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Unconventional Dyad Podcast

Unconventional Dyad Podcast

By Unconventional Dyad Podcast

Mental Health, the Mind-Body Connection, and Psychospirituality.
Dialogue is a two-way street.
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#12 - Interview: Dr. Laura Knudson, Transcompetent Care; Founder, Gender Affirming Care Team

Unconventional Dyad PodcastOct 19, 2020

00:00
55:34
#44 - Nafissa Ismail, Ph.D. - Physiology, Psychopathology, Puberty, and Probiotics

#44 - Nafissa Ismail, Ph.D. - Physiology, Psychopathology, Puberty, and Probiotics

On episode 44 of the Unconventional Dyad Podcast, Laura speaks with Dr. Nafissa Ismail, Associate Professor and researcher. Topics of discussion include…

- Stress-induced mental illnesses

- The gut-brain axis and its role in mental health

- The effects of stressors on puberty and adolescent mental health

- How probiotic consumption during puberty might protect against depression and anxiety

- The physiological and neurological effects of the COVID-19 virus and pandemic on children and teens

- Sex differences in mental health

- Open Science and the power of collaboration, and

- Integrating the body into the study of the mind

Dr. Ismail is an Associate Professor at the School of Psychology at the University of Ottawa and the holder of a University Research Chair in Stress and Mental Health. She obtained her PhD from Concordia University in 2009. She then completed a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Massachusetts and joined the University of Ottawa in 2012. Her research expertise is in Neuroimmunology and Neuroendocrinology. She was awarded Young Researcher of Year by the University of Ottawa and Early Researcher Award by the province of Ontario. She was also awarded the prize for activity in the media and in the community 2021 by the Faculty of Social Sciences. She is also a member of the Global Young Academy.

Follow Dr. Ismail on Twitter: @ismail_nafissa (twitter.com/ismail_nafissa)

Connect with Dr. Ismail on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/nafissa-ismail-890aa899/

Find out more at uniweb.uottawa.ca/members/964

Feb 05, 202249:10
#42 - Reverend Kelsey Beebe, MFA Dance, MDiv - The Dancing Pastor

#42 - Reverend Kelsey Beebe, MFA Dance, MDiv - The Dancing Pastor

Today on the podcast, Carli and Laura speak with Reverend Kelsey Beebe (MFA Dance, MDiv [Pronouns: she/her]), a trained dancer, yoga instructor, and an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ.

Pastor Kelsey believes firmly in an all-loving God, embodied Christ, and ever-moving Holy Spirit that connects us all. She serves as a solo pastor at two churches just south of Milwaukee, WI, and is the Executive Minister and President of Dancing Pastor Ministries and host of the Lady Preacher Podcast. 

With a love for movement and ministry, and a passion for embodied prayer practices, Pastor Kelsey has been called the 'Dancing Pastor' since her early teenage years. She earned the title lady preacher while serving two churches in rural Missouri where she became known around the town as “the lady preacher.”

As the Dancing Pastor and Lady Preacher, Pastor Kelsey works with folks from all walks of life, helping them find safe, embodied ways to connect more deeply to themselves, to others, and to God. Her life's work is based on 1 Corinthians 16:14: “Let all that you do be done in love,” and her favorite part of ministry is helping people experience the transforming love of God that moves around, among, and within us all.

Outside of movement and ministry, Pastor Kelsey loves donuts, being by the water, and nothing gets her laughing harder than a good dad-joke. She also believes pints of ice cream are meant to be finished in one sitting. She lives in Kenosha, WI, with her husband Rev. Kevin Beebe and their cat Velcro.

Some topics of discussion on today’s episode include…

  • The joys and challenges of leading a faith community as a woman
  • The Divine Feminine, embodied prayer practices, and the healing power of movement
  • Why the broader Christian Church is in need of female voices, leadership, and ordination; and what the Church misses out on when it prevents women from serving as clergy

You can find out more about Pastor Kelsey at our website or at dancingpastor.org

If you like our show, please subscribe, rate, review, and share the Unconventional Dyad Podcast. As always, thank you so much for listening, and we hope you enjoy this episode!

Sep 19, 202151:52
#41 - Rev. Jonathan Barker - Climate Justice, Racial Justice, and Why Jesus Would Demand a Green New Deal

#41 - Rev. Jonathan Barker - Climate Justice, Racial Justice, and Why Jesus Would Demand a Green New Deal

Today on the podcast, Laura speaks with Rev. Jonathan Barker about racial justice, climate justice, and his book, “Jesus Would Demand a Green New Deal: The Story of Why One Christian Pastor Went on a 12 Day Fast for a Green New Deal.”

Some topics of discussion on today’s episode include…

  • The call for Christians to be involved in social, racial, and climate justice efforts/advocacy
  • Rev. Jonathan’s involvement in the Black Lives Matter movement and the intentional strategic non-violent direct action he has engaged in to protest the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, WI last year
  • White, Evangelical Christians’ silence around racial and climate issues
  • Why Jesus would demand a Green New Deal
  • The disproportionate impact of climate change on people who are already oppressed, vulnerable, and marginalized
  • What it means to truly love your neighbor
  • Some of the ways that we can address climate change while also addressing poverty, under-employment and unemployment

Rev. Jonathan Barker serves as the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church (ELCA) in Kenosha, Wisconsin and is the co-founder of Grace Welcome Center. You can email him at jonathan.w.barker17@gmail.com

You can find him on instagram at @barker.jonathan and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/jonathan.barker.714

You can find out more about his church at https://www.facebook.com/graceelcakenosha

If you like our show, please subscribe, rate, review, or share it. This helps get our work out to others. Thank you!

