What if stories aren’t just something we consume, but something we step into, feel in our bodies, and experience together?

In this episode of Therapists’ Take, we sit down with Rev. Jim Perkin, founder of Bedford Theatre and longtime community arts leader, to explore the healing potential of live performance. Though Jim isn’t a mental health professional, his decades in ministry and community theatre offer a practical and deeply human perspective on how the stage can spark connection, meaning, and personal growth.

We talk about how theatre invites people into stories bigger than themselves, creates safe space for emotional expression, and fosters a powerful sense of belonging—both for those on stage and those in the audience. From the vulnerability of performing live to the shared ritual of gathering around a story, this conversation reveals how creative experiences can nurture reflection, resilience, and hope.

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00:00 - Hi, Carrie! Hi, Jim!

03:31 - Jim's Story & the Bedford Theatre

13:15 - Can Theater Help Us Be Better?

17:45 - The Power of Our Imagination

19:05 - Creating a Better You

28:45 - The Audience Is Part of the Show

34:55 - Belonging

38:09 - Musical Match-Ups (fun)

50:45 - Auditioning Info

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ABOUT OUR GUEST: REV. JIM PERKIN

Rev. Jim Perkin is the founder of Bedford Theatre and a lifelong advocate for the arts, community, and ministry. He graduated from Oklahoma City University in 2000 with a Bachelor of Arts in Religion and earned a Master of Divinity with high honors from Phillips Theological Seminary in 2010. Jim has been active in ministry since the age of 18, serving in numerous pastoral and youth ministry roles across Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri, including appointments in Poteau, Snyder, Indiahoma, Moore First, Nowata, and Denton (KS) United Methodist Churches. He and his wife have also served as Family Counselors at the United Methodist Boys Ranch near Gore, Oklahoma.

Jim’s love for theatre and the arts runs deep. He spent six years volunteering with Good Times Community Theatre in Poteau, Oklahoma, where he built sets and designed and ran lights and sound. He also served on their board of directors for four years, the final two as President. Today, Jim continues his involvement in the arts through Bedford Theatre at Nichols Hills United Methodist Church, where he serves as Producer for most shows and Director for their upcoming production of Seussical (the Musical).

In addition to his work in ministry and theatre, Jim enjoys playing guitar, singing, sports, and spending time with his family. He has a deep passion for helping people grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ and connect more fully with God—a calling he first felt at age 15 during a formative experience at Camp Egan near Tahlequah, Oklahoma, and one that continues to shape his life and work today.

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Check out the following links related to Rev. Perkin and his ministry through the arts:

• Bedford TheatreWebsite - https://nicholshillsumc.org/bedford-theatre/
• Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/bedfordtheatre1212
• Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/bedfordtheatre

Nichols Hills United Methodist Church

• Website - https://nicholshillsumc.org/
• Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/nicholshillsumc

• Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/nicholshillsumc

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For more great content or to learn more about mental health services we offer, please check out our LinkTree - https://www.linktr.ee/familysolutionsok

Infidelity doesn’t just damage trust, it changes the emotional landscape of a relationship almost overnight. In this episode of Therapists’ Take, we unpack the complex shifts couples often face in the aftermath of betrayal, exploring how identity, connection, and stability can suddenly feel uncertain. Rather than focusing only on the event itself, we look at the relational ripple effects: evolving roles, fluctuating power dynamics, and the emotional disorientation many partners experience.

Drawing from clinical insight and real-world patterns, we discuss concepts like liminal space, ambivalent attachment, and the unexpected relational dynamics that can emerge during repair attempts. This conversation is designed for clinicians, couples working through rupture, and anyone interested in understanding how relationships reorganize after a breach of trust — and what healing can realistically look like.

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00:00 - Hi, Zander & Mackenzie

06:47 - Episode Breakdown

07:14 - The Liminal State

16:21 - The Mother-Son Phenomenon

29:03 - The One-Down Position

30:30 - Desire for Retribution

34:29 - the Progress Paradox

39:40 - Community

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Books:

• Ambiguous Loss by Pauline Boss - https://amzn.to/3ZTA2CV
• The Betrayal Bond by Michelle Mays - https://amzn.to/3MorrVy
• Hurting with God by Glenn Pemberton - https://amzn.to/4ahOqe0
• Sapiens by Yuval Harari - https://amzn.to/4copqTJ
• State of Affairs by Esther Perel - https://amzn.to/4kvysjU

As Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases.

