Safe Space Radio

Safe Space Radio

Can We Talk: Talking to White Kids About Race & Racism

May 20 • 53 min

Many white parents have never learned how to talk about race and racism with their kids. Silence perpetuates racism—but it can be hard to know how to start. This hour-long program is about talking to white kids about race and racism: how white parents,…

Can We Talk: Loneliness

May 13 • 52 min

<img class=” wp-image-4558 alignright” src=”https://safespaceradio.com/wp-content/uploads/Loneliness-PRX-Photo-400×265.jpeg” alt=”” width=”441″ height=”292″ /> This episode is about loneliness: what it is, why so many of us feel it, and the surprising…

Can We Talk: Asking For Help

May 6 • 52 min

<img class=”size-medium wp-image-4556 alignleft” src=”https://safespaceradio.com/wp-content/uploads/AFH-PRX-photo-400×267.jpeg” alt=”” width=”400″ height=”267″ /> This hour-long program is about asking for help: why it’s so hard to admit when we need…

Can We Talk: Apologies

May 1 • 52 min

We all make mistakes. Knowing how to mend our relationships is vital to the mental health of our families and communities. This episode is an exploration of apologies: why saying “I’m sorry” can be difficult, and how we can get better at repairing the…

Silence in the Body with Matthew Sanford

Dec 26, 2016

For the final show of 2016 and this season of Safe Space Radio, we revisit my 2011 conversation with Matthew Sanford. Matthew is a yoga teacher focusing on trauma recovery. He was paralyzed from the chest down at age 13 in a car accident that killed his…

Talking To Your Kids About Sex with Layne Gregory

Dec 19, 2016

This week we go back to 2008 and the second episode of Safe Space Radio to revisit a conversation that remains so important to me: how (and when) to talk to your kids about sexuality. My guest Layne Gregory and I discuss the ways our parents were unable…

Advocating for a Child with Autism with Ellen Jennings

Dec 12, 2016

This week we revisit my 2014 conversation with Ellen Jennings, who is the mother of a son with high-functioning autism. She talks about how long and difficult the path to his diagnosis was, and about the many ways she has had to push for him to get the…

Prisoners and Hospice with Bobby Payzant

Dec 5, 2016

This week’s show revisits my 2014 interview with Bobby Payzant, an inmate at the Maine State Prison. We discuss the crime for which he is serving time, and his work as a hospice volunteer, giving care to inmates dying in prison. Bobby’s insights about the…

Stigma and Teen Pregnancy with Meredith Hall

Nov 28, 2016

This week we present my 2012 conversation with Meredith Hall about her pregnancy at age 16. Meredith describes being shunned by her family and school and forced to give the child up for adoption. The experience was never acknowledged, and this silence…

Breaking the Silence with Carl Russell

Nov 21, 2016

This week I revisit my 2013 conversation with Episcopal Priest Carl Russell about the childhood sexual abuse he suffered at the hands of his family’s priest. Carl talks about the way that the priest gradually built trust with his parents and used that…

Navigating Postpartum Depression with Leah Deragon

Nov 14, 2016

Today’s show revisits my 2009 conversation with Leah Deragon of Birth Roots about her struggles with postpartum depression and anxiety. As a doula and a birth educator, it was hard for Leah when motherhood turned out to be so difficult. She discusses the…

Mental Illness and Stigma with Glenn Close

Nov 7, 2016

This week we revisit my 2012 conversation with Glenn Close about how and why she became an advocate for those with mental illness. Glenn’s sister Jessie has bipolar disorder, which didn’t get diagnosed for many years. Now they are working together to…

Talking About Political Differences with Sheila Heen

Oct 31, 2016

This 2013 conversation with Sheila Heen, faculty member at the Harvard Negotiation Project, was a fun one. Sheila and her husband, who are both experts at helping people talk through difficult disagreements, have opposing political beliefs. The interview…

Still Here: Caregiving and Dementia

Oct 24, 2016 • 53 min

This hour-long special is about the unspoken challenges of caring for a family member with dementia. The show explores the experience of ambiguous loss, where the person is both here and not here at the same time. Through stories, we explore why…

Navigating Grief with Poetry with Catharine Murray

Oct 24, 2016

In this interview from 2011, I speak with Catharine Murray about how writing poetry helped her heal from a loss that initially felt unspeakable - the death of her 6 year old son. She explains how sitting down to write allows her to create a new space to…

Male Sexual Violence and Rape Culture with Daryl Fort

Oct 17, 2016

This week we are re-airing a 2012 interview with violence prevention educator Daryl Fort. We talk about how our culture teaches that men are superior and women are inferior and how these messages work to justify and facilitate men’s mistreatment of women.

Adoption and Return with Sandy White Hawk

Oct 9, 2016

This week we revisit a 2015 conversation with Sandy White Hawk, one of five commissioners of Maine’s historic Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Sandy is Sicangu Lakota and an enrolled member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, who was separated from her family…

Dropping the Front with Neil McKenty

Oct 3, 2016

This week we revisit one of the first episodes of Safe Space Radio, a conversation with Canadian broadcaster Neil McKenty about his struggles with depression and alcohol. He describes his depression as the result of a collision between his negative ideas…

Out-Takes: The Unheard Stories of LBGTQ Teens

Sep 28, 2016 • 52 min

This show is about the courage of teenagers who come out at a time in life when it is hardest to be different. So many of the legal and social changes in this country that support LGBTQ civil rights are happening because one by one, year after year,…

Experience of Schizophrenia with Elyn Saks

Sep 26, 2016 • 27 min

This week we revisit a conversation from 2011 with Elyn Saks, a law professor and MacArthur fellow who lives with schizophrenia. We discuss how she came to the difficult understanding that she had the illness and needed treatment, and how she was able to…

Shame Between Doctors and Patients with Aaron Lazare

Sep 19, 2016

We begin a new season of the show with some of the best episodes from the early days of Safe Space Radio. We’ll be updating them with new commentary, bonus segments and occasional follow-up conversations. Today we revisit my 2010 interview with…

Recovering and Surviving with Meosha Thomas

Jun 13, 2016

This week’s show is the second half of my conversation with Navy veteran Meosha Thomas. We talk about the injuries she suffered in Iraq when her convoy hit an IED, and about how she lost and regained her desire to live in the long recovery period that…

Soldier or Mother? with Meosha Thomas

Jun 6, 2016

Over the next two weeks we will conclude our series on PTSD among women veterans by talking with Navy veteran Meosha Thomas. This week, Meosha talks about the trauma of a helicopter crash that killed a close friend, and the PTSD symptoms that followed…

Care and Community for Women Veterans with LaRhonda Harris

May 30, 2016

This week I speak with LaRhonda Harris of the Maine Department of Veterans’ Affairs. She talks about changes that have been made in the last decade so that women feel safer and more comfortable coming to the VA for health care. She also talks about…

No Longer Invisible with Kate Weber

May 23, 2016

This week’s show is part two of my interview with Kate Weber. Last week she told the story of being sexually assaulted on her army base overseas, and the lack of support and safety she felt when she reported the crime. This week we talk about the years…

Reporting and Retaliation with Kate Weber

May 16, 2016

This week we continue our series on PTSD among women veterans. My guest is Kate Weber, who was raped by a fellow soldier within her first weeks of deployment overseas in 1993. She discusses the helplessness and isolation she felt when she discovered that…

Military Sexual Trauma and the VA with Kathy Russin

May 9, 2016

This week I talk with Kathy Russin, the Military Sexual Trauma Program Coordinator for the Department of Veterans Affairs in Maine. She talks about the prevalence of Military Sexual Trauma among veterans, and explains that it is not limited to rape, and…

Being Believed with Ruth Moore

May 2, 2016

This week’s show is the second half of my conversation with Ruth Moore, a survivor of Military Sexual Trauma, and the namesake of the Ruth Moore Act, a piece of pending legislation which would remove some of the current barriers to treatment and justice…

Alone in the Azores with Ruth Moore

Apr 25, 2016

This week we begin a new series on PTSD among women veterans. My guest is Ruth Moore, who tells the story of being sexually assaulted by her commanding officer in the Navy. She describes a chilling scenario in which she is ostracized and punished for…

The Scars of Silence with Nubar Alexanian

Apr 17, 2016

This week’s show is a conversation with Armenian-American photographer and filmmaker Nubar Alexanian. We talk about the film he is making with his daughter about their journey to their ancestors’ homeland, the site of the Armenian genocide which began in…

Recovering Ourselves through Dreams with Don Kalsched

Apr 11, 2016

A conversation with Jungian analyst Don Kalsched about how he helps people work through trauma by exploring the feelings of the characters in their dreams. He explains that because these characters represent the ways our minds have compartmentalized…

Taking the Fight to Depression with LJ

Mar 28, 2016

This week we talk with LJ, who has been dealing with depression for most of his life, and describes it as a battle with a powerful enemy. He talks about the way that depression has affected his career, and vice versa, and describes the strategies he uses…

Mental Health at the Coffee Shop with Mary Allen Lindemann

Mar 21, 2016

A conversation with Mary Allen Lindemann, co-founder of Portland’s Coffee By Design. We talk about the ways that one coffee shop worked to become a safe place for those with mental illness. Mary Allen talks about training staff to de-escalate challenging…

Reducing the Stigma of Depression at Work with Clare Miller

Mar 14, 2016

Clare Miller is the director of the American Psychiatric Association’s Partnership for Workplace Mental Health. She works with employers to help them do everything they can to identify and treat depression among their employees. We discuss how to reduce…

Talking about Depression at Work with Lisa

Mar 7, 2016

On this week’s show I talk with Lisa, who shares two dramatically different stories of telling co-workers about her depression. Her experiences highlight the contrast between a work culture that is supportive and one that stigmatizes, and all the…

