The Evidence Based Therapist

In this episode of The Evidence-Based Therapist, we sit down with local therapist and religious trauma specialist Darryl Schafer to explore how belief systems shape identity, belonging, and the development of the self—sometimes in deeply painful ways.We discuss the relational nature of religious trauma, how clients internalize theological narratives as self-concepts, and why reclaiming the “abjected” parts of self is often central to healing. The conversation spans psychoanalysis, religious studies, developmental theory, grief, and the biology of belief—without collapsing spirituality into pathology or assuming religion is inherently harmful.Topics we explore:When religion becomes a totalizing identity structureThe “abjected self” and why shame becomes internal theologyWhy religious trauma is relational—not just doctrinalNeurodivergence, masking, and leaving high-control systemsGrief as a gateway to identity reconstructionThe therapist’s role: not a replacement God, but a new mirrorHow belief systems shape belonging, moral vision, and connectionWhether you're a therapist working with clients of faith, someone navigating deconstruction, or simply curious about the psychology of belief, this conversation offers a grounded, relational, and non-pathologizing way to understand religion’s impact on the self.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Religious trauma can’t be understood only through symptom checklists—it emerges from deeply internalized relational and symbolic dynamics. In this episode of The Evidence-Based Therapist, we explore religious trauma through a psychoanalytic lens, drawing from thinkers like Freud, Winnicott, Rizzuto, and McWilliams to understand how a person’s “God image” forms, fractures, or heals.We unpack how spiritual beliefs shape personality development, how community structures can reinforce false-self dynamics, and why disentangling God from the people who claim to represent God is often a core task of healing. We also discuss the role of annihilation anxiety, the function of belief for meaning-making, and why recovery isn't always about rejecting faith, but transforming the relationship with it.This conversation features Ethan’s research on religious trauma and neurodivergence, and the ways psychoanalytic theory offers pathways beyond symptom relief toward identity, agency, and integration.Topics include:The God image vs. the God representativeReligious trauma as relational, not just doctrinalWhy psychoanalysis offers a uniquely useful frameFalse-self development in spiritual environmentsThe intersection of religious trauma and neurodivergenceHealing through integration rather than rejectionWhether you work clinically with religious trauma, share these experiences personally, or are curious about how belief takes shape in the psyche, this episode offers a better language for what happens when the spiritual becomes wounding—and how it can become restorative again.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode, Bridger, Caleb, and Ethan dive into Rupture and Repair in Psychotherapy: A Critical Process for Change (Moran, Eubanks, & Samstag, 2022). Through the lens of embodied relational science, they explore how disconnection and repair form the heartbeat of therapeutic change.Together, they unpack the tension between explicit and implicit forms of rupture, the role of mutual accountability, and the difference between being disoriented versus dysregulated in the therapy room. With humor, honesty, and depth, the conversation traces how therapists and clients co-create meaning in the messy, beautiful work of relationship.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode of The Evidence Based Therapist, we sit down with Ethan to explore his emerging research on the intersection of religious trauma and neurodiversity. Together we talk about the challenges of studying a topic with so little existing scholarship, the independent study that sparked our collaboration, and how our friendship has grown through that work.This conversation sets the tone for the season ahead: a deep dive into articles, stories, and artifacts that will help us think more deeply about these themes, shaping Ethan’s research toward publication and presentation. Along the way, Bridger also shares about his current research on non-conscious insidious adoptions and Kristeva’s idea of symbolic potential.A season in the making, and an invitation to join us in the curiosity that drives it.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

After 14 months away, Bridger and Caleb are back at the mics. In this special episode, they reflect on where life, work, and curiosity have taken them this past year—through doctoral defenses, major health challenges, and profound shifts in perspective. Along the way, they share what they’ve been reading, exploring, and creating: from consciousness studies and epistemology to Enneagram pathways and relational EMDR.This isn’t just a catch-up—it’s a thoughtful, playful, and deeply human conversation about being therapists, being learners, and being alive.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Listen in to hear Caleb and Bridger dive into a new article entitled Presence Psychotherapy: A Novel Integrative Trauma Treatment Model for Thorough Memory Reconsolidation published in the Journal of Psychotherapy Integration in 2022. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Listen in to hear Caleb and Bridger finish up their discussion on Therapeutic Presence, an article by Geller & Greenberg in the journal of Person-Centered & Experiential Psychotherapies in 2002.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Join Caleb and Bridger as they pick back up on their conversation around Presence in Psychotherapy. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Join Caleb and Bridger as they kick off the new season of the Evidence Based Therapist with a conversation about Geller and Greenberg's (2002) Therapeutic Presence: Therapists' experience of presence in the psychotherapy encounter. To find the article, find it here: Therapeutic Presence with NotesDid you know? After full completion of Beyond Healing Institute’s Somatic Integration and Processing training, each participant can receive 21 NBCC hours.Beyond Healing CenterVisit our website for all things BHCContact us about retreats and therapy Contact us about training and consultationBeyond Healing MediaFirst, listen to our past episodes of EBT hereThen, check out more Beyond Healing podcastsNotice That - An EMDR podcastBeyond Trauma - geared towards clientsBurnt Out Educator - An interview-style podcast for educators and studentsGive your support and gain access to exclusive content through PatreoInterested in supporting a child?https://www.patreon.com/BurntOutEducator100% of the proceeds donated to the Burntout Educator will provide therapy for a child in the public school system.Not therapy capped at a certain number, but an open-ended relationship with a highly qualified therapist in the BHC network.Connect with us on social media: Facebook & InstagramCredits Executive Directors: Jennifer and Ryan Savage, Melissa Bentinnedi, Bridger FalkensteinHosts: Bridger Falkenstein, Caleb Boston, and Melissa BenintendiFilmographer: Tyler WassamPodcast Editor: Jamie EggertOriginal Music Composers: Bridger Falkenstein and Caleb BostonShow Notes: Jamie Eggert & Jordan MurraySee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Listen in to hear Caleb and Bridger continue their discussion on the development of an original manuscript they are coauthoring. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Listen in to hear Caleb and Bridger continue their discussion on the process of research creation in the Art of Original Research. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Listen in to hear Caleb and Bridger introduce the new season of EBT with a special topic and announcement! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Join Caleb and Bridger as they wrap up their discussion on Koziol and colleagues' series on Large Scale Brain Systems. With this understanding, we can understand more deeply the implications of neurobiological synchronization in and between human beings. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Listen in to hear Caleb and Bridger dig back in to the short series of articles of Koziol and colleagues detailing a new way to understand the function of the various systems that make up our interconnected brain and give way to an emerging and complex mind. The title of the article discussed in this episode is Large-Scale Brain Systems and Subcortical Relationships: The Vertically Organized Brain.Here’s the abstract from the article:This article reviews the vertical organization of the brain. The cortico-basal ganglia and the cerebro-cerebellar circuitry systems are described as fundamental to cognitive and behavioral control. The basal ganglia anticipate and guide implicitly learned behaviors on the basis of experienced reward outcomes. The cerebellar-cortical network antici- pates sensorimotor outcomes, allowing behaviors to be adapted across changing settings and across contexts. These vertically organized systems, operating together, represent the underpinning of cognitive control. The medial temporal lobe system, and its development, is also reviewed in order to better understand how brain systems interact fo both implicit and explicit cognitive controlTo read along, download the article here!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Listen in to hear Caleb and Bridger dig back in to the short series of articles of Koziol and colleagues detailing a new way to understand the function of the various systems that make up our interconnected brain and give way to an emerging and complex mind. The title of the article discussed in this episode is Large-Scale Brain Systems and Subcortical Relationships: The Vertically Organized Brain. Here's the abstract from the article: This article reviews the vertical organization of the brain. The cortico-basal ganglia and the cerebro-cerebellar circuitry systems are described as fundamental to cognitive and behavioral control. The basal ganglia anticipate and guide implicitly learned behaviors on the basis of experienced reward outcomes. The cerebellar-cortical network antici- pates sensorimotor outcomes, allowing behaviors to be adapted across changing settings and across contexts. These vertically organized systems, operating together, represent the underpinning of cognitive control. The medial temporal lobe system, and its development, is also reviewed in order to better understand how brain systems interact fo both implicit and explicit cognitive controlTo read along, download the article here: https://sci-hub.se/10.1080/21622965.2014.946804See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Listen in to this special release from The Evidence Based Therapist to hear Caleb and Bridger discuss a new and hot topic from the world of academia and pop culture - Chat GPT. