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In this episode, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and Clinical Psychologist Dr Ruth Schmidt Neven talks with Dr. Sami Timimi. Dr. Timimi is a UK based child and adolescent psychiatrist and psychotherapist who has been a longstanding critic of the medicalisation of childhood and the pathologising of the behaviour of children and adolescents through diagnostic categories such as ADHD. In his latest book Searching for Normal: A new approach to understanding mental health, distress and neurodiversity Dr. Timimi argues that most of what we’ve been told about mental health diagnoses simply is untrue and leads to harming our children, our culture and ourselves. Through his meticulous examination of the apparent ‘scientific’ underpinnings of diagnoses such as ADHD, Dr. Timimi conveys the truth of the lack of proper scientific evidence for this discrete condition amongst others. Dr. Timimi’s deeply humane approach exposes what he describes as the Mental Health Industrial Complex that turns human suffering into profit and the fuelling of a billion-dollar drug industry. Dr. Timimi asserts the rightful place of a developmentally informed, relational, meaning making approach that treats people – not diagnoses and that reclaims emotional life from biomedical and bureaucratic control.

In this episode, Dr. Ruth Schmidt Neven talks to Vannie Ip-Winfield, a Registered Music Therapist and Vice-President of the Music and Imagery Association of Australia. Originally trained in classical piano, Vannie has used her skills in music therapy and psychotherapy for over 20 years in a wide range of settings, including an Early Parenting Unit, part of an Allied Health Team, in adult psychiatry and in aged care. Ip-Winfield, V, Grocke, D. (2021). Virtual Group Music and Imagery (Grp MI) with healthcare staff during the COVID-19 pandemic in Melbourne. Australian Journal of Music Therapy, 32 (1), 97-111 Shoemark, Helen. (2017). Time Together: A Feasible Program to Promote parent-infant Interaction in the NICU. Music Therapy Perspectives. 36. 10.1093/mtp/mix004.

In this episode, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and Clinical Psychologist Dr Ruth Schmidt Neven talks with Dr. Maria Papadima and Catherine Campbell. