Therapy for Black Girls

This week Dr. Joy talks with Kerry Washington about her new Netflix thriller Animals, where she plays Abigail, a therapist and mother who believes her son has been abducted. They get into how fear shapes our decisions, what Kerry has learned from individual, group, couples and family therapy, and how her family worked through the secret at the center of her memoir, Thicker Than Water. Kerry also shares why she's drawn to messy characters and how she lets them go when the cameras stop. Animals is now streaming on Netflix. About the Podcast The Therapy for Black Girls Podcast is a weekly conversation with Dr. Joy Harden Bradford, a licensed Psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia, about all things mental health, personal development, and all the small decisions we can make to become the best possible versions of ourselves. Resources & Announcements Want to reflect on this conversation in community? Join us inside our Patreon community where we’re unpacking this episode together. You can now catch episodes of the Therapy for Black Girls podcast on YouTube. Be sure to subscribe to get new episodes every week.  Did you know you can leave us a voice note with your questions for the podcast? If you have a question you'd like some feedback on, topics you'd like to hear covered, or want to suggest movies or books for us to review, drop us a message at memo.fm/therapyforblackgirls and let us know what’s on your mind. We just might share it on the podcast. Grab your copy of Sisterhood Heals. Connect with Dr. Joy on Instagram.    Where to Find Our Guest Watch Animals on Netflix Instagram Listen to Street You Grew Up On Get her memoir, Thicker Than Water   Stay Connected​ Is there a topic you'd like covered on the podcast? Submit it at therapyforblackgirls.com/mailbox. If you're looking for a therapist in your area, check out the directory at https://www.therapyforblackgirls.com/directory. Grab your copy of our guided affirmation and other TBG Merch at therapyforblackgirls.com/shop. The hashtag for the podcast is #TBGinSession.   Make sure to follow us on social media: Instagram: @therapyforblackgirls Facebook: @therapyforblackgirls   Our Production Team Executive Producers: Dennison Bradford & Gabrielle Collins Director of Podcast & Digital Content: Ellice Ellis Producer: Ndeye Thioubou  Production Assistant: Bria MosleySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Your menstrual cycle is about so much more than your period. This week, Dr. Joy talks with Dr. Charis Chambers, aka The Period Doctor, about PMS, PMDD, hormones, period tracking, and understanding what’s actually happening in your body throughout the month. They also discuss how to advocate for yourself when something doesn’t feel right and why there’s no such thing as a “normal” period that looks the same for everyone. About the Podcast The Therapy for Black Girls Podcast is a weekly conversation with Dr. Joy Harden Bradford, a licensed Psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia, about all things mental health, personal development, and all the small decisions we can make to become the best possible versions of ourselves. Resources & Announcements Want to reflect on this conversation in community? Join us inside our Patreon community where we’re unpacking this episode together. You can now catch episodes of the Therapy for Black Girls podcast on YouTube. Be sure to subscribe to get new episodes every week.  Did you know you can leave us a voice note with your questions for the podcast? If you have a question you'd like some feedback on, topics you'd like to hear covered, or want to suggest movies or books for us to review, drop us a message at memo.fm/therapyforblackgirls and let us know what’s on your mind. We just might share it on the podcast. Grab your copy of Sisterhood Heals. Connect with Dr. Joy on Instagram.    Where to Find Our Guest LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/charis-chambers-md-36b63121a/  IG: www.instagram.com/theperioddoctor  Get her book, ‘The Period & Puberty Parenting Revolution   Stay Connected​ Is there a topic you'd like covered on the podcast? Submit it at therapyforblackgirls.com/mailbox. If you're looking for a therapist in your area, check out the directory at https://www.therapyforblackgirls.com/directory. Grab your copy of our guided affirmation and other TBG Merch at therapyforblackgirls.com/shop. The hashtag for the podcast is #TBGinSession.   Make sure to follow us on social media: Instagram: @therapyforblackgirls Facebook: @therapyforblackgirls   Our Production Team Executive Producers: Dennison Bradford & Gabrielle Collins Director of Podcast & Digital Content: Ellice Ellis Producer: Ndeye Thioubou  Production Assistant: Bria MosleySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

