Feeling Good Podcast | TEAM-CBT - The New Mood Therapy

Dating, Part 1 Navigating the Dreaded (But Sometimes Needed) Dating Apps! Today we started a series on one of my favorite topics: dating. When I was in clinical practice in Philadelphia, a large proportion of my patients self-identified as single, without partner, so this was one of my favorite problems to help people with, and why I wrote the book, Intimate Connections, which included my some of my personal experiences learning about dating during my medical school days at Stanford. Our special guests include our own TEAM CBT expert, Jacob Towery, MD, who presents the free annual two-day marathon on shyness called “Finding Humans Less Scary.” He will be presenting this program at Esalen as well from September 8 – 12, 2025. Check out the September 8 - 12 shyness workshop at the beautiful and dramatic Esalen in the Big Sur! We are also joined by two wonderful young ladies: Sydney, who graduated in 2024 from University of Santa Cruz, and Sophie, who recently graduated from UC Berkely. They will give us some first-hand experiences and suggestions in the navigation of dating apps. Jacob said that after his divorce in 2012, until 2020, he went on a lot of dating apps and met nearly 200 women this way, exploring both short and long-term types of dating. He said it is sometimes difficult to figure out what someone is really looking for on an app, whereas in person it is easier. The group described the tendency to treat people as objects and ghost them when you decide you’re not interested. He recommended, instead, to treat people with dignity and care, even if you’re not romantically interested in them. He said that whether you’ve been on one or many dates, don’t just ghost someone. Instead, you can let someone down gently if you aren’t interested. For example, at the end of a first date in which you don’t find yourself attracted to the other person, you could say “I didn’t feel a spark but I enjoyed our time together. Thanks for hanging out with me.” This will make it clear to the other person you won’t be asking for another date, but in a kind way, and prevents them wondering for days if you will ask them out again. In addition, he advised that initially, don’t just text people back and forth endlessly. Instead, get into real life ASAP. Meet them for coffee or ice cream or whatever would be fun. That way you can find out whether or not there’s a spark of interest. Jacob also recommended using a recent photo of yourself. If you use an older photo of yourself, the other person may be disappointed when they meet you! Jacob recommended being honest about what your interests are, and what you are looking for. Are you just looking for casual dating? Are you only looking for something that may evolve into a long term relationship? Are you interested in having children? What are your interests or hobbies? The group discussed many topics, like is it okay for a woman to take the initiative and ask people out they are interested in? It’s easy to get overwhelmed by having too many offers, too many to select from. And the whole process can be incredibly exhausting. How do you make conversation in a way that will turn the other person on and make them interested in you? What’s the secret? How do you overcome the fear of rejection? And what if you protect yourself from the fear of rejection by hiding personal information about yourself. For example, you may think that if you didn’t really open up to the other person, their rejection will be less painful because they didn’t see your so-called “real” self. Jacob emphasized the importance of being playful and creative when dating. People really like to have fun. Being overly serious or heavy can be a turn-off. Thanks for listening today! Future topics will include how to flirt, how to change the way you think when you’re rejected, making people chase you, how to get close, and more! Rhonda, Jacob, Sydney, Sophie, and David

What's the Latest on The Feeling Great App? Featuring Jason Meno and Adam Holman Adam Holman and his loving cat! The featured photo is Jason Meno, also a cat lover! Today we focus on a number of exciting updates in the Feeling Great app, and are delighted to be joined by our esteemed colleagues, Jason Meno and Adam Holman who have recently created and launched to new V2 version of the Feeling Great chatbot, which includes greatly increased horsepower, in terms of rapid and dramatic reductions in 7 negative feelings, including feelings of depression, anxiety, guilt / shame, inadequacy, loneliness, hopelessness / discouragement, and anger. The latest data indicates reductions of more than 60% in all of these feelings within the first 90 minutes of chatbot use in most new users, and more than 70% reductions in repeat uses in the same amount of time. This is absolutely phenomenal and far surpasses my expectations 50 years ago when I first imagined and visualized this app. In addition, the new version of the app also causes fairly dramatic increases in seven positive feelings at the same time--a highly desirable feature that was lacking in most previous versions of the app. Jason and Adam also described a number of exciting, user-friendly features like two-way verbal communication with the app so you no longer have to type your dialogues (although you can if you prefer that mode.) Another new feature is long term memory, so the bot will remember you and be able to summarize your previous sessions, and more. In addition, to illustrate exactly HOW the app works, we did a live demonstration with Jason, who has been struggling with several of his negative thoughts, like "This app might not reach the hundred of millions of people around the world who need it." His belief in this thought was 80%, and the thought triggered strong feelings of hopelessness, sadness, guilt, anxiety, frustration, anger, and inadequacy. This is a valid concern since we must rapidly boost sales if we hope to break even and stay in business, We tried a number of methods that weren't effective, following the app's philosophy of 'failing as fast as we can," including Positive Reframing and Paradoxical Magnification, that did not help at all. In fact, Positive Reframing simply triggered increased resistance. Then we tried a method that has been really helpful for Jason in the past, Externalization of Resistance, and he was able to successfully challenge all the really GOOD reasons to cling to his negative thoughts. At the end, his belief in the thought was reduced from 80% to 20%, which was satisfactory to Jason as he said that some worrying is realistic and keeps him on his toes continually adding amazing new features to the app. If you've been struggling with low self-esteem or negative feelings or low self-esteem, you might want to check the latest version of the Feeling Great app. You can take a free ride and check it out. You've got absolutely nothing to lose but a couple hours of your time, and a life of greater joy and happiness to gain. Rhonda, Jason, Adam, and I appreciate all of you, and thank you for joining us today!

