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.

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Latest episodes

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29 June 2026

Parenting Through Big Feelings: Anxiety, Limits, and Connection

In this episode of The Clinical Moment, Amy Davis and Casey Baker are joined by Emily Dicks, LMHC, to discuss how parental anxiety can impact discipline, emotional regulation, and connection with children. Emily shares practical insight from her work with children and families, including how parents can support kids through meltdowns, sensory needs, neurodivergence, and big emotions without immediately trying to “fix” or avoid discomfort.

Together, they explore the importance of co-regulation and how parents can model healthy coping skills. This conversation offers reassurance that parenting does not require perfection. Instead, it invites parents to slow down, notice what their child may be communicating through behavior, and reconnect through small, meaningful moments.

Listeners will walk away with practical tools, including asking children about the best and hardest parts of their day, noticing sensory and emotional needs, using connection before correction, and reflecting on whether parenting decisions are being driven by the child’s needs or the parent’s anxiety

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11 June 2026

OCD, Humor and Healing with Andrew McGinn

In this episode of The Clinical Moment, Amy Davis and Casey Baker are joined by LSI clinician Andrew McGinn for an honest and meaningful conversation about Mental Health Awareness Month, OCD, stigma, and the role of humor in healing.

Andrew shares both his clinical expertise and lived experience with OCD, offering insight into what OCD really is, how it is often misunderstood, and why receiving an accurate diagnosis can feel validating and empowering. The conversation explores common OCD misconceptions, treatment approaches such as ERP, I-CBT, ACT, and existential therapy, and the importance of helping clients build meaning, hope, and self-distance from intrusive thoughts.

With authenticity, humor, and compassion, Andrew reminds listeners that mental health challenges are not a life sentence, they are challenges that can be understood, supported, and met.

In this episode, we discuss:

Mental Health Awareness Month and reducing stigma
What OCD is and what it is not
Common OCD subtypes and misconceptions
The role of intrusive thoughts, compulsions, and reassurance seeking
How humor can reduce shame and create connection
Existential therapy, meaning-making, and living “in spite of” mental health challenges
Why lived experience can deepen therapeutic connection
The importance of seeking support and knowing you are not alone

Guest:

Andrew McGinn, LSI Clinician

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22 May 2026

Grief Beyond Death: Understanding Loss, Healing, and the Human Experience

We had a few tech hiccups at the beginning of this episode… which honestly ended up fitting perfectly with today’s topic. Sometimes life feels messy, disorienting, and unpredictable, a lot like grief itself. We appreciated everyone’s patience as we got things rolling.

Grief is something every person experiences, yet many people struggle to talk about it openly. In this episode of The Clinical Moment, Casey Baker and Amy Davis sit down with LSI art therapist and grief counselor Mandy to explore the many forms grief can take beyond death alone. Together, they discuss loss of safety, identity, dreams, relationships, health, and independence, while unpacking common misconceptions about the “stages” of grief.

Mandy shares compassionate insight into how grief impacts the mind and body, why healing is rarely linear, and how rituals, connection, and understanding can support the grieving process. Whether you are personally navigating loss or supporting someone who is, this conversation offers validation, education, and hope.

Follow & Subscribe

If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe to The Clinical Moment, leave a review, and share this conversation with someone who may need encouragement and support in their own grief journey.

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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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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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