Aug 24, 202101:14:17
#40 - Evelyn Schaefer, Psy.D. - Sport/Performance Psychology, Following Your Passions, and Training Future Psychologists

#40 - Evelyn Schaefer, Psy.D. - Sport/Performance Psychology, Following Your Passions, and Training Future Psychologists

New Blog Post - 3 Ways You Can Support Those in Need in Afghanistan: https://bit.ly/3gd2SYa

Today on the podcast, Laura speaks with Dr. Evelyn Schaefer about sports and performance psychology as well as training and education.

Dr. Schaefer is a clinical and sport/performance psychologist living and working in Fond du Lac, WI.  She is a clinical supervisor for Outpatient Behavioral Health at Agnesian Healthcare/SSM and the Training Director for their APA accredited predoctoral internship.

Some topics of discussion on today’s episode include…

  • The intersection of sports psychology and trauma
  • Allowing athletes to be human
  • The importance of engaging with and cultivating one’s passions
  • The mental health advocacy of some prominent Olympians
  • The process of starting an APA accredited predoctoral internship from the ground up

Dr. Schaefer is involved in systems level work in the areas of provider wellness and diversity, equity and inclusion.  After many years of working primarily in the field of trauma, Dr. Schaefer followed the road not taken and respecialized in sport/performance psychology.  She currently works both at St. Agnes Hospital in Fond du Lac and as a consultant to atheletes, performers, coaches and teams throughout the United States.  She works with the United States Figure Skating Association providing education in the areas of peak performance and athlete mental health.  Dr. Schaefer is a member of the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee’s Mental Health Registry and hopes to one day to reach her lifelong goal of finally making it to the Olympics!  A particular delight for Dr. Schaefer is encouraging young psychologists to bring their passions into their work and find their unique path.  Mom of 2 active teenagers, her happy place is found onboard a SUP watching the sun set over a lake or making a big pot of soup on a snowy day.

To reach out to Dr. Schaefer about sport/performance psychology email her at: synchropsych@gmail.com

To reach out to Dr. Schaefer about training and education email her at: evelyn.schaefer@ssmhealth.com

Aug 18, 202145:31
#39 - Nathalie Rieder, Psy.D. - Geropsychology, Aging, and the Future of Healthcare

#39 - Nathalie Rieder, Psy.D. - Geropsychology, Aging, and the Future of Healthcare

Aug 09, 202150:27
#38 - Rachel Newcombe, Psychoanalyst & Writer
Apr 18, 202101:15:60
#37 - Dr. Monica Rico, Professor of History and Environmental Studies

#37 - Dr. Monica Rico, Professor of History and Environmental Studies

Dr. Monica Rico (PhD) is a Professor of History at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin. She is also affiliated with Lawrence’s Environmental Studies Program (director 2016-2020). Her teaching and research explore American cultural, intellectual, and environmental history in the early American period and the nineteenth century. She has a particular interest in the connections between gender studies and environmental studies, as well as public history and community-based teaching and learning.  She is the author of Nature’s Noblemen: Transatlantic Masculinities and the Nineteenth-Century American West (Yale, 2013) and multiple articles and book reviews, including “Don’t Forget This: Annie Oakley and the ‘New Girl’ in Anglo-American Culture,” in The Popular Frontier: Buffalo Bill’s Wild West and Transnational Mass Culture, edited by Frank Christanson (Oklahoma, 2017). My current research focuses on the connections between visual culture and natural history in the eighteenth-century Atlantic World.  Her research has been funded by fellowships from the Smith Library at Mount Vernon, the American Philosophical Society, and the American Heritage Center at the University of Wyoming. She is an inaugural fellow of the Bright Institute in American History at Knox College.  Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, she was educated at the University of California, Berkeley and moved to the Midwest in 2001. She is active in the Fox Cities as a member of the Northeastern Wisconsin Land Trust, the Outagamie County Democratic Party, and various other local initiatives. In 2014 she was recognized for her community work by being named one of the region’s “Future 15” emerging leaders. In 2018, the Outagamie County Historical Society presented the Lillian Mackesy Award for Local History to her in recognition of my nine years of service on the society’s board, including several terms as president.

You can find Dr. Rico on her website

You can find us on our website, Instagram, and Twitter. The music you hear is by the amazing laurence.

Apr 03, 202101:05:47
#36 - Dr. Tracy Sidesinger, Psychoanalytic Psychologist

#36 - Dr. Tracy Sidesinger, Psychoanalytic Psychologist

Tracy Sidesinger, PsyD is a psychoanalytic psychologist, currently practicing virtually from Brooklyn and upstate New York with a focus on gender and sexuality, maternal mental health, spirituality, and the arts. Her writing can be found in Studies in Gender and Sexuality, Public Seminar, and Routledge. She is currently working on a collection of essays bridging psychoanalytic insight, interviews, and memoir to bear on the topic of feminine knowing. She serves on the board of directors for the Museum of Motherhood as artist residency coordinator, and is currently engaged in research on support structures outside of the nuclear family. She is passionately involved in the community psychoanalysis movement which makes psychological care accessible to all as a matter of social justice and equity.