Teen Troubles? Don’t Freak Out! Featuring Dr. Taylor Chesney Today, we are thrilled to welcome Dr. Taylor Chesney to our podcast on troubled teens—what actually works! Taylor has been on a number of previous podcasts, and has been a beloved member of the TEAM community for many years! We were lucky to have her here in person as a member of our weekly TEAM CBT training group for several years until she and her husband finally returned home to New York in 2014 where she established her booming clinical practice working with kids and teens. She and her husband, Gregg, have four children of their own, ranging from 11 to 2 ½, so she brings a great deal of practical experience to complement her brilliant technical skills. Taylor will teach us how parents can deal effectively with troubled and impulsive and often smelly and irritating teens. I think you will find her message highly practical and inspiring, and perhaps the opposite of the ways you may have reacted to frustrating teenagers in the past. She says her goal is to help parents feel more confident in dealing with their teens and to teach them how to develop greater teamwork, love and understanding by integrating the Five Secrets of Effective Communication into their daily parenting toolkit. She says that “teen brains are different. They act out impulsively when angry, and can be hard to tolerate at times, or even often.” The goal is to learn to see the world through their eyes, and to become comfortable with being uncomfortable with their behavior. Remember that teens are supposed to be irritable and angry as they grow more and more independent, which is healthy. Compared to an adult brain that is more developed, has better impulse control, and “should be” able to tolerate emotions better. She thinks that parents can often do a great deal more than a shrink, especially if the parents are willing to learn how to listen and connect more effectively with their children. She says, “teen brains are changing constantly. Teens are frustrating. They are angry, disorganized, and want more than anything to spend time with their friends. They often complain, and might say that a party they went to was “lame and it sucked because the parents were there, constantly hanging around. They don’t trust us!” Don’t argue or contradict them, or try to teach them “good lessons”. Instead use Thought Empathy, Feeling Empathy, and Disarming. Summarize their words and feelings, and find truth in what they are saying. For example, you might say, “That does sound disappointing, having the parents there supervising all the time. I wouldn’t be surprised if you feel frustrated and ticked off.” You want them to talk! And they WILL talk if you listen instead of trying to fix or control them. Suppose your teen says, “My teacher sucks. I turned my homework in late, so he deducted 5 points. But I was up late helping my friend on the phone, and I forgot.” You could say, “That sounds super frustrating. I know how much you care about your friends, and would do anything to help them out. It sounds super frustrating that you got marked down on your homework. I know that school is super important to you, too.” In other words, your goal is to provide support and warmth, rather than trying to discipline or scold them. They want to please you, but if you put them down when they are complaining, that will push them away and will cast a shadow on your relationships with them. You’ll get frustrated and the tension will escalate, and you may end up shouting at them in exasperation. Then you’ll get down on yourself as well, and you may feel like a bad mom or a bad dad. Taylor points out that if we can’t model calmness at those moments of tension, then our kids won’t learn how to be calm in the midst of conflict, either. They’ll just learn to shout and argue—the very behavior that you’re modeling. Suppose you ask them to do the dishes, but 30 minutes later they still haven’t started. They got distracted. The...

450: ASK DAVID, Featuring Dr. Matthew May "All About Anger" Is resentment ever rational or logical? Are perceptions of injustice always present when people feel angry? What’s the best way to respond to an angry criticism? The following answers were written prior to the show. Tune in for the in-depth, live discussions of these cool questions. 1. Mark asks: Is RESENTMENT ever RATIONAL? Is there any rational, logical reason to hold a grudge? Hey David: I often have interesting thoughts at night – especially after consuming gummies or cannabis cookies before bed! Of course, it’s logical to learn from experiences and refuse to trust or give more money, time, labor, loan possessions, and so forth to someone that screwed us over. We don’t ever want to be deceived, ripped off, etc., multiple ties, but beyond self-protective behaviors and assertiveness, is there ANY logical, rational reason to hold a grudge or maintain resentment? David’s reply: Thanks Rationality is not one of the strong cards in dealing with any form of anger. Motivational interventions are usually more effective, at least initially. That’s because when we’re angry we usually WANT to feel angry and we won’t take kindly to anyone telling us that our thoughts are WRONG! David 2. Mark asks: Are perceptions of injustice always present when people feel ANGRY? It seems to me that there is almost always some self-talk related to feeling unjustly treated – whether road rage, marital/couple conflicts, etc. I am eager to hear your thoughts/feel free to use any of this in your writings, podcast, blogs, etc. David’s reply: Yes, most if not all, feelings of anger are associated with thoughts of injustice, unfair behavior and similar kinds of thoughts. 3. Rhonda’s 5-Secrets question. In the course of a conversation that I was having with a colleague of mine (not a TEAM therapist), she told me that she felt I was criticizing her. I immediately went into a 5-Secrets frame of mind and tried to disarm her…saying, “Well you are right, I am feeling critical.” I also used the other 5 steps except I did not offer any stroking because I was not feeling very positive toward her. She said, “Then if you are being critical of me now, you must be critical of me ALL the time.” How would you respond to that? Thank you! Rhonda David’s response We role-played this in real time, and discussed the power and challenge of genuine disarming, and illustrated it. Matt, Rhonda, and David thank you for joining us today, and hope you enjoyed the dialogue!

Stories from My Hippy Days, Part 2 Featuring David and Rhonda A year or more ago we did a Part 1 podcast on stories from my days as a Stanford Medical student in the late 1960s. This was the Hippy Era and the famous “Summer of Love.” A young man, Clyde, recently asked if we’d do Part 2, since we didn’t get to all the stories the first time around. As an aside, there are more stories, so if you like them, we’d be happy to do a Part 3 as well. 1. Husain Chung and the crazy teen from LA: When a stallion wants to run, you run with the stallion!” 2. A frightening encounter with Vic Lovell: And a mentor’s advice on how to handle it. 3. Bar next to the Free University Coffee House: Outrageous works, even with the Hell’s Angels. 4. The bearded man on the quad near the Stanford Student Union—Telling me to “sit with open hands” 5. Ken Kesey and his merry pranksters walked into the Stanford Student Union—they were dressed in pajamas or clown outfits and Neil Cassady was juggling hammers. 6. The tape recorder experiment: Bizarre week, unexpected conclusion. 7. Encounter at the Medical School: “Psychiatry and Psychotherapy—Are they Relevant or Obsolete?” Featuring Hussain Chung 8. Missing the medical school graduation ceremony: Didn’t pick up my diploma until years later. 9. Homeless in Carmel Valley: Saved by Ramadan, Subud and Bapak. Thanks for tuning in today! And keep your requests, questions, and feedback coming. Your satisfaction and happiness are our top goals! Rhonda and David

