Dr. Monica Vermani was born and raised in Toronto. Her parent were immigrants from India. Her dad was the eldest of five and her mom was the youngest of five. Though the dynamics in her family were very traditional, the dynamics changed when her dad experienced a work-related injury. Her mother had to go back […]
Dr. Laura Petracek is a clinical psychologist, addiction specialist, certified Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) therapist, author, and speaker with over 30 years of experience in psychotherapy, 26 of which have been spent as a practicing clinical psychologist in California. In this podcast, Dr. Petracek recalls her academic and professional journey, discusses the circumstances leading up
If you want to get to know Dr. Ben Bernstein, you need to look at his history growing up as a young child in New York City. Dr. Bernstein’s father was a very well-respected clinical psychologist and his mother directed plays for the Parent Teacher Association (PTA). At 9 years old, Dr. Bernstein was cast
Imagine growing up in Southern California in the 1960’s, attending high school at University High (which was affiliated with a Catholic college, University of San Diego) and attending college at Loyola University (now called Loyola Marymount University). You, like many others, were undoubtedly influenced by the hippie counterculture of the time as it most likely
Dr. Martin Hsia grew up in Los Angeles, CA and first took an interest in psychology while in high school but wasn’t quite sure. He had friends who really loved history, chemistry, and math but recalls “none of those really kind of felt like they were going to be my jam. I thought maybe I’d
Dr. Rex Jung only had one introduction to psychology class during his entire undergraduate career at the University of Boulder, CO and admitted, at the time, psychology wasn’t his path. Instead, he graduated with a BS in Finance and was working for several years in the business world before he found his passion. It wasn’t
Dr. Jada Philips originally wanted to be a lawyer. After receiving her Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice at Mount Mary University in Milwaukee, WI, she moved to New York with her then boyfriend, now husband, with the idea of going to Columbia University to become a criminal lawyer. Circumstances changed so she adjusted and
As a high school student at the Bronx High School of Science, Dr. Christina B. Gee remembers being focused primarily on math and science because they didn’t offer any psychology classes. She recalls that her interest in psychology only came after she started college at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY. In this podcast interview, Dr.
Michael Pipich has always been interested in the field of psychology. As long as he can remember, he has found people fascinating and always wondered about their personalities, quirks, and the how and why behind their behaviors and interactions with others. He recalls one weekend when his older brother came home from college with a
Dr. David T. Susman didn’t have to travel too far from his hometown of Tazewell, VA to begin his undergraduate career in psychology at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, VA. He originally was going to pursue a career as a medical doctor but soon realized he wasn’t as interested in the pre-med courses as
