In this episode of Secret Life of Therapists, Dr. Habiba Zaman peels back the layers of codependency: the invisible patterns that shape how we love, help, and lose ourselves in others. From the therapist’s couch to everyday relationships, we explore why “being the strong one” can quietly become a trap, how caretaking turns into self-erasure, and what it really means to set boundaries without guilt.

Blending clinical insight with honest reflection, this conversation challenges the fantasy of self-sacrifice and exposes the emotional costs of over-functioning. Whether you identify as a helper, healer, or chronic peacekeeper, this episode invites you to rethink connection, reclaim autonomy, and redefine what healthy attachment truly looks like.

Because sometimes, the most therapeutic question isn’t “How can I help?”, it’s “Who am I when I stop trying to save everyone else?”

Secret Life of Therapists pulls back the curtain on what really happens beyond the therapy room, where mental health meets politics, power, and social change. In a world shaped by polarization, policy shifts, and collective stress, therapists are not just listeners; they are witnesses, advocates, and sometimes quiet rebels.

Each episode explores how the political climate impacts mental health, clinical practice, and communities, while unpacking the ethical tensions and personal dilemmas therapists face when advocacy and professionalism collide. Through candid conversations, real-world stories, and expert insights, the podcast challenges the myth of therapist neutrality and asks a bold question: what does it mean to care in an unjust world?

Insightful, honest, and occasionally irreverent, Secret Life of Therapists is where psychology meets activism and where healing becomes a form of resistance.

In this episode of Secret Life of Therapists, the conversation with Kaylan Maloney explores a nuanced tension many people face in relationships: the difference between genuinely protecting one’s peace and unintentionally using that concept to avoid necessary communication and emotional repair. The hosts unpack how “protecting your peace” has become a popular mantra, often framed as a form of self-care, while also examining how it can sometimes mask fear of conflict, discomfort, or vulnerability.

Through a therapeutic lens, the episode distinguishes healthy boundary-setting from emotional withdrawal. Protecting one’s peace, the hosts explain, involves intentional choices that preserve emotional well-being without abandoning responsibility for honest dialogue or relational repair. In contrast, avoidance can erode trust, stall growth, and perpetuate unresolved resentment, even when it feels calm on the surface.

The discussion also addresses why repair conversations are often misinterpreted as threats to peace, when in reality they can be a pathway to deeper safety, clarity, and connection. Listeners are encouraged to reflect on their own patterns: Are they choosing peace as an act of self-respect, or using it as a shield against difficult but necessary conversations?

Grounded in clinical insight and real-world examples, this episode offers a thoughtful reframe of peace, not as the absence of conflict, but as the presence of integrity, boundaries, and the courage to engage.