A Good Enough Podcast for our times.
Three millennial psychiatrists, military veterans, and friends break down what feels alive in America, right now, through a biopsychosocial lens.
Because sometimes America doesn’t need another hot take, it needs some time with a shrink.
We don’t need all the answers. And we will never be a Perfect Union. But we do need to be Good Enough to keep the American Dream alive and well.
A Good Enough Toolkit
Dialectic Thinking
The concept of the dialectic refers to the power of being able to integrate two opposing ideas. It was popularized in the psychiatric world by Marsha Linnehan who developed Dialectic Behavioral Therapy. Central to this work is the validation and acceptance of current experiences while working towards change. Quite simply, its our most recurring theme in Shrinking America.
Read and Appreciate History
Understanding history helps broaden our perspectives. Anxiety and depression, broadly speaking, are states of narrowed thinking. If we can develop an appreciation for how our current troubles are either recurring, or even better than those before us, it can release us from anxious rumination.
(Link is to Sarah’s favorite long form way to consume history if you click the image.)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
As our lives are filled with stressors outside of our control, one relative constant is our values. But sometimes we stray from those and need help clarifying them and recalling how we can act more in accordance with them. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy tools remind us that despite our challenges and our vulnerabilities, we can always choose to live a life committed to our values.
Defense Mechanisms
Most of our episodes will mention at least one defense mechanism.
Honestly, whoever wrote it on wikipedia said it well “in psychoanalytic theory, defense mechanisms are unconscious psychological processes that protect the self from anxiety-producing thoughts and feelings related to internal conflicts and external stressors”. They have varying levels of adaptability and maturity — being aware of when they’re at play can help us to understand our own and others’ behaviors more fully, refocusing our examination on what the root cause of the anxiety is and how we might defend against it optimally.
The Good Enough Mother (Parent / Authority figure / Country / Podcast…)
Another concept we (clearly) cannot get enough of at Shrinking America. Don’t try to be the best — it’s a trap. Be Good Enough. And, of course, ironically, it’s better for everyone when you do. And leads to more action and productivity. Thanks for coining the term and giving us the evidence base for why it works, Dr. Winnicott.
Erikson’s Stages of Development
Every phase of our lives presents unique challenges. The Erikson psychosocial stages of development are a useful lens for understanding the key conflicts we face. While usually applied to individuals, like much of what we do in Shrinking America, these stages might better help us understand what phase of development we’re in as a country as well. And what consequences we might face if we don’t collaborate to work through the conflict.
Who
we are
Together: we are three friends who trained together in a military psychiatry residency.
As individuals:
Kyle - like her mid-life crisis tattoo quotes, Kyle strives to live the questions now. She’s a real sucker for the American dream, but leans hard on that adaptive coping mechanism of humor when things get a little messy. She ticks a lot of millenial mom sterotypes (wine mom, Swiftie), a husband who balances her (often untethered) enthusiasm (she’s as clear of a 7 on the enneagram as there ever was), and loves being a psychiatrist because it pays her like a doctor to be a philosopher. Most of all, she loves love, friendship, and the pursuit of a shared vision.