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More on Mackenzie Camp

Article: Better Boundaries: Introducing The PARC, a New Relational Tool - Family Solutions Counseling

Profile Page: Mackenzie Camp - Family Solutions Counseling_________________

For more great content or to learn more about the services we offer at Family Solutions Counseling, please click on our LinkTree - https://www.linktr.ee/familysolutionsok

In this episode of Therapists’ Take, we welcome back published author and practicing family law attorney Brian Putnam to continue our conversation on Escaping Domestic Abuse, the title of his book and the framework for this important series. This time, our focus is on one of the most critical and practical aspects of leaving an abusive relationship - safety planning.

Together, we walk through how to thoughtfully develop a safety plan, what essential items and documents should be gathered in advance, how to safely execute the plan, and what survivors can expect in the immediate aftermath of leaving. Brian brings both his legal expertise and his deep understanding of the lived realities survivors face, helping translate complex decisions into clear, actionable steps.

We also discuss a comprehensive safety planning checklist that Brian has created and generously shared with our listeners (see like below). This resource is designed to help individuals think through each phase of the process with greater clarity, preparation, and support.

This episode is an empowering, practical continuation of our exploration of how to move from surviving abuse to taking concrete steps toward safety and stability.

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00:00 - Hi, Carrie (introduction)

01:37 - Introducing Our Guest, Brian Putnam

03:00 - The Book

06:28 - Empowered through Leaving

11:15 - The Checklist

13:10 - Preparing to Leave

21:05 - Items to Take

26:55 - Executing the Plan

34:32 - You Left, but It's Not Over

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The Checklist - https://shorturl.at/pzAj3

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About Our Guest:

Brian Putnam is an experienced attorney, advocate, and author of Escaping Domestic Abuse: A Step-by-Step Guide to Breaking Free. Through his legal work and writing, Brian provides survivors with clear, compassionate guidance for navigating the legal system and safely leaving abusive situations.

For more information about Brian and/or the legal services his team provides, please visit https://www.PutnamLawOffice.com.

To purchase the book, Escaping Domestic Abuse: A Step-by-Step Guide to Breaking Free, you can do so by clicking the following link - https://amzn.to/47zeFeS

As Amazon Affiliates, we earn from qualifying purchases.

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Domestic Abuse Resources:

Escaping Domestic Abuse (book) by Brian Putnam – see link above

National Domestic Violence Hotline – 1 (800) 799-SAFE(7233)YWCA - ⁠https://www.ywca.org/⁠

Oklahoma Specific Domestic Abuse Resources:OK Domestic Violence Hotline – 1 (800) 522-SAFE (7233)

YWCA OKC– ⁠https://www.ywcaokc.org/⁠

Palomar - ⁠https://palomarokc.org/

⁠Cardinal Point - ⁠https://cardinalpointok.org/

⁠Latino Community Development - ⁠https://www.lcdaok.com/

⁠Sanctuary Women’s Development - ⁠https://www.lcdaok.com/

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For more great content or to learn more about our mental health services, please check out our linktree - https://linktr.ee/familysolutionsok

Therapists are often expected to be calm, neutral, and unaffected, regardless of what enters the room. Yet therapists are human—and that humanity is not a liability; it is an essential part of the clinical process. In this episode of Therapists’ Take, we examine what it truly means when therapists are human and why that matters in practice. We explore the distinction between having internal reactions and acting on them, how self-awareness functions as clinical data, and why professionalism is not the absence of feeling, but the capacity to regulate and use it ethically.

The episode concludes with our bonus segment, “Would We Say That in Session?”, where we evaluate popular mental health phrases and separate social media advice from sound clinical practice.

This conversation is for clients, clinicians, and anyone interested in how therapy remains both deeply human and clinically safe

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00:00 - Introduction | Hi, Carrie!

02:00 - The Unaffected Therapist

09:25 - Self-Disclosure as a Tool

17:45 - Problem Solvers

19:32 - Course Correction

30:27 - Would we say that in session?

