Best of Story Collider: Leaving Home

Best of Story Collider: Leaving Home

From The Story Collider by Story Collider, Inc.

May 28, 2026 · 36 min

About this episode

This episode features stories of individuals who left their homes in search of new beginnings.

In this week’s Best Of episode, we present two stories of people who had to leave home to find a new home. Part 1: When Ph.D student Ali Mattu's girlfriend tells him she is moving to New York City, he has to make some tough decisions about where home is. Part 2: Arlo Pérez Esquivel struggles to define his boundaries with his father while he is pursuing his education in another country. Ali Mattu is a cognitive behavioral therapist who helps kids and adults with anxiety disorders. Through YouTube, Dr. Mattu teaches a global audience how to use psychological science to achieve their goals. He’s created over 100 videos for his YouTube channel, The Psych Show, which have been seen over 1,400,00 million times. He has been interviewed by the New York Times, appeared on Buzzfeed, MTV, CBS, NBC, PBS, and has the honor of being referenced, and not made fun of, on HBO’s Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. Dr. Mattu is a licensed clinical psychologist and was an assistant professor at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York City. He presently serves on the Board of Directors of The Story Collider and creates curriculum for the Pop Culture Hero Coalition. He has served in a…

People in this episode

Guests: Ali Mattu, Arlo Pérez Esquivel

Topics covered

  • leaving home
  • identity
  • family relationships
  • education
  • psychology

Keywords

  • home
  • psychology
  • education
  • family
  • identity
  • Ali Mattu
  • Arlo Pérez Esquivel

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: The Story Collider, The Psych Show, American Psychological Association

Places: New York City, Mexico, United States

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