Hiding Depression at Work with Susie Melnick

Feb 29, 2016

This week I talk with therapist and former orchestra conductor Susie Melnick about how depression has affected her work in both professions. We talk about the event that set off her first episode of major depression, one that she struggled with on and off…

Supporting Employee Mental Health with Geoff Smith

Feb 22, 2016

This week we begin a new series on Depression in the Workplace. My first guest is Geoff Smith, who heads LL Bean’s Employee Assistance Program, or EAP. We talk about what an EAP can do to destigmatize depression within a company, and why it’s in every…

Leaving Iraq with Sara

Feb 8, 2016

A conversation with Sara, an Iraqi citizen who fled to the US because her brother’s work for the American forces in Baghdad put her family in danger. She talks about the opaque process of applying to leave, and her complicated feelings when she learned…

Women in Wartime with Cynthia Enloe

Jan 25, 2016

Feminist scholar Cynthia Enloe discusses about how women are affected by war and militarization. Her work focuses on sexual violence—and its subsequent silencing—as a repressive political tool, and about international efforts by feminist activists to make…

Arriving in High School with Eman

Jan 11, 2016

This week I talk with high school senior Eman, who moved to the US less than a year ago. We talk about how she dealt with leaving her friends and family behind in Sudan and again in Egypt, where she lived for five years. She talks about the uncertainty of…

Fleeing Persecution with Taysier

Jan 4, 2016

This week I speak with Taysier, who moved to Maine in 2015 with three of her children. Taysier is from Sudan, where she volunteered with humanitarian aid organizations in Darfur. Because of this, she was detained by the Sudanese government, who accused…

Somali Community in Maine with Catherine Bestemen

Dec 22, 2015

This week, in the second half of my conversation with Colby College anthropology professor Catherine Bestemen, we talk about the immense challenges that Somali refugees face upon their arrival, and how they are helped through the extraordinary volunteer…

The Roots of Crisis with Catherine Bestemen

Dec 14, 2015

On this week’s show, I speak with Colby College anthropology professor Catherine Besteman. She has spent her career studying Somali society, both in Somalia and here in Maine, where many Somalian refugees have begun new lives after escaping civil war at…

Navigating the Asylum Process with Phil Mantis

Dec 7, 2015

An interview with lawyer Phil Mantis of the Immigrant Legal Assistance Program, or ILAP. ILAP provides free legal help to people seeking asylum in the United States. He explains the difference between a refugee and an asylee, describes the most common…

Speaking Up for Asylum with Alice Barakagwira

Nov 30, 2015

This week I speak with Alice, an asylee from Burundi who now lives in Maine. She talks about her work in both countries to support and empower women who have faced cultural silencing and endured trauma. Together we explore ways that refugees might be…

Leaving Syria with Anna

Nov 23, 2015

This week I speak with Anna, who escaped Syria while 8 months pregnant in 2013 and now lives in Maine. She talks about trading the daily threat of bombings and kidnappings for a life of uncertainty as she and her husband applied and waited for asylum. She…

Escaping from Violence

Nov 16, 2015

This is a particularly intense interview about one woman’s narrow escape from Burundi, after she and her mother gave medical aid to an injured protester. She describes their arrest and interrogation prior to coming to the United States, and what it is…

Somali Women in Maine with Fatuma Hussein

Nov 9, 2015

We begin a new series on refugee women in Maine with a conversation with Fatuma Hussein of United Somali Women of Maine. She describes the challenges of resettlement for refugees fleeing war in their native countries, which she experienced herself as a…

Non-Native Allies

Oct 19, 2015

This week we conclude our series on the Maine-Wabanaki TRC by visiting a group of non-native allies who are working on how to best respond to the needs that the TRC brought to light. We learn from them why these issues matter to them personally, and the…

The Education of a Child Welfare Worker with Penthea Burns

Oct 5, 2015

A conversation with Penthea Burns, co-director of Maine-Wabanaki REACH. She talks about her background in child welfare and the difficulty of deciding whether the benefits of removing a child from abuse outweigh the additional trauma of severing family…

Sovereignty with Jamie Bisonette Lewey

Sep 29, 2015

This episode features Jamie Bissonette Lewey of the Maine Indian Tribal State Commission (MITSC). She explains her views on Tribal-State politics, and why she believes that the fundamental issue is the difference between how the state and the tribes…

Adoption and Identity with George

Sep 23, 2015

This week I talk with George, whose biological parents are Passamaquoddy, but who was adopted at birth and raised by white parents in southern Maine. George describes how it felt to visit the reservation for the first time and meet his biological…

The View From the Shore (Part 2) with gkisedtanamoogk

Sep 14, 2015

In part two of my conversation with gkisedtanamoogk, one of the five commissioners of the Maine State Child Welfare Truth and Reconciliation Commission, he talks more about the relationship between the government and the Wabanaki tribes. He also describes…

The View From the Shore (Part 1) with gkisedtanamoogk

Sep 7, 2015

Today I speak with gkisedtanamoogk, one of the five commissioners of the Maine Wabanaki State Child Welfare Truth and Reconciliation Commission. He shares his reflections on the process now that the findings have been published, and we also speak about…

Tribes and Government with Donna Loring

Sep 1, 2015

An interview with former tribal state representative Donna Loring, who is also a former police chief, an author, and a radio host. We talk about the history of relations between the Maine government and the Wabanaki tribes, and the frustrations which led…

Child Welfare and Native Families with Shawn Yardley

Jun 1, 2015

We end this season by revisiting the topic of the Maine Wabanaki State Child Welfare Truth and Reconciliation Commission. I speak with former DHHS worker Shawn Yardley about why children are removed from native families at disproportionate rates, and what…

Making Schools Safe for LGBTQ Teens with Elizabeth Saewyc

May 25, 2015

My guest this week is researcher Dr. Elizabeth Saewyc, who studies the impact of stigma on adolescents. Her research has demonstrated that when schools are made safer for LGBTQ kids, they are safer for everyone, including the largest group targeted by…

Hidden Emotions

May 18, 2015

We conclude this series on loneliness, guilt, humiliation and jealousy with a story that combines all four. We also revisit an earlier interview with Dr. Aaron Lazare about shame and humiliation and how these self-conscious emotions intersect with the…

Childhood Humiliation

May 11, 2015

This week’s show looks at the ways children are humiliated in school, both intentionally and inadvertently, and how it can significantly impact the way they feel about themselves well into adulthood.

Sudden Humiliation

May 4, 2015

This week we talk about the fourth and final emotion in our hidden feelings series…humiliation. That moment when you feel like dirt in someone else’s eyes, which is often so hard to bear that we bury it without ever really putting it to rest. This week we…

Working with Jealousy

Apr 27, 2015

This week our series on hidden feelings continues with jealousy. We’ll hear two stories from people who have experienced jealousy in their professional lives, from the kind of jealousy that makes you feel inferior, to the kind that makes you want to…

Guilt When You Hurt Someone

Apr 20, 2015

This week we take a final look at guilt, this time with two stories about common types of guilt that nobody wants to admit to. One story is from childhood, the other from adulthood, and in both the teller hurt someone close to them, and has struggled to…

Guilt When a Parent Dies

Apr 13, 2015

We continue our series on hidden feelings this week with two stories about guilt, the kind we feel when we believe we didn’t do enough at the end of a parent’s life. We’ll hear from people who were troubled by the way they failed to show up for their…

The Bite of Conscience with Herant Katchadourian

Apr 6, 2015

Today we continue our series on hidden feelings with an in-depth examination of guilt. I speak with Stanford professor of psychiatry and human biology Herant Katchadourian, author of the book Guilt: The Bite of Conscience, about the urge to confess our…

The Persistence of Guilt

Mar 30, 2015

Today we continue our series on hidden emotions with a show about guilt. We hear stories from two people who carried guilt for decades and then decided it was finally time to confess.

Loneliness and Your Brain with Amy Banks

Mar 23, 2015

On today’s show we open with a story about how hard it is to feel lonely when everyone around you seems to be part of a happy couple. Then we talk to psychiatrist Amy Banks to find out what social isolation does to our brains, and some concrete things we…

Intergenerational Loneliness with David

Mar 16, 2015

This episode of Safe Space Radio features David talking about how he came to understand the origins of a persistent and puzzling loneliness that he’d felt since childhood.

Disrupting the Vicious Cycle with Sandy White Hawk

Mar 2, 2015

I conclude my conversation with TRC commissioner Sandy White Hawk about how centuries of removing native children from their families has created a pattern of trauma and corresponding struggle that has made ongoing removal of children more likely. She…

The Work of Healing with Esther Attean and Stephanie Bailey

Feb 5, 2015

Today’s show is part three of my conversation with members of Maine Wabanaki REACH. I speak with Esther Attean and Stephanie Bailey about the experience of giving statements to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the hopes they have about what may…

Breaking the Silence with Maria Girouard, Esther Attean, and Stephanie Bailey

Feb 2, 2015

In part two of our series on the TRC, I speak with Maria Girouard, Esther Attean and Stephanie Bailey of Maine Wabanaki REACH. We discuss the process of gathering the untold stories of the many people affected by the longstanding practice of removing…

Wabanaki History in Maine with Maria Girouard and Esther Attean

Jan 26, 2015

To begin our series on the Maine Wabanaki State Child Welfare Truth and Reconciliation Commission, I talk with Maria Girouard and Esther Attean about the history of federal and state policies toward Native Americans here in Maine. We focus on the many…

Race and White Mistakes

Jan 5, 2015

A collection of stories about black-white personal relationships and some of the common pitfalls that white people fall into, often without realizing it.

