Intentional Therapist: Putting You In Your Schedule
Self-care shouldn’t be another task on your to-do list! This is the show that helps you as a busy and dedicated female mental health therapist to redefine your approach to self-care. Because we need so much more than bubble baths and breathing exercises!
Hosted by Dr. Karen Dyck and Dr. Melissa Tiessen, clinical psychologists, founders of Intentional Therapist, and self-care advocates, our mission is to help you build a life where you thrive right alongside your clients, without guilt and without burning out. Join us as we explore practical strategies grounded in our 4 C’s model – Connection, Compassion, Courage, and Creativity – to help you create more space for yourself while continuing to support your clients.
Whether you work in a solo private practice, within a large organization, are a new grad, or are nearing retirement, this show has something for you. Tune in for short but valuable episodes filled with relatable and insightful new perspectives, actionable ‘self-care experiments’, and the encouragement and permission you need to put more of you back in your schedule and create a life from which you don’t need to escape.
To learn more about Intentional Therapist and our 4 C’s model of self-care, visit us at: www.intentionaltherapist.ca
[Please note: This podcast was previously called Thrivival 101, and you can continue to find our original interview episodes in this podcast feed.]
Episodes
51 episodes
E19: Belief system upgrade #3: Self-care can be uncomfortable (but worth it!)
Here’s something that might surprise you: some of the best self-care doesn’t feel good in the moment. Think about it — how many times have you dreaded going for a run, having that hard conversation, or finally making the dentist app...
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Season 5
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Episode 19
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14:43
E18: Belief system upgrade #2: Self-care is NOT selfish & is NOT just about treating ourselves
When was the last time you said ‘no’ to someone? And we don’t mean a playful no, or a no with an apology attached, but a real, solid, unapologetic ‘no.’If you’re anything like most therapists — especially women in our field — that questi...
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Season 5
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Episode 18
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16:18
E17: Upgrade your self-care belief system! Upgrade #1: Self-care is PART OF our work
If you’re a therapist who feels like self-care always comes last, you’re not alone. Most of us were trained—implicitly or explicitly—to treat our own needs as optional, something to squeeze in after clients, paperwork, and family demands. But w...
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Season 5
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Episode 17
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19:41
E16: Check-in on your self-care along with us! The importance of seasonal self-care check-ins
What if your to-do list isn’t the problem — but rather a quiet signal that one of your self-care pillars is out of balance? As therapists, we’re trained to notice these signs in others, but we often overlook the gentle nudges from within: ...
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Season 5
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Episode 16
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19:39
E15: Experimenting With Experiments: Season 1 Self-Care Experiments Round Up
What if the real secret to sustainable self-care isn’t about working harder—or even trying to be “better”—but simply about noticing, connecting, and giving yourself permission to take small, imperfect steps? In today’s episode, we’re taking a s...
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Season 4
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Episode 15
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14:16
E14: Why can’t I actually put myself in my schedule?! 3 ways to more intentionally protect your self-care efforts
Have you ever looked at your schedule and wondered why everyone else’s needs made the cut—but yours didn’t? In this podcast episode, we’re exploring a question we hear all the time: Why can’t I actually put myself in my schedule?...
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Season 4
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Episode 14
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15:41
E13: This is your brain on breaks: 3 benefits of incorporating breaks into our days
What does your typical day look like? Does it include regularly occurring breaks or do you often find yourself constantly on the go? If you’re like most of the female mental health therapists we’ve spoken with, most of your days pro...
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Season 4
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Episode 13
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13:32
E12: Therapists have rights too! 3 personal rights to embrace for better self-care
Have your sessions with clients ever incorporated the topic of assertiveness and its related benefits? If so, then you’re likely familiar with the “Personal Bill of Rights” and how eye opening this resource can be to clients, particularly...
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Season 4
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Episode 12
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17:00
E11: Self-care sabotage: 3 types of beliefs that may be hurting your self-care from the inside out
How often do you take time to reflect on your beliefs and the ways they might be influencing your self-care? If you’re like most female mental health therapists, you’re likely so busy tending to your professional and personal roles and re...
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Season 4
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Episode 11
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16:18
E10: Connection in a post-pandemic world: 3 ways connecting with others can change the self-care game
As a mental health professional, you undoubtedly know the significant role our relationships can have on our overall well-being. In fact, it’s probably something you discuss with most, if not all your clients at some point during therapy....
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Season 4
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Episode 10
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14:46
E9: Documentation is not the enemy! How to use the 4 C’s to make documentation your self-care ally
Have you ever thought of documentation as a form of self-care? Of course, probably not! We know that more likely, documentation often feels like a time-consuming, mentally draining task that takes away from the work you truly care a...
