In This Family

Content Warning: This episode discusses addiction.  As a young resident at Duke University, Joseph Lee saw the profound change that people were capable of when dealing with addiction. He witnessed how people could become healthier than they had ever been with the benefit of skilled treatment, good support, and a lot of determination. Dr. Lee has been with Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation for 17 years, including serving as President and CEO for the last five years. He joins Nexus Family Healing President and CEO Dr. Michelle K. Murray for an enlightening discussion about how addiction works, the misconceptions about it, and some important, practical ways families can help in the recovery process. Dr. Lee says if families can overcome the guilt and shame that goes along with looking for causes and blame, they can be much better equipped to guide their loved one to a better tomorrow. This is an encore presentation first aired in October 2025.

Content Warning: This episode discusses depression, anxiety, hospitalization, and traumatic experiences. Gary Gulman has been making people laugh for many years as a top touring comedian and frequent guest on late night shows and star of multiple HBO specials. He’s a professional success by any measure. But that didn’t stop him from having a mental health crisis in his forties, where he gave up comedy, was hospitalized, and ultimately moved back in with his mother. In this revealing conversation with Nexus Family Healing CEO Dr. Michelle K. Murray, Gary reveals the depressive and anxious tendencies of his youth, his struggles connecting with his parents, and how a traumatic event fueled his depression.   This is an encore presentation first aired in October 2025.

Content Warning: This episode discusses suicidal ideation and attempted suicide. Her mother was Latina and one of fifteen kids while her dad was Native American and one of ten kids. For the acclaimed author Deborah Jackson Taffa, this meant a very large number of cousins but also a sense of alienation from both her parents’ cultural roots, a degree of being neither one nor the other. Complicating her sense of belonging was the fact that she and her late mother never really bonded, leaving Deborah to feel like an outcast in her own family as well, which led to mental health problems and an attempted suicide. But Deborah was loved, especially by her father, who read Deborah’s memoir, Whiskey Tender, and said it was accurate. Deborah was the first in her family to graduate high school and is now the director of the MFA creative writing program at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico. She says all the accolades her work has received, including being a finalist for the National Book Award, would have meant nothing if her dad hadn’t loved the book. But he did. 

Content Warning: this episode discusses depression and suicide.  Childhood and adolescence can be tough for anyone. There’s so much to figure out. Author Rebekah Taussig (Sitting Pretty: The View From My Ordinary Resilient Disabled Body) had an extra challenge in that she was paralyzed from the waist down and in a wheelchair, the result of cancer diagnosed when she was a year old. After many years trying to make her disability okay for everyone else and seeing her paralyzed legs as ugly, Rebekah developed a depressive disorder. But as an adult, she had something of an awakening about disability, realizing that there wasn’t something deficient in herself, it was more an issue of living in an ableist world that refuses to provide access for everyone. Later, when Rebekah became a mom to a boy named Otto, she dealt with postpartum depression and issues of feeling that she wasn’t enough for him. Through careful work and support from her husband, Rebekah is in a good place now and here to tell a story that anyone could benefit from hearing.  

Content Warning: This episode discusses suicide, self harm, substance abuse, and violence. You may have seen Isaac Fitzgerald in one of his frequent appearances on The Today Show, cheerfully sharing his latest enthusiastic recommendations for books. And the acclaimed author of the memoirs Dirtbag, Massachusetts and the forthcoming American Rambler really is a cheerful person. But it’s a long way from a stormy childhood in Massachusetts marked by drugs and alcohol from the age of 12, violent conflict between Isaac and his parents, and mental health struggles that ultimately led to his mother’s suicide. Through it all, however, Isaac was guided by a few pillars to lean on: the genuine love his parents had for him and each other throughout their lives, a love of literature that was always a presence in Isaac’s life, and a sense of community and working together with others to build a better life. Isaac Fitzgerald joins us to talk about his long road to a better life.

