DEPTH Work: A Holistic Mental Health Podcast Jazmine Russell

https://depthwork.substack.com/

Its becoming more well known that gut health impacts mental health, but with the rise of ‘wellness culture’ how do we separate fact from fiction? Dr. Supriya Rao of Gutsy Girl MD bridges the gap between medicine and lifestyle to give patients simple and effective support for gut health, motility, and nutrition. We talk about the topics patients are often too embarrassed to discuss (elimination!), what trauma has to do with the gut, and the things we can do each day to support ourselves.

In this episode we discuss:


how gut health is linked to mental health
the enteric nervous system and trauma
why it’s important to screen for sexual abuse
motility and issues with constipation and diarrhea
simple effective nutrition tips
6 pillars of lifestyle medicine
dispelling wellness myths

Bio

Dr. Supriya Rao (she/her) is a quadruple board-certified physician in internal medicine, gastroenterology, obesity medicine and lifestyle medicine who focuses on digestive disorders, gut health, obesity medicine, and women's health and wellness. She received her undergraduate degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology after which she graduated from Duke University School of Medicine. She completed her internship and residency in Internal Medicine from the Hospital at the University of Pennsylvania. She went on to complete her fellowship in Gastroenterology at Boston Medical Center. She joined Integrated Gastroenterology Consultants in 2014 and is now a managing partner. She completed further certification in obesity and lifestyle medicine and is the Director of Medical Weight Loss at Lowell General Hospital and runs the Metabolic & Lifestyle Medicine Program at IGIC. She also runs the motility program, which focuses on disorders of the esophagus, irritable bowel syndrome and anorectal disorders. She is passionate about empowering people to improve their health through sustainable changes in their lifestyle. She enjoys cooking, traveling, running, yoga and spending time with family and friends. You can also find Dr. Rao on Instagram @gutsygirlmd.



Links

https://www.gutsygirlmd.com/





Sessions & Information about the host: ⁠⁠JazmineRussell.com⁠⁠

Disclaimer: The DEPTH Work Podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only. Any information on this podcast in no way to be construed or substituted as psychological counseling, psychotherapy, mental health counseling, or any other type of therapy or medical advice.

Millions of people are put on psychiatric drugs each year. For some, these drugs are desired and effective, but for many, whether taken willingly or by force, they create multiple harmful side effects, long-term health complications, and are incredibly challenging to taper off of. Users of psychiatric drugs also rarely find professional or even peer support for tapering off due to the stigma and discrimination and a false narrative that implies users must remain on them for life. Chaya Grossberg, psychiatric survivor and ally, has supported people for over 15 years in finding alternatives and maintaining their agency, a role that is much needed. After becoming ill and nearly dying from the multiple psychiatric drugs she was prescribed, she decided to slowly taper off with support from the Freedom Center (a peer support organization) and heal the damage done to her body. Now, an activist, community organizer and writer of her book: “Freedom from Psychiatric Drugs”, Chaya shares her wisdom.

In this episode we discuss:


what it was like to take 7 different psychiatric medications
how to change and reclaim your narrative
crisis as a retrieval of life purpose
what we want young people to know today
how pharmaceutical companies use non-profits and peer organization to perpetuate propaganda
why nutrition matters when coming off psych meds
case studies of successful tapering off
withdrawal symptoms and the false narratives told about them
the risk of SI due to being on or coming off psych meds
taking a basic needs framework

Bio

Author Chaya Grossberg discusses her book Freedom from Psychiatric Drugs about what people go through coming off psychiatric drugs and what helps them. Freedom From Psychiatric Drugs is a manual and workbook for psychiatric survivors and their allies, friends and families. Chaya is not a medical practitioner, does not give medical advice, and supports the autonomy of each individual to make their own decisions on when or whether to come off psychiatric drugs. She advocates for increased options, support and safe spaces for people seeking alternatives to psychiatric drugs.

website: http://www.chayagrossberg.com

Book: Freedom From Psychiatric Drugs: First edition

Resources

the freedom center - https://www.freedom-center.willhall.net/node/463.html

Links

Institute for the Development of Human Arts (mental health training institute) - www.IDHA-NYC.org

Sessions & Information about the host: ⁠⁠JazmineRussell.com⁠⁠

Disclaimer: The DEPTH Work Podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only. Any information on this podcast in no way to be construed or substituted as psychological counseling, psychotherapy, mental health counseling, or any other type of therapy or medical advice.