Today, we start with a beautiful discussion about motherhood and femininity. We also explore several topics, including the use of the analyst's subjectivity and self as an instrument in the therapy, community psychoanalysis and psychotherapy, the importance of process in the work we do and how process can be illuminated in consultation, supervision, and peer groups. Lastly, we discuss Dr. Sidesinger’s creation of a community clinic and she provides a beautiful frame for what she hopes the clinic will look like and whom the clinic will serve. 

You can find us on our website, Instagram, and Twitter. Featured Song: Unquiet Mind by Laurence (@laurencemusic992)

Mar 22, 202152:27
#35 - Candice Czubernat, Therapist and Founder of The Christian Closet

#35 - Candice Czubernat, Therapist and Founder of The Christian Closet

Candice Czubernat, LMHC, has been a therapist for 15 years and is the founder of the LGBTQ affirming counseling, coaching and spiritual direction practice, The Christian Closet.  She’s also the founder of Progressive Christian Counseling, an online therapeutic resource for Christians who come from a progressively minded faith. She works with people from all over the world undoing limiting beliefs about God and the self in order to find beauty, freedom and wholeness. 

Candice is a graduate of The Moody Bible Institute and The Seattle School of Theology and Psychology. She identifies as a lesbian and a Christian.  She lives in a small mountain town in southern California with her wife, the love of her life, Crystal, and their 6-year-old boy/girl twins Deacon and Dylan.  If she's not working you can find her testing science projects with her kids, playing family board games and wrestling with their puppy Charlie Bonz. 

Today on the podcast we discuss… 

  • Candice’s work with the LGBTQ+ community 
  • Spiritual Trauma and abuse 
  • How queerness can be used to encapsulate identities that are not black and white boxes 
  • Teletherapy and its ability to reach marginalized communities 
  • Her evolving views on God and spirituality 


The Christian Closet on the Web: https://www.thechristiancloset.com/ 

The Christian Closet on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheChristianCloset 

The Christian Closet on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lgbtq_therapyonline/ 

Candice on the Web: https://candiceczubernat.com/ 

Candice on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lesbiantherapist/ 

Candice on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheChristianCL

Mar 16, 202138:27
#34 - Kimby Shult Hughes, LMFT - Healing from the Heart

#34 - Kimby Shult Hughes, LMFT - Healing from the Heart

Kimby Shult Hughes is a highly sensitive empath who has her Master of Science in Marriage and Family therapy and currently specializes in the treatment of children and youth impacted by trauma.  She is deeply immersed in her doctorate work in Education where she researches the teachers who teach students impacted by trauma. Additionally, she is an assistant college coach for volleyball and loves being around the athletes who, oxymoronically, cause her to feel young and quite old at the same time.

Kimby is also the author of three children’s books (which can be found on Amazon): Love Transcends, Love Wins, and Where Peace Lives. After thoroughly enjoying the process of working on Where Peace Lives with her children, Kimby and her two kids have another book in progress, so stay tuned! Despite the many hats she wears, being a mama of two highly sensitive kids is, undoubtedly, the biggest blessing and privilege of Kimby’s life.  The child in her is deeply healed by them and she sits in daily awe of their insight, authenticity, kindness, compassion, bravery, and general amazingness. Kimby loves to be active and outdoors (especially with her husband and kids) and feels like life is more sustainable when she approaches it with joy, humor, gratitude, and authenticity.

On today’s episode...

  • We discuss Kimby’s work with the CBITS program and her work in schools
  • The unique impact of racial trauma and discrimination on students and children of color
  • Her faith journey and its influence on her work and her life in general
  • Kimby’s process of writing her three books and how they might help open and facilitate discussions about race
Mar 09, 202155:28
#33 - Dr. Elisabeth Paquette: Engaging with Decolonial Texts
Mar 06, 202152:47
#32 - Dr. Dale Bespalec: Retiring with Integrity
Mar 04, 202149:58
#31 - Part 2: Carlos Padrón, Ethics of Care within Psychoanalysis
Feb 22, 202139:16
#30 - Part 1: Carlos Padrón, Ethics of Care within Psychoanalysis

#30 - Part 1: Carlos Padrón, Ethics of Care within Psychoanalysis

Carli and Laura interview Carlos Padrón, licensed psychoanalyst. Our conversation today was split into two episodes (#30 and #31). In this episode, we begin to discuss the ethics of care within psychoanalysis, what care means, and how we might use or misuse empathy in the consulting room with our patients. We also discuss the radial use of silence, contemplative stillness, and attentive listening. We further explore how our use of empathy might cut off, or foreclose, possibilities with that patient and within the intersubjective space. 

Carlos is a licensed psychoanalyst and an advanced candidate at the Institute for Psychoanalytic Training and Research (IPTAR). He originally studied philosophy in Venezuela, then earned an MA in philosophy with a concentration in psychoanalysis at the New School for Social Research, and finally an MPhil in Latin American literature at New York University. He has written and presented on the intersections between philosophy, literature, psychoanalysis, and Latin American Thought. He was a teaching fellow at NYU, a faculty member at John Jay College (CUNY), the Contemporary Freudian Society, and the China American Psychoanalytic Alliance. Carlos is currently a faculty member at IPTAR where he co-teaches a class on clinical aspects of diversity. He also teaches a Seminar on Psychodynamic Theory at the Silberman School of Social Work in Hunter College (MSW). Carlos participated in the documentary Psychoanalysis in El Barrio, a film on working psychoanalytically with underprivileged Latinx patients in the U.S., and has given talks and published on this topic. Lately, he published an essay in the edited volume Psychoanalysis in the Barrios (Routledge, 2019), has an essay on whiteness and the “good white” in a special edition of Division Review #22 dedicated to COVID-19 and racism, and was invited to write an essay for a special issue of Psychoanalytic Psychology tentatively titled Notes from a Pandemic: Reflections from 19 Clinicians on the Year of COVID-19. Finally, Carlos wrote an excellent piece for Stillpoint Magazine, called Totemizing the Taboo, or Seizing the Fortress of Whiteness. Carlos has worked psychoanalytically in different settings and is currently a clinical associate of the New School Psychotherapy Program where he supervises PhD Psychology students. You can find Carlos on Instagram