Content Warning: This episode discusses child abuse and rape.  Author Ashley C. Ford did not have it easy growing up. Her mom could be a lot of fun but could also be physically and verbally abusive and just not interested in carrying out the role of parent. She took Ashley to the dentist exactly twice in her childhood, failed to get medical problems addressed that have been with Ashley ever since, and lashed out in fury for reasons Ashley was desperately trying to understand. Ashley’s father went to jail for two rapes when Ashley was a baby, the two not meeting in person until she was in her thirties. Ashley’s story, told in the best-selling memoir Somebody’s Daughter and in this in-depth conversation, is one of making sense of a challenging family picture and working hard to understand where it all shows up in her own life as an adult with a marriage and a career. 

Content Warning: This episode discusses childhood trauma, emotional abuse and physical abuse. Paul Scheer is known to audiences as an actor, a regular on the series The League and Black Monday, and in recurring roles on Fresh Off the Boat, Veep, and 30 Rock. Recently, Paul has been digging deep into his past to understand what happened during his childhood with an abusive stepfather (who demanded Paul call him “Dad” and locked him out of the house in his underwear when Paul refused) and how that had an impact on Paul later in life. In this moving interview, Paul talks about realizing later in life that he had never once had any kind of argument with his then-girlfriend, never expressed anger, and how a therapist pointed out that this may be a sign of unresolved trauma from the hellish conditions he lived in. Paul talks about learning more about this with his wife, how he sees trauma as an event and not a life sentence, and what he has and has not told his young children about so far. 

Content Warning: This episode discusses bipolar disorder, suicidal thoughts and self harm. Actor and writer Joel Kim Booster (K-Pop Demon Hunters, Loot, Fire Island) had a difficult time with the parents that raised him. They were very religious, deeply conservative, didn’t believe in psychiatric medication or a secular approach to therapy, and they home-schooled Joel until he was 16. Joel, adopted from Korea, came to find out that he was gay, a fact his parents discovered by reading his journal during his senior year of high school, and he had been dealing with mental health problems that would later be diagnosed as bipolar disorder, type II. The result was Joel leaving home at 17, moving in with a friend’s family who welcomed and accepted him as he was, and charting a course of self-reliance. Over time, Joel established a reconciliation with his parents in a way where everyone respected boundaries and differences. And he accepted all that came with his bipolar disorder, in terms of medication management, personality tendencies, and taking care of himself. Joel, who was recently married, shares honest, wise, and often funny insight on his life and journey.

Content Warning: This episode discusses sexual abuse, bipolar II disorder, hypomania, autism, and psychosis.  Frank is only 22 years old, still in college, but he has come a very long way in figuring out his mental health and has already done a lot of work in helping other people. A diagnosis of bipolar disorder, type II, and some intense education on the matter helped him understand why he had been prone to hypomanic episodes. It was during one of these episodes when Frank developed psychosis, believing he was actually a character he had seen on television, which might not make sense to some people but makes perfect sense when you’re in that state. With love and care and patience, Frank’s mom guided him to some treatment and toward some answers, including the discovery that he was on the autism spectrum. That discovery led his mom to understand that she was on the spectrum too.   Frank Cobbe is an ambassador for the NAMI Next Gen program. NAMI Next Gen is the young adult advisory group for the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), composed of 12 young leaders working to improve youth and young adult mental health across the country.  Frank Cobbe on Instagram.  

Content Warning: This episode discusses sexual violence, racism, depression and anxiety. As a kid, it made sense to Kris that she was adopted. She was the only person of color in her immediate family and the people of color she encountered in her community and school were very few and far between. Facing racism and the n-word early on also let her know that she was very different. Finally, during college, Kris learned the identity of the person who gave birth to her and put her up for adoption. The meeting was enlightening but expectations didn't match up as this person wanted to have a full relationship, have Kris meet people she said were Kris's relatives, and wanted to walk Kris down the aisle when she got married. No, said Kris. I have a mom and she's the person who raised me. Later, Kris had a falling out with her sister from her adopted family, who cut off contact. That was a heavy blow and although she now says it was the best thing that could have happened. All these experiences of who she was, being a person of color in an overwhelmingly white environment, and the separation with her sister have led to a profound depression and anxiety that she has to manage every day. That fragile mental health experience was exacerbated by recent ICE activity in Minnesota, where Kris lives, which has made it impossible for Kris to even go visit her mother. It's an enlightening conversation about complicated families and pasts and the impact of those on mental health.