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Book: Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb - https://amzn.to/4pDQEbZ

Book: Letters to a Young Therapist by Mary Pipher - https://amzn.to/4pEfXL3

As Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases

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For more great content or information on mental health services we provide, please check out our linktree - https://linktr.ee/familysolutionsok.com

This holiday season, Therapists’ Take is unwrapping something a little unexpected - the psychology of holiday villains. Sure, we all know the Grinch’s heart grew three sizes and that Scrooge found the true meaning of Christmas—but what does it really mean to be a “villain” in a world shaped by trauma, unmet needs, and human complexity?

In this special series, we look beyond the caricatures and clichés to explore the emotional underpinnings of four iconic holiday “bad guys,” asking questions our listeners may have never considered. Together, we’ll dig into bullying, trauma, greed, redemption, emotional reactivity, and the very nature of good vs. evil. And at the end, we’ll decide if they truly deserve the title of villain… or something more complicated altogether?

🎁 Bonus segment: Stick around for a brief but fun end-of-episode debate as Carrie and Josh tackle the perennial holiday question, Is "Die Hard" actually a Christmas movie?

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00:00 - Hi, Carrie! (Favorite Holiday Movies)

02:45 - The 4 Holiday Villains

03:19 - The Grinch (How the Grinch Stole Christmas)

07:48 - Mr. Potter (It's a Wonderful Life)

10:40 - Ebeneezer Scrooge (A Christmas Carol)

15:42 - Scut Farkus (A Christmas Story)

26:44 - BONUS: Is Die Hard a Christmas Movie?

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MOVIE LINKS

• How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000 film) – Wikipedia
• The Grinch (2018 film) – Wikipedia
• Mickey’s Christmas Carol – Wikipedia
• Christmas Carol (2009 film) – Wikipedia
• A Christmas Story – Wikipedia
• It’s a Wonderful Life – Wikipedia

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Fair Use Notice:
The clips and images shown in this episode are used under the U.S. copyright doctrine of “fair use” (17 U.S.C. § 107). These excerpts are used for purposes of commentary, criticism, and discussion to educate and entertain listeners, and not to exploit the original works for commercial gain.

We do not claim ownership of any copyrighted material included in this episode. All rights remain with the respective copyright holders.

If you are the copyright owner of material included here and believe its use does not fall under fair use, please contact us so we can address your concerns.

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For more great content or services, please visit our linktree at https://linktr.ee/familysolutionsok

In this episode of The Therapists’ Take Podcast, we dive into the complex and often invisible realm of ambiguous and non-traditional grief. These forms of grief don’t stem from a physical death, making them harder to recognize, articulate, and validate. Together, we unpack the many ways this kind of grief shows up—through infertility and disrupted visions of family (13:53), through the slow unraveling of relationships and the loss of safety within them (20:15), through the painful recognition of family dysfunction (07:26), and through the moral injuries carried by those in military or first responder roles (28:05).

With special guest Kristen Callaway, LMFT (01:12), we explore how to name these experiences (07:26), understand their emotional impact, and take meaningful steps toward healing when closure isn’t straightforward.

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00:00 – Hi, Carrie!

01:12 – Guest Intro: Kristen Callaway, LMFT

04:48 – What Is Ambiguous Loss?

07:26 – Name It to Tame It

13:53 – Broken Expectations & Family Dreams

20:15 – When Safety Feels Unsafe

28:05 – Moral Injury & the Loss of Self

31:50 – Zander’s Final Thoughts

35:27 – Practical Takeaways

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About Our Guest: Kristen Callaway, LMFT

Kristen is a Licensed Marital and Family Therapist and the owner of Seeking Peace Counseling in Edmond, Oklahoma. She is an EMDRIA Certified Therapist, a Certified First Responder Counselor, and an Oklahoma Approved Licensure Supervisor. Kristen works with adults seeking healing from trauma, anxiety, and grief, with a special focus on military service members and first responders. She is also the host of the Let’s Sit With This podcast, where she shares grounding tools, encouragement, and honest conversations about the hard parts of life. Outside the therapy room, Kristen enjoys marathon training, baking, and spending time with her husband—a military veteran and law enforcement officer—and their two children.

