Two Shrinks Pod

We have decided to call time on Two Shrinks Pod as our personal and professional lives have prevented us from being able to regularly produce the show. As we both care about the quality of the work we put out, we decided that if we couldn’t produce something we were proud of then it was time to end the pod.
















































Thank you to all of the tens of thousands of listeners who had let us into your ears and minds, and for sharing our nerdy sense of humour. Thanks to our collaborators and interview guests.
It has been an amazing journey to go on with all of you.
We will keep our episodes and website up indefinitely.
If you want to contact us, we will keep monitoring our email twoshrinkspod@gmail.com and our twitter @twoshrinkspod until the end of May 2023.
Irvin Yalom said “life is a spark between two identical voids, the darkness before birth and the one after death”.
Listeners, thanks for making our spark burn that just that bit brighter. We hope yours burned brighter too for having listened to us.
Amy and Hunter.
























So long, and thanks for all the fish

Dr Hunter Mulcare & Amy Donaldson







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If you’re a student struggling to cope with exams or a parent supporting one, this episode is for you. Just in time for the year 12 exams, we’ve prepared a crash course on how to cope with anxiety in the lead up, on the morning of and during an exam.
Listen for practical tips, how to know when to take a break and ways you can calm down once your in your exam.
















































In this episode we cover how to cope:

During study periods
The night before/morning of an exam
During the exam
Afterwards if you have another exam

This episode of Two Shrinks Pod was sponsored by Calabash.
Visit https://calabash.courses/twoshrinkspod to access a free talk
























83 - Coping with Exams

Dr Hunter Mulcare & Amy Donaldson







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Head over to the School of Movies Podcast to listen to Amy and Hunter talk about the comedy mob film Analyze This starring Robert De Niro and Billy Crystal. We talk about anxiety attacks, toxic masculinity, doing therapy at gun point and the ethical issues of receiving gifts from your mobster client.

School of Movies Analyze This : https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-jbcwc-12d7d2b

School of Movies is a British podcast hosted by Alex and Sharon Shaw who dissect and discuss modern cinema, there is no movie podcast like it and it is well worth a listen.
2SP has previously been on their show discussing
Inside Out: https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-44rqh-b61ed2
Zombieland: https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-66pz9-c3c60f
and Mary and Max: https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-mqs5i-eb20ef
Sharon was also a guest on 2SP in last year’s instalment of Shrinks on Film : https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/71-psychs-on-film-3-shrinks-with-a-vengeance/id1236774684?i=1000526171601
























Analyze This

Dr Hunter Mulcare & Amy Donaldson







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This episode we’ve put together a crash course on phobias. We know phobias are on the VCE psychology exam and we have covered the main topics and theories covered in the course. The episode is pitched at Australian year 12 psychology students (and for their parents wanting to understand what this psychology garbage is).
We don’t assume any prior psychology knowledge so this means that it is good episode for anyone who want to understand about psychological theory and treatment. Understanding phobias and their treatment brings together a lot of core psychological concepts. Listen in for easy to understand definitions, examples and how it all fits together to understand the case of Ron Weasley’s arachnophobia.
















































We can’t promise we have talked about everything on the exam but it should be a good way to brush up pre exam.

Looking for something specific?
01:20 Definitions
13:50 Prevalence
16:20 The 4 P’s & the biopsychosocial model: A case study of Ron Weasley
25:00 Classical conditioning
37:00 Operant conditioning
48:00 GABA dysfunction
51:10 Stress response system
55:45 Cognitive biases
1:01:30 Triggers
1:04:00 Transtheoretical model of change
1:09:00 Treatment

If you liked the episode please rate/review us or tell someone about the show.
You can access your free Calabash talk at https://calabash.courses/twoshrinkspod
























82 - Phobias: A Year 12 Psychology Exam Crash Course

Dr Hunter Mulcare & Amy Donaldson







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For episode 81 we’re taking a comprehensive, research driven look at abortion: what it’s like making the decision, how it impacts people psychologically and what happens if you can’t have one when you want to?
Join us for a discussion of what the research actually says, in all it’s complexity, about how women respond after an abortion.

To skip forward to a particular topic:
05:30 Decision making
19:35 Psychological impacts of having a voluntary abortion
40:25 Impacts on sexual functioning
44:45 Psychological impacts of having an abortion for medical reasons
49:12 Outcomes for women who want an abortion but are denied one
















































This week’s episode was brought to you by Calabash. Access your free talk at:
https://calabash.courses/psych-company/
























81 - Psychology of Abortion

Dr Hunter Mulcare & Amy Donaldson







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Research (in order of discussion):
Introduction:
APA Taskforce on Mental Health and Abortion (2008) https://www.apa.org/pi/women/programs/abortion/mental-health.pdf

Abortion definition (2019) https://www.bmj.com/company/newsroom/nine-out-of-10-abortions-done-before-12-weeks-in-many-high-income-countries/

Australian abortion rates (2021) https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2021/215/8/estimating-abortion-rate-australia-national-hospital-morbidity-and

Decision making:
Bracken & Kasl (1975) Delay in seeking induced abortion: a review and theoretical analysis
https://doi.org/10.1016/0002-9378(75)90929-1

Miller (1992) An empirical study of psychological antecedents and consequences of induced abortion
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4560.1992.tb00898.x

Allanson (2007) Abortion decision and ambivalence: Insights via an abortion decision balance sheet
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13284200701675767

Pereira, Pires & Canavarro (2019) Decision-making trajectories leading to termination of an unplanned pregnancy: specificities among adolescent and adult women https://doi.org/10.1080/02646838.2019.1566596

Leithner et al (2021) Three or less? Decision making for or against selective reduction and psychological outcome in forty women with a triplet pregnancy
https://doi.org/10.1080/0167482X.2020.1750005

Psychological responses following a voluntary abortion:
Steinberg et al (2016) Psychosocial factors and pre-abortion psychological health: the significance of stigma
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2015.12.007

Horvath & Schreiber (2017) Unintended pregnancy, induced abortion, and mental health
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-017-0832-4

Rocca et al (2013) Women’s emotions one week after receiving or being denied an abortion in the United States
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24020773/

O’Donnell, O’Carroll and Toole (2018) Internalized stigma and stigma-related isolation predict women’s psychological distress and physical health symptoms post-abortion
https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0361684317748937

Foster et al (2015) A comparison of depression and anxiety symptom trajectories between women who had an abortion and women denied one
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25628123/

Toffol et al (2016) Anxiety and quality of life after first-trimester termination of pregnancy: a prospective study
https://doi.org/10.1111/aogs.12959

Van Ditzhuijzen et al (2018) Long-term incidence and recurrence of common mental disorders after abortion. A Dutch prospective cohort study
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2018.04.001

Biggs et al (2017) Women’s mental health and well-being 5 years after receiving or being denied an abortion: a prospective, longitudinal cohort study
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27973641/

Biggs et al (2018) Five-year suicidal ideation trajectories among women receiving or being denied an abortion
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27973641/

Holmlund et al (2014) Psychological ill-being experienced by first-time mothers and their partners in pregnancy after abortion: a cohort study
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27973641/

Sexual functioning:
Limoncin et al (2017) The effect of voluntary termination of pregnancy on female sexual and emotional well-being in different age groups
https://doi.org/10.1080/0167482X.2017.1285901

Psychological responses after an abortion for medical reasons:
Nazare, Fonesca & Canavarro (2013) Adaptive and maladaptive grief responses following TOPFA: actor and partner effects of coping strategies
https://doi.org/10.1080/02646838.2013.806789

Nazare, Fonesca & Canavarro (2013) Trauma following termination of pregnancy for fetal abnormality: is this the path from guilt to grief?
https://doi.org/10.1080/15325024.2012.743335

Lafarge, Mitchell & Fox (2017) Posttraumatic growth following pregnancy termination for fetal abnormality: the predictive role of coping strategies and perinatal grief
https://doi.org/10.1080/15325024.2012.743335

Outcomes for women who want an abortion and can’t have one:
Rocca et al (2013) Women’s emotions one week after receiving or being denied an abortion in the United States
https://doi.org/10.1363/4512213

Horvath & Schreiber (2017) Unintended pregnancy, induced abortion, and mental health
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-017-0832-4

The harms of denying a woman a wanted abortion: findings from the turnaway study
https://www.ansirh.org/sites/default/files/publications/files/the_harms_of_denying_a_woman_a_wanted_abortion_4-16-2020.pdf

Ludermir et al (2010) Common mental disorders in late pregnancy in women who wanted or attempted an abortion
https://doi.org/10.1017/s003329170999184x

Herd et al (2015) The implications of unintended pregnancies for mental health in later life
https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/10.2105/AJPH.2015.302973

Concluding remarks:
Rebuttal to Coleman’s paper https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3699180/

Rebuttal to Reardon’s work https://www.bmj.com/rapid-response/2011/10/31/reardon-response-russo-and-schmeige-misleads-omission-and-commission

Quote from Surgeon General C Everett Koop https://www.apa.org/pi/women/programs/abortion/mental-health.pdf

The following resources supported our understanding of abortion legislation and access but were not cited in the show:
Upadhyay et al (2021) Barriers to abortion care & incidence of attempted self-managed abortion
https://www.contraceptionjournal.org/article/S0010-7824(21)00385-1/fulltext

de Londras et al (2022) The impact of provider restrictions on abortion-related outcomes
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12978-022-01405-x

Faundes & Shah (2015) Evidence supporting broader access to safe legal abortion
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijgo.2015.03.018

Reingold & Gostin (2019) State abortion restrictions and the new supreme court
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31166573/

Pierson (2022) Roe v Wade overturned: what abortion access and reproductive rights look like around the world
https://theconversation.com/roe-v-wade-overturned-what-abortion-access-and-reproductive-rights-look-like-around-the-world-184013