Can a Podcast Help Me with My Professional Therapy Practice?
So you’ve heard about podcasts and you’re like, what the heck are those? Or perhaps you love podcasts but you’ve only been listening to true crime or your favorite comedian’s podcast. If you want to branch out into something that can benefit your professional life podcasts are easy and free! Here’s a quick roundup of my favorite professional interest podcasts for social workers , counselors and mental health professionals.
If you have an iPhone, there is an app called “Podcasts” installed when you get the phone. For android you may have google podcasts app or you may need to go to the app store to download one. Some popular podcast apps include:
- Apple Podcasts
- Spotify
- Stitcher
- iHeartRadio
- ScoutFM
Podcasts are free and you do not need to buy an app in order to listen. While people may use terms like “download” when talking about them you don’t have to do anything except press play on a podcast that interests you, in the podcast app of your choice.
Podcasts Are a Free Way to Learn New Things That Can Advance Your Career
I love podcasts. When I was doing home visits, I drove a lot which gave me lots of time to listen to podcasts. The first podcast I heard was the extremely popular true crime “Dirty John” podcast which became a television show available on Netflix! The more I drove, the more podcasts I needed because sometimes you get bored of one subject or burnt out on a topic so you need variety. If you already know what a podcast is and how to access them, skip the next paragraph and go straight to my recommendations!
What is a Podcast and Where Do I Get It?
A podcast is like a radio program but without the radio. Like FM or AM talk radio, podcasts allow people to bring you content but unlike traditional radio anyone with a microphone and some editing software can create one. This means there are great ones and also a few bad quality ones.
If you have a cellular phone (and come on, who doesn’t?) you probably already have a podcast app on your phone.
Top 5 Best Podcasts for Therapists, Counselors, and Social workers
1. The Private Practice Startup with Dr. Kate Campbell and Katie Lemieux
You can actually listen directly on their website for this one! Dr. Kate Campbell and Katie Lemieux, are both LMFTs with six figure private pay therapy practices. They have a new episode each week about everything related to private practice. If you have ever wondered, how do I start a private practice? Where do I begin? They have you covered. They talk to professionals from different fields like marketing, website design, as well as other clinicians to answer questions you may have about private practice. Even if you’re years away from embarking on that journey I highly recommend checking out their podcast episodes. You don’t have to listen to all of them or in any particular order, just pick the topics that interest you.
2. Mental Illness Happy Hour with Paul Gilmartin
Recommended to me by several people who have mental illness diagnoses, Mental Illness Happy Hour is a weekly podcast by people with a mental illness for people with a mental illness. If you visit their website you might recognize host Paul Gilmartin from the TBS television show Dinner & a Movie. Paul is a comedian and has been diagnosed with depression in addition to being a recovering alcoholic. Paul interviews different guests every week and the podcast has been praised by Psychology Today and the New York Times. If you have to have a mental illness diagnosis, having a sense of humor definitely helps!
3. The Ten Percent Happier Podcast
Another familiar face (or voice) Dan Harris from Good Morning America brings a follow-up to his book Ten Percent Happier with this podcast! I also recommend the book if you have not checked it out. Dan is insightful and brutally honest about accepting who he is and learning to live with anxiety and self-criticism by integrating mindfulness into his life. He is definitely no “new age hippie type” and he was suspicious of meditation at first which I think makes his experience all the more relatable! Because he is a top journalist on a popular television show, Dan is able to bring famous guests like Brene Brown, Joseph Goldstein, and Jack Kornfield to the podcast.
4. Therapy for Black Girls
Psychologist Dr. Joy Harden Bradford has created a space for black women to talk about mental health in an effort to de-stigmatize therapy. This is especially important because women of color, especially black women, are often expected to be strong, supporting everyone else around them with little support for themselves. Dr. Harden Bradford covers topics like procrastination, domestic violence, friendship, grief and more! You do not need to be a black woman to enjoy this podcast, if you work with black women as clients and you want to hear more about their experience from their point of view, check it out! There is a whole community under the Therapy for Black Girls umbrella including a therapist directory on Dr. Harden Bradford’s website.
5. Rated LGBT Radio
A weekly podcast about topics relating to the LGBT community, covering things like social justice, politics, homophobia, and more. People from the LGBT community share their experiences and opinions on a variety of issues. Just like my last pick, Therapy for Black Girls, you do not need to be LGBTQIA to enjoy this podcast. As social workers and mental health professionals we work with a variety of populations and it’s important to listen to the experiences of different communities in order to better serve them.
Bonus podcast: NASW Social Work Talks Podcast over 42 episodes of social work related content directly from the National Association of Social Workers.
What are some of your favorite podcasts about mental health or professional interest for social workers, therapists, and counselors? Comment and let me know!
