The AAMFT Podcast

Host Dr. Eli Karam sits with two of the leading therapists in the field of Medical Family Therapy, Dr. Angela Lamson and Dr. Jennifer Hodgson. Medical Family Therapy is a field that has its own set of competencies and interventions, with its own unique skills and training. It looks at health from a biopsychosocial/spiritual framework. In other words, it looks at health, loss, trauma, and death in the context of family and how that interfaces with different systems. Drs. Lamson and Hodgson share stories of how they first got into the field and how they first connected with each other. They  give insight on the skills needed to work in Medical Family Therapy, different training opportunities, and the future of the field.  Finally, they provide insight on how to expand the scope of your practice within Medical Family Therapy.

Bill Doherty is an educator, researcher, therapist, speaker, author, consultant, and community organizer. In this episode, he recounts with Eli his experience in the Catholic church and how circumstances including “failed celibacy” led him to leave the priesthood. He shares how his extensive work doing community presentations led to years of interaction with judges and lawyers, eventually creating the discernment counseling model. Bill contemplates the positive directions the field is taking, and some of the necessary downsides including a crucial turning point of the field and an unexpected consequence of the relational, systemic approach. Eli asks a question that gives Bill goosebumps as he contemplates his boundary-pushing career. Finally, he shares a story about a small but significant detail his mom noticed during his appearance on Oprah.

In this episode, Dr. Eli Karam sits down with Shelly Smith and Jennifer Labanowski to discuss Online Therapy. Online Therapy is one of the most requested topics for discussion in the MFT profession. In this podcast, you will find out the factors that led Shelly and Jennifer to pursue this career after first being skeptical of this type of therapy. They will discuss the four areas of research to know before starting your own online therapy practice like stating up to date on state regulations and some of the ethical implications associated with online therapy . Find out why clients seek out this form of therapy over face to face and what might lead a therapist to choose this form of therapy. Eli dives in to find out more information about online therapy from experts in the field.

This episode’s guest is Dr. Tracy Todd. With years of experience as an MFT and the current CEO of AAMFT, Tracy and Eli discuss the future of AAMFT and the new programs we are introducing to benefit the advancement of the profession. He describes how MFTs can benefit from mixed-reality simulation training, new Topical Interest Networks, future-building events like the Leadership Symposium, and the Disruptive Innovation Challenge. Tracy shares how AAMFT’s new initiatives allow us to stay current and continuously evolve within the growing field, and highlights the significance of providing opportunities for members to become involved and engaged with their profession.  

David Schnarch is a world-renown sex and marital therapist. Eli sits down with David and talks about his career and influence on the field. He discusses how failures led him to come up with the crucible approach, and the revolutionary idea that sexual problems are predictable and normal. He considers the essential qualities a therapist should have to effectively practice sex therapy, touching on how his own openness enables his work. David shares his biggest influences and makes a surprising prediction of the path of the next innovation in systemic therapy. Finally, he talks about his next project of utilizing brain-based therapy with high-risk couples.

In the second part of Eli's interview with Dr. Sue Johnson, they continue their discussion of the "person behind the model." Sue talks about the lessons learned from her first marriage and reflects on 30 years of marriage with her second husband. She shares the epiphany that led to the development of EFT, and tells a story of a time when two-thirds of the room walked out of her conference presentation at the mention of it. Later, she contemplates what she wants EFT to accomplish and how she'd like MFTs to use their societal influence to educate the public on understanding love relationships. 

Sue Johnson is the creator of Emotionally Focused Couples and Family Therapy. In part one of Eli’s interview, Sue recalls how her upbringing in an English pub affected her relationships with her parents and community, and established her comfort level with interpersonal drama and emotion. Sue explains her mother and father’s stark differences in parenting and the effect her mother’s preference that she become a hairdresser had on her eventual career choice. Sue shares the secret for working with aggressive people