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The Hardcore Self Help Podcast with Duff the Psych

This is a podcast dedicated to answering your questions about mental health, anxiety, depression, relationships, sex, and life WITHOUT psychobabble BS. I am Dr. Robert Duff, a psychologist from Southern California, but I'm also a regular dude who legitimately wants to help out. I wrote the best selling books Hardcore Self Help: F**k Depression and Hardcore Self Help: F**K Anxiety. Those are available at http://hardcoreselfhelp.com
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The Hardcore Self Help Podcast with Duff the Psych
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Now displaying: Category: Self-Help
Feb 21, 2019

Welcome, everybody! Today's episode is going to focus on a single topic. I have gotten a lot of questions recently about nighttime anxiety and nocturnal panic, so today we are going to focus on things that you can do to help you get a little bit better sleep and some relief from that nasty anxiety that can pop up during the night.

Thank you to our sponsors for this episode, Open Fit and Daily Harvest! Text the code DUFF to 303030 for a free 30-day open fit trial or use the code DUFF for 3 free cups in your first Daily Harvest Box!

If you have questions or topics for a future episode, please send them to me at duffthepsych@gmail.com

Feb 14, 2019

Hello, everyone!

Super excited because this week I have my beautiful wife, Joelle Duff on the podcast again. You always have such great feedback when she's on the show and it's honestly just nice to have a good excuse to sit and talk with my favorite person.

We talk about her getting back into her career after taking a mental health, baby, life-clarity break. We talk about communication in our relationship. We talk about harnessing the power of bipolar and planning for the inconsistencies. We talk about a lot of awesome stuff. You'll love it.

Next week will be a normal Q&A or single topic episode, so shoot me your ideas to duffthepsych@gmail.com

Feb 7, 2019

Hello, friends!

This week, I have an interview with the wonderful Bipolar Barbie. She is a mental health advocate from Australia. In this interview, she describes her experiences with bipolar and talks about why she is passionate about being a mental health advocate. We cover topics from her first manic episode during law school to the importance of medication in her journey. I think you'll really enjoy this one.

Congratulations to the winner of this week's free book, @kellydutrisac! If you'd like to win a free print copy of one of my books, just share your favorite quote from this episode on social media and tag me. I pick one winner each week. 

If you have a question or topic for a future episode, send it to duffthepsych@gmail.com

Jan 31, 2019

This week, I have a nice Q&A session for you. Three really great questions that cover a variety of topics. Some of the content in here is sexually related and there is also plenty of talk about trauma. Be advised.

I forgot to announce it during the episode, but this week's free book winner is @inkblot_ace on twitter. Congrats! If you want to win a free print copy of one of my books, simply share your favorite quote from this episode on social media and tag me!

Here are the questions I cover in this episode:

  • What can I do when I feel myself slipping back into depression?
  • Are my BDSM fantasies unhealthy given my trauma history?
  • How can I support my partner with severe PTSD?

As always if you have questions or topics that you'd like to submit, just send them over to duffthepsych@gmail.com

Jan 24, 2019

On this episode, I have an interview with Larry Gifford from the When Life Gives You Parkinson's podcast. He was diagnosed with early onset Parkinson's disease at age 45. This was a serious curve ball for someone with a spouse, a child, and a blossoming career in radio. We talk about his show, coping with a Parkinson's diagnosis, honest conversations with family, and misconceptions about Parkinson's disease.

As a reminder, if you'd like to win a free print copy of one of my books, just like @passtlivess did this week, share your favorite quote from the episode on social media and tag me! I'll pick one each week.

Next week should be another solo-show. If you have a question or topic that you'd like discussed on the show, send it to duffthepsych@gmail.com

Jan 17, 2019

Hello, friends! I have a Q&A episode for you today. This is an extra special episode for a couple reasons. First off, I'm starting a new weekly tradition. If you share your favorite quote from the episode on social media and tag me, you might be selected to win a free copy of one of my books! Second, my nearly one-year-old kiddo, Leo was very present in this episode. I had to squeeze in the recording between other appointments, so you hear some babbling and such in the background.

In terms of the questions, here what I covered:

  • How can I move on from the guilt caused by ending family relationships due to an extreme fundamentalist upbringing?
  • How can I balance significant psychological issues and still be a good parent?
  • What can I do about my recurrent panic attacks?

As always, if you have a question for the show, please send it to duffthepsych@gmail.com

Jan 10, 2019

Hello, all! 

This was an episode that was supposed to air a while back. I postponed it due to a shooting at my alma mater's college night at the Borderline night club in Thousand Oaks. I felt that the topic just wouldn't be appropriate for that day. 

However, now that we are in a new year, it's the perfect time to think about your values, your goals, your aspirations, and how to live better in the now. That's exactly what we talk about in this interview.

