My guest this week is Dr. Joel Minden, a regular on the Think Act Be podcast. This time we switched roles and Joel interviewed me, mostly about my approach to therapy that I describe in my latest book, Mindful Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (affiliate link). This conversation is the first in a series of several episodes with Joel, so stay tuned for more to come.

Topics we touched on included:

The traditional approach in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
The medical model of therapy
My background in mindfulness
The book Shambhala: The Sacred Path of the Warrior (affiliate link)
Parallels between my religious practices as a kid and my early experiences with meditation
Mindfulness practice as more than another “technique” for feeling better
Allowing oneself to experience difficult emotions instead of trying to get rid of them
The challenge in not fighting against our experience
The manageability of the moment
How cognitive work can support mindfulness practice
Contentment that doesn't depend on one’s circumstances
Letting go of the struggle against the struggle
Feeling bad about “not being mindful enough”
My decision to self-disclose about my own struggles
The necessity of honesty in any healthy relationship
Humor in the context of mindfulness, and taking things less seriously
Mindfulness in action, and the value of finding stillness

Joel Minden, PhD, is a clinical psychologist specializing in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for anxiety and related disorders.

He is the author of Show Your Anxiety Who’s Boss (affiliate link), founder of the Chico Center for Cognitive Behavior Therapy, diplomate of The Academy of Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies, and lecturer in the Department of Psychology at California State University, Chico.

Find Joel online at his website, follow him on Twitter, and read his blog on Psychology Today.

Get full access to Think Act Be with Seth Gillihan at thinkactbe.substack.com/subscribe

Sports Tech and the Value of Startup Communities