The Empowered Through Compassion Podcast

In this special episode of Empowered Through Compassion, I am joined by my wife and partner in life and work, Heather Polidi, LICSW. After graduating from Boston University's School of Social Work in different years, we both began our careers at Wayside Youth and Family in different departments. Heather served as Program Director of the Children’s Behavioral Health Initiative and CSA program, while I worked as an In-Home Therapist ...

In this episode of Empowered Through Compassion, I speak with Brooke Kekos, trauma recovery mentor, clinical hypnotherapist, NLP practitioner, and author of Shattered, Broken, & Beautiful: Losing My Religion and Finding Faith. Brooke was raised in a third-generation Jehovah’s Witness family and shares her courageous journey of leaving a high-control religious environment and breaking free from patterns of emotional and relation...

Divorce can feel like the shattering of a world. In this episode, I sit down with Oona Mertz, a psychotherapist with over 30 years of experience, to explore what truly helps people navigate the emotional and relational complexity of divorce.

After her own divorce and healing journey, Oona began leading open-ended divorce groups for women, which she has facilitated for over 12 years. Out of this work, she has authored a new book: Un...

Episode Summary:

In this conversation, we explore what it really means to understand IFS as a relational therapy. Alyce and I discuss how attention itself is relational, how Self-energy becomes an internal secure base. Everything happening inside our system shapes how we show up in our external relationships.

We talk about titrating small changes, noticing shifts in Self-energy, and reframing “triggers” as trailheads into deeper aw...

In this episode, David speaks with Tina Taylor, a Syzygy trainer, IFS Institute assistant trainer, and contributor to IFS Informed EMDR. Together, they explore the intersection of IFS, EMDR, pain, dissociation, and safety in trauma healing.

Tina shares how EMDR was instrumental in addressing her social anxiety, and how IFS later helped her heal legacy burdens connected to that anxiety. This layered healing highlights how different ...

In this episode we sit down with Dr. Kendhal Hart, clinician, educator, author and trauma expert who has spent years refining how Internal Family Systems (IFS) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) can be brought together in a structured, relational, and highly usable way. Dr. Hart’s work helps therapists move beyond seeing these models as separate tools and toward an integration that honors both clinical structu...

What happens when military service, racial trauma, profound loss, and EMDR converge into a path of healing, purpose, and compassion?

In this powerful episode of Empowered Through Compassion, I had the honor of speaking with Dr. Arielle Jordan. She is an army veteran, trauma therapist, EMDR consultant and trainer, author, and advocate whose work sits at the intersection of lived experience and evidence-based healing.

Dr. Jordan shar...

Welcome to this latest episode. I am so thrilled to welcome back Jamie Marich to the podcast. In this episode we returned to Wicked and dove into a discussion about how Wicked: For Good can connect to therapy, trauma, parts, and of course politics.

Jamie is a leader in trauma treatment, EMDR, dissociation, queer-affirming healing, and expressive arts therapy. They are also the author of many important books and a powerful voice in ...

In this episode of Empowered Through Compassion, I sit down with psychologist Dr. Tori Olds to explore the simple and profound act of slowing down. Tori is known for her clarity, depth, and ability to translate complex emotional processes into something the body can feel. Our conversation centers on what becomes possible when we pause long enough to listen to the quiet truths living inside us.

Together we explore Coherence Therapy ...

In this episode of Empowered through Compassion, I sit down with psychotherapist, trauma expert and peace-journalism pioneer Annabel McGoldrick to explore one of the most urgent humanitarian crises of our time: the crisis in Palestine. We spoke about how healing works, and the importance of connection, balance and equality.

Annabel brings together nearly 25 years as a clinician specializing in trauma, EMDR and IFS-informed therapy,...

In this episode of Empowered Through Compassion, I sit down with clinician-trainer Michelle Richardson, who is the co-founder of the Syzygy Institute. Michelle is a leading voice in integrating Internal Family Systems (IFS) with Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy. We explore how these two powerful models can be woven together to create deeper healing. Michelle shares how she has found how creating space an...

In this episode of I speak with Musenge Luchembe, a gifted ecotherapist, licensed psychotherapist, and IFS-certified clinician who was a program assistant when I took my IFIO (Intimacy From the Inside Out) training.

In this episode, Musenge and I dive into how nature and the natural world can support deep healing, bringing together her work in ecotherapy, somatic modalities and couples work. She shares reflections on how being held...

Music is more than just sound, it’s a universal language that connects us and heals us. In this episode, I sit down with Alison Hughey, a gifted music therapist who brings people together through the power of music. From adults who are neurodivergent and struggle with stillness, to individuals living with dementia, Alison creates pathways of safety and belonging through sound.

Our conversation explores how music reaches the into th...

This special bonus episode features a guided meditation from Corey, continuing our conversation from Part 2. Corey invites us into his "IFS Love Practice" demonstrating how he connects with his parts in a very accepting and compassionate way. This meditation is a powerful tool for inner healing, and I hope this inspires you to take some time to experience a deep connection within. 

#IFS #Meditation #InnerHealing #GuidedMeditation...

In this second conversation with Corey Busch, we explore the difference between using Internal Family Systems (IFS) for healing and for awakening. Corey has developed what he calls the IFS Love Practice, a way of blending mindful meditation with IFS. In this practice, a part is accepted just the way it shows up. It does not need to relax back, or change, or be healed. It already is OK.

Together, we reflect on:

* How awakening can b...

In this inspiring conversation with Corey Busch, we explore how Internal Family Systems (IFS) opens the door to deeper spiritual connection and relational healing. Together, we reflect on the gift of seeing our inner multiplicity and how this awareness naturally connects us to our family, our community, and even to the spiritual universe.

Corey shares how meaningful Christian centering prayer was for him. This contemplative practic...

In this conversation with Kathy Couch and Tamera Brown, we explore what it really means to move from competition to collaboration in the healing professions. Too often, therapists feel pressured to compare themselves to others, and start feeling better than, less than, not enough... As Tamera beautifully describes, healing is a tapestry: and all of our voices matters. Every one of us, whether we are therapists or clients (or both) ...

In this episode, I sit down with Stacy Ruse, LPC, a visionary therapist and consultant who beautifully integrates EMDR with Internal Family Systems (IFS), weaving in somatic and spiritual practices.

Stacy describes how the structured brilliance of EMDR provides a foundation for trauma healing, while the soulful depth of IFS brings creativity, compassion, and transformative energy into the process. Together, these approac...