Dr. Lisa Gives a Sh*t

Lisa Levy
  • 4.0 (8)
  • Comedy
  • Updated Biweekly

ABOUT THE SHOW: DR. LISA GIVES A SHIT Dr. Lisa is fixing the planet one person at a time. Tired of sanitized self-help and textbook therapy? Dr. Lisa cuts through the noise with raw, unfiltered conversations about the mental health challenges you're actually facing. As a self-proclaimed psychotherapist unburdened by institutional constraints, Dr. Lisa delivers straight talk on everything from relationship dynamics to societal pressures with zero sugar-coating and maximum impact. What sets this show apart? Dr. Lisa wields truth through humor, making even the heaviest topics accessible, entertaining, and surprisingly funny. Her sharp wit and irreverent takes transform traditional therapy talk into can't-miss radio that's as entertaining as it is enlightening. This isn't your standard "how does that make you feel?" therapy hour. It's an honest, sometimes uncomfortable, always laugh-out-loud exploration of psychological truths mainstream practitioners are too cautious to touch. Join our growing community of Brooklyn listeners who prefer their mental health wisdom served straight up, not watered down—with a generous side of humor that makes the medicine go down easy. Listen to new episodes every Thursday 2-3pm on Radio Free Brooklyn. Over 300 episodes on the archives. How Dr. Lisa was born: Dr. Lisa has been practicing unlicensed therapy since 2001. She’s worked with over 1,000 clients including artists, comedians, musicians, politicians, writers, actual shrinks, celebrities and complete strangers.In 2001, she added Self-Proclaimed Psychotherapist to her busy schedule as an art director and conceptual artist. As an art project, she conceived and produced a live show where she invited audience volunteers to have a quickie therapy session on a couch on stage with her, making fun of the fact that she had no experience, and showing off her forged diploma.Within a year she had a regular show, Psychotherapy LIVE! and a ton of press to go with it from places like, The New York Times, Time Out New York, The Village Voice and pretty much any NYC paper with a theater section. She started her radio show, Dr. Lisa Gives A Shit in 2015, and before the pandemic, continued to perform therapy live in front of audiences.With her lightning quick read of people and her forthright insights, she can get to the essence of what people are trying to communicate quickly, and her sense of humor keeps everyone out of trouble.Due to her genuine curiosity, thoughtful questioning and quick wit, Dr. Lisa’s guests/patients reveal themselves whether they are planning to or not. It takes either a willingness to divulge or a bit of courage to be on Dr. Lisa’s couch. In Dr. Lisa’s world, everyone can sit for a therapy session and anything can seem like a therapy session. https://listentodrlisa.com/ #jencatron #pauloutlaw More about Lisa HERE:

  1. Sep 19

    DLG407 Lu Chekowsky talks about having her book about her life out in the world.— "Don't Buy What I'm Selling: On Breaking Up with Advertising and Finally Learning to Love My Whole, Fat Self ."