You can find us on our website, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook (the neglected account)

Carlos was one of our first guests on the podcast - his first interview can be found on Episode 5


Feb 22, 202101:15:20
#29 - Interview: Jeremiah Lindemann, Product Engineer on COVID-19 and Opioid Mapping

#29 - Interview: Jeremiah Lindemann, Product Engineer on COVID-19 and Opioid Mapping

Today, we speak with Jeremiah Lindemann, a product engineer with Esri working in the geospatial industry based in Colorado.  He spends much of his time supporting health and human services and public safety agencies. His career has helped him be an advocate after a personal loss of his brother to opioids, mapping various opioid topics and helping people tell their stories of loss.  More recently, similar mapping around loss and vaccinations has been applied to COVID-19 with the assistance of GISCorps, a non-profit volunteer organization.

Topics of discussion on today’s episode include: 

  • COVID-19 mapping online and the three maps that Jer has been working on recently: Lost Loved Ones, Vaccination Experiences, and Recovery Stories
  • Jer’s past work with mapping the opioid crisis
  • How mapping impacts the grieving process and encourages empathy
  • The use of maps to bridge the gap between the isolated individual to the community at large, bringing awareness to what is occurring within neighborhoods.


Resources mentioned on today's episode: 

Coronavirus Stories: Lost Loved Ones, Vaccination Experiences, and Recovery Stories

COVID19 Vaccine and Memorial Maps on Twitter 

The National Safety Council (Opioid Maps) - Honor Loved Ones Lost to Opioids

In America: The Installation Story by Suzanne Brennan Firstenberg

Dreamland: The True Tale of America's Opiate Epidemic by Sam Quinones

Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors, and the Drug Company that Addicted America by Beth Macy 

Feb 18, 202139:18
#28 - Predoctoral Internship Miniseries: Part 4, The Ranking Process
Feb 02, 202127:41
#27 - Interview: S. Alfonso Williams - Interlocutor
Jan 31, 202101:08:51
#26 - Interview: Venus Washington - The Practice of Going Within

#26 - Interview: Venus Washington - The Practice of Going Within

Today we speak with Venus Washington, a health and fitness coach and entrepreneur and the founder and CEO of Venus Inspires. She is also the developer and head coach of Madison Elite Track Club Inc. and a new employee at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she runs fitness classes for older adults and facilitates discussions with the community about COVID-19. 

We discussed a variety of topics on the podcast today, including….

  • The importance of authenticity and being in the present moment
  • Modeling courage and authenticity to clients and the community at large
  • The various avenues through which Venus reaches community members, such as leading yoga, mindfulness, groups and workout classes in parks, churches, and libraries
  • The importance of consistency in building online communities 

PLUS Venus leads us through two mindfulness practices in the episode - one at the beginning and one at the end of the episode.

You can find Venus by email (venusinspires8@gmail.com), at her website (https://www.venuswashington.com/), on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/venusinspires8), and on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/venusinspires8/)

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You can find the Unconventional Dyad Podcast on: Our website, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook

Featured Song: Unquiet Mind by Laurence (@laurencemusic992)

Jan 30, 202154:16
#25 - Interview: Dr. Jack Drescher, Gender, Sexuality, and Clinical Training

#25 - Interview: Dr. Jack Drescher, Gender, Sexuality, and Clinical Training

Today, we talk with Jack Drescher, MD, about psychoanalytic and psychology training. Specifically, we explore ways psychoanalytic and psychology training can better integrate gender, sexuality, and the mental health of LGBTQ communities into training curricula. Furthermore, we discuss the burden placed on students and gender and sexual minorities to educate trainees in training programs.   

Dr. Drescher is a psychiatrist and psychoanalyst in private practice in New York City. He is a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association, Past President of the Group for Advancement of Psychiatry and a Past President of APA’s New York County Psychiatric Society. Dr. Drescher is Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Columbia University, College of Physicians and Surgeons and Faculty Member, Columbia Center for Psychoanalytic Training and Research. He is Adjunct Professor of Psychiatry, New York Medical College and Clinical Supervisor and Adjunct Professor at New York University’s Postdoctoral Program in Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis. He is a Training and Supervising Analyst at the William Alanson White Institute. Dr. Drescher served on APA’s DSM-5 Workgroup on Sexual and Gender Identity Disorders. He serves as a member of the World Health Organization’s Working Group on the Classification of Sexual Disorders and Sexual Health addressing sex and gender diagnoses in WHO's forthcoming (2018) revisions of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11). He also served on the Honorary Scientific Committee revising the 2nd edition of the Psychodynamic Diagnostic Manual (PDM-2) scheduled for 2017 release. Dr. Drescher’s professional honors include the Albert M. Biele Visiting Professor in Psychiatry, Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University (2016), Sheppard-Pratt’s Harry Stack Sullivan Award Lecturer (2013), an APA Special Presidential Commendation (2009), an APA Distinguished Psychiatrist Lecturer (2009), APA’s Irma Bland Award for Excellence in Teaching Residents (2006), and the James Paulsen Service Award from the Association of Gay and Lesbian Psychiatrists (2004). Dr. Drescher is board certified in psychiatry by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and certified as a Fellow in Adult Psychoanalysis by the American Board of Psychoanalysis. Dr. Drescher is Author of Psychoanalytic Therapy and the Gay Man (Routledge) and Emeritus Editor of the Journal of Gay and Lesbian Mental Health. He has edited and co-edited more than a score of books dealing with gender, sexuality and the health and mental health of LGBT communities. He has authored and co-authored numerous professional articles and book chapters as well. Dr. Drescher can be reached at jackdreschermd@gmail.com. 