448: Ask David, featuring Adam Hollman Relationship woes--what should I do? How can animals have feelings if they can't think? How often should I fill out the Daily Mood Log? Why can't husbands express their feelings? Today we are joined by Adam Holman, LCSW. Adam has recently left his full time clinical practice in Arizona to join our Feeling Great app team here in San Francisco. I think you’ll be delighted by his warmth and wisdom. Although he works with us full-time, he still practices one day per week and specializes in X depression, anxiety, and screen addiction(e.g. video game addiction and more.) He has appeared on two previous Feeling Good Podcasts, # X and # Y. We are delighted to have Adam as the honored guest on today’s Ask David podcast! Here are the questions for today’s Ask David. They were all written before the podcast. If you listen to the podcast, you will get much more information and perspective. The Questions Hello Dr Burns. I hope you are doing well. I participated in the webinar held on 18th of April. It was a good experience for me and I would like to thank you and your team in arranging for that. Far asks: if You have a relationship problem, but also feel inadequate. Should you use the Daily Mood Log for the internal problem of inadequacy and the Relationship Journal for the actual dialogue? Moritz points out that animals, who don’t think in words, still have intense emotional reactions, including fear and anger. For example, when a deer spots a predator, like a cayote, it feels terror and instantly runs to get away. Doesn’t this prove that terrifying events can cause feelings directly? In other words, that makes it seem like thoughts or cognitions are NOT necessary to feel emotions. What do you think? Rob asks: How often do you fill out your own daily mood journals? Do you do one every day? Would you be willing to share recent examples of your own journals with podcast listeners? Brittany asks: Why won’t my husband share his feelings? (Or, we could ask, why can’t men express their feelings?) The Answers 1. Far asks: If you have a relationship problem, but also feel inadequate. Should you use the Daily Mood Log for the internal problem of inadequacy and the Relationship Journal for the actual dialogue? Hello Dr Burns. I hope you are doing well. I participated in the webinar held on 18th of April. It was a good experience for me, and I would like to thank you and your team for arranging it. May I ask a question? When there is a relationship problem it should be addressed by the relationship journal and interpersonal downward arrow and not by the cognitive method as far as I know. What about when there is a relationship problem together with strong feelings of depression and frustration as a result of an internal dialogue of being inadequate and defective. Should this component be addressed by the cognitive method and straightforward technique? Thanks a lot. Far Kom David’s Reply This one just came in, so we’ll answer it live. 2. Moritz: Are thoughts REALLY necessary to have emotional reactions to events? Hi David, first of all, thank you for the podcast, and in particular for answering my question about how you help people with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, which came out a few weeks or months ago. I just finished listening to episode 430, where you stated that that negative thoughts can cause negative emotions (this part I'm totally on board with), but also hypothesized that probably only negative thoughts cause negative emotions. Did I understand that correctly? (If not, please ignore the rest of this email, it won't make any sense). I'm kinda confused about this claim. This is totally not my area of expertise, but I'm under the impression that fear is much older and more "primitive" than (at least conscious) thought, from an evolutionary point of view. It would seem unlikely that an old evolutionary feature in the brain would only be triggered from a newer...

Perfectionism Update Featuring Adam Holman Today we are joined by Adam Holman, LCSW. Adam has recently left his full time clinical practice in Arizona to join our Feeling Great app team here in San Francisco. I think you’ll be delighted by his warmth and wisdom. Although he works with us full-time, he still practices one day per week and specializes in X depression, anxiety, and screen addiction(e.g. video game addiction and more.) He has appeared on two previous Feeling Good Podcasts, # X and # Y. We are delighted to have Adam as the honored guest on today’s Ask David podcast! Today’s questions come all the way from North Macedonia! Dear Dr. Burns, Thank you so much for your kind response. I’d be truly honored if my questions could be considered for a future episode of your Ask David podcast. Your work has been a key influence in my research on perfectionism and its cognitive-behavioral aspects. Here are a few brief questions I’m currently exploring: How has your view of perfectionism evolved since Feeling Good? What strategies have you found most effective for challenging perfectionistic thinking in therapy? Is perfectionism often rooted in a fear of not being “good enough”? How does it typically manifest in academic or professional environments? If you happen to include any of these in a future episode, I’d be grateful if you could let me know so I can tune in. Thank you again for your time and for the lasting impact of your work. Warm regards, Mitko Toshev Doctoral Student Faculty of Pedagogy University “St. Kliment Ohridski” – Bitola North Macedonia David’s Reply Yes, this will make for an excellent podcast with a refresher on perfectionism, featuring questions from Mitko and a spirited discussion with Adam, Rhonda and yours truly! We had an in depth discussion of all the latest bells and whistles in the treatment of perfectionism with TEAM CBT. This included the two very different but complementary approaches to treating depression or any of the 23 common Self-Defeating Beliefs. So, if you’ve ever struggle with the thought that you’re not good enough, or that you SHOULDN’T have made this or that mistake, this podcast will be right up your alley! Thanks, Mitko! david

446 Who am I? Medical Help that Saves Children’s Lives Featuring Dr. Rachel Sewall: “I want to shout from the mountain tops!” Today we hear from Rachel Sewall, M.D., a Stanford pediatric endocrinologist who provides medically necessary care for transgender and gender diverse young people. She says that her work is highly emotional, with extreme highs and lows. People view this population with great fear and considerable ignorance as well. Valid medical information is powerful and important. Seeing how people view these young people is constantly on my mind. She says: When I was a medical student, I didn’t have clear goals for what type of medical practice I would pursue. However, during my work in the emergency room, I realized, as did my colleagues, that I got very excited when working with children, so I decided to focus on pediatrics. I knew I’d be an advocate for LGBTQ+ young people. A colleague implied that they are rare, but I realized that wasn’t true. In fact, surveys tend to underestimate the percent of trans individuals and LGBTQ+, do to underreporting due to feelings of shame and fear, but the surveys still suggest a trans population around 2% and an LBTQ+ population around 15%. So, together, we are likely looking at roughly 20% of the population fall into one or both of these two categories. As a first-year medical student, I did research on hormones. These are chemical messengers telling our bodies to do things. Figuring out the actions of hormones is like a complicated puzzle (Rachel explain a little, pleaee. I also went to a camp for kids with Type I diabetes. It was a perfect marriage for me! (Rachel fill in why please). My work with children and teens is a combination of medical and emotional support. More than anything else, these kids want to be listed to and respected. And the highs and lows I experience, as I mentioned earlier, can be extreme. Many begin sobbing when I talk to them, because they’re so grateful that someone is listening! Reviewing basic definitions, your gender is usually assigned at birth, due to your sexual organs. They say, “Hurray! It’s a boy!” Or “Hurray! It’s a girl!” But as your identity and sense of our gender evolves, and it may not be the same as the gender assigned to you at birth. Gender identity begins to form around 18 months to 3 years old, but can emerge at any time later as well. Most of us “know” our gender identity by the time we are 5 or 6, but it can also emerge during puberty as well, or even later. They may suddenly say, “this is not whom I am.” And some, of course, say “I am neither male nor femail.” That’s where the terms cis and trans come from. Cis means that your assignment at birth and your gender identity—your sense of who you really are—can be the same. If so, you are a cis male or a cis female. But if they are not the same, you are a trans. For example, a trans male was born with female genitalia but a male identity evolved. And a trans female was born with male genitalia but a female identity evolve. Many trans individuals experience great distress when taking showers, since they may feel repulsed when they see that they have the “wrong” genitals. Gender identity has overwhelming power. Some have told me, “I just want to tear my skin off!” Sexual preference and gender identity are not the same or linked in any particular way. Sexual preference simply refers to who you love, sexually and emotionally, and want to partner with. Rachel continued, Hormonal interventions can be life-saving. If you are a trans male, having periods can be profoundly disturbing, often to the point of triggering suicidal urges. Helping these kinds and their periods via hormonal interventions can bring enormous relief. They often say, “Dr. Rachel, you saved my life!” I almost always work with the family, and my goal is for the family to learn to function as a team, all working together to provide love and support for their child, so they can say, “this is my child...

