Guest: Linda Vanella

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The Shelf Life of Mental Health October 20, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Lauren Sykes, Linda Vanella
Category: Anxiety & Fear, Personal Growth & Change

Old fears and bad habits you thought you conquered have a way of coming back. Armand DiMele and Linda Vanella, LCSW-R, explore why hard-won mental health gains can expire, from the AA concept of the “pink cloud” to the brain’s drive to keep aging people alert through worry, arguing that avoidance, not cure, is usually what we mistake for progress.

The Positive Side of Rebellion September 21, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Alex, Lauren Sykes, Linda Vanella, Ramey
Category: Family & Parenting, Personal Growth & Change

Rebellion is not a problem to suppress but a developmental skill to celebrate. Armand DiMele argues that children who push back against parents are building the same muscle they need to resist dominating peers and dangerous strangers. Linda Vanella, LCSW-R, shares how raising four children taught her to read defiance as a bid for independence, and callers add vivid stories of rebellion, loss, and trust.

The Shelf Life of Mental Health September 20, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Lauren Sykes, Linda Vanella
Category: Aging & Mortality, Personal Growth & Change

Why do problems we thought we solved come back? Armand DiMele and Linda Vanella, LCSW-R, examine why hard-won psychological gains fade over time, from the AA concept of the pink cloud to the body’s biological drive to reactivate old fears as we age. Callers share their own experiences of recurring fears and family estrangement.

How Family Secrets Scar Us August 17, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Lauren Sykes, Linda Vanella
Category: Family & Parenting, Identity & The Self

Family secrets don’t just hide the truth, they divide families, freeze emotional development, and corrode trust for generations. Armand DiMele and Linda Vanella, LCSW-R, walk through four ways secrets damage families and offer practical guidance on breaking destructive triangles, with callers sharing their own experiences.

The Many Ways We Ignore and Get Ignored August 16, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Lauren Sykes, Linda Vanella
Category: Communication & Conflict, Emotions & Inner Life

Being ignored can wound, protect, or punish depending on who is doing it and why. Armand DiMele traces the impulse from passive aggression and childhood family dynamics to the shame many women feel at puberty, drawing on observations from Linda Vanella, LCSW-R, and calls from listeners navigating neglect in their own relationships.

The Instinct to Protect August 10, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Joseph, Linda Vanella, Lynn, Tom Bond, Yvonne
Category: Anxiety & Fear, Emotions & Inner Life

Protecting others often masks an inability to protect ourselves. Armand DiMele and Linda Vanella, LCSW-R, unpack the Enneagram’s three instinctual drives (self-preservation, social, and sexual) as frameworks for understanding why we over-give, and callers share vivid stories of caretaking that costs them.

The Psychology of Risk Taking July 20, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Kent Robertshaw, Linda Vanella
Category: Anxiety & Fear, Personal Growth & Change

Why do some people seek danger while others avoid any uncertainty? Armand DiMele and Linda Vanella, LCSW-R, examine how risk perception forms in infancy, shapes adult behavior, and shifts with age. They trace the brain chemistry of thrill-seeking, the trap of compulsive avoidance, and why the mind is often the biggest obstacle to living freely.

How Emotions Change With Age July 12, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Linda Vanella
Category: Aging & Mortality, Depression & Mood

Serotonin may not cause depression after all. Armand DiMele and Linda Vanella, LCSW-R, dig into why the serotonin hypothesis is crumbling and why neurogenesis, the growth of new brain cells, may better explain how mood shifts with age and how exercise, learning, and enriched environments can counter decline.

Aging Well and Staying Independent July 6, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Dr. Bernard Starr, Linda Vanella
Category: Aging & Mortality, Depression & Mood

Most older adults are not depressed, not dependent, and not eager to move in with their children. Dr. Bernard Starr, PhD, Psychologist, joins Armand to dismantle those myths with research, and Linda Vanella, LCSW-R, weighs in on seniors who self-isolate. Hidden alcohol abuse, the loneliness of widowhood, and a bold proposal to tap elder wisdom in education all get airtime.

Dependency and Autonomy July 5, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Linda Vanella
Category: Addiction & Compulsion, Identity & The Self

What is the real opposite of dependency? Armand DiMele argues it is autonomy, not independence, then unpacks the dependent personality with Linda Vanella, LCSW-R. The episode covers how dependency forms, how it fuels serial relationships and narcissistic dynamics, and why genuine autonomy must be a conscious choice rather than a reaction to fear.