In this episode, I interview Kate Manser from You Might Die Tomorrow about the concept or mortality awareness and how that can be used to help you make decisions and appreciate the present.

As always, you can send me questions to duffthepsych@gmail.com and if you like what you've heard, please rate or share the show on social!

Jan 3, 2019

This is a short and sweet episode that I recorded before leaving for an end-of-year vacation with my family. We talk about making goals for the new year. 

At the end of the year, many people start thinking about goals and resolutions. I see absolutely no problem with that. However, it's important to try to do them in a way that sets you up for success rather than failure. Here are a few quick tips:

  • Establish goals as part of an overall year-end review.
  • Keep your goals reasonable.
  • You can also include larger overall aspirations, but use those as guiding lights rather than attainable goals.
  • If you have too many goals, or goals that are too far from your starting point, you can set yourself up for success and continue the negative feedback loop.
  • Subdivide your goals into small manageable steps.
  • Even if you're not starting with your full capacity in any given goal, you are still doing more than you did before. Start small and build from there.

2018 was a great year and I'm so pumped to knock 2019 out of the water. Thank you so much for all of your support, and for contributing your questions to the podcast. This would not be possible without you. Please continue sending me your questions, feedback, and ideas to duffthepsych@gmail.com.

Dec 20, 2018

The last episode of 2018! Wowwwww. It's been an awesome year and I thank you so much for all of the support, attention, and of course questions. I thought that I would end things strong with a nice Q&A episode.

Here are the topics covered:

  • What is Neuroptimal (neurofeedback)?
  • How can I help myself when depression steals my motivation?
  • How do I know if therapy is working?

I am so excited to get back into the swing of things in January. Please keep sending me your awesome questions and topic requests to duffthepsych@gmail.com!

Dec 6, 2018

Friends. If there is one interview of mine that you listen to, let it be this one. In this interview, I talk to Dr. Steven Mandel, the founder of the Ketamine Clinics of Los Angeles. Ketamine is one of the most effective mental health treatments that very few people seem to talk about. To me this is a shame. It's amazingly effective treatment for depression, suicidality, PTSD, and bipolar. 

In the interview, we talk about why Ketamine works, what an actual session looks like, and how it is a very low-risk procedure. We also address some common misconceptions and even get into the nitty gritty of cost/feasibility.

Please share this episode with your friends, families, and networks.

This is the first of a two-part series. Next week, I will be sharing an interview with an individual who describes their personal experience and amazing benefit from Ketamine treatments for depression.

I should note that I have no personal stake in the Ketamine Clinics. I simply believe that it's a treatment that should gain more exposure.

Nov 29, 2018

Hello, everyone! Great to be back recording a normal Q&A episode this week. Between the unexpected non-episode a couple weeks back and the re-run episode last week, I haven't actually sat down and addressed your questions in a while. Here are the awesome questions that I cover on today's episode:

  • How can I break the cycle of self-sabotage and self-doubt in my relationship?
  • How can I overcome my fear of wrists?
  • How can I better decide what activities to engage in at home and stop getting paralyzed?

As always, you can send me questions to duffthepsych@gmail.com and check out the full show-notes at http://duffthepsych.com/episode136

Nov 21, 2018

Hey, everyone! This is a re-release of an episode that I did last year. I am busy this week with holiday stuff, so I didn't want to record something new, but I thought it would be a good opportunity to repost episode 85, which originally aired on 11/21/17. It's all about tips that you can use to survive the holidays. The holidays are crazy for everyone, but it's stepped up a notch when you also struggle with mental health issues. Have a listen and take great care of yourselves. Much love!

http://duffthepsych.com/episode85

Nov 15, 2018

Super excited to have the awesome Kati Morton on the show with me today. I'm sure you already know who she is, but if you need a refresher, she is most well known for her Youtube channel where she answers questions and gives mental health advice. Kati is a licensed therapist and brings a down-to-earth approach to the content that she puts out.

In this interview, I learn a little more about Kati the person. We also talk about how her work as an influencer has affected her professional life. We discuss her new book, "Are You Okay?", and how you know that it's time to get some professional help.

I really hope you enjoy this broad conversation. Be sure to show Kati some love on Youtube and pre-order her book, which will be released in December! 

Nov 8, 2018

The regularly scheduled podcast interview is postponed this week. There was a tragic shooting at my alma mater's college night at the Borderline bar in Thousand Oaks, CA. In this short message, I talk about what happened, how I'm feeling, and a few tips for coping.

Nov 1, 2018

I did an episode last year around Halloween time about spooky social psychology experiments and what they say about humanity. I figured I'd keep the trend going and do an episode all about creepy treatments from the origin of psychological health care. Before listening any further, just know that some of these are cruel and gross. We've come a long way since the different treatments that I will talk about, but they are important in that they are the predecessors to the treatments that we have now. In some cases they were mean and cruel. In others they were well intentioned, but limited by the lack of knowledge that we have today. Either way, if you are sensitive to topics like this, feel free to skip this one.