Secrets of Superb Interviewing-- How to Be Everyone's Number 1 Choice! Today we feature our beloved Kyle Jones, Ph.D, a clinical psychologist who suggested we might do a really cool podcast on the interviewing skills featured in Chapter 16 of my Feeling Good Handbook. Rhonda and I are absolutely delighted to welcome Kyle for his third appearance on to the Feeling Good Podcast. (Rhonda had to excuse herself after introducing this episode because she was not feeling well) In that chapter on interviewing skills, I listed the five basic principles of successfully interviewing for a job, for admissions to a school, or really almost any type of interview at all. I have to warn you that these ideas may be unfamiliar, and will definitely be quite different from what you've been taught about winning interviews. #1: Be personable and friendly. Don't try to impress the person who's interviewing you! #2 Make them sell themselves to you. #3 Be honest, but present yourself in a positive light. #4 Don't get defensive. #5 Punt when you don't know the answer to the question. To illustrate the first idea, I told a story from Dale Carnegie's book on How to Win Friends and Influence People, in which he describes his interview with a wealth and powerful man in the hopes of soliciting a donation for the Boy Scouts of America. This was back in the era many years ago when the Scouts were still very popular. The receptionist who made the appointment warned Dale Carnegie that he would have only 15 minutes, and emphasized that her boss was 100% meticulous about time. He started exactly on time, and ended exactly on time, whether or not you were done, so he better talk fast once the interview started. When the time came, and Dale Carnegie entered the office, the receptionist again reminded him that he'd be kicked out after 15 minutes no matter what! As he walked in, Dale Carnegie spotted a trophy fish proudly displayed on the wall above the rich man's desk, and asked, if the wealthy man he'd caught it. himself, The rich man said he had caught it in lake so and so. Dale Carnegie got excited and said, "I fish there too. Where, exactly, were you fishing on the lake when you caught this fish?" The man told him where his favorite fishing hole was, and they become engrossed in a vibrant conversation about the joys of fishing. Suddenly, the office door opened, and the receptionist appeared and said the time was up. On the way out, the wealthy man said, "Oh, I forgot to ask you what the purpose of the interview was." Dale Carnegie said, "Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot to mention that I am trying to raise money to support the Boy Scouts of America." The man replied, "You'll receive a check in the mail tomorrow for a million dollars." And those were the days when that was an enormous amount of money. What's the moral of the story? Relate to the person who's interviewing you as a person, and show an interest in them, instead of pitching your talking points and trying to impress them. People usually make decisions influenced greatly by how much they like the person they are talking to. Don't try to be impressive. Aim for friendly, real and human. How do you do this? Well, let's say that you have an interview with a law firm, hoping to get hired, and you're just out of law school. I used to be the shrink for the University of Pennsylvania Law School, and at the time there were too many law school graduates looking for too few job openings, and almost no one was hiring. They referred despondent and panicky students to me who'd had a string of rejections. At the time, the top firms had at least 50 to 100 top notch candidates for every position. Was there any hope of starting their careers? I told them to do some research on the person who was going to interview them, or on their firm. Find something interesting about them. Then, at the start of the interview you can say something like this: "I'm so excited to meet you because I've been following your work for...

I’m angry! A Once-Undocumented Immigrant Speaks from the Heart-- Live Work with Sunny, Part 2 Last week you heard Part 1 of the Live work with Sunny, who’s struggling with radically conflicting emotions. On the one hand, he has finally achieved his dream of an incredibly happy and fulfilling life, but he is frequently plunged into profound despair, fear, and anger because of the increasingly adverse political climate for people who are “different”—in gender identity, sexual orientation, nationality, political beliefs, skin color, and more. And he is shocked, fearful, and angered by the mean-spirited treatment so many are receiving—and which Sunny has endured throughout much of his life as well. Today, you will hear about how we set the A = agenda for our session with Sunny, along with the M = Methods we used. You can find Sunny’s goals for each negative feeling at the end of the Positive Reframing, and at the end of M = Methods, if you Click here His scores on the Empathy and Helpfulness Scales in the Evaluation of Therapy Session were perfect. Here are some of the take-home lessons from this session with Sunny. 1. Unhealthy negative feelings result from distorted negative thoughts, like “I’ll be miserable forever.” Healthy negative feelings, in contrast, result from thoughts that are realistic and, for the most part, undistorted. Healthy negative feelings do not usually require any kind of “treatment,” but skillful empathic listening and support will nearly always be appreciated. 2. Empathy can be very powerful, and it is absolutely necessary for a meaningful therapeutic relationship, but empathy alone is not enough to change the way someone feels. 3. Finding compassion for someone who has harmed you, while extremely challenging, can also bring you peace. 4. Emotions such as anger, sadness, and anxiety are important protective instincts. And one can feel these emotions and be compassionate and loving at the same time. 5. As a therapist it can be tempting to either assume that you can’t help a patient because their feelings are “normal,” or to try to cheerlead or problem-solve for a patient to cheer them up, but the TEAM-CBT model allows us to collaborate with the patient, understand when and how they want to change, honor their resistance to change, and offer them the tools they need to change in a way that honors their values. Thank you so much for listening and joining us. Rhonda, Jill and I are deeply indebted to you, Sunny, for your courage and vulnerability last week and today, letting us into your world on such a personal level. We love you and will always be grateful to have you in our lives, both professionally and personally! Sunny, Rhonda, Jill, and David

I’m angry! A Once-Undocumented Immigrant Speaks from the Heart-- Live Work with Sunny, Part 1 Sunny Choi is a beloved member of the TEAM community. He grew up in Hong Kong before emigrating with his family to the United States when he was 11 years old. He graduated from UCLA with a major in engineering, completed a master’s degree in Engineering Management at Stanford, and developed a successful career in high tech Silicon Valley companies. However, he left his work to pursue additional graduate training in clinical social work because he discovered that his strongest call was to help individuals who were being marginalized by American culture and suffering. He then obtained an MSW degree with a specialty in Community Mental Health from California State University. We were fortunate when Sunny discovered and joined our free Stanford TEAM CBT training group, and blossomed into an expert TEAM therapist and beloved colleague and friend. Today, Dr. Jill Levitt and I worked with Sunny because he requested a session to work on his own troubled feelings concerning the recent political developments. He emphasized that he wanted to do personal work, rather than focusing too heavily on the current political controversies and battles. You can find the Daily Mood Log (DML) that Sunny prepared just prior to his session if you click here As you can see, at the top of his DML, he described the upsetting event as tearing up when he was teaching a class and discussing a case of a transgender Mexican American man, and he began reflecting on his own memories of growing up as a gay male and undocumented immigrant. Sadness and anger were the two strongest negative feelings (rated 70 and 80, respectively on a scale from 0 to 100), although he was also moderately anxious, guilty, rejected, hopeless, and frustrated. You can also see the ten negative thoughts he recorded on his DML, and how strongly he believed each one, on a scale from 0 (not at all) to 1000 (completely.). During the session he added three more thoughts: 11. I (shouldn’t be) living such a happy and pleasurable life when others are suffering. 70% 12. I should be helping others more. 80% 13. I have to figure out the correct way to be thinking and feeling. 50% At the start of the session, he said that he felt vulnerable and nervous discussing such personal feelings, memories, and thoughts. He also said that after doing much personal and professional work, he was generally happy and loving, but felt profoundly disturbed when he thought about so many people who are suffering. He said, “Many of my clients are being deported. And those who are gay are worried that they’ll lose access to their medications.” These were the kinds of thoughts that triggered his feelings of guilt. During the empathy phase, Jill mentioned that she felt honored to be talking to Sunny today and proud to be a member of a community where you can reach out when you’re suffering. She added that she felt torn, as I did, because it seemed to us that many of his negative thoughts were realistic, and not distorted, and that it makes sense to feel sad, anxious, worried, and angry. For example, his first negative thought on his DML was, “The world is much more unstable and dangerous now.” Sunny emphasized that most of the time he does feel happy, especially when involved with friends and family, and doing the things he loves. But then he gets confused and guilty, wondering if it is right to feel happy when things are looking so dark for so many people. It certainly makes sense to feel unhappy when, as Sunny said, some of his clients and friends have lost their jobs and people in the LGBTQ+ community are afraid they’ll get deported. And we’re all afraid to speak up and talk about diversity, which has become a dirty word that can get you into trouble. And when Sunny thinks about this, he feels profound sadness and compassion. But as previously noted, this has caused confusion for Sunny, and he struggles...