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You can find the Unconventional Dyad Podcast on: Our website, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook 

Featured Song: Unquiet Mind by Laurence (@laurencemusic992)

Jan 13, 202130:53
#24 - Predoctoral Internship Miniseries: Part 3, Interviews and Interview Prep
Jan 10, 202138:32
#23 - Interview: Dr. Lara Sheehi, Decolonizing Psychoanalysis and Psychology Curricula

#23 - Interview: Dr. Lara Sheehi, Decolonizing Psychoanalysis and Psychology Curricula

Dr. Lara Sheehi (she/her/hers) is an Assistant Professor in Clinical Psychology at George Washington University. She works on decolonial struggles as well as power, race, class and gender constructs and dynamics within psychoanalysis, and practices from a trans-inclusive feminist and liberation theory model. Dr. Sheehi is the Secretary of the Society for Psychoanalysis and Psychoanalytic Society (SPPP) and is the chair of the Teachers Academy of the American Psychoanalytic Association. She is an executive committee member of The American Psychological Association (APA), Division 39 (Psychoanalysis) Section IX (Psychoanalysis for Social Responsibility), is the co-chair of the Multicultural Concerns Committee, and is a mentor in the Minority Scholars Program. She is on the editorial board for the Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association (JAPA) and Psychoanalysis, Culture and Society (PCS). She is on the advisory board to the USA-Palestine Mental Health Network and Psychoanalysis for Pride, as well as a member of the Taskforce for Indigenous Psychology.
Today, we discuss our relationship to structures and knowing our position within those structures. More specifically, we discuss curriculum development and the burden often placed on marginalized students, being tasked to hold the affect in the room and educate others. We also engaged in a discussion about the seduction of identifying geographical differences of the accessibility of specific ideas, thought, and theory and we explored how this seduction displaces attention from the very real structural issues that are in place across the US, not just within the Midwest. We also briefly discuss how many clinicians forget that history is in fact how we still practice today; our responsibility is to be accountable for all of psychoanalysis, especially what is occurring present day. We are not in a position, as professionals, psychologists, or psychoanalysts to critique where we once were when we are still there today.
Check out her Twitter feed - you won't regret it.
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You can find the Unconventional Dyad Podcast on: Our website, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook
Featured Song: Unquiet Mind by Laurence (@laurencemusic992)
Jan 08, 202158:25
#22 - Interview Part 2: Dr. Leon Brenner, The Autistic Subject: On the Threshold of Language

#22 - Interview Part 2: Dr. Leon Brenner, The Autistic Subject: On the Threshold of Language

This is the second of a 2-part series that will explore Lacanian psychoanalysis, the unconscious, and subjectivity from a Lacanian perspective. Specifically, Dr. Brenner discusses a compelling argument that autism is a singular subjective structure, a mode of being that is not reducible to psychosis. He elucidates foreclosure in autism and psychosis, and further explains that autistic subjects do not have access to the symbolic order. Instead, the early foreclosure for the autistic subject provides a different mode of access to language through signs, the basic linguistic unit. At the end of the episode, we talk briefly about society’s social effect on how autism unravels, or causes many people to find refuge in rejection. In spite of Dr. Brenner not engaging with this topic directly in his book, we discuss how his theory of the psyche can progress psychoanalytic vocabulary, which can then influence the work of political activists.  

Dr. Leon S. Brenner is a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Potsdam, a prospective postdoctoral fellow at the University of Ghent and lecturer at the International Psychoanalytic University, Berlin. He is a member of the APPI, LOB, and a founder of Lacanian Affinities Berlin (laLAB) and Unconscious Berlin. His latest book on the subject of the psychoanalysis of autism is called The Autistic Subject: On the Threshold of Language, where he presents a novel account of autistic subjectivity from a Lacanian psychoanalytic perspective. 

Dr. Brenner's personal website, Lacanian Affinities Berlin website, Unconscious Berlin on YouTube and Facebook, The Autistic Subject: On the Threshold of Language, Instagram, and Twitter

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You can find the Unconventional Dyad Podcast on: Our website, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook 

Featured Song: Unquiet Mind by Laurence (@laurencemusic992)

Jan 03, 202154:35
#21 - Interview Part 1: Dr. Leon Brenner, Lacanian Psychoanalysis
Dec 31, 202057:04
#20 - Interview: Neha Wadekar, Multimedia Journalist

#20 - Interview: Neha Wadekar, Multimedia Journalist

Carli and Laura interview Neha Wadekar, a multimedia journalist reporting across Africa and the Middle East. Her written and video work has been published in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Economist, CNN, Foreign Policy, TIME, Reuters and Quartz, among others. Neha has received fellowships from Type Investigations, the Pulitzer Center for Crisis Reporting, the Groundtruth Project, the Overseas Press Club, the International Women’s Media Foundation, the United Nations Foundation and the Fuller Project for International Reporting. 

