Episodes

Suicide is the second-leading cause of death among people age 15 to 24 in the U.S. Nearly 20% of high school students report serious thoughts of suicide and 9% have make an attempt to take their lives, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Why is this happening? What can parents do? How can parents learn more about preventive strategies? In this show you will hear some answers from a true expert, Dr. Cheryl Green, Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist and the author of Heal Your Daug...

In this episode, Anthony Almojera, FDNY EMS Lieutenant and author of Riding the Lightening: A Year In The Life Of A New York City Paramedic gives us an insider’s look at some of the darkest days New York City has ever known. Anthony Almojera illuminates the reality that the pandemic caught the city off guard- residents, government officials, doctors, school teachers and between mid-March and late April 2020, killed between 17,000 and 21,000 New Yorkers. In his personal and powerful discussion, y...

In this show Carol Novello, founder of Mutual Rescue and author of Mutual Rescue, returns to Psych UP Live with an exciting and expansive focus on the power of people-pet rescue and connection. Discussing the stories captured in a new set of award winning mini films, Carol considers how mutual rescue addresses trauma, pain, othering, bias, and loneliness. She discusses the neurophysiology of the pet-person connection and describes options for people who cannot actually adopt a pet but want to sh...

The issue and need for racial diversity among police officers reflects an attempt to ease growing tensions that have emerged in the wake of racialized police violence and the Black Lives Matter movement. Underlying the question of whether officer racial diversity improves community-police relations is the question - How do Black Officers feel? How do they balance Blue Culture and Black Lives Matter? In this show, Sociologist and Professor, Dr. Kayla Preito-Hodge offers some answers. She draws up...

In this show, psychologist and renowned author, Dr. Deborah Serani returns to Psych Up Live to invite a new and close-up look at Boredom. Dr. Serani will be discussing the psychological meaning and impact of boredom and will consider what boredom feels like for adults and children. She will address the importance of boredom as a signal of being unable to engage in a satisfying way with the world for a number of reasons and will consider how adults can help themselves and their children redirect ...

How much do you depend on your intuition and how much do you trust it? In this show psychologist, Dr. Frank McAndrew will define and offer a close look at what intuition is, how we develop it and why we need it. He will invite you to consider those situations where intuition will lead you astray by exemplifying common errors like “Hindsight Bias” or “the Power of the Particular.” He will consider whether there are gender differences in the use of intuition and the role of intuition in responding...

In this show we take a close look at the meaning, causes, prevalence and prevention of Bullying. The reality of bullying spans nations and we are joined in this show by Dr. Tracy Vaillancourt, A Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in School- Based Mental Health and Violence Prevention at the University of Ottawa. Dr. Vaillancourt has researched and written on the causes and prevention of Bullying and will be discussing the social and psychological dynamics that foster bullying, the gender differences i...

In this show, Stacy Nakell, author of the new and important book, Treatment for Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors: An Integrative Psychodynamic Approach, provides answers with compassion, theoretical understanding and clinical examples from 20 years of professional experience. Stacy considers the who, what and why of the people who suffer with these behaviors and what happens when they receive help. Using pseudonyms with the permission of former patients, Stacy Nakell draws upon real stories of ...

It is often hard to believe that Human Trafficking, Forced Labor, and Sexual Trafficking of children, all forms of Modern Slavery, are hiding in plain sight not just somewhere across the globe but right here in the US. Today we are going to face the reality of Human Trafficking and learn about a powerful program, Life Way Network, a Global Movement aimed at ending Sexual Trafficking and reclaiming lives. Our Guest, Marion A.R. Kendell, the Chief Executive Officer of Lifeway Network gives us an u...

There is no end to the reality of traumatic events suffered world-wide, be they man-made atrocity or natural disaster. What about the children caught in the midst of such suffering? That is the focus of today’s show. Our guest is Jonathan E. Wilson who will be calling in from Tokyo to describe OperationSafe , a worldwide program he created with his wife, psychologist Rie Wilson in 2008. The program has proven to prevent mental health concerns and foster resilience in children in the aftermath co...

In the first 185 days of 2022 there have been 11 mass shootings per week. When does this stop? How can we make a difference? Our guest is Sara Rogerson, a professor at Albany Law School, the Vice President of Niskayuna School Board in Upstate New York and the aunt and mother in a family whose own members were victims of a school shooting and threats. Sara Rogerson will be discussing how her personal and professional experiences influence her to support and utilize the recent gun control bill and...

According to the Gun Violence Archive, there have already been more than 240 mass shootings in 2022 in the United States. A striking 98% of Mass Shooters are men. This show asks the question “WHY?” In a fascinating discussion with social psychologist, Dr. Frank T. McAndrew, he draws upon his research and additional findings on Gender, Aggression and Violence to offer answers. Dr. McAndrew begins with a consideration of the innate aggression even early man needed to survive, establish dominance, ...

