Hey members!

First and foremost, THANK YOU. Your willingness to support this podcast early has been an incredible sign that maybe, just maybe, we're on the right track with the message of the show. We're working hard on our end to make sure we don't let you down.

It’s a big day. We’re launching this new podcast. If you haven’t ever launched a podcast, it takes a mix of audacity, old-fashioned spirit, and a tolerance for no small margin of public speaking terror to get the job done. But who are we kidding… of course you’ve launched a podcast. Everyone has a podcast now.

My name is Pete Wright and I’m your chaperone. As such, I write little letters to you, like this one, as well as introduce episodes, giving you a sense of what you’re going to experience on the show. As a subscriber, you’ll hear my voice from time to time, and as a patron, a good bit more as I join Dodge in our private Afterthoughts series.

But this is Dodge’s show. That’s Dr. Dodge Rea, Psy.D., Integrative Clinical Psychologist and co-founder of The Lotus Center, an integrative health center in Nashville. He’s been one of my best friends for nearly three decades. I believe you’ll soon come to see why he’s so well loved by clients, colleagues, and old friends alike.

In our grand episode one, we’re going to introduce you to Ben Rea. Ben is a Licensed Clinical Social worker and co-founder of Healthy Minds, his practice in San Luis Obispo, California. He’s a phenomenal psychotherapist in his own right but also Dodge’s younger brother, which makes our first episode that much more special for all of us. Ben joins Dodge for a conversation on ACT, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, plus a round of “where was that picture” and other lessons learned from their childhood home.

A few notes on the episode. First, we recorded the thing without the intention of releasing it to the public. It was a test. But in the same way that you can’t return all the feathers to a pillow in a windstorm, we just couldn’t figure out a way to recreate what Dodge and Ben captured in their first conversation. Call it beginner’s luck if you will, but something unexpected happened that demonstrated change far better than anyone could have explained it. I encouraged them both to take a risk and put listeners on notice: This will be be a remarkably brave and authentic podcast. Dodge is in this with you.

Second, this episode is chock full of gems that have branded themselves on my psyche in the months since we recorded. On reflection, they all revolve around the fascinating idea that we continue to experience our lives through the entrenched stories we tell ourselves, and only in moving toward the pain we want to run from do we find the freedom to change it. This is something the brothers weave their way through in the course of their conversation and the lessons — at least for me — have been powerful. I hope they are equally so for you.

Thanks for joining us on this journey. We’re so deeply gratified you’re here.

— Pete

Links & Notes

• Ben Rea, LCSW
• About ACT — Contextual Science