    Lu Checkowsky has risen to the the top level of creative people from her career spanning legendary ad agency, Weiden + Kennedy, to executive creative director jobs at Comedy Central, MTV and Facebook. Make no mistake, Lu earns this all through extraordinary talent and hard work. Lu’s worked behind the scene, managing the creative advertising of shows with just about every celebrity you can imagine — all while struggling with a serious eating disorder — at one point weighing almost 300 lbs. while excelling under crazy pressure. Subsequently, she gets seriously ill, forcing her to leave her career. The book she wrote about her experience and recovery Don't Buy What I'm Selling: On Breaking Up with Advertising and Finally Learning to Love My Whole, Fat Self, has just been published by Brown + Little. Currently she's and working on another book — this time, a novel. Three months ago, (June 2026), and we find out about how Lu feels having her life in the form of a book out in public We also talk about her mother who passed away when Lu was 22, but infused Lu with some empowering ideas as well as some good lessons she would need in the future. Personally am a huge fan of this book. Lu managed to take a stressful story so enjoyable to read, that my husband got mad because I literally wouldn’t put it down.  Buy the Book / Instagram / Website / Tik Tok Bio: Lu Chekowsky [she/they] is a writer and Emmy Award–winning creative director. In Lu’s most recent job in the advertising industry, she was lead creative director for video at Facebook. Before that, Lu was the SVP of brand creative at Comedy Central, where they developed campaigns for shows like The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, South Park, Nathan for You, and Broad City. Previously, Lu was VP, creative director at MTV, where they made ads for Teen Wolf, Jersey Shore, The Real World, and the Video Music Awards. Before working in entertainment, Lu was a creative director and copywriter at Wieden+Kennedy, where she over- saw work for brands such as Jordan, Noxzema, Delta Airlines, and The National MS Society. Lu is a 2023 New York State Council on the Arts / New York Foundation for the Arts Fellow in nonfiction literature, and their writing has been supported by MASS MoCA, Vermont Studio Center, Craigardan, and Tin House. Her essays and poetry have been published in The Rumpus, Pigeon Pages, and Autofocus, and her pieces about the cultural impacts of advertising have appeared in Ad Age and Muse by Clios. Lu lives in the Hudson Valley.

  2. Sep 14

    DLG406 Comedian Joe Palana knows a lot about how humans can connect.

    Quite honestly, this session with Brooklyn based comedian, Joe Palana, is one of the most emotionally powerful that I have done. Joe grew up with a younger cousin that has both Down syndrome and autism. Joe formed a deep bond with him that as it turns out, has directed his life in ways Joe couldn’t have expected as a child. The way Joe articulates his relationship with his cousin really helped me understand that specific relationship, but more broadly, helped me imagine what it might be like to be living with Autism and/or Down Syndrome. It was a lot more uplifting than you might imagine. Joe works as board-certified behavior analyst working  with autistic children. He's a Harvard graduate (summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa) and was co-valedictorian of his high school. HUGE SHOUT OUT for Joe’s open mic on Mondays at Pine Box. Joepalana.com Instagram @joepalana Joe's Monday 6pm open mic at Pine Box Rock Shop

  3. Aug 27

    DLG1842 Loren Munk is a gift to the art world—plus he’s a fun guy!

    Loren Munk is an amazing painter and art world chronicler. His art and videos are an amalgamation of art history. The well-known painter, Katherine Bradford said he deserves a MacArthur "Genius" Award and I wholeheartedly agree. As James Kalm, he’s had over 2 million views of his web series covering art, galleries, artists, openings and even some street musicians. There is so much to learn about this former Mormon from Utah. Loren was talented as a child but art didn’t come alive for him until he was stationed in Germany with the U.S. Army during the 70’s. Loren was a highly active part of the art world in the 80’s. He never quit, but the art world went through it’s paces and he and his wife, Kate, focused on bring up two boys. In the meantime Loren, reentered the art world with a vengeance. This is genuine inside scoop, folks. There’s even a discussion of, “What’s more important for an art career,-the work or the relationships?” Find out more about Loren and see his work here: http://www.lorenmunk.com/ Enjoy his art world videos here: https://www.youtube.com/user/jameskalm and here https://www.youtube.com/user/jameskalmroughcut

  4. Aug 18

    DLG405 Justin Linkville, comedian/improviser/writer/director/actor/BCC Training Center director makes it happen.

    Justin Linville is a huge talent and all around nice guy. The kind of guy that’s great to hang with but also great in an emergency. He currently works as Director of the Training Center at the Brooklyn Comedy Collective (BCC) as well as performing on their top house improv team, "What Makes You Laugh?" Saturdays at 8:30 PM. Justin is a great example of a creative person who makes his own opportunities while at the same time making opportunities for others. Justin shares a lot about this super cool project that he's been working on for the past few years as writer/director/actor along with a cast and production team. It's an animated series based around a claymation character Georgie, a curious, Liverpudlian-accented clay-monster character who drives a tiny remote-control car (built from RC car undercarriages glued to pencil boxes) through miniature sets, exploring environmental themes. It’s a super cool project that also promotes learning about the environment—SO WORTH SUPPORTING on Seed + Spark. We also talk about how Justin, a recent vegetarian, presses tofu overnight and that he’s also part of company, Story Pirates. It's an awesome organization, they take stories that are written by kids, like this one-page thing, and write a script and make it into a radio play. @justinmlinville Georgie on the Farm Seed + Spark For a deep dive into Justin's childhood, etc., please listen to our previous 2024 Dr. Lisa episode DLG343. Blatant Plug—I run the Dog House Art Gallery at the BCC where Justin works, in the Dog House space. — a gallery that exhibits artists that use humor in their work. Check it out + stop in! 137 Montrose Ave., BK.