Topics of discussion on today's episode include: Neha's reporting in Kenya (the link between child brides and climate change and the connection between the Trump Administration and dangerous abortion practices in Kenya); what it's like to work with interpreters and translators as a journalist; and how journalism can be used to empower the voiceless, particularly women. 

DISCLAIMER: Unfortunately, we experienced some recording issues with this episode, which you may pick up on throughout the interview. We did our best to edit the most problematic sections of the episode, but do know that some some of the interview recorded out of sync. We were pretty disappointed by this but did not want you to miss out on Neha's incredible work!!

Check out Neha's website: https://nehawadekar.com/

Follow Neha on Twitter: https://twitter.com/nehawadekar?lang=en

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You can find us on: Our website, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook 

Dec 30, 202052:04
#19 - Interview: Wyndi Ervin, Educator
Dec 08, 202001:21:47
#18 - Interview: Jessica Jensen & Paul Dietrich, Musicians, Composer; Jazz & Classical

#18 - Interview: Jessica Jensen & Paul Dietrich, Musicians, Composer; Jazz & Classical

Today, we have Jessica Jensen and Paul Dietrich on the podcast. Topics of discussion include: music transcending language, music deriving meaning through empathy, importance of music education, and cross-cultural music performances. 

The two musical pieces in this episode:

“The Fool” is the 3rd movement of a larger work called Major Arcana. In 2012, V3NTO Brass Trio, commissioned Chicago composer Joe Clark to write this piece for the group. The tarot card inspired Major Arcana is an exploration of the intertwining forces of human nature. Each card of the tarot deck contains a pictogram representing an archetypical character. The Major Arcana are the twenty-two trump cards of the tarot deck.  The Fool is the first card in the deck and represents man's creative impulse, naivety, and desire to explore. The word "fool" derives from the Latin word meaning "windbag", making brass a perfect medium for this work.

“Perennial”: This is the first part of a four-part suite called “Forward” that was part of a grant to write music that was about Wisconsin in some way. “Perennial” was written while thinking about how you can leave a place (like your hometown) for years at a time, but when you come back it will often feel very familiar.

Paul, a composer, trumpet player and educator based in the Midwest, has been the leader of the Paul Dietrich Quintet since 2012 and the Paul Dietrich Jazz Ensemble since 2016. The Chicago-based Quintet has released two albums: Focus (2017, ears&eyes) and We Always Get There (2014, Blujazz). The Paul Dietrich Jazz Ensemble’s 2019 album Forward features guest artist & world-renowned drummer Clarence Penn (Dave Douglas, Maria Schneider) alongside many of the Midwest’s best jazz musicians, including Greg Ward, Russ Johnson, Dustin Laurenzi, Matt Gold, & Andy Baker. Paul has twice been the recipient of the Greater Madison Jazz Consortium’s Artistic Development Grant. In 2017, he wrote the four-part suite “Forward,” inspired by the sights and sounds of his home state, which became the core of his 2019 album of the same name. In 2020, Paul received a grant to write and perform a project for a nine-piece ensemble including a string quartet which will debut in 2020 or 2021, depending on the public health situation. Paul holds a Bachelor’s degree in trumpet and jazz studies from Lawrence University (2010) and a Master’s degree in Jazz Studies from DePaul University (2012). While at DePaul, Dietrich wrote several pieces that were performed by the DePaul University Jazz Ensemble, including an arrangement of Phil Woods’ “Pairing Off,” which was recorded on the Jazzed Media release Right to Swing (2013) and featured Woods and the composer. Of this recording, All About Jazz called it “the sizzler of the disc, with a pronounced performance by the trumpeter.”

Jessica began playing trumpet at the age of 10 in her hometown of Hortonville, WI.  She went on to earn her Bachelor's degree from the nearby Lawrence University in Appleton & later completed her Master's and Doctorate in Trumpet Performance from UW-Madison. While at Madison, she was a member of UW's faculty-ensemble-in-residence, the Wisconsin Brass Quintet. Currently, Jessica instructs a private studio of area music students and is a member of V3NTO, an award-winning, Chicago-based brass trio in addition to other various regional ensembles. Outside her musical activities, she enjoys spending time with her fellow trumpet-playing husband & their overly-enthusiastic golden retriever.

You can find us on our website, Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook. 



Nov 22, 202059:36
#17 - Interview: Dr. Alaina Kroes, Psychologist; Competency restoration & assessments with children
Nov 11, 202041:29
#16 - Interview: Marina Stant, Songwriter
Nov 10, 202001:14:53
#15 - Predoctoral Internship Miniseries: Part 2
Nov 06, 202034:40
#14 - Interview: Dr. Natalie Christian, Educator and Fungal Ecologist