"When someone says that they want to end their life, it just means that they don't want to be living the life that they're living" (Icarus Project). It’s overwhelmingly common for people to experience a suicidal ideation at some point in their life. As a society, we have to find better ways of preventing or approaching these experiences. Currently, our traditional psychiatric approaches seem to often do more harm than good for folks in vulnerable states. In this episode, I review some of the concerning research around SI interventions, and what we can do better.

In this episode we discuss:


myths about folks who experience SI
why structured clinical assessments aren’t predictive of SA
what traditional mental health systems get wrong about approaching SI
why there are higher rates of SA after psychiatric hospitalization
research on efficacy of emergency services
alternative options when someone’s experiencing SI

Resources


Institute for the Development of Human Arts : www.idha-nyc.org
peer run respite centers: https://power2u.org/directory-of-peer-respites/
Alt 2 Su (australia): https://alt2su-nsw.net/support-groups/
Alt 2 Su charter https://wildfloweralliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/CHARTER_alt2su_August-edits.pdf

Research:


safety contracts https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18638213/
assessments and lack of predictive power https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11673-022-10189-5
post-hospitalization suicide risk https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2629522
higher risk post emergency services https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00127-014-0912-2
coercion survey https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31162700/
harm disguised as help https://www.madinamerica.com/2023/09/suicide-police-harm-disguised-as-help/
hospitalization both increased and decreased risk https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37851457/

Sessions & Information about the host: ⁠⁠JazmineRussell.com⁠⁠

Disclaimer: The DEPTH Work Podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only. Any information on this podcast in no way to be construed or substituted as psychological counseling, psychotherapy, mental health counseling, or any other type of therapy or medical advice.

“When medical doctors or psychiatrists entertain incoherent ideas about the mind and body, they make bad decisions about how to assist us in being well.” - Diane O’Leary. Understanding how the mind and body are connected in mental health and medicine is critical, especially considering that when we fail to do so, many are harmed. Despite drawing on the Biopsychosocial model for the last few decades, psychiatry hasn’t gotten much closer to elucidating the connections between the mind, body, and society. Today, Diane O’Leary explains to us psychiatry’s big philosophy problem and how it leads to huge ethical concerns. In an effort to ‘not be dualists’ psychiatry often tries to lump the mental and physical together, but in doing so, fails to approach clients as ‘holists’. Here’s how we can bring the person back into mental health.

In this episode we discuss:


why medically unexplained physiological symptoms get labeled as ‘in your head’
why the way to be a ‘holist’ is not about eradicating dualism or separating mind and body
why the biopsychosocial model is incoherent and doesn’t do justice to patients
the roots of bad philosophy in psychiatry
women’s health and the history of manipulation in psychosomatic medicine
why psychiatry needs to reevaluate its bioethics and respect patients’ rights and personhood

Bio

Diane O’Leary, PhD is a philosopher whose research focuses on medicine and psychiatry. In particular, she sets out to apply philosophy of mind in a way that helps to clarify what biomedicine and psychiatry are aiming for with holistic practice – and what they should be aiming for. Dr. O’Leary is Professor of Philosophy at University of Maryland Global Campus, and a former visiting researcher at the Center for Philosophy of Science at University of Pittsburgh. She’s a strong advocate for change in the area of psychosomatic medicine, and she’s currently a Public Voices Fellow on Advancing the Rights of Women and Girls with The Oped Project and Equality Now.