    DLG405 Justin Linkville, comedian/improviser/writer/director/actor/BCC Training Center director makes it happen.

  5. Aug 15

    DLG404_After Artnet: Sarah Cascone's Next Chapter

    Subscribe to Sarah Cascone's Newsletter to keep up with art and culture!!! Sarah Cascone is a widely known and highly respected art writer with a sharp, curious eye and the writing talent to bring her discoveries to life. She was part of the original team that launched ArtNet News in 2014, where she wrote or co-wrote nearly 6,000 articles. Her work has also appeared in The Art Newspaper, Art in America, Hyperallergic, Interview, and other publications. There are so many reasons to appreciate Sarah's work, but for me, it's the way she uncovers some of the best and most innovative art and culture found anywhere. Frankly, I was honored to have Sarah on the show. Her Instagram farewell post about leaving Artnet captures her feelings about this moment of change better than I could — and since we discuss it on the show, I wanted to share a bit of it here. In her post (@sarahecascone, May 3), Sarah described the past two weeks as unlike anything she'd experienced before, and noted that her last day at Artnet News was April 16. She wrote about feeling a complex mix of emotions — grief, sadness, anger, and resentment, but also relief, hope, and excitement for what's next. She spoke with pride about helping launch Artnet News into a trusted, authoritative voice in the art world almost overnight, and reflected warmly on the many colleagues — now close friends — she'd worked alongside since 2014. Sarah's experience has relevance for a lot of us these days, and I was fascinated to hear how she plans to move forward — with a mix of exploration and practical next steps. For someone as accomplished as Sarah, it was genuinely insightful to hear what's next. She already has her own newsletter — sign up here — or you can follow her brand-new Cultured Magazine column, The Overlook, where, as I mentioned, she delivers the gems she uncovers straight to you. Relevant Episode Links: https://sarahcascone.com/2026/06/why-is-kanye-west-at-art-basel-he-bankrolled-vanessa-beecrofts-new-film/ https://thegraymarket.substack.com/p/what-happened-inside-the-artsy-artnet 8.2.26

  6. Aug 13

    DLG392 Artist/Filmmaker Laura Parnes talks about her own adolescence.