#14 - Interview: Dr. Natalie Christian, Educator and Fungal Ecologist

Today on the podcast, Laura and Carli talk to Dr. Natalie Christian. Topics of discussion are teaching college courses during the pandemic and the importance of mentorship, allyship, and encouragement from supervisors, mentors, and advisors. Dr. Christian teaches topics such as contraception, evolution, climate change, which can be uncomfortable topics for many students; we discuss how she approaches these conversations by providing students with the science, which can help students make informed decisions as citizens. Lastly, we discuss her research interests and engagement with the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama, where she studied microbiomes in cacao plants.  Dr. Christian is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biology at the University of Louisville. She is broadly interested in the community ecology of plant microbiomes, and how scientists can harness plant-associated microbiomes to improve crop health. She obtained a PhD in Biology at Indiana University and doctoral minor and graduate certificate in college pedagogy. She is currently teaching introductory biology for non-majors and she is researching how plant-associated microbes affect plant physiology. She has a passion for teaching and outreach and we think you will find her perspective on science education very relevant to the current state of social and political affairs.  You can find Dr. Christian at www.nataliechristian.com Featured Song: Cry Me a River (Cover) by Laurence

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Oct 29, 202001:01:05
#13 - Interview: Dr. Andrea Medaris, Clinical Psychologist, Gilmore Girls Expert
Oct 23, 202049:22
Special: Everybody Now - Climate Emergency and Sacred Duty

Special: Everybody Now - Climate Emergency and Sacred Duty

We’ve caused a turning point in the Earth’s natural history. Everybody Now is a podcast about what it means to be human on the threshold of a global climate emergency, in a time of systemic injustice and runaway pandemics. Scientists, activists, farmers, poets, and theologians talk bravely and frankly about how our biosphere is changing, about grief and hope in an age of social collapse and mass extinction, and about taking action against all the odds. 

On 19th October 2020, Everybody Now is being released by podcasters all over the world as a collective call for awareness, grief and loving action. This podcast was crowdfunded by a handful of good souls, and produced by Tim Nash and David Benjamin Blower 

With contributions from: 

  • Dr. Gail Bradbrook – scientist and co-founder of Extinction Rebellion
  • Prof. Kevin Anderson – Professor of Energy and Climate Change at the University of Manchester
  • Dámaris Albuquerque – works with agricultural communities in Nicaragua
  • Dr. Rowan Williams – theologian and poet, and a former Archbishop of Canterbury
  • Pádraig Ó Tuama – poet, theologian and conflict mediator
  • Rachel Mander – environmental activist with Hope for the Future
  • John Swales – priest and activist, and part of a community for marginalised people
  • Zena Kazeme – Persian-Iraqi poet who draws on her experiences as a former refugee to create poetry that explores themes of exile, home, war and heritage
  • Flo Brady – singer and theatre maker
  • Hannah Malcolm – Anglican ordinand, climate writer and organiser
  • Alastair McIntosh – writer, academic and land rights activist
  • David Benjamin Blower – musician, poet and podcaster

Follow this link if you would like to join the march. 

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Oct 19, 202001:46:02
#12 - Interview: Dr. Laura Knudson, Transcompetent Care; Founder, Gender Affirming Care Team
Oct 19, 202055:34
#11 - Interview: Angela Lang, Political Activist and Founder of Black Leaders Organizing for Communities (BLOC)

#11 - Interview: Angela Lang, Political Activist and Founder of Black Leaders Organizing for Communities (BLOC)

Carli and Laura interview Angela Lang, political activist and Executive Director of Black Leaders Organizing for Communities (BLOC). Topics of discussion include: Angela’s social justice work and activism, more specifically with BLOC; prioritizing mental health and self care in the workplace; the pervasive nature of trauma and its impacts on communities of color; and the impacts of COVID-19 and the racism pandemic. 

Support BLOC by connecting on social media and/or by donating to their programs: https://www.blocbybloc.org/donations

BLOC on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/blocbyblocMKE/

BLOC on Twitter: https://twitter.com/blocbyblocMKE

BLOC on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blocbyblocmke/

Angela Lang was born and raised in the heart of Milwaukee. She has an extensive background in community organizing. In the past, Angela served as both an organizer and State Council Director for the Service Employees International Union, working on such campaigns as the Fight for 15. Before joining BLOC's team as Executive Director, Angela was the Political Director with For Our Future Wisconsin. She is a graduate of Emerge Wisconsin and has had the pleasure of being the featured trainer for Emerge's Diversity Weekend since 2015.  Angela is motivated by making substantial and transformative change in her community while developing young, local leaders of color. Her journey in organizing hasn't always been easy, but through it all she has remained a fierce advocate for securing more seats at the table for those who represent the New American Majority.

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Oct 16, 202044:09
#10 - Interview: Dr. Stephanie Kliethermes, Professor and Sports Medicine Researcher
Oct 12, 202051:14
#9 - Interview: Dr. Joy Jordan, Mindfulness Teacher
Oct 06, 202001:01:22
#8 - Predoctoral Internship Miniseries: Part 1
Oct 05, 202052:18
#7 - Interview: Dr. Valery Hazanov, Psychologist and Author of "The Fear of Doing Nothing"

#7 - Interview: Dr. Valery Hazanov, Psychologist and Author of "The Fear of Doing Nothing"

Carli and Laura speak with Dr. Valery Hazanov, clinical psychologist and author of The Fear of Doing Nothing. Topics of discussion include Dr. Hazanov's motivation behind writing his book, his personal approach to therapy, cross-cultural differences in therapeutic training and practice, and the impacts of COVID-19. 

Dr. Hazanov is a licensed clinical psychologist living in Jerusalem. He is also the clinical director of Headspace, an evidence-based psychological treatment center for adolescents and young adults in Jerusalem. Dr. Hazanov was born in Moscow and raised in Israel. He received his PhD in clinical psychology at Columbia University and trained at various organizations in New York including Columbia University Medical Center and St Luke’s Hospital. He is a former fellow of the American Psychoanalytic Association and the Columbia University Center for Psychoanalytic Training and Research. He is also the author of The Fear of Doing Nothing: Notes of a Young Therapist. His book is a deeply moving account of his graduate training in New York City, and it explores issues in psychotherapy with incredible honesty, vulnerability, and a healthy dose of skepticism.

