Untying Knots: Minds and Souls Untethered

Perry Clark, LMFT

A knot is a focus point in a rope. Multiple knots can shorten the length of rope. A knot can disrupt how a rope coils or uncoils. A knot can also be a place to provide a grip for climbing and holding something in place. Our lives can be full of knots that can be either helpful or unhelpful. The Untying Knots podcast is here to stimulate listeners by untying knots that hamper our understanding around mental health issues, and helping to find the knots that are there to help one climb or stop their fall. We focus on sharing information, education about mental health, psychotherapy and the practice of it from a Black-Indigenous-Person-of-Color lens. We interview people who work in the field of mental health. We discuss myths and realities about the field, and we talk with creatives on how mental health impacts the challenges they face, how they overcome these challenges, and how it helps them live an authentic empowered life.

  1. Jun 15

    Episode 131. Jadzia Axelrod and Michael Varrati: 4 Seasons of Fear

    This week, I sit down with creators Jadzia Axelrod and Michael Varrati to continue discussing Four Seasons of Fear: A Year of Queer Horror. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/stackeddeckpress/fourseasons-of-fear-a-year-of-queer-horror  Four Seasons of Fear: A Year of Queer Horror is an all-LGBTQ+ horror comics anthology from award-winning publisher Stacked Deck Press. It features horror stories from queer perspectives that draw inspiration from holidays and seasonal activities. Four Seasons of Fear will feature work from over two dozen all LGBTQ+ comics creators, including such notables as Josh Trujillo, David Booher, and Wilfred Santiago. Filmmaker and podcaster Michael Varrati and cartoonist Tara Madison Avery will be handling editing duties on this project. Stories in Four Seasons of Fear will be based on popular holidays such as Christmas, Easter, and Halloween, some slightly less celebrated ones such as May Day, Juneteenth, and Rosh Hashanah, and seasonal events such as going back to school. The book will be a full-color, standard comics size paperback projected to be roughly 200 pages in length. Contributors include: • Tara Madison Avery • Jadzia Axelrod and Rye Hickman. http://jadziaaxelrod.com  • Christianne Benedict • David Booher and Sean Peacock • Jose Cardenas and Pupa Michi • BJ Colangelo• Dave Davenport • Richard Fairgray • Chandra Free and Stephen Emond • Casey Gilley • Viktor T. Kerney and António Brandãu • Mac Maclean • Jon Macy • Ajuan Mance • Wilfred Santiago • Sonya Saturday • William O. Tyler • Michael Varrati and Brendan Haley • Alina Wahab   Links:  Year of the Goat: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/567850/the-year-of-the-goat  Saturday the 14th: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/405700/saturday-the-14th  Friends of Dorothy: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/494229/friends-of-dorothy

  2. Jun 8

    Episode 130. Sonya Saturday and Tara Avery: 4 Seasons of Fear

    This week, I sit down with creators Sonya Saturday and Tara Avery to talk about the queer horror comic anthology Four Seasons of Fear: A Year of Queer Horror and other projects they're working on. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/stackeddeckpress/fourseasons-of-fear-a-year-of-queer-horror  Four Seasons of Fear: A Year of Queer Horror is an all-LGBTQ+ horror comics anthology from award-winning publisher Stacked Deck Press. It features horror stories from queer perspectives that draw inspiration from holidays and seasonal activities. Four Seasons of Fear will feature work from over two dozen all LGBTQ+ comics creators, including such notables as Josh Trujillo, David Booher, and Wilfred Santiago. Filmmaker and podcaster Michael Varrati and cartoonist Tara Madison Avery will be handling editing duties on this project. Stories in Four Seasons of Fear will be based on popular holidays such as Christmas, Easter, and Halloween, some slightly less celebrated ones such as May Day, Juneteenth, and Rosh Hashanah, and seasonal events such as going back to school. The book will be a full-color, standard comics size paperback projected to be roughly 200 pages in length. Contributors include: • Tara Madison Avery • Jadzia Axelrod and Rye Hickman. http://jadziaaxelrod.com  • Christianne Benedict • David Booher and Sean Peacock • Jose Cardenas and Pupa Michi • BJ Colangelo• Dave Davenport • Richard Fairgray • Chandra Free and Stephen Emond • Casey Gilley • Viktor T. Kerney and António Brandãu • Mac Maclean • Jon Macy • Ajuan Mance • Wilfred Santiago • Sonya Saturday • William O. Tyler • Michael Varrati and Brendan Haley • Alina Wahab Links: The Year of the Goat: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/567850/the-year-of-the-goat  Saturday the 14th: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/405700/saturday-the-14th  Friends of Dorothy: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/494229/friends-of-dorothy  Queers at the Table: https://arsenalpulp.com/Books/Q/Queers-at-the-Table  https://sonyasaturday.substack.com/

