Balance your Brain
Love, dating, and relationships with James Christensen LMFT.
39. Alex Vs A-Rod
Professional baseball player Alex Rodriguez credits Dr. David Schnarch with having saved his life. In this episode, James Christensen and Catherine Roebuck talk about episode 3 of the HBO documentary Alex vs. A-Rod,…
38. Is there ever a good reason to yell at your kids?
James and Catherine discuss why yelling at kids is harmful, except in rare moments of immediate danger, and how parents teach far more through their example than through punishment or harshness. They explore…
37. Taking Off the Mask in Your Marriage
IN THIS EPISODE: Why revealing the messy stuff in your mind builds trust — but only when paired with responsibility and thoughtfulness about timing and impact The case for telling your partner about an affair: the…
Healing Trauma with Catherine Roebuck
Don’t be a Doormat
A conversation between James Christensen and . Catherine: We were talking the other day about pathological demand avoidance — with neurodivergent clients and their partners — and you offered a different term that I…
Loving on Purpose: A Conversation with Catherine Roebuck
James: Loving from the heart and loving unilaterally is fundamentally an adult task, not a childhood task. Catherine: When you first told me that, my reaction was, "Well, I know kids can love—I felt a lot of love as…
33. Relational Life Therapy with Audrey Schoen
joins me to talk about Terry Real’s Relational Life Therapy Transcript: James: My guest today is Audrey Schoen. Audrey is a relational life therapist. I'm a crucible therapist. And relational life therapy (RLT) and…
32. How I run my couples therapy practice in Roseville, California.
I recorded this interview at Salem Media in Sacramento. Matt: On today's show, we have James Christensen with Roseville Couples Counseling. He provides therapy for couples—husbands and wives, marriage counseling.1 So…
31. How to Rebuild Trust after Infidelity
Transcript: If you recently found out that your partner has cheated on you, this video is for you. I'm going to talk about the three components of rebuilding trust after infidelity, and I think of these as three legs…
30. A Therapist’s Escape from Narcissism
Transcript: About three years ago, I began to accept that I was unusually narcissistic. I say it that way on purpose because I don't like to use the term "you're a narcissist" or "you're not a narcissist."…
29. The Buddhist Approach to Attachment Panic
Catherine Roebuck joins me to discuss Chapter 2 of Bruce Tift’s book “Already Free.” James Christensen: Catherine Roebuck: Listen to Balance Your Brain Podcast on Spotify: Listen to Balance Your Brain Podcast on…
28. Why you Don’t Feel Safe Transcript
joins me to discuss Chapter 1 of Bruce Tift’s book “Already Free.” Transcript James: Let's start with a quote from Already Free by Bruce Tiff. "Most of us are, in a variety of ways, living in the present as if it…
27. Powerful Parenting with Aron and Kristin
Kristin Areglado Hurley: Aron Carlson: Parenting Workshop: Transcript: James: My guests today are Aron Carlson and Kristen Alado Hurley, and they're here to talk about a parenting workshop that they have been…
26. Crucible Therapy with Dr. Dave Jenkins.
James Christensen: Transcript: James: I was wondering if you'd be willing to tell me some of your memories of Dr. Schnarch. What first impressed you about him and what your relationship with him was like? Dave:…
25. Making Moves in your Marriage with Jackie Aston
Jackie Aston: James Christensen: Jackie Aston is a licensed psychotherapist with over a decade of experience working with individuals and couples in Washington, DC, and Maryland, as well as coaching clients…
24. Calm the heck down with Dan Purcell
Dan Purcell: James Christensen: About Dan Purcell: Dan and his wife Emily Purcell are the founders of Get Your Marriage On! They are on a mission to help millions of couples overcome obstacles to significantly…
23. Introduction to Crucible Therapy with Catherine Roebuck
James Christensen: Catherine Roebuck: Transcript James: Why is this called Crucible therapy? Catherine Roebuck: The crucible metaphor comes from metalworking. A crucible is a heat-proof container that you can put…
22. Healthy Male Sexuality with Heather Matthews
Healthy Male Sexuality with and Transcript Heather Matthews: I'm really passionate about this idea around men and shame around their sexuality. I work with a lot of men in my practice, which I really enjoy, and some…
21. Regression and Revisualization
joins to talk about dealing with parental blindness Transcript James: Let's just start with what regression is. Regression is a reduced state of brain performance. How would you define it? Catherine: I think the more…
20. Parental Blindness