Dr. Hazanov on Psychology Today

Dr. Hazanov on Medium - "Am I Becoming a Worse Therapist?"

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Oct 01, 202001:04:01
#6 - Interview: Dr. Claudia Sheftel-Luiz, Feminist, Psychoanalyst, and Author

#6 - Interview: Dr. Claudia Sheftel-Luiz, Feminist, Psychoanalyst, and Author

Carli and Laura speak with Claudia Sheftel-Luiz, M.Ed, PsyaD. Topics of discussion include Dr. Luiz's journey with psychoanalysis, working with the awful and the disgusting, and the power of feminine energy in and outside of therapy.  

Dr. Claudia Sheftel-Luiz, Ed.M, Harvard University (1982), PsyaD, Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis (1997), has been in private practice and serving as a consultant to for-profit and non-profit corporations for over 40 years. A frequent contributor to news and radio shows, Dr. Luiz is the first-place winner of the 2006 Phyllis W. Meadow Award for Excellence in Psychoanalytic Writing (published in Modern Psychoanalysis) and first place winner of the 2008 Reader’s Digest Best Writer’s Website Award.

Dr. Luiz is the author of a new introductory textbook in psychoanalysis, written as a set of stories about treatment, called: “The Making of a Psychoanalyst: Studies in Emotional Education” (2018 Routledge Press). The book illuminates the innovations to theory and clinical method that have revolutionized psychoanalysis. New Books in Psychoanalysis called the book “a tour de force poised to create a shift in the cultural consciousness” and the Journal of Modern Psychoanalysis called it: “arguably the best lay book written about Modern Psychoanalysis.”

Dr. Luiz is on the faculty of the Academy for Clinical and Applied Psychoanalysis in Livingston, New Jersey, and has offices in New York City and Tarrytown, NY. She lives with her husband John Luiz, a writer, with whom she shares two college-age daughters.

Find out more about Dr. Luiz's incredible work at her website: https://claudialuiz.com/

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Sep 24, 202045:58
#5 - Interview: Carlos Padrón, Latinx Psychoanalyst

#5 - Interview: Carlos Padrón, Latinx Psychoanalyst

Carli and Laura interview Carlos Padrón, psychoanalyst.  Topics of discussion include the immigrant identity; misattunements and mistakes in and outside the frame of therapy; the importance of the "marginal" and the "other" in psychoanalysis; and the flip-side of identity politics.  Carlos Padrón is a Latinx licensed psychoanalyst and an advanced candidate at the Institute for Psychoanalytic Training and Research (IPTAR). He originally studied philosophy in Venezuela, then earned an MA in philosophy with a concentration in psychoanalysis at the New School for Social Research, and finally an MPhil in Latin American literature at New York University. He has written and presented on the intersections between philosophy, literature, psychoanalysis, and Latin American Thought. He was a teaching fellow at NYU, a faculty member at John Jay College (CUNY), the Contemporary Freudian Society, and the China American Psychoanalytic Alliance. Carlos is currently a faculty member at IPTAR where he co-teaches a class on clinical aspects of diversity. He also teaches a Seminar on Psychodynamic Theory at the Silberman School of Social Work in Hunter College (MSW). Carlos participated in the documentary Psychoanalysis in El Barrio, a film on working psychoanalytically with underprivileged Latinx patients in the U.S., and has given talks and published on this topic. Lately, he published an essay in the edited volume Psychoanalysis in the Barrios (Routledge, 2019),  has an essay on whiteness and the “good white” in a special edition of Division Review #22 dedicated to Covid 19 and racism, and was invited to write an essay for a special issue of Psychoanalytic Psychology tentatively titled Notes from a Pandemic: Reflections from 19 Clinicians on the Year of COVID-19.  Carlos has worked psychoanalytically in different settings and is currently a clinical associate of the New School Psychotherapy Program where he supervises PhD Psychology students.  

Carlos Padrón on Instagram  

Psychoanalysis in El Barrio (documentary film)  

Six Inconclusive Notes on the Whiteness of the “Good White” (essay) 

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Sep 21, 202001:40:54
#3 - Interview: Laura Schroeder on Being a Life-Long Learner and Making the Familiar Strange

#3 - Interview: Laura Schroeder on Being a Life-Long Learner and Making the Familiar Strange

Guest, Laura Schroeder, M.A., shares her thoughts on the fluid nature of identity, transnational activism, the myth of the "self-made" individual, international travel, and learning how to sit in "the empty spaces."  Laura is the co-founder of Open Americas, an online platform for sharing content that engages with contemporary social issues facing the Western Hemisphere. She is also the Communications & Strategic Partnerships Manager at Open Americas, and she currently works as the Investor and Communications Manager at Working Capital for Community Needs, a nonprofit organization with headquarters in Wisconsin, whose mission is to create opportunities for access to microfinance, services and markets to improve the lives and communities of the working poor in Latin America.. Laura has a Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology and Anthropology as well as a minor in Environmental Studies from Lewis and Clark College, and she has a Master’s Degree in International Policy and Development from Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey.

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Sep 09, 202045:04
#2 - Consent in the Age of COVID-19
Aug 31, 202044:01