  3. Jun 1

    Episode 129. Dr. Jonathan Lassiter: Relationships

    This week, I sit down again with Dr. Jonathan Lassiter to continue our conversation about relationships. Jonathan Mathias Lassiter, Ph.D. is a polymath who utilizes psychology, writing, and dance to help others heal and thrive. His roles include licensed clinical psychologist, holistic wellness and relationship coach, professor, author, public speaker, and choreographer. As a public intellectual, Dr. Lassiter has been featured on television, radio, podcasts, and print such as PBS, Sirius XM, and The Hill. Dr. Lassiter is the award-winning co-editor of Black LGBT Health in the United States: The Intersection of Race, Gender, and Sexual Orientation. This book received the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association's Achievement Award. It is the first and only text to focus solely on Black LGBT Americans' holistic health. He is currently working on his f irst sole-authored book that will explore contemporary issues of race and mental health in the United States. In addition, Dr. Lassiter has published numerous articles in academic journals and lay publications, presented his choreographic work in prestigious showcases in New York City, and provided psychological services to clients in medical centers across the country. Formerly, Dr. Lassiter is Assistant Professor of Psychology at Rowan University, Founder and Chief Psychology Officer at Lassiter Health Initiatives, co-host of Fly on the Wall on YouTube, and Artistic Associate at The Black Acting Methods Studio. His social media info is below:  http://www.jonathanmlassiter.com   Twitter: @lassiterhealth  Instagram: @lassiterhealth

  4. Apr 13

    Episode 127. Dr. Jonathan M. Lassiter, Author of "How I Know White People Are Crazy"

    This week, I sit down with Dr. Jonathan M. Lassiter to talk about his new book How I Know White People Are Crazy.   Jonathan Mathias Lassiter, Ph.D. is a polymath who utilizes psychology, writing, and dance to help others heal and thrive. His roles include licensed clinical psychologist, holistic wellness and relationship coach, professor, author, public speaker, and choreographer. As a public intellectual, Dr. Lassiter has been featured on television, radio, podcasts, and print such as PBS, Sirius XM, and The Hill. Dr. Lassiter is the award-winning co-editor of Black LGBT Health in the United States: The Intersection of Race, Gender, and Sexual Orientation. This book received the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association's Achievement Award. It is the first and only text to focus solely on Black LGBT Americans' holistic health. He is currently working on his f irst sole-authored book that will explore contemporary issues of race and mental health in the United States. In addition, Dr. Lassiter has published numerous articles in academic journals and lay publications, presented his choreographic work in prestigious showcases in New York City, and provided psychological services to clients in medical centers across the country. Formerly, Dr. Lassiter is Assistant Professor of Psychology at Rowan University, Founder and Chief Psychology Officer at Lassiter Health Initiatives, co-host of Fly on the Wall on YouTube, and Artistic Associate at The Black Acting Methods Studio. His social media info is below:  http://www.jonathanmlassiter.com   Twitter: @lassiterhealth  Instagram: @lassiterhealth

About

A knot is a focus point in a rope. Multiple knots can shorten the length of rope. A knot can disrupt how a rope coils or uncoils. A knot can also be a place to provide a grip for climbing and holding something in place. Our lives can be full of knots that can be either helpful or unhelpful. The Untying Knots podcast is here to stimulate listeners by untying knots that hamper our understanding around mental health issues, and helping to find the knots that are there to help one climb or stop their fall. We focus on sharing information, education about mental health, psychotherapy and the practice of it from a Black-Indigenous-Person-of-Color lens. We interview people who work in the field of mental health. We discuss myths and realities about the field, and we talk with creatives on how mental health impacts the challenges they face, how they overcome these challenges, and how it helps them live an authentic empowered life.