joins me to talk about parental blindness and how to fix it. Transcript Catherine: One of the things that some of my clients are reluctant to talk about is their parents. One of the reasons people can be wary of…
19. Moving from Anxious Attachment to Secure Attachment
lays out how to create secure attachment with yourself and with your partner. Full Transcript James: I had to pause because you were way more fun before we started recording. Catherine: I feel like I'm too much when…
18. Getting Clear on your Parents
James: I had a new client come in last week with his partner, his fiance. He's a very ambitious, very performance-oriented person. And he was super set on fixing this fast. What I told him is, "I share your mindset.…
17. Improve Your Functioning Transcript
Transcript James: So if I improved my functioning significantly, how would, you know? So like, say you and I meet up a year from now and you're like, wow, James, your functioning is way up. But what would tell you…
16. Infidelity: The Coldplay Affair Transcript
James Christensen: Catherine Roebuck: Transcript James: What is your advice for the spouses of the people from the Coldplay concert who were caught cheating? Catherine: One of the most difficult parts of being…
15: Courageous Love
This conversation between James Christensen and Catherine Roebuck was recorded on July 22, 2025. Full Transcript: Catherine: The thing I was thinking about is that mature love is courageous love. That's the only kind…
14: Live your Way to a Better Marriage Transcript:
Dr. Corey Allan from joins me for real talk about marriage and relationships. Transcript: James Christensen, LMFT: My guest today is Dr. Corey Allan from Sexy Marriage Radio. My first question for you, Corey, is…
13: The Power of Authenticity
James Christensen: Steve Thatcher: Book: Models by Mark Manson Listen to Balance Your Brain on Spotify: Listen to Balance Your Brain on Apple Podcasts: Listen to Balance Your Brain on RSS:
12: Narcissism 101
Why Calling Someone a “Narcissist” Misses the Point Most people talk about narcissism only when they want to vent frustration. The speaker points out the irony: judging someone as narcissistic is often hypocritical,…
Episode 11: Right Brain Relationship
Listen on Spotify: Listen on Apple Podcasts: In this episode, and team up to talk about how your right brain can save your relationship. Have you ever listened to David Foster Wallace's commencement speech "This Is…
Episode 10: Non-Violent Communication for Couples With Daniel Robertson
joins me to talk about nonviolent communication in relationships. Nonviolent Communication (NVC) is a communication model developed by Marshall Rosenberg in the 1960s. It focuses on fostering empathy, compassion, and…
Episode 9: Left Brain and Right Brain
joins for a discussion of how to balance your brain. Key points: The left brain is a simplistic problem-solver with a narrow focus. It doesn’t understand people, it ignores context, and it constantly makes things up.…
Episode 8: Becoming More Alive
In this episode, James Christensen and Catherine Roebuck explore what it means to truly come alive. They dive into how you can break free from childhood habits and internal restrictions that once held you back from…
Episode 7: Relationship Communication
1\. Hit the Pause Button (10 Seconds or 10 Minutes) Before reacting to your partner, take a beat. There's magic in a well-timed pause. I like to think of two types: The 10-Second Pause: This is your quick breather.…
Episode 6: Parenting
10 parenting tips from James Christensen
Episode 5: Infidelity
James Christensen: Catherine Roebuck: https://catroebuck.com 00:32 - The impact of infidelity on trust 01:13 - Mind blindness and its roots in childhood 01:46 - Infidelity as a symptom,…
Episode 4: How to Heal your Brain with Catherine Roebuck
In this episode I’m talking to relationship coach Catherine Roebuck about Dr David Schnarch’s last book, Living at the Bottom of the Ocean. The book available as a free PDF download: Catherine’s site: My site:…
Episode 3: Chad Fraga on Relationship Growth
Transcript: Welcome to episode three of the James Christians podcast. That's me. I'm James, I'm here with my friend Chad Fraga. Say hi, Chad. Hey. Hey. How we doing? Uh, Chad and I are both therapists and we love to…
Episode 2: Collaborative Conflict in Relationships
In this episode I join to talk Collaborative conflict in relationships Transcript: So Chad, why don't you read the vignette and then let's talk about what we think about the situation. So yeah. Am I the asshole for…
Episode 1: Sadism in Relationships with Chad Fraga LMFT
In this episode I join to talk about sadism in relationships James: So culturally, we think, oh, sadistic behavior is rare. It's like this outlier, like there's a small percentage of the population that is routinely…