Episodes

Many aspects of our culture perpetuate the Casanova Myth, the belief that what most young men want is sex with as many women as possible without concern for the women or any goal of commitment. Is it true? Do you believe it? Do young men and women believe it? In this episode, Dr. Andrew Smiler, licensed therapist and expert on boys, men, and masculinity, will draw upon his fascinating book, Challenging Casanova: Beyond The Stereotypes of the Promiscuous Young Male, to consider what young men rea...

In this episode, Ken Page, LCSW, psychotherapist and author of the bestseller, Deeper Dating: How to Drop the Games of Seduction and Discover the Power of Intimacy invites you to give up the need to be marketable or perfect and to instead identify and embrace your core gifts. He offers the steps from embracing an authentic self to recognizing the difference between attractions of deprivation and attractions of inspiration. Drawing upon his own life and many vivid examples, Ken Page guides you th...

In this episode, Dr. Suniya Luthar reports on the findings of a survey study of 2.247 well-educated mothers whose children ranged in age from infants to early adults. Dr. Luthar and her colleague, Dr. Ciciolla wondered if the mothers’ adjustment and wellbeing changed over the course of their child’s development. Their findings are surprising. They find that the moms of children in middle school are the most stressed and report feeling lonely, empty and dissatisfied in their parenting role. Liste...

What does Compulsive Shopping have to do with a trip to Africa to help teens prevent HIV? Quite a bit, as you’ll hear. In this show, Dr. Benson, nationally known expert in the study and treatment of compulsive buying disorder, first helps us recognize and address the compulsive shopping patterns that persist long after holiday shopping is finished. She describes the rationalizations to buy, the warning signs, as well as strategies and treatment programs for change. Dr. Benson then invites us int...

In this episode Dr. Craig Haen and Dr. Seth Aronson, psychologists, child and adolescent experts and Fellows of the American Group Psychotherapy Association draw upon their clinical experience and their new edited book, The Handbook of Child and Adolescent Group Therapy to offer an understanding of the power of groups for helping and healing children and adolescents. They address the developmental needs that groups offer any child and the curative factors of different therapeutic group models fo...

In this episode Dr. Gillihan will discuss his new book, Retrain the Brain: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in 7 weeks. Dr. Gillihan will clarify the way in which thoughts, feelings and behaviors interact to play a role in actually increasing anxiety and depression; but, how people suffering from mild to moderate anxiety and depression can take steps to bring about changes. Be it panic attacks, fear of flying, or self-defeating procrastination, he will point out examples from this 7 week program tha...

Anorexia Nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by self-starvation. Both professionally and in the public eye, this disorder has been associated with females. In reality, 25% of those suffering are males; but as a group, they have been overlooked, misdiagnosed or misinformed. In this episode, Dr. Tom Wooldridge, Psychologist, Eating Disorder Expert, Clinician and author discusses his groundbreaking book, Understanding Anorexia Nervosa in Males. In the discussion with host, Suzanne Phillips,...

The idea for this episode comes from the work of Robyn D’Angelo who is the creator of the recent series “How to Love your Partner-- Mastering the Messiness of Couplehood Together.” In that series, Robyn filmed interviews with herself and 22 love experts on everything from the misunderstood partner to the angry partner. Host Suzanne Phillips was one of those experts. In this Psych Up Live episode, Robyn and two of her experts, Heather Sequin and John Harrison join host Suzanne Phillips to share v...

In this podcast, Filmmaker Susan Sipprelle of “Set for Life” and “ Over 50 and Out of Work” discusses her important documentary, “ Soldier On: Life After Deployment.” This feature length documentary chronicles with honesty and humor the challenges that three post-9/11 female veterans face readjusting to civilian life after their deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. Susan Sipprelle is joined on the show by one of the female veterans featured in the film, Natasha Young. In the back and forth with ...

In this episode, Dr. Andrew Smiler, licensed therapist and an expert on boys, men, and masculinity, will discuss his new and important book, Dating and Sex: A Guide for the 21st Century Teen Boy. In a culture of easy access to porn, sexual violence on campus and the condemnation of sexual predators, there is both mystification and intimidation for male teens about sexuality and dating. As such, Dr. Smiler addresses the topics and the questions that too often go unanswered: What is sexual consent...

Have you ever been dismissed because you were considered too young, or ignored because you were deemed too old? If so, you have experienced Ageism, stereotyping and discrimination based on age. In this show, author activist, Ashton Applewhite will raise our consciousness about age discrimination with research, humor and personal references. Drawing upon her acclaimed book, This Chair Rocks: A Manifesto Against Ageism, her powerful discussion and examples will make it clear “that chronological ag...

In this episode, Dr. Ken Carter returns to Psych Up Live to look closer at risk taking and sensation seeking. Is the person who will take a risk in business similar to the person who loves extreme sports? Are risk taking and sensation or thrill seeking different personality traits? Are they inter-related? Do men and women differ in these traits? Are they genetic traits or family fostered dynamics? Is our neurophysiology different when we put ourselves in danger for the thrill of it as opposed to...