Next week should be a more standard episode, so if you have a question or topic for me, send it to duffthepsych@gmail.com and the full show notes for this episode are available at duffthepsych.com/episode133.

Oct 25, 2018
Fantastic episode for you today. We go deep into the different types of medication for anxiety, how to know when it's time to stop taking them, and ways to cope with anxiety that you can use with or without medication.
 
This is the third episode taking a slightly different approach with just one question per episode, with the intention of diving deeper into topics. Now it's time to give me some feedback. If you go to the episode notes at duffthepsych.com/episode132, there will be a short survey. If you could take it, it would help me out so much!
 
As always if you have a question or topic that you'd live covered on the show, email me at duffthepsych@gmail.com
Oct 18, 2018

In this episode, I take a question from someone about how they can help their romantic partner who is great most of the time but gets suicidal or violent every so often. How can she get him to go to therapy or recognize the that there are actual issues going on? I give my perspective on this question and also spend some time defining bipolar disorder. Enjoy!

For full episode notes, check out http://duffthepsych.com/episode131 and if you have a question or suggestion for the podcast, send it over to duffthepsych@gmail.com

Oct 11, 2018

In this episode, I'm trying something slightly different. Rather than taking three questions, I'm taking one and using it as a jumping off point to go in-dept into topics related to the question. Sort of combining the deep-dive and Q&A formats. I'm going to try this for a few weeks and then ask for your opinions. Today's episode is all about C-PTSD or complex post-traumatic stress disorder.

See full show notes at http://duffthepsych.com/episode130

If you have a question that you'd like me to answer on the show, send it over to duffthepsych@gmail.com

 

Oct 4, 2018

In this episode, I do a deep dive talking about a requested topic: dementia. It can be hard to find good information and advice about dementia online, so I hope that this episode can serve that function.

I go in-depth and cover the following:

  • Dementia terminology
  • What kinds of dementia there are
  • How to get a diagnosis
  • Managing difficult behaviors
  • Support available for caregivers

If you have a suggestion for a future deep dive topic or have a question that you'd like me to answer, send it to duffthepsych@gmail.com

Sep 27, 2018

Back to the Q&A this week. Before I answer the questions, I talk about a recent psychiatric hospitalization that I had to do with the hope of helping you understand that it's not a purely black and white situation.

Here are the questions I cover:

  • How can I make friends when my depression gets in the way?
  • Should I be avoiding stress rather than exposing myself?
  • What advice do you have for a future therapist?

As always, you can send your questions for the show in to duffthepsych@gmail.com

Sep 20, 2018

Hello! I thought it would be nice to have my wife, Joelle, back on the podcast today. She's usually a listener favorite guest and I always love talking with her, so I hope you enjoy our conversation!

We talk about all kinds of stuff including:

  • Our life and recent move
  • Changing psychiatric meds
  • Parenting with anxiety
  • How I keep work at work

As always, you can send me questions for a future episode to duffthepsych@gmail.com 

Sep 13, 2018

Another round of awesome questions from you, the listeners. Here's what we cover this week:

  • What can I do about the exhaustion that comes from fighting anxiety?
  • How can I deal with my explosive anger?
  • How can I mend the relationship with my step-daughter?

As always, you can send me your questions to duffthepsych@gmail.com

Aug 30, 2018

Three totally different questions today ranging from relatively basic to quite intense. I hope you enjoy. Did a little something different with the format of this, please feel free to send me feedback about it.

Here are the questions:

  • As a transgender male, how can I cope with my dysphoria while having sex with my partner?
  • Should I increase my dose of Klonopin or change medications for my anxiety?
  • I feel like I don't have any reason to live. What else can I do?

As mentioned in the podcast, check out http://hardcoreselfhelp.com for my audiobooks!

If you have a question for a future episode, send it over to duffthepsych@gmail.com

Aug 23, 2018

Hello! Fantastic questions on today's Q&A episode. I am always amazed by your honesty and vulnerability when sending these in. Here's what we cover today:

  • Could porn be causing my depression and lack of pleasure in life?
  • How can I deal with my constant panic attacks?
  • Should I talk to my therapist about new fleeting thoughts of suicide?

As always, you can send me your questions for an upcoming episode to duffthepsych@gmail.com

Aug 16, 2018

Another full question and answer episode this week. Awesome questions, as always. I wanted to quickly say thank you for everyone who enrolled in the course. It was a very successful launch and I'm so happy that my hard work over the past year has paid off. THANK YOU!

Here are the questions covered this week:

  • How am I supposed to show my partner love when I have borderline personality disorder?
  • How can I best support my suicidal friends?
  • How can I stop procrastinating and stick to habits with anxiety?

As always, please keep sending me your questions to duffthepsych@gmail.com.

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