Ask David: The Awesome Hidden Emotion Technique Featuring Matthew May, MD with Rhonda and David The following answers to Ask David questions were written prior to the live podcast where Matt, David, Rhonda, and others discuss the questions in real time. Their answers may differ from Dr. Burns responses listed below. 1. Michael asks: How did you invent the Hidden Emotion Technique? It’s been incredibly helpful to me! Hello, Dr. Burns, Your lifelong work continues to be invaluable to me and so many others, and I apologize if this question was answered on a previous podcast. To my knowledge, it hasn't been. I was wondering how you discovered or created the hidden emotion model? I recently struggled with inexplicable death anxiety that came on every night since college started back up, and I was at a loss, until I remembered the hidden emotion model and wondered if there was something I wasn't acknowledging? Sure enough, I discovered I was actually quite resentful of my new schedule not allowing me to easily fit the gym into my schedule unless I wanted to forgo valuable sleep. Once I had addressed this resentment, the death anxiety vanished. I would love to know how this wonderful technique became part of your phenomenal practice! -Sincerely, Michael Polus. David’s reply You can read all about it in When Panic Attacks, when I learned about it accidentally based on an interaction with a patient who was stuck. Perhaps we can answer it on a podcast. Thanks! david 2. Janie asks: How can I help a patient who ruminates? My client ruminates, that is she experiences repetitive thoughts about conversations and gets stuck in the negative feelings that come from dwelling on those thoughts and conversations. She has referred to it as repetitive thinking about conversations that were distressing in some way. She replays the conversation in her head, and evaluates and re-evaluates her responses. She then plays the conversation using possible different responses she COULD have used and worries whether these would have been better responses. The first individual is a friend where the friendship is very challenging and interwoven into many parts of my patient's life. My patient ruminates about conversations and wonders over and over if she said the right thing or wonders how the friend took what was said. It is a loop that my patient often gets stuck in for long periods of the day. The second individual is my patient's husband. With him, she ruminates about how to say things to him so she can motivate him to be involved in the ways she wants him to be. We will work on these relationships using the 5 secrets eventually, but first she'd like to work on the rumination because it takes up so much of her time. How can I help her? David’s Reply I would recommend TEAM CBT in a step-by-step manner. I do not, in general, like to throw techniques at people based on a description of a problem. Motivational techniques to reduce resistance and bring resistance to conscious awareness. Paradoxical Cost-Benefit Analysis Dangling the Carrot / Gentle Ultimatum / Sitting with Open Hands The Hidden Emotion Technique What If / Downward Arrow Technique ERP (Exposure plus response prevention) Many other techniques inspired by methods a and b above (TEAM CBT) Feared Fantasy: confronting her worst fear Five Secrets of Effective Communication Work on acceptance: she is perfectionistic and self-critical Hidden Emotion: anger Thanks for listening (and reading the show notes), David, Rhonda and Matt

Ask David My friend won’t say thank you! Dating Anxiety Religion vs. Psychotherapy We want to remind you about an awesome virtual workshop on habits and addictions that Dr. Jill Levitt and David will be presenting on March 28, 2025 We will feature powerful new paradoxical techniques that will blow your socks off. It will be from 8:30 to 4:30 and you will earn 7 CE credits while having fun and learning how to heal yourself AND you patients. Check it out! It's less than two weeks away, some check it out while you still have time! You'' LOVE it and LEARN a LOT! Registration and More Information Here! As is so often the case, the answers to these questions that appear in the show notes were email replies to the person before the show. To get the full discussion, make sure you listen to the actual podcast, as the answers often evolve in unexpected ways when the “experts” hash it out! Today’s episode is chock full of personal stories (some racy), expert Five Secrets advice and demonstration, philosophical / spiritual discussion, and secrets of successful (and racy) dating. 1. Brittany asks: What can I do say to a friend who does not say “thank you” when I pay for our meal or drive a long distance just to see them? 2. Jaydipe asks: How can I get over my anxiety around attractive women? 3. Ali asks: Can religious beliefs cause or intensify feelings of anxiety? (David will talk about the synergies between TEAM CBT and spirituality in all religions. He will also mention the potential antagonisms.) 1. Brittany asks: What can I do say to a friend who does not say “thank you” when I pay for our meal or drive a long distance just to see them. Hello David and Rhonda, I have a friend who typically does not say thank you to me when I pay for a meal out or drive us a long distance. I am someone who always says thank you even if the other person just bought us $10 worth of fast food or gave a short ride. I find myself feeling resentful towards my friend for not saying anything when I pay and drive us around all day. It makes me feel like they don’t appreciate it. At the same time, talking about it and sharing my feelings would then feel like I’m asking them to say it, and then it would not feel authentic. I have said something about it in the past, and they were like I’m sorry, thank you. But it didn’t mean much at that point. Is this one of those annoying traits I just learn to accept? Thank you, Brittany David’s reply Well, you could just use a gentle I Feel statement, which might be paradoxically stronger, but combined with Stroking. Like this, "Jennie, you know I think the world of you, and greatly enjoy our times together, but when I pay for lunch, or drive a distance to hang out with you, you rarely ever say "thank you," and then I feel hurt and unappreciated." Something like that combines Stroking with I Feel and might be effective. But I always rate myself on what I do, or say, and not so much on how the other person reacts. You could, perhaps, also ask if they are upset with you about something that they’ve had trouble expressing to you. Best, david 2. Jaydipe asks: How can I get over my anxiety around attractive women? Hi David Many thanks for the podcast I’m struggling with social anxiety and talking to attractive women and I’ve watched all the podcasts relating to it. I think deep down I have a shame around finding women attractive, so I find it difficult to express interest in them. I find that I can talk to them easily during activities like climbing or co workers, but even on dates with women I can’t seem to take things forwards playfully like you’d expect on a date. I’m too serious and I think that turns people off. I feel like I’m under the spotlight and I have to impress them otherwise they won’t like me. I know this isn’t true and I’ve been trying to get myself to do exposure therapy by asking girls for their numbers and being rejected so it helps with that. Also, I struggle with societal...

