Robin rambles about the monkey skull that has been sitting in his office, its mysterious family history, the possibility that it might be cursed, and his eventual attempt to find it a new home.

He also catches up on the October breathwork challenge, the Washington Commanders and Capitals, the latest from No Pterodactyls, the ongoing Renaissance Festival ticket saga, and the increasingly ridiculous story of how trying to replace one missing piece from a Martha Stewart desk somehow resulted in three desks.

He also previews upcoming conversations with Jessica Dibb and Dr. Ifeanyi Olele, and shares an update about his upcoming fundraising efforts with Blood Cancer United.

Featured Track - Lick the Salted Wound by No Pterodactyls (Album: Next Thing I Know)

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Get in touch:
robinsmithshow@gmail.com

Call the hotline:
+1 (301) 458-0883

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Note: This is a wide-ranging and sometimes difficult conversation, including discussion of childhood sexual abuse.

Robin welcomes Robert Falconer back to the show to talk about his book, Self Unbroken: The Foundations of Bob’s Healing from Childhood Sexual Abuse.

They talk about what it means to remain “unbroken” after profound trauma, the parts of us that protect access to difficult experiences, and a metaphor of an inner library with gatekeepers deciding which books we're ready to open.

The conversation wanders through dissociation, memory, shame, spirituality, altered states, the body, relationships, and the strange ways healing can unfold before we have any framework for understanding it.

They also get into a difficult question near the end of the conversation: what do you do when someone has memories of possible abuse but isn't sure what actually happened? Bob talks about why he believes we shouldn't automatically validate or deny those memories, and about the importance of therapists doing their own work.

Robert Falconer is best known for his extensive involvement with Internal Family Systems (IFS) Therapy as a practitioner, teacher, and writer.

For the past decade or more, Bob Falconer has devoted himself full-time to IFS work. In that time, he has attended all levels of IFS training offered, and has been at many workshops and events with Richard Schwartz both as assistant and participant. In addition to studying with many of the other senior IFS trainers, he also co-authored a book with Richard Schwartz entitled Many Minds, One Self.

His other books include The Others Within Us, When You're Going Through Hell ...Keep Going, Spirit, and the recently released Self Unbroken: The Foundations of Bob’s Healing from Childhood Sexual Abuse. (July 2026). His focus is now on the study of spiritual presence experiences.

https://robertfalconer.us/self-unbroken-book/

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Get in touch:
robinsmithshow@gmail.com

Call the hotline:
(301) 458-0883

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Robin rambles about moving the annual breath work challenge to October, mourning some favorite cultural icons, watching horror movies in bachelor mode, returning to Ocean City with his family, and more.

Don't miss upcoming conversations with Bob Falconer, Dr. Ifeanyi Olele, and Jessica Dibb.

Get in touch:
robinsmithshow@gmail.com

Call the hotline:
(301) 458-0883

Follow Robin on Insight Timer:
https://insighttimer.com/robinsmith

Book an appointment:
https://robin-smith.clientsecure.me/request/service

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Got a question? We'd love to hear from you!

Chris Hancock joins Robin to explore what happens when experiences don't fit neatly inside the rational frameworks that we use to understand ourselves and the world. They talk about spiritual emergence, skepticism, synchronicity, the limits of conventional therapy, and what happens when those questions become personal during a live IFS demonstration.

Chris Hancock is a licensed clinical social worker, therapist, and founder of Therapy Outside the Box. Through a variety of holistic and integrative approaches rooted in connection, clinical and personal experience, Chris incorporates more spiritual practices into his counseling work blending dynamic, relational, intuitive, energetic, transpersonal Internal Family Systems, quasi-shamanic, modern mystical, creative and practical approaches. Chris helps awakening souls discover all parts of Self, heal & release what doesn’t serve, transform breakdowns into breakthroughs, and embody greater wholeness, purpose, vitality, authenticity and awakened empowerment.

Learn more about Chris:

therapyoutsidethebox.com

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Get in touch:
robinsmithshow@gmail.com

Call the hotline:
+1 (301) 458-0883

Follow Robin on Insight Timer:
https://insighttimer.com/robinsmith

Book an appointment:
https://robin-smith.clientsecure.me/request/service

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https://www.patreon.com/therobinsmithshow

Got a question? We'd love to hear from you!

Robin rambles about grocery store karma, a junk drawer turned prize box, flooding the basement, and discovering that a sprained toe doesn't necessarily mean you get to rest.

Don't miss upcoming conversations with Chris Hancock, Jessica Dibb, Bob Falconer, and Dr. Ifeanyi Olele.

Community Spotlight:

The Grow Group for Women with Sarah Boone, MS, LCPC, NCC

A six-week women's growth group integrating nature-based practices and Enneagram-informed insights beginning this September.

Learn more:
www.sarahboonecounseling.com

Get in touch:
robinsmithshow@gmail.com

Call the hotline:
(301) 458-0883

Follow Robin on Insight Timer:
https://insighttimer.com/robinsmith

Book an appointment:
https://robin-smith.clientsecure.me/request/service

Become a supporter on Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/therobinsmithshow

Got a question? We'd love to hear from you!