Waking Up White (Part 2) with Debby Irving

Dec 29, 2014

In part two of my conversation with racial justice educator Debby Irving, we talk about the interpersonal dynamics of racism - in friendships, in “white spaces” like schools and offices, and even around the dinner table. Debby gives great, concrete…

Waking Up White (Part 1) with Debby Irving

Dec 22, 2014

My guest this week is Debby Irving, author of the book Waking Up White, who talks about the way her world was shaken when she began understanding the extent to which her whiteness has been crucial to her success in life. She also details the ways in which…

The System of Racism (Part 2) with Paul Marcus

Dec 15, 2014

In the second half of my conversation with anti-racism educator Paul Marcus we talk about how the history of discrimination by government, banking, business, education, and housing institutions has resulted in enormous disparities in wealth between white…

The System of Racism (Part 1) with Paul Marcus

Dec 8, 2014

A conversation with anti-racism educator Paul Marcus about how, by studying history, he came to understand racism as a system, and how this understanding shapes his work.

White People On Race with Shelly Tochluk

Dec 1, 2014

A conversation with Shelly Tochluk, author of the book Witnessing Whiteness. We talk about how she decided that the most important thing she could do to combat racism was to change the way that she and her white peers talked about and thought about race.

Unpacking White Privilege (Part 2) with Peggy McIntosh

Nov 24, 2014

In the second episode of Safe Space Radio featuring Peggy McIntosh, she talks about the five phases of understanding white privilege, and how white people can use their unearned advantage to work against the system which perpetuates it.

Unpacking White Privilege (Part 1) with Peggy McIntosh

Nov 17, 2014

A conversation with Peggy McIntosh, author of the groundbreaking essay “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack”, published in 1988. She talks about how encounters with the sexism of well-meaning men helped her see that she too had blind spots…

Race and Place (Part 2) with Natasha Wilson

Nov 10, 2014

In part two of our conversation, anthropologist and social work student Natasha Wilson talks about how, as a black woman in mostly-white schools and workplaces, she felt shunned and avoided, which made it harder to deal with other adversity in her life.…

Race and Place (Part 1) with Natasha Wilson

Nov 5, 2014 • 72 min

Natasha Wilson moved to Maine in 2012 following the tragic death of two of her brothers. She talks about how her experience of racism has been shaped by the different places she’s lived, and how she was unprepared for the alienation and hostility she has…

Angst, Introversion, and Apps with Peter Hallward, Reeve Lindbergh, and Rob McGinley

Oct 13, 2014

We conclude our series on living with anxiety with three segments on different topics related to the subject. First up is a conversation with philosophy professor Peter Hallward about the connection between anxiety and existentialism. Then author and book…

Childhood Phobia with Maiya

Oct 8, 2014

Ten-year-old Maiya takes us into the world of childhood phobias, describing what it was like to live with overwhelming anxiety about sickness, and how she found help. Now she is creating a website of fear-reducing games to help other kids who suffer with…

OCD’s Many Manifestations with Monica

Sep 29, 2014

Musician and educator Monica talks about how the intense insomnia that began in her 40′s led her to a diagnosis of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.

Raising a Child with Anxiety with Valery

Sep 22, 2014

A conversation with therapist and mother Valery about how she grew to understand her daughter’s difficulty with social situations as the result of severe social anxiety, and her seemingly excessive internet use as a positive and healthy adaptation.

OCD, Panic, and Llamas with Paula Matlins

Sep 15, 2014

A conversation with Paula Matlins about her daily struggle with OCD and panic, and how she is able to operate in the world through rules, medication, perseverance, and thinking about llamas

Obsessive Confession with Rob

Sep 8, 2014

Psychotherapist Rob talks about his own anxiety, which creates in him an insatiable need to confess things to those around him, and which can also lead to debilitating panic attacks. He talks about the various therapies he’s tried, including two which…

Anxiety in Photos with John William Keedy

Sep 1, 2014

We start our new season and our new series on living with an anxiety disorder with a conversation with photographer John William Keedy. His new exhibition is called It’s Hardly Noticeable, in which each photograph depicts a different aspect of anxiety.…

Parenting on the Spectrum

Jun 2, 2014

This episode of Safe Space Radio features multiple stories from the lives of parents of children on the autism spectrum.

Autism from a Father’s Perspective with Nathan Poore

May 26, 2014 • 30 min

Nathan Poore talks about how the experience of raising his 11-year-old son, who is on the autism spectrum, has defied his expectations again and again.

Is This Autism? with Lindy Anton

May 19, 2014 • 30 min

Psychotherapist Lindy Anton talks about the uncertainty and fear she and her husband have experienced as they’ve watched their 4-year-old son exhibit intermittent signs of autism.

Creating Connection with a Child with Autism with Susan Levin

May 12, 2014 • 29 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features a conversation with Susan Levin about her son Ben, who is now 11. She tells the story of discovering his autism, and talks about the ways she blamed herself for his difficulties. She explains the techniques she…

Parenting a Child with Autism with Ellen Jennings

May 5, 2014 • 30 min

Ellen Jennings is the mother of a 19-year-old son with autism. She talks about the winding path that brought them to that diagnosis, about coping with judgment of her parenting, and about advocating for her son to get him the services he needs.

Asperger Syndrome and Relationships with David Finch

Apr 28, 2014 • 30 min

David Finch is author of The Journal of Best Practices: A Memoir of Marriage, Asperger Syndrome, and One Man’s Quest to Be a Better Husband. In this episode of Safe Space Radio, he discusses how learning he has Aspergers has helped him to stop blaming…

Helping Children with Autism to Succeed with Temple Grandin

Apr 21, 2014 • 29 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features Temple Grandin as she vividly describes the various sensory ways that autistic people like herself experience the world differently from the neurotypical majority. She also discusses a number of strategies to help…

Stories from LGBTQ Teens

Apr 7, 2014 • 30 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features multiple stories from young people about how they came out to themselves and others.

Poetry and Coming Out (Part 2) with Richard Blanco

Mar 31, 2014 • 30 min

In Part 2 of his conversation with Safe Space Radio, poet Richard Blanco talks and reads poems about how he navigates the homophobia in his family and in the world.

Poetry and Coming Out (Part 1) with Richard Blanco

Mar 24, 2014 • 30 min

In Part 1 of his conversation with Safe Space Radio, poet Richard Blanco talks about the challenge of knowing he was gay in an unsupportive family.

Parents and Teachers as Allies with Sue and Abby

Mar 17, 2014 • 30 min

Sue, a mother of a transgender teen, and Abby, a teacher who advises her school’s Gay-Straight-Trans Alliance, talk about what they’ve learned about supporting the young LGBTQ people in their lives.

Getting Beyond Bullying with Kyle

Mar 10, 2014 • 30 min

16-year-old Kyle talks about how he went from being bullied in middle school to becoming the face of the Gay-Straight-Trans Alliance in his high school.

Transitioning with Aiden

Mar 3, 2014 • 30 min

Transgender teen Aiden talks about how he entered high school as a girl, gradually came to understand that he had always been a boy, and how he made that transformation real.

Speaking Up with Sianna

Feb 24, 2014 • 30 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features a conversation with lesbian high schooler Sianna about how she has taken a stand against homophobia in situations where no one else was on her side, and why she’s glad she had to.

On Being Outed with Samantha

Feb 17, 2014 • 30 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features Samantha, who was outed as a lesbian to her parents by a teacher at her school. She remembers the turmoil this has created in her life, being rejected by some important people after they learned she was gay, and…

On Being Gender-Neutral with AJ

Feb 10, 2014 • 30 min

This episode features a conversation with high school junior AJ, who identifies as gender-neutral. AJ discusses the challenges of not identifying as either a girl or a boy, and the value of finding allies within a new school.

Prison Perspectives with Robin Feuer Miller

Feb 3, 2014 • 30 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features Dostoevsky scholar Dr. Robin Feuer Miller. She discusses how Crime and Punishment is relevant to the experiences of prisoners today. We also hear stories from listeners about how incarceration, and the stigma it…

Keeping Incarceration a Secret with Sonia

Jan 27, 2014 • 30 min

This episode features a conversation with psychotherapist Sonia about her experience of arrest and imprisonment for possession of firearms and explosives as an anti-Vietnam War activist. In order to get professional licensure, Sonia waited years to get…

Restorative Justice with T. Richard Snyder

Jan 20, 2014 • 30 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features Dr. T. Richard Snyder on the work of restorative justice. This approach brings together the victim, the offender and the community of people affected by a crime in order to find solutions that not only work to…

Prisoners Providing Hospice Care (Part 2) with Bobby Payzant

Jan 13, 2014 • 31 min

Bobby Payzant is a hospice volunteer and inmate at the Maine State Prison. In this interview, Bobby talks more about the deep remorse he feels for the man he assaulted, and how he has had to face himself during the many years he has spent in prison. He…

Prisoners Providing Hospice Care (Part 1) with Kandyce Powell and Bobby Payzant

Jan 6, 2014 • 30 min

This episode features two conversations with people involved in the hospice program within the state prison in Warren, Maine. First we speak with the program’s founder, Kandyce Powell, executive director of the Maine Hospice Council, who talks about the…

Defending the Accused with Michael Lepie

Jan 2, 2014 • 30 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features a conversation with public defender Michael Lepie about his work with indigent clients, and why he considers criminal defense to be a civil rights issue. He discusses how he tries to seek outcomes for his clients…

Imprisonment and Life Transformation (Part 2) with Mike

Jan 1, 2014 • 30 min

Part 2 of Mike’s conversation with Safe Space Radio about the seven years he spent in federal prison. Mike talks about his experiences participating in a group inside the prison called the Jericho Circle which he credits with teaching him emotional…

Imprisonment and Life Transformation (Part 1) with Mike

Dec 16, 2013 • 30 min

This episode features Mike, who spent seven years in a federal prison on a drug conviction. He talks about the circumstances which led to his arrest, including an abusive upbringing and a chemical dependency which began in his mid-teen years. He describes…

On the Experience of Arrest and Imprisonment with Liz

Dec 9, 2013 • 30 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features Liz, who spoke with us only three days after her release from prison. She discusses her shame at being arrested, and the experience of exposure and intrusion from a public trial. She also describes the surprising…