    Laura Parnes is an extremely accomplished filmmaker and artist . (Scroll down for bio—impressive!!) One of the themes in Laura Parnes's work is female adolescence. Here's a quote from an interview with her in ⁠FEMEXFILM Archive⁠: "A really big focus of the work is the romantic vision of a teen peering in on a culture that they haven’t personally participated in and how this holds potential for criticality. But, it’s really tempered by a desire to gain status, power, and agency. " Bearing that in mind, I wanted to find out about Laura's own upbringing and teen years and how that has influenced her work. It turns out there were about two years in Laura's life that were filled with older friends and drugs. After that she chose to put her energy into art, got accepted to Tyler Art School and the rest is history. Art history to be specific. Laura's work has been clearly ahead of it's time as well as an influence on the period we are living in today. Gen Z has picked up on one of her films from 2017, No Is Yes, depicting two teen girls with a crush on a rockstar they kill accidentally and then mutilate. Clips of it have gone viral on Tik Tok. Please check out her work, if you're not familiar, on her website and Vimeo. BIO:     Laura Parnes’ critically acclaimed films and installations fuse comedy with pathos to probe social and political trauma. Informed by traditions and genres in narrative film, video art and queer theater, her work blurs the lines between conventions of storytelling and experimentation. The performers in her projects are often part of a diverse community of artists and musicians, many of whom are responsible for the rich underground scene in NYC, and who have shaped and affected other mainstream art cultures. Laura Parnes has screened and exhibited her work widely in the US and internationally, including: The Wexner Center for the Arts, Columbus, Ohio; The Institute of Contemporary Art University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA; The International Film Festival Rotterdam, Rotterdam, Netherlands; Deste Foundation for Contemporary Art, Athens, Greece., LOOP Festival, Barcelona, Spain; Light Industry, Brooklyn, NY; Kusthalle Winterhur, Switzerland; Overgaden- Institute for Contemporary Art, Copenhagen, Denmark; iMOCA, Indianapolis, IN; Cinematexas, Austin, TX; Contemporary Art Center, Vilnius, Lithuania; Museo Nacional Centro De Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid; Whitney Museum of American Art (1997 Whitney Biennial), NY; Dunedin Public Art Gallery, New Zealand; PSI Contemporary Art Center MoMA, NY; Miami Museum of Contemporary Art, FL; and Brooklyn Museum, NY. Her solo exhibitions include Pioneer Works, Brooklyn, NY; Burchfield Penney Art Center, Buffalo, NY; Human Resources, LA, CA; Fitzroy Gallery, NYC, NY; LAXArt, LA, CA; Alma Enterprises, London, UK; Locust Projects, Miami, FL; Upstream Gallery, Amsterdam, Holland; Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions, LA, CA; Participant Inc, NYC, NY and Deitch Projects, NYC, NY. She has had solo screenings at The MoMA, NYC, NY; The Kitchen, NYC, NY; MoMA PS1, LIC, NY; NYCATE 10-year Anniversary, presented by the School of Art Institute of Chicago and Video Data Bank, Gene Siskel Film Center, Chicago, IL; Pacific Film Archive, Berkeley Art Museum, Berkeley, CA; Vtape, Toronto, Canada; and in a two-person screening at The MoMA, NYC, NY. She was presented by Participant Inc. in a two-person exhibition at No Soul for Sale at X Initiative, NYC, NY.      Parnes is a 2021 MacDowell Fellow, a 2019 Yaddo Artist in Residence, a 2019 Wave Farm Media Arts Awardee, a 2016 Creative Capital Awardee, a 2014 NYFA recipient, a 2013 John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Fellow and has lectured as a visiting artist at numerous institutions including Harvard University, Columbia University and UCLA. She has participated in panels at Yale University, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and MoMA PS1.

  7. Aug 5

    DLG403 Comedian Katerra Borkowski became an adult at a young age.

    Katerra Borkowski is an amazingly talented and hardworking comedian, writer and improviser. Katerra’s background is an outlier in the comedy community: she was brought up in foster homes and then eventually got adopted by a white family (she's black) in high school. Resilience people! This is what resilience looks like! I do think that Katerra has some major internal resources: brains and motivation. She also had some encouragement even though her father committed suicide when she was an infant and her mother had serious emotional struggles. Her mother drilled into Katerra that even though Katerra was in this situation with her, that she needed to do better than that. Katerra also had a great shrink from middle school through high school that helped her understand that she'd been failed by adults and where she was in life now was not her fault. Here’s a quote by Katerra from our session: “I mean to credit to my birth mom It was like one of the few things she did right, which is she didn't sugarcoat our situation. So, she was like, she was like, Katerra, I want you to be better than me. I don't I don't want you to struggle and like go through welfare. I don't want you to struggle and like be on public assistance.” BIO: Comedian, Creator, Co-producer, and co-host of @squirtnationpod, co-producer of @sketchmic.nyc, Comedian. Actor. Writer. Retired poet. Instagram: @katerraborkowskicomedy YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@katerraborkowski5846 Katerra is an amazing comdian, writer and improviser. Katerra is an outlyer in the comedy community: she was brought up in foster homes and then eventually got adopted by a white family (she's black) in high school. Resiliance people! This is what it looks like! I do think that Katerra has some major internal rescources: brains and motivation. She also had some encouragement even though her father committed suicide when she was an infant and her mother had serious emotional struggles. Her mother drilled into Katerra that even though Katerra was in this situation with her, you, Katerra ,are better than this situation and you need to do better. Katerra also had a great shrink from Middle school through high school that helped her understand that she'd been failed by adults and where she was in life at the moment was not her fault.