"You'll change your mind." "Who's going to take care of you when you're older?" Black women who say they don't want children hear some version of this constantly, and the decision often gets treated as a betrayal of family and community. Today we're joined by licensed clinical psychologist Dr. Lana Holmes to talk about why a personal choice draws so much outside commentary. Dr. Lana and I chatted about the difference between being child free and being childless, how the legacy of chattel slavery and domestic work still shapes what's expected of Black women's bodies, what dating looks like when you know kids aren't part of your plan, and the missing supports (childcare, perinatal care, safety) that have more people questioning whether parenthood is for them. She also shares what being child free has made room for in her own life. In this episode: Why "I don't want kids" gets heard as a personal attack, and how cisheteropatriarchy and misogynoir feed that reaction What gets lost when we collapse child free and childless into one category The strong Black woman and mammy archetypes, and the expectation that Black women will mother at work and in community whether or not they have children Vetting partners while dating, plus a script for telling mom and the aunties What to weigh if you're still deciding, starting with your gut response and moving into the support you can count on About the Podcast The Therapy for Black Girls Podcast is a weekly conversation with Dr. Joy Harden Bradford, a licensed Psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia, about all things mental health, personal development, and all the small decisions we can make to become the best possible versions of ourselves. Resources & Announcements Want to reflect on this conversation in community? Join us inside our Patreon community where we’re unpacking this episode together. You can now catch episodes of the Therapy for Black Girls podcast on YouTube. Be sure to subscribe to get new episodes every week.  Did you know you can leave us a voice note with your questions for the podcast? If you have a question you'd like some feedback on, topics you'd like to hear covered, or want to suggest movies or books for us to review, drop us a message at memo.fm/therapyforblackgirls and let us know what’s on your mind. We just might share it on the podcast. Grab your copy of Sisterhood Heals. Connect with Dr. Joy on Instagram.    Where to Find Our Guest Website: https://www.inclusivetherapywellness.com/lana   Stay Connected​ Is there a topic you'd like covered on the podcast? Submit it at therapyforblackgirls.com/mailbox. If you're looking for a therapist in your area, check out the directory at https://www.therapyforblackgirls.com/directory. Grab your copy of our guided affirmation and other TBG Merch at therapyforblackgirls.com/shop. The hashtag for the podcast is #TBGinSession.   Make sure to follow us on social media: Instagram: @therapyforblackgirls Facebook: @therapyforblackgirls   Our Production Team Executive Producers: Dennison Bradford & Gabrielle Collins Director of Podcast & Digital Content: Ellice Ellis Producer: Ndeye Thioubou  Production Assistant: Bria MosleySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we're back with another Ask Dr. Joy episode and today all of your questions are about the unspoken gaps in how many of us were raised to think about love.  Dr. Joy discusses getting back into dating after years away, feeling a quiet disconnect with your spouse, and finally naming why relationships often feel so hard to navigate. These are the kinds of realizations that can sit with you for years before you find the words and today's conversation is about giving yourself the grace to learn what you didn't know you were missing. About the Podcast The Therapy for Black Girls Podcast is a weekly conversation with Dr. Joy Harden Bradford, a licensed Psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia, about all things mental health, personal development, and all the small decisions we can make to become the best possible versions of ourselves. Resources & Announcements Want to reflect on this conversation in community? Join us inside our Patreon community where we’re unpacking this episode together. You can now catch episodes of the Therapy for Black Girls podcast on YouTube. Be sure to subscribe to get new episodes every week.  Did you know you can leave us a voice note with your questions for the podcast? If you have a question you'd like some feedback on, topics you'd like to hear covered, or want to suggest movies or books for us to review, drop us a message at memo.fm/therapyforblackgirls and let us know what’s on your mind. We just might share it on the podcast. Grab your copy of Sisterhood Heals. Connect with Dr. Joy on Instagram.    