Helping Former Prisoners Tell Their Stories with Lani Peterson

Dec 2, 2013 • 30 min

Lani Peterson, of the Public Voice Project, talks about her work with formerly incarcerated men and women to help them tell their stories in a way that helps them to make peace with their past and move forward in their lives. She explains the importance…

Your Untold Stories of Dementia

Nov 25, 2013 • 30 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features multiple stories of dementia from you, our listeners. This collection of ten stories reflects the wide range of experiences and emotions that result from having a loved one with dementia—including frustration and…

Life in the Early Stages with Bill Verrill

Nov 11, 2013 • 30 min

Bill Verrill, a former banker, now suffers from early Alzheimer’s disease. Bill describes his deep trust in his wife Shirley’s ability to take care of him—and his deepest fears about the toll his illness will take on her life. He remembers letting go of…

Sibling Conflicts Around Caregiving with Carol Bradley Bursack

Nov 4, 2013 • 30 min

An interview with elder-caregiving expert Carol Bradley Bursack about sibling conflict in the care of a parent with Dementia. Carol reports that most adult children caregivers are still women, and that typically the responsibilities of caregiving fall…

Frontotemporal Dementia: Complications and Genetics with Melynda

Oct 28, 2013 • 30 min

This episode features Melynda, whose husband has frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Unlike Alzheimer’s, FTD is not first characterized by problems with memory, but by poor judgment and inappropriate behavior. Melynda’s husband, a doctor, began to make errors…

Caring for a Spouse with Clare Hallward

Oct 21, 2013 • 28 min

In this episode of Safe Space Radio our host Anne Hallward talks to her mother, Clare Hallward, about her husband John’s diagnosis with dementia, which lasted for 16 years before his death. Anne and Clare remember some of the exasperating and even…

Connection and Dementia with Steven Sabat

Oct 14, 2013 • 30 min

In this episode of Safe Space Radio, neuropsychologist Steven Sabat discusses how he’s been able to find ways of communicating with people with advanced dementia by recognizing and honoring their enduring personhood. He talks about the failure of standard…

Dementia and Family Secrets with Nancy Sowell

Oct 7, 2013 • 30 min

Therapist Nancy Sowell remembers the family secrets that came out as she was caring for her grandmother with dementia, and how the curious distance and even hostility she had always felt from this side of the family began to make sense as her grandmother…

Living With a Parent With Dementia with Liz Havu

Sep 30, 2013 • 30 min

A conversation with Liz Havu about the experience of caring for her mother, who has both Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia. She talks about her promise never to put her mother in a nursing home, and how this decision has brought her family…

Self-preservation for Dementia Caregivers with Frances Randolph

Sep 23, 2013 • 30 min

Frances Randolph’s husband had early-onset Alzheimer’s. In this conversation, she remembers the outgoing man she married and how dementia changed him so much that he became someone she barely recognized, someone who ultimately became violent with her.…

Difficult Parents and Dementia with Julia Jarvis

Sep 16, 2013 • 30 min

Julia Jarvis remembers how her relationship with her difficult father has evolved both before and after he got dementia. Julia talks about her struggles to make peace with him, and about the challenges now faced by the caregivers in her father’s life.

Dementia in a Holocaust Survivor with Marushka Glissen

Sep 9, 2013 • 30 min

Psychotherapist Marushka Glissen talks about her mother, a survivor of Auschwitz who now has dementia. Marushka describes how her mother’s experiences complicated her relationships with her own children and husband, and raises the possibility that for…

Dementia as Ambiguous Loss with Pauline Boss

Sep 2, 2013 • 2 min

Dr. Pauline Boss discusses the experience of ambiguous loss. Dementia often creates a situation in which a person’s body is present, but the mind is absent. For caregivers, this can generate feelings of ambivalence toward the person with dementia,…

Abuse Survivors as Caregivers with Julie Colpitts

May 27, 2013 • 30 min

Julie Colpitts is the Executive Director of the Maine Coalition to End Domestic Violence. In this episode of Safe Space Radio, she discusses how survivors of abuse are often drawn to social service and first responder jobs, and how these roles are…

Recovery Through Music with Michael Skinner

May 20, 2013 • 30 min

Songwriter Michael Skinner used music as a way to heal from the abuse he suffered as a child. Michael talks about his adult experiences with PTSD, his often-frustrating encounters with the mental health system, and his efforts to resist the stigmatizing…

Beyond Survival with Rachel Grant

May 13, 2013 • 30 min

In this episode of Safe Space Radio, Rachel Grant talks about the sexual abuse she suffered as a ten-year-old and the work she has done to counteract its lasting impact on her life. Rachel became a coach because she wanted to be able to use her own story…

Emotional Abuse in Violent Homes with Brie Masselli

Apr 29, 2013 • 30 min

Child advocate Brie Masselli discusses her own experience growing up in a home with domestic violence. Brie tells the story of running to school to escape her stepfather’s violent outbursts, and how her childhood struggles in and out of school were missed…

Child Abuse and Physical Health 25 Years Later with Vincent Felitti

Apr 15, 2013

Dr. Vincent Felitti talks about his groundbreaking research to show that Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE’s, like abuse, neglect and severe family dysfunction) are correlated not only with mental illness and addiction, but also with physical illnesses…

Child Abuse and Physical Health with Vincent Felitti

Apr 1, 2013 • 30 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features Dr. Vincent Felitti talking about his groundbreaking work discovering the high prevalence of child sexual abuse among those who are obese. In his clinic, 55% of patients coming in for treatment of obesity had…

Restraints in Mental Hospitals with Bob Stains

Mar 18, 2013 • 30 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features Bob Stains of the Public Conversations Project. He talks about the use of restraints on patients in mental hospitals and discusses facilitating a series of conversations in which both the workers who apply…

Talking to the Enemy with Laura Chasin

Mar 11, 2013 • 30 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features Laura Chasin, the founder of the Public Conversations Project, talking about her work facilitating a dialogue between leaders of the pro-life and pro-choice movements in Boston after the abortion clinic shootings…

Fostering Difficult Conversations with Tim Wilson

Mar 4, 2013 • 30 min

Tim Wilson is a senior advisor to Seeds of Peace, an organization that brings youth from war-torn countries together for dialogue and mediation at a camp in Maine each summer. Tim describes the way that trust, respect, and communication are practiced at…

Somalis in the Maine Workforce with Hussein Ahmed

Feb 18, 2013

This episode of Safe Space Radio features Hussein Ahmed, a business owner in Lewiston, Maine. He describes his journey from Somalia, the ten years he spent in refugee camps in Kenya, and the challenges of finding work in the U.S. due to language barriers,…

High School Friendships with Maria Padian

Feb 13, 2013

Maria Padian is author of Out of Nowhere, about friendships between Somali and Franco-Catholic high school students in Maine. Maria talks about her own experience with four immigrant grandparents, and how different it is to come here as an immigrant,…

Talking about Difference with Mohammed Dini

Feb 6, 2013

Mohammed Dini is Executive Director of the African Diaspora Institute, founder of Portland Forward, and former candidate for state representative. Mohammed talks about his experience moving to Maine at age 13 and learning to identify himself as a Mainer.…

Restorative Yoga for Mental Health with bo Forbes

Jan 30, 2013

This episode of Safe Space Radio features psychologist, yoga teacher and author bo Forbes talking about how restorative yoga and breathing exercises can restore balance to the nervous system. Coming to yoga from a solid background in clinical psychology,…

Yoga for Returning Vets with Richard Miller

Jan 23, 2013

Richard Miller is a yoga teacher, researcher, and author who has adapted yoga nidra—or deep relaxation practices—for use with vets returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. Richard describes studies done by the Department of Defense showing that yoga nidra can…

Using Yoga to Create Safe Space with Deb Cook

Jan 16, 2013

Yoga teacher Deb Cook discusses how a daily practice of yoga can build a sense of safety inside. Deb describes how turning the attention inward on a regular basis creates a feeling of a home inside that one can always return to, and remembers how yoga…

Yoga for Survivors with Deirdre Fay

Jan 2, 2013

Yoga teacher and therapist Deirdre Fay talks about her experience of discovering her own trauma history through yoga, which softened her defenses to the point that her body began to relive previously forgotten memories of trauma. She narrates the journey…

Yoga for Trauma Survivors with Dave Emerson

Dec 19, 2012

This episode with Safe Space Radio features yoga teacher and author Dave Emerson, who co-wrote Overcoming Trauma through Yoga about the development of “trauma-sensitive yoga.” Dave discusses how trauma is held in the body, and can be addressed through the…

Yoga Therapy with Michael Lee

Dec 12, 2012

This episode of Safe Space Radio features the founder of Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy, Michael Lee, talking about how yoga therapy can help people to heal lifelong wounds and bring balance to patterns that hold them back in life. Michael suggests that when…

Yoga for Depression with Amy Weintraub

Dec 5, 2012

Yoga teacher and author Amy Weintraub talks about her own experience of depression and how yoga helped her with depression on all levels—biologically, emotionally, physically and spiritually. Amy also leads listeners through several breathing exercises to…

Loving a Brother with Schizophrenia with Isa Mattei

Nov 14, 2012

This episode of Safe Space Radio features therapist Isa Mattei talking about her relationship with her brother, Artie, who had schizophrenia. She describes her mother’s fierce determination not to have Artie institutionalized, which kept him integrated in…

Parenting Life-Threatening Depression with Rachel

Oct 31, 2012

This episode of Safe Space Radio features Rachel talking about her son’s severe depression and multiple suicide attempts. Rachel names the sense of ambiguous loss she feels now that her son lives in a state mental hospital, and how her daily visits to him…

Commitment to a Mentally-Ill Parent with Jeneen Interlandi

Oct 24, 2012

Harvard Nieman Fellow Jeneen Interlandi talks about her father’s bi-polar disorder. She describes the painful and extraordinary measures her family had to go through to get him into treatment, including restraining orders, getting him arrested, and hiring…

Self-Care and Intergenerational Mental Illness with Beth Erlichman

Oct 17, 2012

This Safe Space Radio episode features personal trainer Beth Erlichman, whose mother and daughter both live with mental illness. Beth describes how her experiences growing up with her mother transformed the way she supported her daughter after a psychotic…

Parenting a Son with Schizophrenia with Rosemary Radford Ruether

Oct 10, 2012

Theologian and academic Rosemary Radford Ruether talks with Safe Space Radio about her son David’s schizophrenia and the challenges her family has faced in supporting him. She questions whether medications have helped or hurt him, and offers a critique of…

Having a Child with Schizophrenia with Cheryl Ramsay

Sep 26, 2012

Safe Space Radio interviews Cheryl Ramsay about her two sons, one with schizophrenia who is in treatment and one with an undiagnosed mental illness and addiction who avoids the mental health system. Cheryl describes the deep self-doubt she feels about…

On Having a Mother with Bi-Polar Disorder with Valerie Gamache

Sep 19, 2012

Safe Space Radio interviews family educator Valerie Gamache about her relationship with her mother who had bi-polar disorder. Valerie describes the ways her family tried to keep the “Big Secret,” to the point that a friend thought her mother had actually…

Having a Brother with Schizophrenia with Alicia Barnes

Sep 12, 2012

Alicia Barnes talks about her brother, Josh Barnes, who had schizophrenia. Alicia describes Josh’s fears that he had brought mental illness on himself, and how medication impacted his creativity and sense of purpose in writing and playing music. She…

Bi-Polar Disorder in the Family with Liz Brenner

Sep 5, 2012

Social worker and trainer Liz Brenner talks about the challenges of having a father with major mental illness. Liz describes his suicide attempt when she was 20, and how living with the fear of losing him was a form of relational trauma. She experienced…

Aging with Neil McKenty

May 30, 2012

Neil McKenty is a broadcast, author, and former Jesuit priest. He talks about how his expectations about aging have matched up with his experiences now, in his 85th year of life. Neil has been a consultant and constant inspiration to Safe Space Radio…

Pediatric Medical Trauma with Nancy Kassam-Adams

May 19, 2012

This episode of Safe Space Radio features psychologist and researcher Dr. Nancy Kassam-Adams. She talks about children’s medical experiences as a source of PTSD and gives helpful suggestions for how parents can identify trauma in their kids after painful…

Childrens’ Fear of the Doctor with Chris Nee

May 16, 2012

This episode features Emmy Award-winning television writer and executive producer, Chris Nee, talking about her show, Doc McStuffins. Chris wrote the show in order to help her own son, Theo, who suffers from severe asthma.

PTSD in the Intensive Care Unit with Nancy Andrews

May 2, 2012

Safe Space Radio interviews film-maker Nancy Andrews about her experience as a patient in the surgical ICU. Upon her release from the hospital, Nancy noticed that she kept having “weird experiences,” which her doctor recognized as post-traumatic stress…

Violence and Shame with Jim Gilligan

Apr 25, 2012

Safe Space Radio interviews psychiatrist Dr. Jim Gilligan, a former mental health director for the prison system in Massachusetts and the author of three books on violence. Dr. Gilligan reports that many of his patients speak about violence as their only…

How Health Care Providers Can Prevent Domestic Violence with Cathy Plourde

Apr 18, 2012

Safe Space Radio interviews playwright Cathy Plourde, Founder of Add Verb productions. Her play, Major Medical Breakthrough, was written to inspire health care providers to screen their patients for domestic violence—especially important since only 10-19%…

Speaking Up to Sexism and Violence (Part 2) with Daryl Fort

Apr 11, 2012

This episode of Safe Space Radio features Part 2 of Anne’s conversation with Daryl Fort, about ways in which we are all bystanders to social interactions that foster violence against women. Daryl challenges us to see these situations for what they are and…

Speaking Up to Sexism and Violence (Part 1) with Daryl Fort

Apr 4, 2012

This episode of Safe Space Radio features Part 1 of Anne’s conversation with educator Daryl Fort about the many levels of messages about women’s inferiority to the justification of mistreatment. He describes the ways communities can collude in violence…

Childhood Domestic Violence with Paul LePage

Mar 28, 2012

This episode features Maine Governor Paul LePage talking about growing up in a home with domestic violence. Governor LePage describes the moment when he decided he had to leave home: when his father tried to pay him to lie to a doctor about the cause of…

Reducing Interpersonal Violence with Drew Wing

Mar 21, 2012

Drew Wing is Executive Director of Boys To Men, an organization devoted to reducing interpersonal violence by fostering the healthy development of boys. Drew describes their Reducing Sexism and Violence Program (RSVP), which supports teenagers developing…

The Psychology of Abusive Men with Lundy Bancroft

Mar 14, 2012

Lundy Bancroft is the former co-leader of Emerge, the first batterers treatment program in the United States, and the author of Why Does He Do That: Inside the Minds of Angry and Controlling Men. Lundy debunks common myths about male abusers, explaining…

A Culture of Domestic Violence with Julia Colpitts

Mar 7, 2012

Julia Colpitts is Executive Director of the Maine Coalition to End Domestic Violence. Julia affirms that Maine has reached a tipping point, and she discusses relevant legislation in Maine and the importance of engaging men to speak out clearly and…

Sibling Relationships with Susan McHale

Feb 29, 2012

Researcher Susan McHale discusses the impact of gender and culture on how siblings view each other, and how this might vary across cultures. Susan explores the way that individualistic cultures foster sibling competitiveness and resentment of favoritism.…

Parenting Siblings with Adele Faber

Feb 22, 2012

Parenting expert Adele Faber is co-author of the best-selling Siblings Without Rivalry and How to Talk So Kids Will Listen. Adele speaks about the importance of listening to and validating kids feelings, especially around their siblings. She uses the…

Sibling Abuse with Vernon Wiehe

Feb 15, 2012

This episode of Safe Space Radio features author and professor Dr. Vernon Wiehe. He talks about sibling abuse and how it differs from sibling rivalry in a pattern of frequent victimization of one sibling at the hands of another. Dr. Wiehe points out that…

Sibling Ambivalence with Laurie Kramer

Feb 1, 2012

Laurie Kramer is a researcher and directs the More Fun with Sisters and Brothers program, which supports kids ages 4-8 getting along with their siblings. Laurie explains that parental attempts at conflict resolution often result in separating the kids.…

Adult Sibling Strife with Jeanne Safer

Jan 25, 2012

This episode features an interview with psychotherapist and author Dr. Jeanne Safer, who works on chronic sibling tension and non-communication. Jeanne describes the phenomenon of “sibspeak,” where no real communication takes place except the recitation…

Being a Gay Father with Frank

Jan 11, 2012

Frank is the father of two boys, and he is also a gay man. In this interview, Frank talks about always wanting children and how he and his husband have taken steps to protect their children from homophobia and find welcoming communities. Frank also…

Step-Families and Step-Parenting with Patricia Papernow

Jan 4, 2012

Psychologist and author Dr. Patricia Papernow talks about the challenges of step-family living, including insider/outsider dynamics and the complicated set of losses and loyalty that step-parents can represent for a child. Patricia talks about her book,…

Interracial Adoption with Catherine Anderson

Dec 14, 2011

Catherine Anderson is a white public school teacher and writer. In this episode of Safe Space Radio she talks about adopting her son Sam, who is Black. Catherine describes her decision to adopt and how she thought she understood racism before parenting.…

International Adoption with Deb Gallagher

Dec 7, 2011

Deb Gallagher created her family through “the messy miracle of international adoption.” Deb talks about the homophobia she encountered as a lesbian seeking to adopt a child both domestically and internationally, and the way she had to hide parts of her…

Giving Up a Child For Adoption with Marilyn Bronzi

Nov 30, 2011

This episode features clinical social worker and birth mother Marilyn Bronzi, who had a child “out of wedlock” in 1966. She remembers the shame of her choice and how she’s made peace with it in different ways over the years. She also describes the…

Donor-Assisted Reproduction with Diane Ehrensaft

Nov 23, 2011

Psychologist, researcher and author Diane Ehrensaft talks about the psychological experience of parenting children conceived through the assistance of a donor. Diane describes the challenges parents face in coping with “genetic assymetry” between the…

Adoption and Parenting with Joyce Maguire Pavao

Nov 16, 2011

This episode of Safe Space Radio features author, adoptee and clinician Joyce Maguire Pavao as she talks about parenting an adopted child. Joyce describes the changing demographics of adopted children, and how adopted children are increasingly older and…

Being an Only Child with Susan Newman

Nov 9, 2011

Social psychologist and author Susan Newman talks about the stereotypes of and misinformation about only children. Studies show that only children do not suffer from the lack of siblings and even show improved academic achievement. She reports that the…

Telling Secrets with Evan Imber-Black

Oct 19, 2011

Family therapist and author Evan Imber-Black talks about how to tell a family secret thoughtfully and well. She tells stories from her work about the impact of secrets on family members, creating ever widening circles of silence and distance in…

Holocaust Survivor Testimonies with Lawrence L. Langer

Oct 12, 2011

This episode of Safe Space Radio features Professor Lawrence L. Langer discussing his book Holocaust Testimonies: The Ruins of Memory. Professor Langer developed courses on the literature of atrocity to try and help people find a way to imagine the…

Illness Stories with Art Frank

Oct 5, 2011

Author Art Frank describes his own experience with an early heart attack and later cancer. He describes the way the medical world can be oblivious to the patient’s needs and subjective experience, and the importance of finding your own voice after your…

Confiding Secrets and Health with Jamie Pennebaker

Sep 28, 2011

This episode features an interview with author and social psychologist Jamie Pennebaker about his research into the benefits of confiding painful experiences. Jamie suggests that one of the reasons that childhood sexual abuse may be so destructive is…

Telling Difficult Stories with Laura Simms

Sep 21, 2011

Storyteller Laura Simms worked as a narrative therapist in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake. She talks about the power of stories to remind us of what is good inside us.

Healing on the Blank Page with Diane Morrow

Sep 14, 2011

Dr. Diane Morrow describes the ways that writing helped her cope with her mother’s severe depression, and how writing can be healing as a process or ritual in itself. For Diane, writing fiction can be create enough distance from pain to allow the listener…

Parenting and Cancer with Susan Conley

Sep 7, 2011

Susan Conley is author of The Foremost Good Fortune and co-founder of The Telling Room in Portland, Maine. In this interview she talks about coping with breast cancer in China while parenting two young boys, and how writing helped her survive. Susan…

Living with Schizophrenia with Elyn Saks

Jun 8, 2011

This episode of Safe Space Radio features law professor and Macarthur Fellow Elyn Saks talking about her experience of living with Schizophrenia. When diagnosed, Elyn was given a grave prognosis and told that she might never live independently. With the…

On Being a Psychiatrist with David Moltz

Jun 1, 2011

David Moltz is a psychiatrist in Portland, ME. In this episode, David talked about his reasons for going into psychiatry and the things he finds most difficult about the profession and the things he loves. He speaks about the use of power, the difficulty…

Bi-Polar Disorder and Addiction with Christine Wells

May 25, 2011

Writer Christiane Wells talks with Safe Space Radio about her experience living with bi-polar disorder and addiction. Chris spent a decade in and out of psychiatric hospitals while addicted to crack, not taking her medication and struggling with suicidal…

Stigma and Being Bipolar with Deb McCarthy

May 18, 2011

An interview with Deb McCarthy, the author of the blog Living in Stigma. Deb describes her experience of feeling written-off by the mental health system after multiple psychiatric hospitalizations and 77 ECT treatments failed to help her. After being…

From Bipolar Disorder to Bipolar In Order with Tom Wootton

May 11, 2011

This episode of Safe Space Radio features author and trainer Tom Wootton on his transition from “Bipolar Disorder to Bipolar In Order.” Tom describes how current treatment paradigms teach people to view their highs and lows as problems to be gotten rid…

Medicating Mental Illness with Robert Whitaker

May 4, 2011

This episode of Safe Space Radio features award-winning journalist Robert Whitaker on how some psychotropic medications may worsen the long term outcomes of people with severe mental illness. Since the advent of psychotropic medication, the numbers of…

Transition and Sexual Reassignment Surgery with Jean Vermette

Apr 27, 2011

Jean Vermette talks about recognizing that she was female, and taking the risk to share it with the people she loved. She ultimately chose to undergo sexual reassignment surgery and wrote a book, Je Me Souviens (“I Will Remember”) about her experience of…

Gender Role Non-Conformity with Frank Brooks

Apr 20, 2011

Frank Brooks is a doctor of clinical social work who studies gender role non-conformity, particularly the link between gender role non-conformity in boys and the risk of suicide. Frank describes his experiences of feeling different and facing prejudice as…

TransParenting, or Parenting Trans Kids with Sandy Lovell

Apr 13, 2011

Sexuality educator and mother Sandy Lovell talks about parenting her trans son. As a feminist mother she celebrated his early gender non-conformism, but it never occurred to her that he might be trans. Sandy named parental concerns for her child’s safety,…

Genderqueer with Liam Bechen

Apr 6, 2011

Social worker Liam Bechen talks with Safe Space Radio about his identity as a genderfluid trans man. Liam describes the daily challenge of coping with people’s responses to his visible inbetween-ness. He describes moments of fear of violence, but also of…

Thinking Through Lesbian and Trans Community with Jen Hodsdon

Mar 30, 2011

Social worker, writer, and queer activist Jen Hodsdon talks about the relationship between the lesbian community and the trans community. Jen speaks about how delicate the relationship can be between two oppressed and marginalized groups, and her…

Trans Couples with Helen Boyd

Mar 23, 2011

Author and gender studies professor Helen Boyd is married to a trans woman. She remembers her early courtship with a man who “occasionally cross-dressed” and how this evolved into loving her partner through her transition. Helen explores what it is like…

Camp for Transgender and Gender-Variant Youth with Nick Teich

Mar 16, 2011

This episode of Safe Space Radio features the founder and president of the first camp for trans youth, Nick Teich. Nick describes many challenges that trans youth face as they grow up, particularly as they enter puberty and begin to develop secondary sex…

Transgender 101 with Alex Roan

Mar 9, 2011

Alex Roan is the director of the Maine Transgender Network. Alex defines the terms transgender, transsexual, and cross-dresser, clarifying the difference between sex, gender, gender expression and sexual orientation. He describes his own story of…

Male to Female Transition with Lisa Bunker

Mar 2, 2011

This episode of Safe Space Radio features radio program director Lisa Bunker talking about her experience of becoming aware that she identified as a woman. Lisa describes feeling like a failure at trying to be a man, and the deep relief of embracing her…

Trauma, Fear and Denial with Jessica Stern

Feb 16, 2011

Research professor Jessica Stern is an expert in the connection between trauma and terrorism. In this interview she talks about her experience following a rape at age 15, and how her story was not believed by the police—resulting in more than 40 other…

Tantra and Sexual Healing with Betta de Boer van der Kolk

Feb 9, 2011

This interview features body psychotherapist Betta de Boer van der Kolk about Tantra as a way to heal from sexual abuse. Betta describes Tantra as an exchange of energy that brings presence, connection, safety and play into sexuality. She leads the…

Aftermath of Sexual Violence with Susan Brison

Feb 2, 2011

Philosophy professor Susan Brison survived a sexual assault and attempted murder. She describes the transition from needing to tell the story, to finding the story increasingly boring as she healed—and how group therapy, self-defense classes, and jazz…

Sexual Healing after Sexual Abuse with Wendy Maltz

Jan 5, 2011

This interview is with couples therapist and certified sex therapist Wendy Maltz about the impact of sexual abuse on sexuality, and ways to reclaim pleasure, safety and intimacy. She reports that taking a vacation from sex is sometimes necessary, because…

Trauma and the Brain with Bessel van der Kolk

Dec 22, 2010

An interview with psychiatrist and trauma researcher Bessel van der Kolk about the impact of trauma on the brain. Bessel outlines the way in which traumatic experience in children shapes the development of the brain, and how our brains can get hijacked by…

Trauma and the Body with Pat Ogden

Dec 15, 2010

An interview with Dr. Pat Ogden about working with the body in healing from trauma. Pat uses several clinical examples to describe how she works with the body to help people re-engage the physical defenses that got overwhelmed and shut down during trauma.…

Trauma, Attachment and The Body with Deirdre Fay

Dec 8, 2010

An interview with psychotherapist Deirdre Fay about the deep relational disruption that is a hallmark of trauma. Deirdre recounts how, as an adult she only became aware of her own trauma in the context of safe relationship. She describes the use of…

Group Therapy for Trauma Survivors with Judy Herman

Dec 1, 2010

Judy Harmon is a psychiatrist and Harvard Medical School professor. She talks about how group therapy for trauma can reduce shame and support survivors to take action that reduces helplessness. Dr. Herman describes the deep shame and isolation that…

Trauma and Dissociation with Janina Fisher

Nov 24, 2010

An interview with psychologist Janina Fisher about dissociation in the face of trauma. Janina describes “structural dissociation” as the process where parts of our Self respond to traumatic experience not only with Fight or Flight, but also by terrified…

Trauma and EMDR Therapy with Celia Grand

Nov 17, 2010

Therapist Celia Grand is an EMDR facilitator and Sensorimotor Psychotherapy trainer with trauma survivors and their partners. Celia blends her expertise in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy (EMDR) with her extensive experience working…

The Ingredients of Recovery with Mary Auslander

Nov 10, 2010

This episode of Safe Space Radio features therapist, advocate and trauma survivor, Mary Auslander. She discusses the nature of trauma, the ingredients of recovery and what a person can realistically hope for as they heal from trauma. Mary describes giving…

Food Addiction and Spiritual Hunger with Margaret Bullitt-Jonas

Nov 3, 2010

This episode features Episcopal priest Margaret Bullitt-Jonas talking about her experience of food addiction. She discusses living with feelings of longing and how she found support in OA.

Self-Compassion and Weight Loss with Jean Fain

Oct 27, 2010

Jean Fain is a psychotherapist who specializes in eating disorders and chronic dieting. Her book is The Self-Compassion Diet.

The Relational Dynamics of Feeding Your Child with Ellyn Satter

Oct 20, 2010 • 30 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features nutritionist and family therapist Ellyn Satter talking about the feeding relationship between parent and child. Ellyn describes what she calls “Division of Responsibility,” wherein the parent is in charge of the…

Understanding Anorexia and Eating Disorders with Lori Galperin

Oct 13, 2010 • 30 min

An interview with therapist Lori Galperin about how to have a non-judgmental relationship to an eating disorder. Lori describes the many roles that eating disorders serve in the life of a young person, and the importance of not getting into power…

The Inner Feelings of Bulimia with Julia Jarvis

Sep 29, 2010 • 30 min

Julia Jarvis talks about her struggle with bulimia and her recovery. Julia describes her profound experience with feeling she was bad, and keeping a journal of her daily sins. She credits her recovery with the loosening of a rigid and punitive theology,…

Mindfulness and Compulsive Eating with Alice Rosen

Sep 22, 2010 • 30 min

This interview is with therapist Alice Rosen about compulsive eating. Alice describes her own struggle with food, and of experiencing satisfaction for the first time through mindful eating. She speaks about the possibility of trusting our bodies to give…

Self-Worth and Food with Toni Herbine-Blank

Sep 15, 2010

An interview with therapist and trainer Toni Herbine-Blank about her own struggle with food and body image. Toni outlines the process by which she was able to listen to herself, and get clear that inner beliefs about unworthiness were false.