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Season 4
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Episode 9
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18:39
E8: How to use our values to work for our self-care, instead of against it
How often do you think of values when you think about self-care? If you’re like many of us, probably not very often or at all. Yet the reality is our values can play a huge role in our self-care, whether we think about them or not.&...
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Season 4
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Episode 8
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19:24
E7: Let's embrace our differences instead of apologizing for them: 3 ways individual differences factor into personalized self-care
Do you ever find yourself wondering why self-care seems to come so easily for some of your colleagues or why you and your colleagues struggle in different ways with self-care? Or maybe you’ve been disappointed with the “one-size fits” all self-...
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Season 4
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Episode 7
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15:48
E6: It’s not you, it’s your wiring: 4 ways our evolutionary wiring makes self-care challenging (but not impossible!)
We’re about to explore something that may surprise you—your brain’s survival instincts are still influencing how you approach self-care, and they might be working against you. Have you ever wondered why saying "no" feels impossible or why you c...
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Season 4
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Episode 6
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13:48
E5: You are a human being, not a human giver: 3 ways the self-care game is rigged for women and how you can fight back
Ever feel like you’re always giving—whether it’s to your clients, your family, or even strangers on the street—and somehow your own needs get pushed aside? You're not alone. In fact, this might be part of a much bigger issue that’s rigged
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Season 4
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Episode 5
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16:20
E4: Feeling like an imposter and a perpetual student? You are not alone! And here are 4 things you can do about it
Do you often find yourself working hard, yet questioning your abilities, feeling like you’re just pretending to be competent, waiting to be found out? If you’re a female therapist wrestling with imposter syndrome and the pressures of a lingerin...
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Season 4
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Episode 4
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15:33
E3: Our work should come with a warning label: How to navigate the #1 hazard of our work
Have you ever felt the weight of your clients' struggles lingering long after your sessions end? Spent evenings and weekends fretting over whether you used the right interventions, or should have tried something different? We sure have, a...
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Season 4
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Episode 3
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14:53
E2: Treat your time like diamonds, not like sand: How to break free from toxic time messages
Ever feel like there’s just never enough time in the day? You’re juggling client sessions, family responsibilities, and maybe even a little bit of a social life—if you’re lucky. And yet, somehow, taking care of yourself always falls to the bott...
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Season 4
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Episode 2
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13:31
E1: Traditional self-care is broken! How you can use the 4 C’s to *actually* take good care of yourself
When was the last time you felt truly in control of your schedule? Or had a day when your to-do list didn’t just overflow with everyone else’s needs, leaving yours at the bottom? If self-care feels like just another item you’re not qui...
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Season 4
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Episode 1
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14:47
Introducing: Putting You In Your Schedule
Self-care shouldn’t be another task on your to-do list! Hosted by Dr. Karen Dyck and Dr. Melissa Tiessen, clinical psychologists, founders of Intentional Therapist, and self-care advocates, this podcast is for female mental health therapi...
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2:07
Replay: Owning Your Therapist Sensitivities: A Conversation with April Snow
As regular listeners know, we are (still!) in the process of working on a new format for our podcast which we hope to share in the very near future. So please stay tuned!Until then, we are continuing to go into our podcast archives to re...
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Season 3
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Episode 7
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45:29
Replay: This is NOT an Episode About Benedict Cumberbatch: A Conversation with Tabitha Carvan About Reclaiming Our Passions
As you may already know, we are in the process of working on a new format for our podcast which we hope to share in the very near future. So please stay tuned! Until then, we are continuing to go into our podcast archive...
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Season 3
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Episode 6
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57:25
Replay: Fitting Finances Into Your Self-Care: A Conversation with Linzy Bonham
As we shared last month, we are busily working on a new format for our podcast which we’re planning on unveiling in the next few months. Until then, we’re continuing to go into our podcast archives and resharing episodes on topics we thou...
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Season 3
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Episode 5
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33:56
Replay: Documentation IS Self-Care! A Conversation with Dr. Maelisa McCaffrey
We are very excited to share that we are in the process of reformatting our podcast! We are aiming to launch the new format in the coming months, and in the meantime we will be sure to share more updates as well as we would love to get yo...
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Season 3
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Episode 4
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39:50
Thriving in Our Parenting and Professional Roles: A Conversation with Lori Mihalich-Levin and Arianna Taboada
Many women at some point in their careers will experience the major milestone of becoming a mother. It's a life-changing experience, yet how often do we talk about how this transition impacts our work?In this month's episode of Thriviva...
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Season 3
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Episode 3
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45:36