Stay Connected​ Is there a topic you'd like covered on the podcast? Submit it at therapyforblackgirls.com/mailbox. If you're looking for a therapist in your area, check out the directory at https://www.therapyforblackgirls.com/directory. Grab your copy of our guided affirmation and other TBG Merch at therapyforblackgirls.com/shop. The hashtag for the podcast is #TBGinSession.   Make sure to follow us on social media: Instagram: @therapyforblackgirls Facebook: @therapyforblackgirls   Our Production Team Executive Producers: Dennison Bradford & Gabrielle Collins Director of Podcast & Digital Content: Ellice Ellis Producer: Ndeye Thioubou  Production Assistant: Bria MosleySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. Marisa Franco is back, and this time she's turning her attention from friendship to something underneath it: self-worth. Her new book, Worth: The New Science of Self-Esteem and Secure Attachment, starts with a confession. While her relationship was falling apart, she was performing security, saying all the right things, staying calm, doing everything the books tell you to do, while quietly abandoning what she actually felt. She and Dr. Joy talk through why that kind of self-abandonment is so familiar to Black women in particular, and what it costs us. The conversation moves through what Dr. Franco calls the difference between the good twin and the bad twin of high self-esteem, both of whom say they feel good about themselves, but only one of whom can sit with a hard feeling instead of pushing it away. She explains why insecurity isn't a flaw so much as a coping strategy our brains developed to protect us from repeat harm, and introduces memory reconsolidation, the idea that revisiting an old memory with care can actually change its emotional charge and help you feel safer moving forward. They also dig into stigma, identity stretching, and what happens when we spend our lives chronically evaluating ourselves against an ideal we didn't choose. Dr. Franco talks about raising kids with real self-worth instead of just confidence, why chasing achievement often keeps us from feeling anything at all, and what it means to aim for secure-ish instead of secure. Resources & Announcements Want to reflect on this conversation in community? Join us inside our Patreon community where we’re unpacking this episode together. You can now catch episodes of the Therapy for Black Girls podcast on YouTube. Be sure to subscribe to get new episodes every week.  Did you know you can leave us a voice note with your questions for the podcast? If you have a question you'd like some feedback on, topics you'd like to hear covered, or want to suggest movies or books for us to review, drop us a message at memo.fm/therapyforblackgirls and let us know what’s on your mind. We just might share it on the podcast. Grab your copy of Sisterhood Heals.   Where to Find Our Guest Grab your copy of Worth Instagram: @drmarisagfranco  Website: drmarisagfranco.com  Newsletter: Attached (on Substack)    Stay Connected​ Is there a topic you'd like covered on the podcast? Submit it at therapyforblackgirls.com/mailbox. If you're looking for a therapist in your area, check out the directory at https://www.therapyforblackgirls.com/directory. Grab your copy of our guided affirmation and other TBG Merch at therapyforblackgirls.com/shop. The hashtag for the podcast is #TBGinSession.   Make sure to follow us on social media: Instagram: @therapyforblackgirls Facebook: @therapyforblackgirls   Our Production Team Executive Producers: Dennison Bradford & Gabrielle Collins Director of Podcast & Digital Content: Ellice Ellis Producer: Ndeye Thioubou  Production Assistant: Bria MosleySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Dr. Joy is breaking down the emotional journeys of each of the characters of the series, The Five Star Weekend. We’ll dive into their complicated friendship dynamics, how they navigate grief, and the patterns that drive their decisions throughout the series. Think of this as a therapy session for the characters, exploring the wounds, relationships, and reckonings at the heart of the show. Spoiler warning: we'll be discussing major plot points from start to finish. About the Podcast The Therapy for Black Girls Podcast is a weekly conversation with Dr. Joy Harden Bradford, a licensed Psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia, about all things mental health, personal development, and all the small decisions we can make to become the best possible versions of ourselves.   Resources & Announcements Want to reflect on this conversation in community? Join us inside our Patreon community where we’re unpacking this episode together. You can now catch episodes of the Therapy for Black Girls podcast on YouTube. Be sure to subscribe to get new episodes every week.  