Getting to Know David David Answers Personal Questions! We all know David Burns as the creator of TEAM-CBT, but not many people get to know David, the person. It is fun to know David the person, because he is just like all of us. He is a real person (not a robot), full of life and love. I want everyone in our audience to be able to relate to David on a deeper level, to feel a sense of connection with him, and hopefully for all of us to build our sense of community with each other. Thanks so much to Stan Dickens, TEAM UK, for submitting these questions and sparking this discussion. The complete list of questions was much longer, but I (Rhonda) have selected the ones listed below. I hope you like listening to this podcast, Rhonda The questions are not necessarily in the order listed below, but all are answered on this podcast. David’s answers are all 100% spontaneous, and you will hear them on the podcast! Music & Entertainment 1. Which band do you like most, the Beatles or the Rolling Stones? (David, please say The Beatles!) 2. Following on from that, what kind of music do you listen to? Can you tell us about some of your favorite musicians, bands, or composers? Here are some links to just a few of a great many favorite songs of mine. David Tom Waits Never Let Go (of your hand) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pROjyuj2P8k&list=RDpROjyuj2P8k&start_radio=1&rv=fGe2igm7Ieo Rickey Nelson It’s Up to You https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsBP5P0Xe2c&list=RDvsBP5P0Xe2c&start_radio=1 James Brown Please Please Please https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vruy2GRUsV8 Mick Jagger and Muddy Waters Please Don’t Go! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mbao_laqF8E Jim Croce I’ll have to say I love you in a song https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WB6FQBp-YwU Last Train Home Pat Metheny https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=goXJTv_U-PM Lucy Thomas “Hallelujah” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLk9pzmaFHY 3. If your life were turned into a film, who would play you? 4. Can you speak with an English accent? Would you be brave enough to give it a try right now? Career & Professional Reflections 5. If you hadn’t dedicated your life to cognitive behavioral therapy and mental health or authored Feeling Good, what might you have done instead? 6. Is there a common misconception about you or your work that you’d like to clear up? Personal Insights & Philosophy 7. If you could have dinner with three historical or modern figures, dead or alive, who would it be and why? 8. If you could give your younger self just one piece of advice, what would it be? 9. How did you meet Melanie, and what do you love most about her?

Vaping--Why and How I Quit. Featuring Dr. Kyle Jones Today we feature a beloved friend and esteemed colleague, Dr. Kyle Jones who will talk to us how he escaped from his vaping addiction. Kyle is a clinical psychologist in private practice, now residing in Los Angeles. However, he works virtually throughout California. He co-leads the OCD Consultation Group, a monthly consultation group for clinicians wanting to improve their competence in treating OCD. He also servs on the adjunct faculty at Palo Alto University where he teaches in the clinical psychology masters and PhD programs. He's recently joined the alumni council in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at the University of California, Santa Barbara. This is the fourth in our recent series on TEAM CBT for habits and addictions (431, Screen Addictions with Brandon Vance; 437, Porn Addiction with Thai An Truong; 438, Overcoming Habits & Addictions with Jill Leavitt). We want to remind you about an awesome virtual workshop on habits and addictions that Dr. Jill Levitt and I will be presenting on March 28. We will feature powerful new paradoxical techniques that will blow your socks off. It will be from 8:30 to 4:30 and you will earn 7 CE credits while having fun and learning how to heal yourself AND you patients. Check it out! Registration and More Information Here! Today, Kyle gave a brief history of vaping, which entered the scene around 2010, and described the experience as pleasurable and addictive. An estimated 3 million teens are addicted, and the flavored versions are quite tasty, but banned in California. He described his first exposure to smoking when he was 19, and living in Paris. It was “the” thing to do at that time, but he eventually gave it up, but later began to take a hit or two of vaping at a party, and then purchased his own vaping device in 2023. “Shamefully, he says, I tried to hide it from my partner and from other people, and I would vape in the bathroom.” He vaped for most of 2024, but explains that eventually, it got out of hand. At New Year’s 2025, he listed the advantages versus the disadvantages of vaping, and made the decision to give it up. This was difficult because of the withdrawal effects that lasted for several weeks, including intense cravings, fatigue, difficulty sleeping, irritability, anxiety, and the urge to overeat. The TEAM CBT technique that helped the most was HAL, the Habit and Addiction Log, and we demonstrated the Devil’s Advocate Technique. Rhonda and David played the role of the Tempting Thoughts and Kyle bravely battle back. Here’s the list of thoughts: 1. I’m driving, so I can just vape in the car. 2. Here’s a chance for a nice break. I can vape right now!\ 3. I can take another hit, no problem! I’ll just get a little feeling of pleasure. 4. I need It tastes sooo gooood! We translated the “I” statements into “you” statements to maximize the temptation, and were as seductive as possible. But no matter how hard we tried to tempt Kyle, he won “huge” and hit it out of the park. We discussed Relapse Prevention, and Kyle described being at a party on Friday where some people were vaping and sharing the vape. We also described and illustrated the powerful Triple Paradox, which works paradoxically. I have personally trained Kyle in TEAM CBT, along with many other fine TEAM teachers, and he was always brilliant, compassionate and extremely effective in his therapy work. He works with the full spectrum of mood and anxiety disorders, and has a bit of a specialty in the treatment of OCD. Thanks for listening today!

