The Clinical Moment

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Podcast by Amy Davis and Casey Baker

The Clinical Moment

Stories of Practice, People, and Purpose Across Iowa The Clinical Moment is a podcast from LSI that highlights the people behind the work of mental health care across Iowa. With more than forty clinicians serving communities statewide, LSI is committed to providing compassionate, ethical, and meaningful care both in and out of the therapy room. Each episode features conversations with LSI clinicians about their professional practice, their paths into the field, and the values that guide their work. These discussions explore what it means to show up as a clinician and as a human, offering insight into the realities of mental health work while celebrating the impact clinicians have in their communities. Through sharing these stories, The Clinical Moment aims to expand the reach of LSI’s clinical work, highlight the depth and diversity of services offered across Iowa, and help reduce stigma around mental health by making these conversations more visible, relatable, and human.

Latest episodes

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27 March 2026

Boundaries Aren’t Requests: How to Set Them and Actually Stick to Them

Boundaries are one of the most common,and most challenging, topics that come up in therapy. In this episode of The Clinical Moment, Casey Baker and Amy Davis sit down with LSI therapist Emily to explore what boundaries really are, why they matter, and why they can feel so difficult to set.

Emily shares her clinical perspective on boundaries through a cognitive behavioral lens, while also discussing practical strategies clients can use in everyday life. From understanding the difference between requests and boundaries to navigating discomfort, pushback, and feelings of guilt, this conversation offers meaningful and approachable tools for personal growth.

You’ll also hear Emily introduce the Stoplight Method ,a simple yet powerful framework to help identify when boundaries may be needed and how to implement them effectively.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Why boundaries are not requests

• Why setting boundaries can feel uncomfortable or selfish

• How to respond when others push back

• The Stoplight Method for identifying boundary needs

• Using CBT strategies to challenge irrational thoughts

• How boundaries improve relationships and reduce anxiety

Whether you're navigating relationships, work dynamics, or personal growth, this episode offers practical guidance and encouragement for building healthier boundaries.

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50:28

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13 March 2026

Trauma, Resilience, and Compassion Fatigue: A Conversation with Dhavy Patel

In this episode of The Clinical Moment, hosts Amy Davis and Casey Baker welcome Dhavy Patel, a temporary licensed mental health counselor at LSI, to discuss the complexities of trauma and its impact on both clients and clinicians. Dhavy shares insights from his recent presentation on compassion fatigue and introduces the use of poetry therapy as a powerful tool for reflection and healing among helping professionals.

The conversation explores common misconceptions about trauma, the ways trauma can manifest in the body and mind, and why responses to traumatic experiences vary widely across individuals. Dhavy discusses practical clinical approaches including somatic awareness, trauma timelines, and person-centered engagement to support clients in understanding their experiences and moving toward healing.

The episode also addresses the emotional toll trauma work can have on clinicians, highlighting the importance of professional support, self-compassion, and recognizing early signs of burnout or dysregulation. Throughout the discussion, Dhavy emphasizes resilience, reminding listeners that healing is possible, even after complex and long-standing trauma, and that progress often begins with small, meaningful steps.

This episode offers valuable insights for clinicians, helping professionals, and anyone navigating their own healing journey.

Link to Dhavy's Psychology Today Profile: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists/dhavy-patel-des-moines-ia/1495524

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18 February 2026

Who Is Your One? Trust, Connection, and the Relationships That Change Us

In this episode of The Clinical Moment, hosts Amy Davis and Casey Baker sit down with Michael, an LSI clinician who works with youth in juvenile detention centers across Iowa and is also a singer in his personal life. Michael shares how showing up, including attending court hearings, can transform trust, engagement, and willingness to heal, especially for young people who have never had a consistent advocate. He explains his deeply relationship-based approach and how he integrates Solution-Focused strategies such as exceptions, scaling, and future-oriented planning to help youth identify strengths, build realistic goals, and create a concrete “24/7 plan” for life outside detention.

The conversation expands into healthy relationships more broadly. Michael discusses what makes relationships emotionally safe, how communication breaks down, especially around trust injuries, and how couples can shift from reactive conflict to clearer needs, empathy, and repair. Along the way, he connects music and voice as metaphors for authenticity and expression, and he discusses creative tools that support youth in telling their stories in new ways.

Resources mentioned in the episode

  • Norcross and Lambert on psychotherapy outcome factors, including the role of client factors, the therapeutic relationship, and technique
  • Child and Adolescent PTSD Symptom Scale (CPSS) used as part of initial assessment and conversation with youth
  • ACEs, Adverse Childhood Experiences referenced as a parallel lens for understanding history and impact
  • Gabor Maté and Compassionate Inquiry for trauma framing, with emphasis on what happens inside as a result of what happened
  • Suno AI music creation tool used to support youth expression through lyric-writing and song creation
  • Commissioned gospel music group Michael listened to growing up
  • Helped, Hugged, or Heard communication check-in tool for couples

Listen to Michael's music here:

https://open.spotify.com/track/4zvwoNQdQYsfRhOE01gXej?si=qELrm3jyRJOXRUBg3gYwZg

https://music.apple.com/us/album/love-letter/1858486891?i=1858486892

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46:05

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28 January 2026

Small Choices, Meaningful Lives: Habits Beyond Productivity

In this episode of The Clinical Moment, the hosts are joined by Joe (LSI therapist, Des Moines) for a grounded, values-centered conversation about habits and self-care. Rather than framing habits as “fixing yourself” or becoming more productive, the discussion reframes habits as signals of what we’re valuing, avoiding, coping with, or moving toward. Joe shares how his existential, person-centered approach emphasizes meaning-making, identity, authenticity, and learning to sit with discomfort (instead of only trying to “cope it away”). Together, they explore how habits can support change when they’re rooted in values and identity, how language shapes commitment (“I’m trying” vs. “I am”), and how small shifts can compound over time, especially when approached with curiosity and grace rather than judgment.

Resources Mentioned in the Episode

Books & Authors

  • Atomic Habits — James Clear
  • How Not to Speak of God — Peter Rollins
  • The Case for God — Karen Armstrong
  • Hour of the Heart — Irvin Yalom
  • A Year with Thomas Merton — Thomas Merton
  • The Existentialist Survival Guide — Gordon Marino
  • Man’s Search for Meaning — Viktor Frankl

Concepts & Approaches

  • Values clarification / values card sort (narrowing down values and creating a personal values statement)
  • Identity-based habit change (language + identity shift)
  • Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) (acceptance + values-based action)
  • Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) (dialectics; coping strategies; “urge surfing” referenced)
  • Solution-Focused “Magic Wand” question (imagining desired change)
  • Time audit / screen-time review (where time goes vs. where you want it to go)

Practical Tools Discussed

  • 5–4–3–2–1 grounding: 5 things you see, 4 feel, 3 hear, 2 smell, 1 taste
  • Texture grounding: noticing tactile sensations (clothing, chair, objects)
  • “Go touch grass”: literal reconnection with the present moment outdoors
  • Sour candy grounding: lemon drops / sour candies as a quick sensory reset
  • Accountability supports: trusted people, mentorship, community support (12-step mentioned as one example—acknowledging it isn’t for everyone)

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15 January 2026

The Clinical Moment

In the first episode of The Clinical Moment, co-hosts Amy Davis and Casey Baker introduce the purpose of the podcast and what listeners can expect. They share their commitment to authentic conversations, reducing stigma, and highlighting the real people behind mental health care at Lutheran Services in Iowa. This episode sets the foundation for future discussions centered on connection, clinical practice, and meaningful growth

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14:27

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