Content Warning: This episode discusses violence, murder, rape and generational trauma.  Newspaper columnist and community business leader Ka Vang was born on a CIA base in Thailand 50 years ago. She remembers eating from the garbage when there was no food to be had, witnessing rape and murder, and fleeing with her family to the United States after the Vietnam War and the Secret War. Ka is Hmong-American, part of a large community of people who aided the American effort and were relocated, largely to Minnesota. The trauma of the war and displacement had severe mental health effects on Ka’s family, including depression, anxiety, and hypervigilance. Today, the Twin Cities region is seeing tremendous upheaval due to the ICE surge, which has seen thousands of people arrested, sent to detention facilities, and deported, even people who have a legal right to be in the United States. Ka says Hmong people who lived through the war in Asia are terrified and having flashbacks. Their children, having had trauma handed down, are rehearsing best practices for staying safe. And as for Ka, she doesn’t feel like an American amid the ICE presence and feels more a matter of when rather than if she’ll get taken. 

Content Warning: This episode discusses grief, eating disorders, and self-harm. When author and artist Tracey Yokas lost her mother, which happened only a few months after her dad died, Tracey was devastated, as was Tracey’s eighth grade daughter, Faith. But things quickly got more complicated as Faith’s grief evolved into a severe eating disorder and acts of self-harm. Soon, Tracey was navigating a very difficult process of trying to help Faith get better while suffering real challenges to her own mental health and the stability of her marriage. Faith did eventually get better, she’s grown now and doing well, and in writing about this period in her book, Bloodlines: A Memoir of Harm and Healing, Tracey found that some of Faith’s problems stemmed from issues Tracey had growing up as well. She examined the traumas of her youth, the relationship to food, the habits that her parents had likely handed down from their own families. It’s an intriguing discussion of mental health, what we can and cannot control, and the long road to healing.

Content Warning: This episode discusses anxiety and generational trauma.  New York based comedian, podcast host, and writer Ophira Eisenberg grew up in Calgary, the sixth child of parents who had survived traumatic experiences in World War 2 and wars in the Middle East. Their difficulty in addressing those traumas led to extreme anxiety, anger issues, and the creation of a family where trauma-related mental health conditions were passed down. For Ophira, who fled home as soon as she could, that has manifest in bouts of fury over a glove in a grocery store, extreme and constant worry over her own child’s safety, and a conscious effort to learn how to confront difficult things head on, despite how uncomfortable they may be. She’s also thankful to her mother in particular for teaching her the value of moving forward anyway, no matter how much events of the past try to drag you down. Ophira Eisenberg hosts the podcast Parenting is a Joke, tells stories with The Moth, and performs as a standup comic.

Content Warning: This episode mentions domestic abuse, substance abuse and suicide.  Acclaimed writer and university professor Jason Tougaw has a very serene life now as an adult. He’s married, living in New York, and although he says he works too much, he finds time to reflect on a childhood that was much more chaotic. Jason’s family passed around a belief that something was wrong with their blood, which they cited to explain generations of eccentric and destructive behavior as well as chronic instability. As a kid, Jason lived in a school bus, lived with an abusive stepfather, lived with his grandmother for stretches of time, and tried to make sense of his homosexuality in an era where being gay definitely did not feel okay. But Jason paid attention to habits and ways of living that he didn’t wish to replicate, paths that could lead him to a better life, and to the healing power of New Wave music. It’s a fascinating conversation for anyone who has ever felt that their family of origin was their destiny and anyone who wanted to break patterns.

Content Warning: This episode discusses anxiety, depression and body dysmorphia.   On the radio as the witty host of NPR’s Wait Wait... Don’t Tell Me, Peter Sagal projects an upbeat and fun personality. But, as he shares with host Dr. Michelle K. Murray, it hasn’t always been that way. From being an anxious and depressed kid with undiagnosed ADHD to a downward spiral following the end of his first marriage, Peter struggled with mental health issues he never fully acknowledged or understood. When he did start to connect the dots and seek help, Peter was able to connect with his father and learn illuminating chapters and family history. And when he married again and began raising a second family, he was able to put an end to some of his own habits and some less than healthy inherited habits. It’s a side of Peter Sagal you probably haven’t heard before and you’ll be glad you listened.