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Listen in to hear Caleb and Bridger's discussion on an article from Koziol and colleagues entitled "The Small-World Organization of Large-Scale Brain Systems and Relationships with Subcortical Structures". This article is the second in a series of four where the authors dive into the mysterious world of the brain and our emergent mind. Moving away from a modular or "brain parts" understanding of the brain, the authors focus on the large, network oriented interconnection between brain systems. This episode includes a concluding discussion on the second article. Here's the abstract from the article: Brain structure and function is characterized by large-scale brain systems. However, each system has its own ‘‘small-world’’ organization, with sub-regions, or ‘‘hubs,’’ that have varying degrees of specialization for certain cognitive and behavioral processes. This article describes this small-world organization, and the concepts of functional specialization and functional integration are defined and explained through practical examples. We also describe the development of large-scale brain systems and this small-world organization as a sensitive, protracted process, vulnerable to a variety of influences that generate neurodevelopmental disorders.To read along, download the article here: https://sci-hub.se/10.1080/21622965.2014.946803See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Listen in to hear Caleb and Bridger continue their discussion of Leonard Koziol and Colleague's work on large-scale brain systems. This episode is the first of two episodes covering the second article in the four part series. To follow along with the episode, download the article here: https://sci-hub.se/10.1080/21622965.2014.946803Here's the abstract from the article: Brain structure and function is characterized by large-scale brain systems. However, each system has its own ‘‘small-world’’ organization, with sub-regions, or ‘‘hubs,’’ that have varying degrees of specialization for certain cognitive and behavioral processes. This article describes this small-world organization, and the concepts of functional specialization and functional integration are defined and explained through practical examples. We also describe the development of large-scale brain systems and this small-world organization as a sensitive, protracted process, vulnerable to a variety of influences that generate neurodevelopmental disorders.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Listen in to hear Caleb and Bridger continue their exploration of Koziol and colleague's series on large scale brain systems and why they matter. In this episode, the hosts finish their discussion on the first article in the series, entitled "Structure and Function of Large-Scale Brain Systems". To read along, download the article here: https://sci-hub.se/10.1080/21622965.2014.946797See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Bridger and Caleb begin their discussion on a 4-part series based on the work of Leonard Koziol and colleagues about brain system conceptualization.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Listen to Bridger and Caleb dive into neuroscience. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Caleb and Bridger continue their discussion on whether the brain is adaptive or triune.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Adaptive or Triune Brain?See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Caleb and Bridger interview Andrea about her original research. Check the show notes to see how you can get involved!The Evidence Based Therapist: Where We Read so You Don't Have to (but we'd love if you did), Welcome to Your Invitation to Get Involved...And You Can Do Your Own Research as Well, and We'll Talk About it. #spicypsychologySee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this week's episode of EBT, Bridger and Caleb talk through Perez & Sundheims' 2015 article on treating early relational trauma. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Caleb and Bridger discuss their perceptions of the Polyvagal Theory and its critics. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Bridger and Caleb discuss Michael R. Jackson's 2017 article and whether EBT should be standardized.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Bridger and Caleb discuss Henrik Berg's 2019 article and how we know what is "evidence-based."See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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Evidence-Based Psychotherapy: History The phrase “evidence-based” wasn’t used until the 1980s “Evidence-based medicine is the conscientious, explicit, and judicious use of current best evidence in making decisions about the care of individual patients” (8:27) Further work was done by the APA to make evidence-based psychotherapy the standard Academic Idealism vs Clinical ApplicationThe post Evidence-Based Psychotherapy: Advantages & Challenges (24) appeared first on The Evidence Based Therapist Podcast. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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