Episode 438 The TEAM Approach to Habits and Addictions Powerful New, Radically Different Approaches that Can Help! Today, Dr. Jill Levitt joins David and Rhonda to discuss and illustrate the TEAM CBT approach to habits and addictions and give a little promo for their upcoming online workshop on Habits and Addictions on March 28, 2025. You can sign up for the workshop here: cbt-workshop.com Although the workshop is for mental health professionals, participants will have the chance to work on their own habits and addictions during the workshop in order to gain a more in-depth understanding of the new treatment methods for: Overeating / binging / restricting Drugs Alcohol Procrastination Doomscrolling Excessive cell phone use Internet addiction Excessive use of social media Shop-a-Holic Biting fingernails Video games Gambling And more David emphasized that nearly all current treatment methods frequently fall short because they focus on control of symptoms using behavior modification rather than the cause. He describes a research study at the Stanford inpatient unit that indicated that 50 common DSM Diagnoses (such as mood disorders, anxiety disorders, personality disorders, and more) were not significantly correlated with any of the DSM addictive / misuse disorders including drugs, alcohol, eating disorders, and gambling, which was not really consistent with the beliefs of many that emotional factors play a central causal role in addictions. In fact, the only significant correlation he noted was between depression and overeating, but the correlation was in the negative direction—in other words, higher levels of depression were associated with weight loss, not weight gain. And, in addition, the magnitude of the correlation was extremely small, indicating that other factors play a far more important role. So, what is the explanation for this puzzling and anti-intuitive finding? David described a 5-item survey he developed which asks about temptations in use or give in to your habit / addiction in the past week. This tool, in contrast to all of the DSM diagnoses, was very strongly correlated with all the addictions. This suggests that we give in to our habits and addictions for one simple reason--they make us feel great! At least in the short term! 150 years ago, they didn’t have an epidemic of obesity in America. Why not? Life was likely just as stressful as it is now, maybe even more so! But what they didn’t have was all the fast food restaurants and all the gooey, tasty foods that are abundantly available today, and they didn’t have the resources to purchase them, either. This doesn’t mean that behavioral models or diets or other tools have no value. But the TEAM CBT model focuses first on assessing the patient’s motivation for and resistance to treatment using a variety of powerful and innovative new techniques, including: The Triple Paradox The Ten Positive Distortions The Habits and Addictions Log (HAL) The Devil’s Advocate Technique The Five-Minute Rule The “I Stubbornly Refused” Technique The Anti-Procrastination Sheet Relapse Prevention Techniques utilizing The Externalization of Voices The Acceptance Paradox Stimulus Control And more They emphasized that these are methods, but not in the ordinary sense, because they rely heavily on the use of paradox, which is unfamiliar to many therapists, and require a great deal of skill. Jill and David first discussed the nature of tempting thoughts and how positive distortions work. Then, they illustrated the Devil’s Advocate Technique with Rhonda who volunteered to work on her temptation to overeat chocolate, and especially chocolate chip cookies with peanut butter, and listed several of her tempting thoughts, including: 1. A little chocolate chip cookie can’t hurt. 2. I have to keep them in the house because my husband loves them. 3. Just one cookie. It will taste SOOOO Gooood! 4. I can always work out a little more. 5. That cookie smells...

Overcoming Your Porn Addiction Featuring the Awesome Thai-An Truong! 🎙️ Hosts: Dr. David BurnsFeeling GoodRhonda Barovsky 🎉 Special Guest: Thai-Ann Truong. In this jam-packed episode, of the Feeling Good podcast, David and Rhonda welcome Thai-An Troung, Level 5 TEAM therapist and trainer, licensed professional counselor, licensed alcohol and drug counselor and expert in addictions, to discuss the complex issue of pornography addiction. Thai-An shares her insights on the rising prevalence of porn use, its impact on relationships, and the psychological and physiological effects of addiction. The conversation delves into the symptoms of porn addiction, the importance of psychoeducation, and the application of TEAM therapy methods to help individuals and couples recover from the negative consequences of porn use. Thai-An emphasizes the need for awareness and understanding of how porn can affect brain chemistry and relationship dynamics, ultimately offering hope for recovery and healing. This conversation delves into the complexities of addiction, particularly focusing on porn addiction and its impact on pleasure and motivation. We discuss the importance of understanding the psychological aspects of addiction, including the loss of pleasure and the role of motivation in recovery. We explore various TEAM tools, such as the triple paradox, to address motivation and cravings, and emphasize the significance of social support in the recovery process. The discussion also touches on the nuances of sexual identity and the importance of abstinence when overcoming porn addiction. Finally, we highlight the need for specialized training for therapists working with couples facing these challenges. Key Topics Covered: * Porn addiction is a growing concern in modern society. * There is no moral judgment on porn use; it can be healthy for some. * Statistics show a significant rise in porn use among young people. * Abstinence from porn can improve relationship satisfaction. * Porn addiction can lead to sexual dysfunction and intimacy issues. * Sexual conditioning can alter attraction to real-life partners. * Psychoeducation is crucial for understanding porn addiction. * Brain chemistry is significantly affected by porn use. * Withdrawal symptoms from porn can include flatlining and social paralysis. * Porn addiction can lead to a depletion of pleasure and joy in life. * Understanding motivation is crucial for overcoming addiction. * The Triple Paradox can effectively address motivation in therapy. * Social support plays a vital role in recovery from addiction. * Abstinence is often necessary for healing from porn addiction. * Therapists should explore the benefits of addiction with clients. * Clients may find deeper connections through shared experiences in therapy. *Therapists need to be aware of the complexities of sexual identity. *Training and resources for therapists are essential for effective treatment. * Therapists can help clients find sustainable satisfaction beyond addiction. Listener Challenge 🌟 Try Out the Feeling Great app! Want to experience TEAM-CBT’s transformative power? Download the Feeling Great App or join an upcoming beta test to see the magic of its AI-driven mood and self-esteem coaching. You'll find it all at FeelingGreat.com! 💬 Feedback: We love hearing from you! Share your thoughts about today’s podcast. Send us your questions for an Ask David diopside 🛠️ Get Involved: Interested in joining a Feeling Great App beta? Reach out to Jason Meno at Jjasonmeno@feelinggreat.com 📚 Resources Mentioned: Feeling GoodFeelingGreat.com ✨ Don’t forget to subscribe to the Feelinggood.com or Feelinggreat.com YouTube channels, and rate, and review! Thank you for listening! Thai-An, Rhonda and David

Swimming in an Ocean of Gold-- The Unique Magic of TEAM-CBT! 🎙️ Hosts: Dr. David BurnsFeeling GoodRhonda Barovsky 🎉 Special Guests: Jeremy KarmelJason Meno Episode Summary In this jam-packed episode, the Feeling Good team dives deep into the groundbreaking elements of TEAM-CBT. From rapid emotional transformations to the app’s jaw-dropping AI breakthroughs, this conversation will leave you inspired and ready to explore how TEAM-CBT can transform lives. Whether you’re a therapist, someone seeking self-help, or simply curious, this episode delivers gold at every turn. Key Topics Covered 🧪 T = Testing: 💛 E = Empathy: 🧠 A = Assessment of Resistance: 🎭 M = Methods: Externalization of VoicesFeared Fantasy Fun Highlights Money-Back Guarantee for the Podcast Why TEAM-CBT Stands Out Rapid, measurable resultsPowerful empathyResistance embracedDiverse methods Listener Challenge 🌟 Try It Out! Want to experience TEAM-CBT’s transformative power? Download the Feeling Great App or join the upcoming beta test to see the magic of its AI-driven mood and self-esteem coaching. Next Week 🎙️ Tune in for Episode 437: Breaking Free from Your Porn Addiction, with Thai-An Truong from Oklahoma City 💬 Feedback: We love hearing from you! Share your thoughts about today’s podcast. 🛠️ Get Involved: Interested in joining the Feeling Great App beta? Reach out to Jason and the team! 📚 Resources Mentioned: Feeling GoodFeelingGreat.com 👉 Quote of the Week: "TEAM-CBT isn’t just therapy—it’s swimming in an ocean of gold." ✨ Don’t forget to subscribe to the Feelinggood.com or Feelinggreat.com YouTube channels, and rate, and review!