In This Family’s second season is just around the corner, coming to you on January 28th with a brand new set of moving and illuminating conversations about family and mental health. In the meantime, communities around the country are experiencing civil unrest in places like Minneapolis, where Nexus Family Healing is based, Portland, and many other cities. Host Dr. Michelle K. Murray offers some practical advice on taking care of yourself and your loved ones during these tumultuous events, including how to make a plan with your family and establishing rules and boundaries for activism and media consumption. We can’t make these challenges go away but we can offer you some guidance and ideas to take good care of your mind and family.    Resources mentioned in this episode: Ground News 5 Calls

Content Warning: This episode discusses depression, anxiety, mood disorders, and suicide.  Long before she was an acclaimed rapper, singer, and author, Dessa was a scared adolescent, facing big feelings that she didn’t know what to do with and running away from home. She eventually found peace with her parents and returned to them and the younger brother who needed her and loved her very much. Dessa tells us how family support and a curiosity about health and medicine have served her well, including when as a young adult she checked into an in-patient facility and received a diagnosis of cyclothymia, which she describes as a sort of “low-carb bipolar disorder”. She fills us in on how she’s managed that, how her family of origin has continued to lean on each other for support, and how she’s bringing her wisdom to a new relationship. 

Content Warning: This episode discusses anxiety, addiction and suicide.  Fans of the beloved cult TV hit Mystery Science Theater 3000 have enjoyed many laughs from actor and writer Bill Corbett, who played the acerbic robot Crow on the show. Bill’s off-screen life hasn’t always been quite so hilarious. In this candid interview, he talks about growing up in an era where mental health was never discussed, even though his father had all the hallmarks of an anxiety problem and there were massive alcohol problems on his mom’s side. Bill inherited both, thumbing through self-help books at age 14, desperate to shake off an anxiety that would hold on for decades. He shares the story of having a breakdown in New York City, convinced that earthquakes were imminent. He also tells of his heavy use of alcohol and cocaine and his path to a conscientious sobriety. And Bill discusses how he’s raising his own kids, meeting their mental health issues with openness and transparency and love. 

Content Warning: This episode discusses suicide, depression and schizophrenia. Families can be loving, they can be problematic, and, above all, they can be complicated. Author and professor Clancy Martin’s family of origin was very complicated indeed, featuring a dashing, charismatic father who founded his own religion and also dealt with schizophrenia. The family was also faced with suicidality, including Clancy’s own wish to die at age three and multiple suicide attempts spanning most of his life. He tells host Dr. Michelle K. Murray about what a lifetime of trying to die feels like, about his own complex family, which features five children over the course of three marriages, and how just in the last few years he has managed to finally lose that urge to make the worst decision one can make. Talking about frightening mental health topics, as he did in his memoir, How Not To Kill Yourself, led him to not just shake that feeling but also led to helping others who are in danger, which helped Clancy even more. It’s an eye-opening episode, an episode that lets in a lot of sunlight, featuring a guest who once saw only darkness.

Family gatherings during the holidays are a time of connection and joy. They can also be a cause of anxiety or lead to triggering situations.  In this special holiday episode of In This Family, Dr. Michelle K. Murray provides practical tips on thriving or maybe just surviving family events. She reminds us that we always have a choice on how we show up, if we show up, and when we leave. And how goals, boundaries, and a little preparation can create that holiday experience we desire. 

Content Warning: This episode discusses borderline personality disorder, delusions, psychosis and schizophrenia. Sarah was having an ordinary day in her life as a writer living in Los Angeles when her phone rang. Her grandmother explained that Sarah’s mom had been picked up ranting and raving on the side of the freeway in Houston, where Sarah grew up. It was a shock but not a surprise for Sarah, who had already lived with her mother’s psychosis, schizophrenia, delusions for as long as she could remember, the occurrences getting more frequent as time went on. Fortunately, Sarah had wonderful loving care from her grandmother and her aunt who provided support and strategies for what Sarah was going through. Sarah, the author of the memoir No One Gets to Fall Apart, talks about conflicts with her mom from childhood through to Sarah’s successful career and marriage as an adult. She also shares how really studying and exploring the situation has helped her make connections between traumatic events and the ways both she and her mother shaped their lives as a result of that trauma. In the interview, Sarah mentions the book Understanding the Borderline Mother: Helping Her Children Transcend the Intense, Unpredictable, and Volatile Relationship, which she found very helpful.

