- 1 hour 2 minutesPsychiatric Illness in Parallel-- Bipolar vs Schizoaffective Disorder, Genes vs Environment, Insight vs Anosognosia
In this season 8 opener Rosy shares both her experience recovering from bipolar disorder and the heartbreak of watching her beloved son begin to show signs of an even more extreme form of bipolar disorder called schizoaffective disorder. This is a story in parallel, two lives deeply intertwined, yet also slowly tearing apart as her son’s illness became increasingly severe.
Elemental Psychedelics
https://www.elementalpsychedelics.com/
Explore every episode through themes, domains, formats, and speakers.
The BFTA CODEX is a listener-built and curated field guide to the podcast.
https://bfta-codex.orgBFTA episode recommendations/Podcast page
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/
BFTA on IG @backfromtheabysspodcast
https://www.instagram.com/backfromtheabysspodcast/11 September 2026, 11:00 am - 1 hour 13 minutesSummer Special Part 2-- Laura Mae Northrup and her treatment journey
In this second of two parts, Laura Mae Northrup shares stories of how she found a healing path through connection, therapy, and psychedelics.
Laura Mae Northrup
https://www.lauramaenorthrup.com/
Elemental Psychedelics
https://www.elementalpsychedelics.com/
Explore every episode through themes, domains, formats, and speakers.
The BFTA CODEX is a listener-built and curated field guide to the podcast.
https://bfta-codex.orgBFTA episode recommendations/Podcast page
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/
BFTA on IG @backfromtheabysspodcast
https://www.instagram.com/backfromtheabysspodcast/14 August 2026, 12:00 pm - 30 minutes 53 secondsBFTA Summer Special: Healing sexual trauma with psychedelics and entheogens-- Laura Mae Northrup shares her journey
This is the first of a two part summer special with Laura Mae Northrup, who was first featured in the original BFTA summer special back in 2022. In this first episode, in an excerpt from her wonderful podcast called Inside Eyes, we hear Laura describe her long and grueling battle with suicidality, which emerged as a result of childhood sexual abuse. In the second episode in two weeks, Laura and Dr. H dive deep into her personal healing journey— what worked, what didn’t, and how she was able to finally put her chronic suicidality to rest.
Laura Mae Northrup
https://www.lauramaenorthrup.com/
Elemental Psychedelics
https://www.elementalpsychedelics.com/
Explore every episode through themes, domains, formats, and speakers.
The BFTA CODEX is a listener-built and curated field guide to the podcast.
https://bfta-codex.orgBFTA episode recommendations/Podcast page
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/
BFTA on IG @backfromtheabysspodcast
https://www.instagram.com/backfromtheabysspodcast/31 July 2026, 11:00 am - 10 minutes 49 secondsSeason 7 Wrap-up...plus a farewell and a big change coming for BFTA
After seven years and so many powerful stories, Craig announces a tectonic shift in the BFTA plates.
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Closing song-- "Come and go" by Timber Choir
Bringing Therapy into Med Management-- An intensive workshop for psych NPs and PAs, June 3-6 2026 in Ft Collins
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/bringing-therapy-into-med-management/
"I Love You, I Hate You, Are You My Mom?" An intensive experiential workshop exploring transference and countertransference with Dr. H and Dr. Hillary McBride, June 18-20 2026 in Vancouver/Chilliwack BC
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/i-love-you-i-hate-you-are-you-my-mom/
Explore every episode through themes, domains, formats, and speakers.
The BFTA CODEX is a listener-built and curated field guide to the podcast.
https://bfta-codex.orgBFTA episode recommendations/Podcast page
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/
BFTA on IG @backfromtheabysspodcast
https://www.instagram.com/backfromtheabysspodcast/15 May 2026, 11:00 am - 1 hour 2 secondsComplex PTSD vs Classic PTSD-- Medical trauma and MDMA assisted therapy
Amidst a long catalog of previous BFTA stories featuring complex or developmental PTSD, today’s story is one of classic DSM-style PTSD, it’s a story of both medical and parenting trauma, of facing the fear of annihilation and death.
In this three part story, first we hear Tracy tell of the increasingly severe medical challenges of her children, then Tracy flashes back to describe her own terrifying emergency hospitalization as a 5 year old, then finally we trace Tracy’s treatment journey through traditional psychotherapy and eventual MDMA-assisted therapy as she tries to find a way to calm her nervous system and find peace.