Kristen's Links:

• Her Website - https://www.seekingpeaceok.com/
• Let's Sit with This Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lets-sit-with-this/id1818168015
• Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/seekingpeacecounseling

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Resources Mentioned in Podcast

• Ambiguous Loss: Learning to Live with Unresolved Grief by Pauline Boss - https://amzn.to/48jMMrj
• Escaping Domestic Abuse (interview with Brian Putnam) - https://youtu.be/Sz4uPvRr8ro

As Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases.

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For more great content and resources, please check out our linktree - https://linktr.ee/familysolutionsok

Ever feel like you’re stuck in the same argument on repeat — whether with your partner, your kids, or even yourself? Restoration Therapy might just be the reset button you’ve been looking for. This approach helps you spot those old patterns that trip you up, understand why they keep showing up, and learn how to choose peace instead of pain. In this episode, restoration therapist, Jacob Oliver, will be joining us to break it all down in real talk, share stories from the therapy room, and show you how these tools can make everyday relationships a whole lot healthier.

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00:00 - Hi, Carrie! (Intro to Episode)

01:43 - Episode Breakdown

02:10 - Introducing Our Guest, Jacob Oliver

04:10 - Shameless Plug: Restoration Therapy Website

05:45 - What Is Restoration Therapy?

11:00 - A Deeper Look Inside of Self

14:45 - Pain Cycles and Peace Cycles

18:55 - The Four Phases

21:38 - The 4 Steps of Step 4

28:20 - Couples in Restoration Therapy

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About Our Guest: Jacob Oliver is marital & family therapist licensed in both California and Oklahoma. He is a certified s3x addiction therapist, and a level 3 restoration therapist. He received his clinical training at Fuller Theological Seminary; and he is part of our team at Family Solutions Counseling. Learn more about Jacob here - https://www.familysolutionsok.com/jacob-oliver.

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Resources on Restoration Therapy:

Get Trained - https://www.restorationtherapytraining.com

Find a Restoration Therapist Near You - https://www.restorationtherapytraining.com/find-a-therapist/

Books

The Mindful Marriage- https://amzn.to/3JOxFNf

The Mindful Marriage Workbook - https://amzn.to/49rDyKA

Forgiving the Devil - https://amzn.to/4psqlpH

Families & Forgiveness - https://amzn.to/3XD2veS

As Amazon Affiliates, we earn on qualifying purchases

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For more great content, please visit our linktree at https://linktr.ee/familysolutionsok

In this second installment of Therapists’ Take on the dark side of couples therapy, Dr. Shannon Dial and Whitney Alexander rejoin us to push the conversation even further. While couples therapy is often seen as a pathway to healing, not every situation—or every client dynamic—fits neatly into that frame. This episode shines a light on the places where couples therapy can actually backfire, enabling harm instead of helping.

From the subtle timing of emotional wounds to the dangerous potential of ignoring abuse, our guests unpack the tough realities that therapists, couples, and even individuals need to face when entering the therapy room. Together, we wrestle with hard questions: When is neutrality dangerous? How can therapists unwitting be complicit in abuse cycles? And when does the “couple’s problem” framework itself become part of the problem?

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00:00 - Intro

00:45 - Assessing Abuse

04:00 - The Timing of the Wounding

06:40 - The Problem with Agendas

09:00 - Is "Part of the Problem" Part of the Problem?

12:50 - Deciphering Sociopathy in Couples

15:18 - The Part that Is Complicit

22:10 - Using Couples Therapy as a Crutch

42:56 - Practical Takeaways-ish

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Why I Hate Your Podcast (article)⁠ - this is related to the discussion from the Part 1 intro.

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About our guests:

We’re thrilled to be joined by Dr. Shannon Dial, LMFT, from Family Solutions Counseling in Oklahoma City, and Whitney Alexander, LMFT, EMDR Consultant, and owner of the Warren-Alexander Group in Stillwater.

• Whitney's Profile - https://warrenalexandergroup.com/our-staffhttps://familysolutionsok.com/shannon-dial

• Shannon's Profile - https://familysolutionsok.com/shannon-dial

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For more great content, please check out our LinkTree at https://www.linktr.ee/familysolutionsok