The Psychiatric Treatment of Eating Disorders with Patrice Lockhart

Sep 8, 2010 • 32 min

Dr. Patrice Lockhart describes her work at the New England Eating Disorders Center at Mercy Hospital. She emphasizes how she tries to help her patients distance their sense of self from the eating disorder, she also describes the key role of family…

Privacy and Shame with Janna Smith

Jun 23, 2010 • 30 min

Janna Smith is an author and social worker. In this episode of Safe Space Radio, she discusses the relationship between privacy and shame. She describes her own struggle over how much to reveal about her father Bernard Malamud, and how to respect both his…

Shame and Resilience with Brene Brown

Jun 9, 2010 • 30 min

Brene Brown is the author of Daring Greatly and chair of the graduate college of social work at University of Houston. In this episode of Safe Spcae Radio, Brene talks about shame resilience, and how we can learn to embrace our vulnerability. Brene…

Shame & Humiliation with Aaron Lazare

Jun 2, 2010 • 29 min

An interview with psychiatrist Aaron Lazare about his work with humiliation and apology. Aaron says that you know you’ve been humiliated when you find yourself rehearsing better and better comebacks that you wish you had said at the time. He states the…

Suicide, Depression, and Zen Meditation with Cheri Huber

May 26, 2010 • 30 min

Zen teacher Cheri Huber became a student of Zen after her suicide attempt. She describes how Zen led her to awareness of her own self-destructive patterns and allowed her to break from the ruthless voice of self-criticism inside her head.

Suicide Among Gay Youth with Charles Robins

May 5, 2010 • 30 min

Charles Robbins is CEO of the Trevor Project, an organization dedicated to preventing suicide among gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer youth. Charles describes the vulnerable time in a young person’s life after they realize they are queer, but…

The Suicide of a Close Friend with Mary Clare

Apr 28, 2010 • 30 min

Therapist Mary Clare talks about the anxiety, depression and suicide of a close friend. Mary Clare describes how difficult it was to stay close to her friend as she became more depressed, and how helpless and angry parts of her felt that her friend would…

The Suicide of a Child with Patricia Ellen

Apr 21, 2010

Patricia Ellen’s son killed himself when he was fourteen. Patricia describes the process of trying to understand what led up to it, and the signs that were and were not there. She describes the bullying incident at school that she believes led her son to…

The Legacy of Suicide with David Treadway

Apr 14, 2010

Family therapist David Treadway talks about his mother’s suicide, which happened when David was 20.

The Legacy of a Mother’s Suicide with Nancy Rappaport

Apr 7, 2010

Child psychiatrist Dr. Nancy Rappaport discusses her mother’s suicide, which happened when Nancy was four. Nancy undertakes a detective-like 18 year journey to discover who her mother was, and to understand what she was going through. Nancy describes the…

Hospice Chaplaincy with Ellie Mercer

Mar 31, 2010 • 30 min

An interview with hospice chaplain Ellie Mercer about caring for patients at the end of life. She describes her own childhood in a Christian Science family where illness and death were not talked about, or even treated medically, and the relief of working…

The Impact of Cancer on Families with David Treadway

Mar 24, 2010 • 30 min

Family therapist David Treadway talks about his struggle with advanced lymphoma. He and his wife and two grown sons wrote a book together, Home Before Dark, about their experiences of dealing with his illness and the possibility he might die. They take an…

Cancer and the Tri for a Cure with Julie Marchese

Mar 10, 2010

Julie Marchese is the founder of the Tri-for-a Cure, the all women’s triathlon to raise money for women’s cancer. She describes her experiences taking care of her mother when she had cancer, and how that shaped her ability to take charge of her own…

Surviving Cancer with Humor with Cathy Kidman

Mar 3, 2010 • 30 min

An interview with Cathy Kidman about her diagnosis and treatment for ovarian cancer. Cathy tells the story of how she became a stand up comedian while in treatment, and the ways she has used humor to cope with difficult situations.

Living with Multiple Sclerosis with Pam Mullens

Feb 24, 2010 • 30 min

Pam Mullens talks about living with Multiple Sclerosis. Pam describes the long period of uncertainty until she was definitively diagnosed, and how her symptoms effect her day to day life. Pam describes the paradoxical way in which her illness has invited…

Surviving Breast Cancer with Sheila Cassidy

Feb 17, 2010 • 30 min

Sheila Cassidy ran a support group for women with breast cancer, and was then diagnosed with breast cancer herself. She talks about the fear of dying and the ways that emotional support makes a difference.

Working with Bereaved Children with Joanne Anning

Feb 10, 2010 • 30 min

An interview with Joanne Anning about working with bereaved children in England. She describes the incredible resilience of children going through loss and the importance of including children in processes around death, explaining what to expect, and…

Dream Work with Chris Beach

Feb 3, 2010 • 30 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features Chris Beach discussing the nuts and bolts of remembering and working with your dreams. Chris describes the power of exploring your first childhood dream, and the possibility of using active imagination with a…

Nightmares and Recurring Dreams with Jeanne Safer

Jan 27, 2010 • 30 min

Jeanne Safer, Ph.D talks about nightmares and recurring dreams. Jeanne describes the 40 year long relationship she has with a recurring, intensely anxiety-provoking dream. She talks about how disturbing dreams can be a gift, demanding we pay attention to…

Dreams and Grief with Laura Mazikowski

Jan 20, 2010

Professional counselor Laura Mazikowski talks about dreams and grieving. Laura tells the story of the death of her brother Roger and two powerful dreams that shaped her experience of his loss.

Creating a Relationship with your Dreams with Bob Childs

Jan 13, 2010 • 30 min

Psychologist Bob Childs talks about developing a relationship with your dreams. Bob describes a pivotal dream and how it shaped his understanding of himself and his professional direction.

Sexual Medicine for Men with Irwin Goldstein

Dec 16, 2009

An interview with Dr. Irwin Goldstein about sexual health including premature ejaculation, bicycle injuries, and erectile dysfunction.

Pornography with Gina Rourke and Daryl Fort

Dec 9, 2009 • 30 min

An interview with Gina Rourke and Daryl Fort about Pornography. Gina and Daryl talk about finding a sex-positive, pro-feminist relationship to pornography, that doesn’t deny the realities of violence and subjugation of women that is present in some porn.

Sexual Fantasy with Michael Bader

Dec 2, 2009 • 30 min

An interview with Michael Bader, Ph.D about sexual fantasies. Michael suggests that our sexual fantasies work by offering a solution to any guilt and fear that may undermine our relationship to sexuality. He proposes that many—especially men—may use…

Working with Sex Offenders with Deb Dana

Nov 18, 2009 • 30 min

Deb Dana is a social worker who works with sex offenders. She talks about what factors contribute to multiple offenses and offers tremendous hope for families where sexual abuse has taken place.

Sex After Prostate Surgery with Susan Ramsey

Nov 11, 2009 • 30 min

Pelvic floor physical therapist Susan Ramsey talks about effective ways to prevent and treat erectile dysfunction and incontinence after prostatectomy. She talks about helpful exercises and ways to experience intimacy and pleasure regardless of erection.

Sexual Gridlock with Ron Feintech

Nov 11, 2009

Sex therapist Ron Feintech talks about what he calls “sexual gridlock,” how intimacy can change in long-term relationships, and offers tips for fostering intimacy and risk-taking.

People of Size with Rebecca Weinstein

Oct 28, 2009 • 30 min

Rebecca Weinstein is founder of PeopleofSize.com. In this interview she discusses the experience of being a large person in today’s culture. Rebecca states that 90% of her problems come from dealing with other people’s perceptions. She talks specifically…

Celibacy and Failure with Neil McKenty

Oct 21, 2009 • 30 min

Neil McKenty talks with Safe Space about his experience with celibacy as a Jesuit Priest. Neil says that priests in training were not talked to or helped in coping with the demands of celibacy. Ultimately he was unable to remain celibate and left the…

The Limits of Therapy with Jeanne Safer

Oct 14, 2009

Psychotherapist Dr. Jeanne Safer about her experience struggling with her own wounds that did not heal in therapy. She discusses the impact this had on her sense of self as a therapist.

Divorce with Richard Schwartz

Sep 30, 2009 • 30 min

Richard Schwartz is the developer of Internal Family Systems Therapy. He talks about his decision to get divorced and the process of healing that followed.

Not Quitting Smoking with Roger Amory

Sep 23, 2009 • 30 min

Documentary filmmaker Roger Amory talks to Safe Space Radio about his inability to quit smoking. Roger talks about feeling like a failure, especially when comparing himself to friends who have quit. He also describes smoking as something that gives him a…

The Legacy of Divorce with Mona Barbera

Sep 16, 2009 • 30 min

Couples therapist and workshop leader Dr. Mona Barbera talks to Safe Space Radio about the legacy of divorce. Mona talks about her feelings of confusion and failure after her divorce, her continuing desire to have children, and how she’s tried to learn…

Failure and Performance Anxiety with Sinead Rushe

Sep 9, 2009

Actor Sinead Rushe talks about performance anxiety and feelings of failure. Sinead describes how deeply her confidence in her own creative instincts was shaken when a play that she had written got a bad review and almost nobody came. She talks about how…

Choosing Not to Have Children with Jeanne Safer

Sep 2, 2009 • 30 min

Dr. Jeanne Safer discusses her decision not to have children. Jeanne describes the intense internal and external pressure she felt to have kids, and the sense that choosing not to meant she was somehow deficient in her ability to love. She talks about how…

Parenting Wounds with Kathryn Black

Aug 26, 2009 • 30 min

Kathryn Black is author of Mothering Without a Map: Finding the Good Mother Within. Kathryn talks about her own experience with feeling “under-mothered,” and her fear of passing on a painful legacy to her children. She talks about changing and healing her…

Childbirth and Self-Judgment with Martha Tole

Aug 19, 2009

Medical assistant and doula Martha Tole talks about bad mother anxiety and childbirth. Martha affirms that bad mother anxiety can begin before birth and may continue indefinitely. She describes how so many mothers’ tendency to compare themselves to others…

Attachment Parenting and Anxiety with Kathryn Landon-Malone

Aug 12, 2009 • 30 min

Kathryn Landon-Malone is a pediatric nurse practitioner and early childhood psychologist. She talks with Safe Space Radio about attachment parenting and how it can reflect and generate anxiety in mothers.

