Episode 75
Mental Health through Storytelling - with Dr. Allison Battles
August 22, 20251h 2m
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Show Notes
Today's episode features Dr. Allison Battles, a Queer and Pagan licensed clinical psychologist, trauma specialist, and Certified Therapeutic Game Master. Yes - Game Master! Allison and I consider topics as far afield as how science can sometimes be unwieldy in healing, using Dungeons & Dragons for identity exploration, and that Dark Elf you made in WoW, but should likely be ashamed of.
REFERENCES:
Dr. Allison Battles's company, BattleRobin Counseling: https://battlerobincounseling.com/
- (00:00) - Opening credits
- (00:37) - Show opening
- (01:30) - Introducing Allison Battles
- (03:45) - Dodecahedron in a square hole
- (09:51) - Be yourself...just not too much
- (13:57) - Healing the system itself
- (17:00) - We are more than pathologies
- (22:24) - The overscientification of mental health
- (26:35) - How much evidence is enough to notice?
- (31:09) - Pathologization and acceptable healing
- (37:30) - Does Western medicine prize healing at all?
- (40:03) - Telling new stories about who we are
- (45:37) - Exploring gender through tabletop RPGs
- (51:52) - Quick nerding out on Buffy and Xena
- (54:28) - Making Queer exploration natural
- (59:07) - How to find Dr. Allison Battles on the internet
- (01:01:27) - Show closing
- (01:02:05) - Closing credits
Topics
genderidentityphilosophypsychology