What if the phrase "You're only as happy as your least happy child" is actually keeping families stuck? Robin sits down with therapist Laura Goldstein to explore parenting, ADHD, radical acceptance, and why so many therapy models may be pointing toward the same place.

Laura Goldstein, LCMFT is a Licensed Clinical Marriage & Family Therapist and Founder of Montgomery County Counseling Center (MCCC), LCC. She obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Neuroscience from Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, PA and then went on to earn her Master’s degree in Family Therapy from Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. Laura became intensively trained in Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) through Behavioral Tech Linehan Institute in 2015 and has further trainings in Gottman Method and RO-DBT. She has built a private practice with the values of systemically-minded and collaborative care. MCCC continues to serve individuals and families at the intersection of emotional, relational, and behavioral struggles. She's a passionate public speaker always looking to make psychoeducation. prevention, and sustainable care more accessible to help both clients and clinicians thrive.

In this conversation, Robin and Laura explore why we can't make other people's happiness our responsibility, the relationship between acceptance and change, ADHD and working with our brains instead of against them, building a therapy practice from the ground up, and how different therapeutic models may be pointing toward the same human truths.

Learn more about MCCC's new service Mental Wellness Check:
https://mccounselingcenter.com/mental-wellness-check/

Connect with the bulletin board on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/mocomentalhealthbulletinboard

Learn more about Laura:
https://www.montgomerycountycounseling.com/

Learn more about TheraCourses:
https://theracourses.com/

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Get in touch:
robinsmithshow@gmail.com

Call the hotline:
+1 (301) 458-0883

Follow Robin on Insight Timer:
https://insighttimer.com/robinsmith

Book an appointment:
https://robin-smith.clientsecure.me/request/service

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https://www.patreon.com/therobinsmithshow

Got a question? We'd love to hear from you!

Robin rambles about surviving another swampy D.C. summer, a Verizon customer service rant after a World Cup watch party internet scare, a week of training on addiction and disordered eating through the Cape Cod Institute, and debuts his new blog article, What Looks Like Defensiveness Is Often Shame in Disguise.

He also shares an instrumental track from No Pterodactyls, introduces his latest Insight Timer talk on the inner critic, and previews upcoming conversations with Jessica Dibb, Laura Goldstein, Chris Hancock, and Dr. Ifeanyi Olele.

Featured Track - "Plink" by No Pterodactyls (Album: Next Thing I Know)

Catch them:

• July 30 – The Delancey (New York City)
• August 1 – Gulu-Gulu Café (Salem, MA)

Community Spotlight:

The Grow Group for Women with Sarah Boone, MS, LCPC, NCC

A six-week women's growth group integrating nature-based practices and Enneagram-informed insights beginning this September.

Learn more:
www.sarahboonecounseling.com

Get in touch:
robinsmithshow@gmail.com

Call the hotline:
(301) 458-0883

Follow Robin on Insight Timer:
https://insighttimer.com/robinsmith

Book an appointment:
https://robin-smith.clientsecure.me/request/service

Become a supporter on Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/therobinsmithshow

Got a question? We'd love to hear from you!

Robin rambles about breaking in a new audio interface, taking full responsibility for Team USA’s World Cup exit, and Vice President JD Vance's take on UAP. He also reflects on preparing an upcoming Insight Timer talk about the inner critic and how AI is unexpectedly helping him memorize it.

He also shares a track, “Imposter” from No Pterodactyls, marks the upcoming 2026 solar eclipse and Perseid meteor shower, and highlights a colleague’s upcoming women’s growth group with Sarah Boone.

Featured Track & Tour Dates:

“Imposter” by No Pterodactyls (Album: Next Thing I Know). Catch them July 30th at The Delancey (NYC) and August 1st at Gulu Gulu Cafe (Salem, MA).

Upcoming Guest Spotlight:

• Jessica Dibb (Pioneer breathwork facilitator and consciousness teacher)
• Latest Book: Breathwork and Psychotherapy (Published by WW Norton)
• Learn More: Visit the Inspiration Consciousness School

Ready to take your growth to the next level? Done individual therapy but not group work? This 6-week group provides a transformative space to deepen and become more rooted in awareness. Together, we will explore patterns of growth through nature-based practices and Enneagram-informed insights. This will be an intimate group with only 6-8 participants to allow for depth, trust and personal attention.

SARAH BOONE COUNSELING Sarah Boone, MS, LCPC, NCC Therapist, Individuals and Groups

Learn more at: www.sarahboonecounseling.com

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Get in touch: robinsmithshow@gmail.com

Call the hotline: +1 (301) 458-0883

Follow Robin on Insight Timer: https://insighttimer.com/robinsmith

Book an appointment: https://robin-smith.clientsecure.me/request/service

Become a supporter on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/therobinsmithshow

Got a question? We'd love to hear from you!