Content Warning: This episode discusses suicide, anxiety, depression, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and bipolar disorder.  Maria Bamford’s parents, Joel and Marilyn, were not part of a generation that knew all the terminology and awareness of mental health that we have today. They couldn’t even identify their own difficulties as being indicative of mental health conditions. But they did try everything they could think of to help their daughter as she struggled through the years with intrusive thoughts, bipolar disorder type II, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Joel and Marilyn are no longer with us but Maria, now a renowned comedian, actor, and best-selling author, remembers them fondly for the effort they put in, the love they demonstrated, and the values they taught her having to do with building community, helping out your fellow human beings, and adapting a worldview when new information becomes available. Her folks were even good sports about Maria persistently including impressions of them in her standup work. Maria Bamford joins host Dr. Michelle K. Murray for an honest, funny, and loving look at how mental health worked in her family and what she’s carried on after they’ve gone.

Content Warning: This episode discusses Depression, Anxiety, Rape, Sexual Assault, and Suicidal Ideation.  Vivien Lee recalls the first inklings of an existential crisis when she was eight years old, a feeling she would eventually connect with depression. As she grew older, Vivien endured severe trauma, threatening her mental health even further. For Vivien, the oldest of several children in a family that was part of Minnesota’s Hmong community, there was nowhere to go to talk about her distress. According to Vivien, mental health was not something that was discussed in her family. She felt that disclosing anything to her parents would be a form of “talking back” and she feared punishment for that. For all of us, the environment a person is raised in, their culture, history, traditions, can all impact one’s wellbeing, sometimes through generations. As an adult, who recently earned a Master’s Degree in marriage and family therapy, Vivien has worked hard to preserve her Hmong identity for herself and her kids while also establishing an openness and honesty that eluded her as a kid.   Resources Mentioned in This Episode: Sexual Abuse Help And Healing Hotline What Are the Signs of Child Sexual Abuse National Center for PTSD: Child Sexual Abuse Culture and Mental Health Social, cultural, and other diversity issues in the traumatic stress field Culture and Trauma The Influence of Culture and Society on Mental Health

Content Warning: This episode discusses depression, anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), and gender dysphoria. This week, our ongoing conversation about families and mental health turns to the family of our host, Dr. Michelle K. Murray, President and CEO of Nexus Family Healing. She welcomes her brother Aaron and nephew Asher for an enlightening talk about Asher’s journey. Having dealt with clinical depression, anxiety issues, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) for much of his young life, Asher discovered that some of his difficulties arose from another problem: gender dysphoria. That’s a feeling of distress when the gender one identifies with is different than the one they were assigned at birth. Asher talks about realizing that he was transgender and his dad, Aaron, discusses the ways he and Asher’s mom stepped up to support him and help him find the more peaceful and contented place he is in today.   Resources Mentioned in This Episode: The Trevor Project Trans Youth Equality - For Parents Transgender Children and Youth: Understanding the Basics Parents of Trans Youth

Content Warning: This episode discusses substance abuse, addiction and suicide. Long before she became a successful journalist, political pundit, and podcaster, Ana Marie Cox was doing her best to navigate some tough times. The family was constantly moving, which, combined with being an only child, made it hard to make and keep friends and get the peer support kids need. Ana needed even more support when her parents divorced and Ana was thrust into the role of being a parent for both herself and her alcoholic mom. When Ana went to live with her dad as a teenager, her mom was heart-broken, furious, and never stopped telling Ana about those feelings until she died of cirrhosis of the liver. Meanwhile, Ana began drinking herself at age 13, a habit that would lead to alcoholism, a life that fell apart, and ultimately rehab, sobriety, and a new lease on life. Ana tells host Dr. Michelle K. Murray about the steps she has taken to make sense of her past so she can thrive in the present and future.   Resources Mentioned in This Episode: Learn more about parentification and its impact on family systems: Parentification: Signs and Symptoms of a Parentified Child Explore more about ketamine-assisted therapy and its considerations: A New Patient's Guide to Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy Ketamine Infusion Therapy Treatment Considerations

