheduling your own pandemic vacation to adapt these self-care strategies for your own life. This is not therapy. This is Real Life. TherapyForRealLife.com