Optimal Living Podcast

Bringing You Ideas to Help You Improve Your Life

Jungian Aromatherapy - Part II
Aromatherapist Cathy Skipper is cofounder of AromaGnosis with her husband Florian Birkmayer, MD. Cathy synthesizes Jungian psychology with aromatherapy for a unique, powerful and transformative modality of coaching and healing.. March 10, 2020

Jungian Aromatherapy - Part I
Interview with New Mexico Holistic Psychiatrist and Wounded Healer Florian Birkmayer, MD of AromaGnosis. Dr. Birkmayer explains how essential oils and aromatics can catalyze deeply personal, transformational change in those who allow themselves to be guided by nature's molecules of connectedness. March 3, 2020

Reading Graphic Novels for Emotional Well Being
Discussion with Ashley Rutherford, Practice Manager, Casco Bay Medical. Works discussed include George Takei's They Called Us Enemy, Tillie Walden's Spinning, and Blankets by Craig Thompson. February 14, 2020

A Behind the Scenes Discussion about Psychiatry in Primary Care
In today’s podcast, Dr. Spiegel has a conversation with Spiros Lazos, MD, a well respected primary care physician practicing in Maine. February 7, 2020

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PTSD (Part 1)
Casco Bay Medical psychotherapist Glenn Selwood describes his use of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, an incredible, pharmaceutical-free treatment for post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). April 19, 2013

PTSD (Part 2)
Casco Bay Medical psychotherapist Glenn Selwood describes his use of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, an incredible, pharmaceutical-free treatment for post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). April 19, 2013

PTSD (Part 3)
Casco Bay Medical psychotherapist Glenn Selwood describes his use of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, an incredible, pharmaceutical-free treatment for post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). April 19, 2013

Emotional Eating
Emotional eating is something that many of us do—we’re stressed, we’re feeling badly, or, maybe we don’t know why just then that we’re doing it—but we find something, usually quickly, to munch on or to swallow. We eat, impulsively at first, and then more and more in response to something other than simple hunger. Dr. Spiegel shows you how you can slam the refrigerator door on this destructive behavior. April 19, 2013

Medical Marijuana for Psychiatric Disorders
Dr. Spiegel makes the case for medical marijuana in the treatment of psychiatric disorders. First he presents a general defense of medical marijuana. Then, describes what he’s seen in his own practice. Finally, Dr. Spiegel explains in brief three studies, two for anxiety and one for depression where medical marijuana has been of great benefit. April 19, 2013

Cell Phone Addiction
What you should do when an electronic device becomes your best friend. In today’s podcast, Dr. Spiegel explains how a greater chance for emotional isolation exists when the lion’s share of your social life is mediated through a smartphone. December 20, 2012