Hypnosomatic Therapy Featuring Erik Burns In this episode of the Feeling Good podcast, we hear from another David Burns—not me (David Dean Burns), but rather David Erik Burns, my wonderful and beloved son. Erik discusses his journey in creating BloomHarmony.org, his new clinical practice that integrates hypnotherapy with somatic work. To kick things off, Erik shares personal stories about his relationship with his father, David, including the story of his birth and struggle to breathe in the pediatric intensive care unit, and how touch has played a significant role in his life and healing journey. He emphasizes the idea that words alone sometimes fall short in attempts to convey love or transmit healing. A loving touch, in contrast, can make an immediate and profound impact. Today’s conversation delves into the mind-body connection and the importance of emotional expression in therapy. Erik calls his innovative approach hypnosomatic healing, which involves a combination of guided hypnotic imagery with massage. The mind/body connection refers to the dynamic relationship between your thoughts, emotions, beliefs, and attitudes (the mind), and your physical health and bodily functions (the body). Erik emphasizes the transformative power of touch and the need for openness in therapeutic settings, exploring how these elements can lead to a profound healing experience. Erik also discusses the tremendous value of longer therapy sessions as well as the powerful role of trance states in therapy and in life. They also discuss the ethical balance between therapist livelihood (which naturally requires charging for sessions) and the therapist’s genuine commitment to the relief of suffering, regardless of the patient’s financial resources. Both Erik and his dad, David Sr., agree that in an ideal world, health care would be free and available to all, and regret having to charge for treatment. Erik always takes the needs of his clients into account and works for a reduced fee or for free if needed. Erik explains how and why the mind-body connection is so crucial to genuine healing and describes the importance of energy management during sessions Here's how he explains it: Energy management is about showing up with the proper state of consciousness for a session. Transpersonal work relies heavily on the therapist interpersonal relationship, so the state I am in has a huge influence on the outcome. We teach a 3-sided model: emptiness, awareness, and love. "Energy" management would be the preparation I do to both Empty myself from pre-conceived notions (AKA getting out of my own way), to step into observer consciousness, and to become rooted in love. I guess a simpler way to describe energy management would be to become an open unconditional channel and to silence the monkey mind as much as possible. I believe I may have been referring to the inner child dialog I often do before a session to help achieve this state. The dialogue also explores the transformative experiences clients can undergo in therapy and the tools therapists can use to empower clients who feel helpless, hopeless, or defeated. The personal connection between therapists and clients is highlighted as a crucial element in the healing process. While gut problems, such as irritable bowel and chronic abdominal complaints are important targets for hypnosomatic therapy, Erik emphasizes the potential value of his approach for a wide variety of complaints, including Emotional problems Interpersonal difficulties Physical / somatic complaints Spiritual Here are Erik’s actual words, from his website, BloomHarmon.org: I Hi, I’m Erik. I believe in your potential to live a pain-free, vibrant life. Why do I believe in you? Pain relief is not just my profession — it's also my personal journey. I've lived with gut disorders for most of my life, including food allergies to wheat and milk, intermittent pain, and ulcers. I sought help from Western doctors but never received much...

David, Matt, and Rhonda Answer Your Questions! What's the One-Minute Drill work? How does it work? What's Memory Rescripting? How does it work? How can I endure boring and irrelevant college work? Two questions from Aaron W. C. who is a Licensed Master Social Worker in Idaho, and said, “I look forward to the podcast.” 1. Hi Dr. Burns, Can you share how you do the one-minute drill? In When Panic Attacks, you only mentioned the name but not how it works. Thank you, Aaron W. California David’s reply We'll explain and demonstrate it on the podcast. It's a partially helpful tool for troubled couples who argue and fail to listen. 2. Hi Dr. Burns, I completed rereading When Panic Attacks yesterday night. I have a question about one of the case examples you mentioned. In the book, you mention a patient that has a phobia of taking public transportation. She did the reimagination exercise of picturing herself castrating the men that harmed her roommate and branded the man that hurt her as a child. If remember right, the book does not link using the "reimagination exercise" to overcoming her fear of taking public transportation. How did the reimagination exercise help her overcome the fear of taking public transportation? I have reread the book two times this year! Thank you, Aaron W. California---LMSW (Idaho) David’s reply I am happy to include your question on an upcoming Feeling Good Podcast. Can I use your first name? Thanks! I can answer two of your questions, and can even demonstrate the one-minute drill, and discuss its uses and limitations. Best, david 3. Gray asks about feeling better about post-secondary education Hi David, I struggle with intense anger, frustration, and depression while doing college coursework, with recurring thoughts like, “This is pointless,” “This work is for nobody, ” "I'm just working to work," "I'm being hazed," and “I profoundly don’t care!” I’m interested in law school because I’d love being a lawyer, but I worry that I won’t be mentally healthy in that environment. Many lawyers say 80+% of law school is irrelevant and doesn’t adequately prepare you to practice law or even to pass the Bar, so I expect similar frustrations would resurface. I’ve looked into this very carefully and I’m convinced that the basic substance of my thoughts has bulletproof empirical grounding (outside of STEM, for sure). How could I manage these distortions when I’m in the midst of law school homework? P.S. I’m quite hostile to appeals about how I would actually learn important things in class or about developing resilience for its own sake, so I’d prefer to avoid that line of thinking unless it's really important. Thank you, Gray David’s reply Can you give me an example of one of your negative thoughts. They always contain some truth, by the way. Perhaps you’re trapped in a Hidden Should Statement. Are you wanting to feel happy about having to do boring homework, or are you wanting not to have to do boring homework? What’s your goal, in other words. All therapeutic failure, just about, is due to a failure of agenda setting. In other words, reducing resistance is the key prior to crushing distortions. Warmly, david There is certainly a great deal of irrelevant stuff one has to plow through to get a college or graduate degree, for sure. So there seems to be a lot of wisdom in your negative thoughts and feelings. I guess my question would be, what type of help, if any, are you looking for? Best, david Gray responds Subject: Re: Feeling better about post-secondary education My hidden should statements are something like "I shouldn't have to do this." and" I should be able to prove myself by doing real work instead". I am hoping to be able to do lots of boring/irrelevant homework and be okay about it, not even necessarily happy. Then I could go to law school and be in passable mental health. Thanks again! Gray David Replies Well, you’re right on all counts, including “I shouldn’t have to...