    DLG403 Comedian Katerra Borkowski became an adult at a young age.

  8. Jul 24

    DLG402 Nao Matsumoto talks about being an artist and the rollercoaster of an art career.

    Nao Matsumoto had a dreamlike ascension as an artist in his 20's, but eventually a lack of sales for his very-expensive-to-make work stalled, so did gallery representation along with it. Today Nao is a a successful wood worker + fabricator, happily married father of 2children 7+9, with an artist wife, Lori and a shared art gallery, Lorimoto. We talk about his art practice today, how hiis fabrication feeds him and the long-term affects of his foray into the gallery world. If you want to hear an authentic view of the real ups and downs a professional artist in the art world, Nao shares his experience without hesitation. Check out more about Nao HERE. Here's the video of me interviewing Nao about his sculpture of cheese that made him a star as well as a hero of the children at the Scope Art Fair 2006. You can also see a very young Eric Doeringer /selling his "bootlegs" as well.

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Ratings & Reviews

4
out of 5
8 Ratings

About

ABOUT THE SHOW: DR. LISA GIVES A SHIT Dr. Lisa is fixing the planet one person at a time. Tired of sanitized self-help and textbook therapy? Dr. Lisa cuts through the noise with raw, unfiltered conversations about the mental health challenges you're actually facing. As a self-proclaimed psychotherapist unburdened by institutional constraints, Dr. Lisa delivers straight talk on everything from relationship dynamics to societal pressures with zero sugar-coating and maximum impact. What sets this show apart? Dr. Lisa wields truth through humor, making even the heaviest topics accessible, entertaining, and surprisingly funny. Her sharp wit and irreverent takes transform traditional therapy talk into can't-miss radio that's as entertaining as it is enlightening. This isn't your standard "how does that make you feel?" therapy hour. It's an honest, sometimes uncomfortable, always laugh-out-loud exploration of psychological truths mainstream practitioners are too cautious to touch. Join our growing community of Brooklyn listeners who prefer their mental health wisdom served straight up, not watered down—with a generous side of humor that makes the medicine go down easy. Listen to new episodes every Thursday 2-3pm on Radio Free Brooklyn. Over 300 episodes on the archives. How Dr. Lisa was born: Dr. Lisa has been practicing unlicensed therapy since 2001. She’s worked with over 1,000 clients including artists, comedians, musicians, politicians, writers, actual shrinks, celebrities and complete strangers.In 2001, she added Self-Proclaimed Psychotherapist to her busy schedule as an art director and conceptual artist. As an art project, she conceived and produced a live show where she invited audience volunteers to have a quickie therapy session on a couch on stage with her, making fun of the fact that she had no experience, and showing off her forged diploma.Within a year she had a regular show, Psychotherapy LIVE! and a ton of press to go with it from places like, The New York Times, Time Out New York, The Village Voice and pretty much any NYC paper with a theater section. She started her radio show, Dr. Lisa Gives A Shit in 2015, and before the pandemic, continued to perform therapy live in front of audiences.With her lightning quick read of people and her forthright insights, she can get to the essence of what people are trying to communicate quickly, and her sense of humor keeps everyone out of trouble.Due to her genuine curiosity, thoughtful questioning and quick wit, Dr. Lisa’s guests/patients reveal themselves whether they are planning to or not. It takes either a willingness to divulge or a bit of courage to be on Dr. Lisa’s couch. In Dr. Lisa’s world, everyone can sit for a therapy session and anything can seem like a therapy session. https://listentodrlisa.com/ #jencatron #pauloutlaw More about Lisa HERE:

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