Intergenerational Mothering Struggles with Raye Tibbetts

Aug 5, 2009 • 30 min

Raye Tibbetts is author of The Bad Mother Chronicles and a new blog called Good Enough. In this episode she speaks about intergenerational patterns of painful mothering. She describes the legacy of her mother having given away a child to adoption and the…

Balancing Mothering and Medicine with Amy Gottlieb

Jul 22, 2009

Women’s health doctor Amy Gottlieb describes her bad mother anxiety due to her absences from her child necessitated by her training. She talks about how balancing work and family can affect mothering and often results in fears that we are doing both…

Mothering as Hero’s Journey with Nicole Chaison

Jul 15, 2009 • 30 min

Nicole Chaison is author of The Passion of the Hausfrau about the experience of motherhood as a form of the mythic hero’s journey. She speaks about the courage it took to write honestly about her experiences as a mother and her struggles with both shame…

Bad Mother Anxiety with Ayelet Waldman

Jul 8, 2009 • 30 min

Writer Ayelet Waldman is author of Bad Mother. In this episode of Safe Space Radio, Ayelet talks about the differences between her and her mother’s generation, and the difficulties of living up to the impossible expectations that fit our ideal of a “good…

Homophobia in Schools with Betsy Parsons

Jul 1, 2009

Educator Betsy Parsons talks about her decision to come out as a teacher in the public school system in Portland, Maine. She talks about the impact of verbal and physical harassment on gay and lesbian students and how powerfully it affects their ability…

Marriage Equality with Darlene Huntress

Jun 24, 2009 • 30 min

Darlene Huntress works for Equality Maine on the impact of denying marriage to same sex couples. Darlene talks about the impact on LGBTQ children when they learn that the cultural fantasy of marriage will be denied to them, and how affirming marriage…

Lesbian Parenting with Jen Hodsden

Jun 17, 2009 • 30 min

Jen Hodsden and her 11 year old daughter Soleil talk about the impact of homophobia on their lives, especially on their relationships with friends, other kids, and men.

Coming Out, Homophobia, and Psychiatry with Marshall Forstein

Jun 10, 2009 • 30 min

Psychiatrist Dr. Marshall Forstein talks about his own coming out, the impact of homophobic jokes, and the experience of legal marriage in Massachusetts.

Marriage Equality and the Church with Myke Johnson

Jun 3, 2009 • 30 min

Reverand Myke Johnson talks from a religious perspective about affirming the sacredness of gay and lesbian people and celebrating their right to marry.

Underage Drinking with Jo Morrissey

May 27, 2009 • 30 min

An interview with Jo Morrissey, program director of 21 Reasons. Jo describes common myths that keep parents from being effective at preventing their kids from using alcohol.

Substance Abuse Prevention in Schools with Ronnie Katz

May 20, 2009

Ronnie Katz is the director of substance abuse prevention for the city of Portland. Ronnie describes her own story of getting into recovery and how programs in schools that help kids know who they are and connect with their own feelings help protect them…

Youthanasia with Dennis Embry

May 13, 2009 • 30 min

This interview with Safe Space Radio features child psychologist and researcher Dennis Embry on “Youthanasia,” his name for the policies and practices that result in shorter projected lifespans for younger generations. He looks at the causes of mental…

Alcoholism in Families with Louise Zubrod

May 6, 2009 • 30 min

An interview with Dr. Louise Zubrod on the impact of alcoholism on familes. Dr. Zubrod describes the impact of alcoholism on her own family, especially in terms of what couldn’t get talked about, and how she learned to be prepared for anything.

Hormones and Sexuality with Bethany Hays

Apr 29, 2009 • 30 min

Gynecologist Dr. Bethany Hays talks to Safe Space Radio about how estrogen, testosterone, progesterone and oxytocin affect sexuality. She puts the importance of hormones in perspective, reminding us that the mind is the biggest sex organ of all.

The Impact of Sexual Assault with Julia Chafets

Apr 22, 2009 • 30 min

Julia Chafets is an education coordinator with Sexual Assault Response Services. She talks to Safe Space Radio about the short and long term impact of sexual assault. She also reflects on how learning about rape can effect young boys and women who have…

Sex Therapy with Stephanie Abate

Apr 15, 2009 • 30 min

Sex therapist Stephanie Abate talks about how sex therapy can help couples develop a pleasurable sex life. She describes the qualities essential for good sex, including safety, communication, body positivity, and the belief the sexual pleasure is truly…

Masturbation with Gina Rourke

Apr 8, 2009 • 30 min

Gina is the owner of Nomia, a sensuality boutique and resource center in Portland, Maine. She gives a historical overview of the Puritan origins of American shame about pleasure and the body, and how women can better understand their own pleasure to…

Desire with Gina Ogden

Apr 1, 2009 • 30 min

Interview with Sex Therapist Gina Ogden about how desire is often falsely limited to sexual intercourse for cis-women, and how desire for sexual connection occurs on physical, emotional, mental and spiritual levels. She says that taking emotional risks…

Cultural Messages about Sex with Gina Ogden

Mar 25, 2009

Sex therapist Gina Ogden talks about messages in the culture for young women and girls about sexuality. Gina describes how teenagers must integrate both frightening and prohibitive messages about sex and intimacy.

Vulvar Pain with Susan Ramsey

Mar 18, 2009 • 30 min

Susan Ramsey talks about physical therapy for pelvic pain, especially burning or itching vulvar pain. Susan describes exercises to strengthen and relax the pelvic floor, and how bringing sensation with internal manual work and the use of vibrators can…

Incontinence and Internal Reproductive Organs with Susan Ramsey

Mar 11, 2009

Susan Ramsey is the owner of Holistic Physical Therapy Services. In this episode of Safe Space Radio, Susan describes who is at risk for leakage and why. She leads the listener through a kegel exercise, talks about the health of peeing, and affirms the…

Post-Menopausal Sexuality with Judith Black

Mar 4, 2009

In this episode of Safe Space Radio, storyteller Judith Black hilariously describes her own experience with menopause and her painful realization that she had “lost her hot.” She retells Snow White from the point of view of the Queen, and gives us a new…

The Fear of Not Being Good with Mike Elkin

Feb 11, 2009 • 30 min

Psychotherapist Mike Elkin suggests that many of us experience a fear of not being good as powerful threat. He describes how this fear plays itself out in couples and parenting relationships, and how we tend to express fear as either anger or guilt. He…

Anticipatory Dementia with John Zeisel

Feb 4, 2009

Designer and sociologist John Zeisel talks about his work designing residences that optimize brain functioning and relational presence for people with Alzheimers.

Homelessness with Mair Honan

Jan 28, 2009 • 30 min

Street minister Pastor Mair Honan talks about her work with the homeless in Portland, Maine. She shares some of the inner struggles she has to confront in herself to do this work.

Fear of Being a Bad Parent with MC

Jan 21, 2009

An anonymous interview with MC about the many ways she can blame herself for difficulties in parenting.

Vision Quest and Fear with Anne Yeomans

Jan 14, 2009 • 30 min

Therapist Anne Yeomans talks about going on a vision quest, a four night journey into the wilderness alone without food. Anne describes her encounters with fear and how her sense of connection to the stars and love ones sustained her.

Losing a Child with Katie Murray

Aug 26, 2008 • 30 min

Katie Murray talks to Safe Space Radio about losing her 6 year old son Chan to Leukemia. Katie describes her struggle to fight against despair, and the great value of other people asking her to talk about it and not avoid the subject.

Surviving Domestic Violence with Sherry Edwards

Aug 19, 2008 • 30 min

Sherry Edwards is a community response coordinator at Maine’s York County Domestic Violence Project, Caring Unlimited. She talks about her own experiences and what it takes to ask for help.

Talking to Kids about Adoption with Robert Childs

Aug 12, 2008

Psychologist Dr. Robert Childs specializes in the difficulties and shame that adoptees face in talking to their adoptive families about their biological parents. He addresses the myth that love is all an adoptee needs, and discusses the impact of…

Premature Delivery with Julia Jarvis

Aug 5, 2008

An interview with the Reverend Julia Jarvis on her experiences delivering one and a half pound baby girls at 26 weeks gestation. She discusses her struggle with worrying that somehow it was her fault, and also her struggle with the medical profession over…

Torture with Sheila Cassidy

Jul 29, 2008 • 30 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features Dr. Sheila Cassidy talking about her experience of being tortured in Chile under Pinochet. She describes the psychological aftermath of torture and how her encounter with her own fear of dying helps her work in…

Depression and Alcoholism with Neil McKenty

Jul 22, 2008 • 30 min

Author and radio talk show host Neil McKenty describes his struggle with depression, suicidality and alcoholism. He describes how taking the risk to expose his realness, his vulnerability helped him recover.

Talking About Dying with Loring Conant

Jul 15, 2008 • 30 min

Hospice doctor Loring Conant describes his personal and professional experiences broaching the subject of someone’s impending death. He reflects on his own experience with dying family members and the forces that make it hard to bring up the subject.

Addiction and Shame with Mike Elkin

Jul 8, 2008 • 30 min

This episode of Safe Space Radio features family therapist Mike Elkin talking about how the feeling of something being wrong with you can set you up to seek relief in an addiction.