In this show Host Suzanne Phillips is joined by Award Winning Filmmaker, Therese Shechter who discusses her new and powerful film, “My So-Called Selfish Life.” Spanning over many years this is a paradigm-shifting journey through one of our society’s greatest taboos: Choosing not to become a mother. The film weaves together historical events, medical expertise, and women of different ages and backgrounds who personally and professionally question the biased expectation that women are supposed to ...

Across time and cultures and against the backdrop of medical, social, economic, political, gender and racial issues, mothers face a lot and give a lot. Whether new mothers, working mothers, single mothers or grandmothers, most could benefit from some of the powerful support and care they offer. This show presents a program that does just that- “Authentic Connections Groups”. In this show, Dr. Suniya Luthar, Executive Director of AC Groups, a nonprofit that fosters resilience and well-being, will...

Someone has finally found a way to address opioid misuse and addiction among people with chronic pain. In this show, Dr. Eric Garland, the world’s leading expert on the use of mind-body therapies to treat opioid misuse for pain will discuss the recently proven effectiveness of “MORE” – “Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement.” Dr. Garland will define opioid use disorder (OUD), its relationship to chronic pain and what makes opioids so addictive. He will discuss the treatment components of “MO...

In this show, Dr. Deborah Serani, psychologist, award winning author and media expert returns to Psych-Up Live to discuss her new children’s book “ Sometimes When I‘m Mad.” She invites listeners to understand and respond to anger in children. There have always been outside world and family events that have disrupted families and filtered fear and dysregulation down to children. These past few years of the pandemic have added additional strain. Dr. Serani will discuss the reason and message of he...

It goes without saying that this is a stressful as well as special Holiday time of the year. For millions of divorced parents there are additional challenges they face, as they try to make the holidays a success, while splitting custody of the children. In this show, Jeffrey Scott Steiner Executive Director of the Dads’ Resource Center and Central Administrator for the Pennsylvania Greater Father Family Involvement Campaign draws upon his experience to offer strategies and tips that co-parents c...

Nationally and Internationally people are exposed to violence on a daily basis. We read about it in the paper. We see it in the images of violence on TV and the internet and too many people have been personally exposed to or have suffered from some form of violence in their own lives. This show addresses the prevention of violence. Experts, Dr. Sherry Hamby and Dr. Victoria Banyard draw upon their new book, Strength Prevention for Violence and Public Health Problems, to look closely at attempts ...

In a complex culture with non-stop invitations to do and have more, parents often wonder how to raise grateful kids. In this show, Dr. Rebecca Hershberg, clinical psychologist, child expert and author of The Tantrum Survival Guide, offers parents some answers. She invites parents to consider their own definitions and expressions of gratitude and the messages they bring from their own childhood. She validates the common feelings of parental joy in giving and the fear of spoiling. She reminds us t...

This year we commemorate the 20th Anniversary of the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks, an unspeakable event that took the lives of 2.996 people and caused the death of another four thousand from 9/11 related illness. We are privileged to have as our guest, Mary Fetchet the Founding Director of Voices Center for Resilience, formerly known as Voices of September 11, which she set up when she lost her son Brad on 9/11. In this episode, Mary Fetchet discusses how her unique background as the mother of a victi...

In this episode Dr. Scott Small, esteemed neurologist and neuroscientist known for his work in Alzheimer’s disease, discusses his important new book, Forgetting: The Benefits of Not Remembering. In a culture inundated with information and worried about aging and forgetting, this is an extraordinary contribution. In a conversational style, Dr. Small offers the neuroscience of forgetting in a way that is as informative as it is startling. Drawing upon fascinating examples and personal history, he ...

As anxiety escalates in face of a resurgence of Covid-19 fueled by variants, tension builds between those who recognize the vaccine as a lifesaving answer and those who view it as an invasive healthcare intervention. Beyond the media coverage, family relationships are frayed with members who can’t talk about their positions and are anxious, angry and estranged in the midst of a pandemic. Can there even be a discussion when people are so polarized? In this show, guest expert Dr. Mena Mirhom, Colu...

There is little question that when a person suffers the death of their dog, the loss is excruciating. Why? In this episode, Dr. Frank McAndrew, evolutionary and social psychologist, draws upon his personal experience as well as cultural dictates and scientific research to illuminate our extraordinary relationship with dogs and the impact of their loss. In his discussion, he considers the unique interspecies bond with dogs and draws upon the work of Anthropologist Brian Hare who developed the “Do...

This show is for men and everyone who loves them. In it, psychotherapist, James Hawes draws upon his years of clinical experience with men and his book, The Secret Lives of Men: Ten Keys to Unlock the Mystery, to discuss the social and cultural norms that keep men trapped with feelings like unvoiced hurt, sadness, fear and shame. In his presentation he considers topics like: Feelings as a Foreign Language, Vulnerability Masked as Anger, Sex as Intimacy and Performance as the Source of Self Estee...