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Bringing Therapy into Med Management-- An intensive workshop for psych NPs and PAs, June 3-6 2026 in Ft Collins
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/bringing-therapy-into-med-management/
"I Love You, I Hate You, Are You My Mom?" An intensive experiential workshop exploring transference and countertransference with Dr. H and Dr. Hillary McBride, June 18-20 2026 in Vancouver/Chilliwack BC
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/i-love-you-i-hate-you-are-you-my-mom/
Explore every episode through themes, domains, formats, and speakers.
The BFTA CODEX is a listener-built and curated field guide to the podcast.
https://bfta-codex.orgBFTA episode recommendations/Podcast page
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/
BFTA on IG @backfromtheabysspodcast
https://www.instagram.com/backfromtheabysspodcast/1 May 2026, 11:00 am - 14 minutes 2 secondsThe Hidden Minefield of Positive Countertransference
In this solo episode Dr. H shares his thoughts on the unexpected risks of feeling too much positive energy and/or identification with a patient. This talk is also a sneak preview into the workshop that Dr. H teaches with Dr. Hillary McBride called "I Love You I Hate You...Are You My Mom?'
Support the show!
https://www.buzzsprout.com/396871/support
Bringing Therapy into Med Management-- An intensive workshop for psych NPs and PAs, June 3-6 2026 in Ft Collins
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/bringing-therapy-into-med-management/
"I Love You, I Hate You, Are You My Mom?" An intensive experiential workshop exploring transference and countertransference with Dr. H and Dr. Hillary McBride, June 18-20 2026 in Vancouver/Chilliwack BC
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/i-love-you-i-hate-you-are-you-my-mom/
Explore every episode through themes, domains, formats, and speakers.
The BFTA CODEX is a listener-built and curated field guide to the podcast.
https://bfta-codex.orgBFTA episode recommendations/Podcast page
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/
17 April 2026, 11:00 am - 49 minutes 6 secondsThe gasoline and the match— Bipolar disorder, THC, and manic activation
Today’s story is one of genetic predisposition, environmental triggers, and finally a psychiatric flame thrower. Whitney’s uncle had a particularly severe form of bipolar disorder and she too began to develop mood instability and depression as an adolescent. When we think of environmental triggers for mania, we tend to think of sleep deprivation, substances, and the postpartum period. And through her 20s and 30s, Whitney began to have more serious bouts of hypomania during times of sleep deprivation or in her postpartum periods. But it took an increasingly severe weed habit to bring her to the horrors of mania with psychosis.
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Bringing Therapy into Med Management-- An intensive workshop for psych NPs and PAs, June 3-6 2026 in Ft Collins
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/bringing-therapy-into-med-management/
"I Love You, I Hate You, Are You My Mom?" An intensive experiential workshop exploring transference and countertransference with Dr. H and Dr. Hillary McBride, June 18-20 2026 in Vancouver/Chilliwack BC
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/i-love-you-i-hate-you-are-you-my-mom/
Explore every episode through themes, domains, formats, and speakers.
The BFTA CODEX is a listener-built and curated field guide to the podcast.
https://bfta-codex.orgBFTA episode recommendations/Podcast page
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/
3 April 2026, 11:00 am - 1 hour 1 minuteHow can we actually prevent suicide? Guns, access to means, and the hope of Donna's Law
The US has a major suicide problem, around 50,000 people every year, and 60% of these suicides are gun suicides. The number one risk factor for completed suicide is not depression or anxiety or addiction….it’s access to means, and it turns out that it’s actually not that easy to impulsively kill yourself, unless you have ready access to a gun.
We are finally starting to talk about ways to keep guns out of the hands of potentially suicidal people, and a concrete step in that direction is something called Donna’s Law— a program where people can voluntarily be put on a no-sell list during times of psychological crisis or instability. Donna’s Law is named after Donna Nathan, who impulsively bought a handgun in 2018 in New Orleans and shot herself during a period of psychiatric crisis. There were no barriers in place, no waiting period or no-sell list...Donna found easy access to means and paid the ultimate price.
We first hear the voice of Katrina Brees, Donna’s daughter. Katrina tells us more about who Donna was, how she lived and how she died. After we hear from Katrina, Dr. H leads a discussion with two prominent Colorado voices for both Donna’s law in particular and suicide prevention in general— Dr. Dave Iverson is a Denver-based psychiatrist, a board member of Colorado Ceasefire, and lifelong advocate for society’s most vulnerable folks, including those on the streets or in the justice system… also Ginny Mack joins the conversation, she is a Ft Collins-based psychiatric nurse practitioner, a Navy Veteran, and a longtime advocate for suicide prevention efforts on the state and local level.