https://www.dianeoleary.com/



Links:

Institute for the Development of Human Arts: www.idha-nyc.org

Sessions & Information about the host: ⁠⁠⁠JazmineRussell.com⁠⁠⁠



Resources


How to be a Holist who Rejects the Biopsychosocial Model https://eujap.uniri.hr/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/17_2_5.pdf
John Read on the “Bio bio bio model” https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/document?repid=rep1&type=pdf&doi=fc53f77bec3514fe6c66f9216be662a89b78fa27
Prozac’s rebrand for PMDD to Serafim - https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/2001/04/29/renamed-prozac-fuels-womens-health-debate/b05311b4-514a-4e65-aaa5-434cb2934271/ &
https://www.minnpost.com/second-opinion/2016/11/how-premenstrual-dysphoric-disorder-was-defined-and-marketed-drug-makers/#:~:text=Lilly rebranded Prozac%2C changing the,feminine-sounding name — Sarafem.





Disclaimer: The DEPTH Work Podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only. Any information on this podcast in no way to be construed or substituted as psychological counseling, psychotherapy, mental health counseling, or any other type of therapy or medical advice.

Sometimes it takes a healing crisis to get to the roots of chronic illness and transform our life into something more sustainable and purposeful. For Fern Olivia, this crisis manifested as an autoimmune thyroid problem - Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis - that forced her to quit her corporate job and led her down a healing path. Since then, she has developed Thyroid Yoga, along with other breath, movement, and vocal practices to support people who desire a more holistic way of dealing with whole-body health concerns.

In this episode we discuss:


the connections between the thyroid, hormones, and depression
why hypothyroidism is more prevalent in women and diagnostically overshadowed
messages from the body and why we ignore or normalize symptoms
the function of the thyroid, physically and energetically
the value of mentorship and community support
learning to not be antagonistic with the body
body talk practice and how to deeply listen
blending yogic traditions and holistic nutrition
using your voice to find your power

Bio

Fern Olivia is an internationally recognized teacher, speaker, and wellness influencer, as well as the founder of Thyroid Yoga®, a unique holistic program that has empowered thousands of women to reclaim their thyroid health and live a fuller, more radiant life. After fainting in the subway in NYC while working for seven years as a Vice President on Wall Street, she left the concrete jungle for the jungle of Costa Rica where she lives and guides retreats. Fern has birthed a new approach to healing through her own education in biomedical engineering and over a decade of experience and certifications in yoga, integrative medicine, breathwork and as a Medical Medium cleanse specialist. She combines targeted yoga sequences, breathwork, vocal activation, somatic intelligence, and brain rewiring to form a whole body approach to health. Through her masterminds, writings, retreats, workshops, and much more, Fern continues to educate and train thousands of women to reclaim their health and live their most fully expressed lives.

Fern's "The Expressed Woman" 21-Day Quest to Confidence:

www.thyroid.yoga/products/theexpressedwoman

Join Fern's Medical Medium & Thyroid Yoga® Cleanse Retreat in Upstate NY this July 10-14: www.thyroid.yoga/products/upstateny

Retreats and Cleanses in Costa Rica: www.thyroid.yoga/cleanseretreat

Websites:

www.fernolivia.com

www.thyroid.yoga

https://embodiedvoicebreathwork.com

Instagram: @fernolivia

Research:

Epstein Barr Virus a possible cause for Autoimmune Thyroid conditions:


https://www.palomahealth.com/learn/epstein-barr-virus-thyroid
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5099387/

Thyroid Conditions and Increased Risk of Depression


https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9392461/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9025086/



Sessions & Information about the host: ⁠⁠JazmineRussell.com⁠⁠

Disclaimer: The DEPTH Work Podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only. Any information on this podcast in no way to be construed or substituted as psychological counseling, psychotherapy, mental health counseling, or any other type of therapy or medical advice.