We are often told to reach for our dreams and that the only real risk in life is never trying. This is the story of MJ Marggraff, a woman who decided to reach for her dream. In midlife, this wife and mother of two young children decided to take flying lessons. Her story of becoming a pilot is a story of fear, excitement, guilt, harassment, challenge and joy. It is a story that reveals how reaching for your dream impacts everyone you know and love in different ways. Whether you are a pilot, you l...

We hear a great deal in the media about narcissism. If you have ever wondered if the person you work for, the man you are dating or the friend who knows everything is a narcissist, listen in. On this show Dr. Joseph Burgo, psychologist and author of the book, The Narcissist You Know: Defending Yourself Against Extreme Narcissists in an All-About Me Age, will draw upon his clinical experience and fascinating examples to discuss the Narcissist. He will make clear the tell tale signs of narcissism,...

We are the story we tell ourselves about ourselves. Our stories directly impact how we feel, our behavior and how we treat ourselves and others. Often we relive painful events and add more pain and drama to the story we tell ourselves and others. In this episode, Bruce Van Horn, bestselling author, speaker, leadership coach and cancer conqueror offers us a mini version of his important program, “Re-Story You!” Listen in to the back and forth with Bruce Van Horn and host, Suzanne Phillips to re-c...

As we approach the 15th Anniversary of 9-11, we are reminded of the countless children who have faced life-threatening circumstances from war, terrorist attack, natural disasters and refugee crisis. In this episode Sue Badeau, nationally known speaker, writer and consultant for traumatized children brings her perspective as a mother of 22 children and years of expertise with child welfare, the juvenile justice systems, the Council on Adoptable Children and the National Child Traumatic Stress Net...

This episode is special because it is part of a double show. In this show, Host Suzanne Phillips welcomes Sandra Reich, “Host of Straight Talk with Sandra Reich on Voice America” as her guest on Psych Up Live to discuss issues related to Sandra’s bestselling book, Once upon a Time-How Cinderella Grew Up and Became a Happy Empowered Woman, co-authored with Matte Gomez. Later that evening, Dr. Suzanne Phillips appears as the guest on Sandra Reich’s show to continue the conversation with a twist, '...

How do you get along with your adult siblings? Are you like friends? Have you stopped talking or connecting with siblings? No matter what the relationship, you are not alone. In this episode, Dr. Geoffrey Greif, professor and author, returns to Psych Up Live with his new co-authored book, Adult Sibling Relationships.In the show, Dr. Greif draws upon his personal interviews with people over 45 and people's responses to The Lifespan Sibling Relationship Scale to share the stories and reasons peopl...

In this episode, Abby Rodman psychotherapist and author draws upon her own experience with divorce, her clinical experience and the responses of hundreds of women to a survey on divorce, to share what we rarely hear when we learn someone is getting a divorce or has been divorced. Abby Rodman shares the insider story. She shares the fears, blame, hardship, parental worry and ultimate growth that is possible whether a divorce comes after two years or twenty, and whether it comes by choice, betraya...

In this episode Dr. Deborah Serani, psychologist and author discusses the reality of depression as a mood disorder in later life. Drawing upon her new and comprehensive book “ Depression in Later Life: An Essential Guide,” she underscores that depression is too often overlooked by those suffering, their families and even at times by their physicians. In the back and forth with host Suzanne Phillips, Dr. Serani provides crucial information and illuminating examples that will be as valuable for he...

In this episode, Samantha Waltz, the author of the powerful book, Blended: Writers on the Stepfamily Experience and three of her wonderful contributing writers, Betsy Graziani Fasbinder, Gigi Rosenberg, and Emma Kate Tsai will share their personal experiences of being parents or children in stepfamilies. As three of the thirty professional writers who share their blended experience in this book, their voices convey more than the facts or dynamics of stepfamilies. They convey in a personal way th...

How can you foster a child’s resilience to handle future adversity? How can you intervene to offset the impact of homeliness, war, migration, domestic violence, etc. on a child’s development? In this episode, Dr. Ann Masten, Regents Professor of Child Development and recognized expert on risk and resilience in children will answer these questions and many more. Drawing upon her recent book, Ordinary Magic: Resilience in Development, she will surprise and enrich you with her findings. She will in...

In this episode, Dr. Therese Huston, cognitive scientist, professor and the author of How Women Decide: What’s True, What’s Not and What Strategies Spark the Best Choices, offers a new and well researched look at women as decision makers. She addresses the reality of gender dynamics in the workplace like the glass ceiling, the glass cliff and the different consequences of making a mistake for men and women in leadership while dispelling the myths and beliefs about gender differences and decision...

In this Episode Dr. Connie Siskowski, founder of the American Association for Caregiving Youth awakens us to the reality that 1.4 million children in this country sacrifice their education, health, well-being and childhood to provide care for family members who are ill, injured, aging or have disabilities. Isolated, often facing tasks and medical responsibilities that would challenge adults, these children are often invisible to schools and communities. Dr. Siskowski, who was recognized as one o...