Content Warning: this episode discusses self-harm, anxiety and grief. Author and artist Moon Zappa became famous at age 14, doing a guest vocal on the hit song “Valley Girl” by her dad, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame musician Frank Zappa. It’s a fun song, what isn’t so fun is that the song came about from Moon’s desperate attempt to get some kind of attention and approval from her dad in what she says was a chaotic household. In this wide ranging interview, Moon talks about a mother prone to fits of rage, a father gone nine months out of the year and checked out when he was there, and a childhood of self-harm and desperate people pleasing. She also explains how as an adult she got some good therapy, learned to identify the root causes of her suffering, and gain a deep understanding not just of the events of a traumatic upbringing but how to grow and even thrive. Her memoir, Earth to Moon, is highly recommended by host Dr. Michelle K. Murray, President and CEO of Nexus Family Healing.

Content Warning: This episode discusses addiction.  As a young resident at Duke University, Joseph Lee saw the profound change that people were capable of when dealing with addiction. He witnessed how people could become healthier than they had ever been with the benefit of skilled treatment, good support, and a lot of determination. Dr. Lee has been with Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation for 17 years, including serving as President and CEO for the last five years. He joins Nexus Family Healing President and CEO Dr. Michelle K. Murray for an enlightening discussion about how addiction works, the misconceptions about it, and some important, practical ways families can help in the recovery process. Dr. Lee says if families can overcome the guilt and shame that goes along with looking for causes and blame, they can be much better equipped to guide their loved one to a better tomorrow.

Content Warning: This episode discusses substance use, depression, anxiety, and death by suicide.  Award-winning veteran journalist Meg Kissinger grew up as part of a close-knit family in a noisy and active house. That happens in a home with eight kids. Yet there was nothing but silence when it came to the pervasive bipolar disorder, substance use disorder, depression, and anxiety that heavily impacted the Kissingers. Meg, author of the moving memoir While You Were Out, tells how she persevered, found answers that were hard to come by, and got to a healthier place. It’s an inspiring conversation about mental illness, loss, healing, and hope.

Content Warning: This episode discusses depression, anxiety, hospitalization, and traumatic experiences. Gary Gulman has been making people laugh for many years as a top touring comedian and frequent guest on late night shows and star of multiple HBO specials. He’s a professional success by any measure. But that didn’t stop him from having a mental breakdown in his forties, where he gave up comedy, was hospitalized, and ultimately moved back in with his mother. In this revealing conversation with Nexus Family Healing CEO Dr. Michelle K. Murray, Gary reveals the depressive and anxious tendencies of his youth, his struggles connecting with his parents, and how a traumatic event fueled his depression. He also talks about how hard work and a greater understanding of his condition, combined with the abundant patience of his now-wife, put him on the path to not just feeling better but helping audiences ever feel more understood.  This is the premiere episode of In This Family, a podcast about families and mental health, created by Nexus Family Healing, who believes that when one member of a family is dealing with mental illness, the whole family is too. Through education, support, and love, a family can help with recovery, healing, and a better tomorrow. Follow and subscribe today at nexusfamilyhealing.org/podcast or on your favorite podcast app.

The podcast, In This Family, features honest and candid conversations with public figures and everyday people about mental health within families, highlighting the power of resilience and courage through those relationships. When one member of a family has a mental health issue, the whole family has a mental health issue; everybody is affected – children and adults. What happens in families can be crucially important in understanding one’s own struggles with mental health and the healing journey. Dr. Michelle K. Murray, CEO of Nexus Family Healing and licensed marriage and family therapist, hosts the program, which offers a variety of perspectives and raw experiences for the listener to relate and feel acknowledged and understood about personal mental health challenges and triumphs. In This Family is produced by Nexus Family Healing, a national nonprofit mental health organization that restores hope for thousands of children and families.