Did you know you can leave us a voice note with your questions for the podcast? If you have a question you'd like some feedback on, topics you'd like to hear covered, or want to suggest movies or books for us to review, drop us a message at memo.fm/therapyforblackgirls and let us know what’s on your mind. We just might share it on the podcast. Grab your copy of Sisterhood Heals. Connect with Dr. Joy on Instagram.    Stay Connected​ Is there a topic you'd like covered on the podcast? Submit it at therapyforblackgirls.com/mailbox. If you're looking for a therapist in your area, check out the directory at https://www.therapyforblackgirls.com/directory. Grab your copy of our guided affirmation and other TBG Merch at therapyforblackgirls.com/shop. The hashtag for the podcast is #TBGinSession.   Make sure to follow us on social media: Instagram: @therapyforblackgirls Facebook: @therapyforblackgirls   Our Production Team Executive Producers: Dennison Bradford & Gabrielle Collins Director of Podcast & Digital Content: Ellice Ellis Producer: Ndeye Thioubou  Production Assistant: Bria Mosley  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. Joy sits down with neuropsychologist Dr. Tanisha Hill-Jarrett, assistant professor at UCSF's Memory and Aging Center, to talk through what brain health means, why it's broader than mental health alone, and the daily habits that support it: cardiovascular exercise, a heart-healthy diet, stress management, social connection, and quality sleep. They dig into what our phones are doing to us. Dr. Hill-Jarrett breaks down how short-form video triggers a bigger dopamine response than a typical reward, why the unpredictability of a feed keeps us scrolling, and what that means for sleep, attention span, and memory. She shares her own strategies, including separate personal and professional Instagram accounts and the Pomodoro method for resetting focus without reaching for a screen. The conversation turns to her research on Black women and Alzheimer's disease. Black Americans face 1.5 to 2 times the risk of white Americans, and Black women carry the highest projected prevalence of any group, a gap that shows up even among women who are upwardly mobile, largely tied to the neighborhoods they live in. Dr. Hill-Jarrett also unpacks weathering, the term coined by Arlene Geronimus for the accelerated biological aging that Black women experience, and points to research showing Black women's telomeres suggest they are roughly seven and a half years biologically older than white women at the same age. She closes with her current work on Afrofuturism and hopefulness, including a 10-week workshop where participants imagined a future free of time scarcity and reported feeling more hopeful about shaping what comes next. Her advice for anyone worried it's too late to protect their brain: it never is.   About the Podcast The Therapy for Black Girls Podcast is a weekly conversation with Dr. Joy Harden Bradford, a licensed Psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia, about all things mental health, personal development, and all the small decisions we can make to become the best possible versions of ourselves.   Resources & Announcements Want to reflect on this conversation in community? Join us inside our Patreon community where we’re unpacking this episode together. You can now catch episodes of the Therapy for Black Girls podcast on YouTube. Be sure to subscribe to get new episodes every week.  Did you know you can leave us a voice note with your questions for the podcast? If you have a question you'd like some feedback on, topics you'd like to hear covered, or want to suggest movies or books for us to review, drop us a message at memo.fm/therapyforblackgirls and let us know what’s on your mind. We just might share it on the podcast. Grab your copy of Sisterhood Heals.   Where to Find Our Guest Website Instagram LinkedIn   Stay Connected​ Is there a topic you'd like covered on the podcast? Submit it at therapyforblackgirls.com/mailbox. If you're looking for a therapist in your area, check out the directory at https://www.therapyforblackgirls.com/directory. Grab your copy of our guided affirmation and other TBG Merch at therapyforblackgirls.com/shop. The hashtag for the podcast is #TBGinSession.   Make sure to follow us on social media: Instagram: @therapyforblackgirls Facebook: @therapyforblackgirls   Our Production Team Executive Producers: Dennison Bradford & Gabrielle Collins Director of Podcast & Digital Content: Ellice Ellis Producer: Ndeye Thioubou  Production Assistant: Bria MosleySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.