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Donna's Law for Suicide Prevention
Donna's Law for Colorado
https://www.donnaslawforco.com/
Colorado listeners who would like to get involved in the awareness campaign for Donna's Law, please email:
Golden Gate suicide study
https://www.goldengate.org/assets/1/6/suicide-deterrent-seiden-study.pdf
Bringing Therapy into Med Management-- An intensive workshop for psych NPs and PAs, June 3-6 2026 in Ft Collins
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/bringing-therapy-into-med-management/
"I Love You, I Hate You, Are You My Mom?" An intensive experiential workshop exploring transference and countertransference with Dr. H and Dr. Hillary McBride, June 18-20 2026 in Vancouver/Chilliwack BC
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/i-love-you-i-hate-you-are-you-my-mom/
Explore every episode through themes, domains, formats, and speakers.
The BFTA CODEX is a listener-built and curated field guide to the podcast.
https://bfta-codex.orgBFTA episode recommendations/Podcast page
20 March 2026, 11:00 am - 1 hour 4 minutesA somatic therapist and her apprenticeship of grief
Today’s story explores how we love, how we grieve, and how we eventually find some sort of equilibrium thereafter. This episode is a heartbreaking, yet beautiful story by Colorado-based somatic therapist Darci Meyers about her journey through multiple losses, grief, and ongoing recovery.
Support the show!
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Darci Meyers
Bringing Therapy into Med Management-- An intensive workshop for psych NPs and PAs, June 3-6 2026 in Ft Collins
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/bringing-therapy-into-med-management/
"I Love You, I Hate You, Are You My Mom?" An intensive experiential workshop exploring transference and countertransference with Dr. H and Dr. Hillary McBride, June 18-20 2026 in Vancouver/Chilliwack BC
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/i-love-you-i-hate-you-are-you-my-mom/
Explore every episode through themes, domains, formats, and speakers.
The BFTA CODEX is a listener-built and curated field guide to the podcast.
https://bfta-codex.orgBFTA episode recommendations/Podcast page
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/
6 March 2026, 12:00 pm - 47 minutes 52 secondsA gift of therapy- Discovering the wisdom of the body with psychedelic-assisted therapy
Kari reconnected with her birth mother in her 40s and finally began to understand the suffering for which she had no words. This is a story of adoption and reunification, of forgetting and remembering, of finding a truth without words in the wisdom of the body. Kari’s birth mother was able to see something deep in Kari that she had never had words for….and thus began her path toward healing.
Support the show!
https://www.buzzsprout.com/396871/support
Bringing Therapy into Med Management-- An intensive workshop for psych NPs and PAs, June 3-6 2026 in Ft Collins
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/bringing-therapy-into-med-management/
"I Love You, I Hate You, Are You My Mom?" An intensive experiential workshop exploring transference and countertransference with Dr. H and Dr. Hillary McBride, June 18-20 2026 in Vancouver/Chilliwack BC
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/i-love-you-i-hate-you-are-you-my-mom/
Elemental Psychedelics Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy Training
https://www.elementalpsychedelics.com/ketaminetraining
Explore the podcast through themes, domains, formats, and speakers.
The BFTA CODEX is a listener-built and curated field guide to every episode.
BFTA episode recommendations/Podcast page
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/
20 February 2026, 12:00 pm - 1 hour 4 minutesA Nurse + Grief + Alcohol + Adderall— Finding Hope for Healers
Kate started her addiction journey at a young age, using substances as a salve for her terrible grief. Later, drugs and alcohol helped her to cope with the transition to nursing and the unending demands of a hospital setting. But as with all addicts, this strategy worked until it didn’t….Kate eventually had to find a new way to cope if she was going to survive past her 30s.
Support the show!
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Kate Gibson (The Coleman Institute)
[email protected]; [email protected]
Bringing Therapy into Med Management-- An intensive workshop for psych NPs and PAs, June 3-6 2026 in Ft Collins
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/bringing-therapy-into-med-management/
BFTA on IG @backfromtheabysspodcast
https://www.instagram.com/backfromtheabysspodcast/Explore the podcast through themes, domains, formats, and speakers.
The BFTA CODEX is a listener-built and curated field guide to every episode.
BFTA episode recommendations/Podcast page
https://www.craigheacockmd.com/podcast-page/
6 February 2026, 12:00 pm - More Episodes? Get the App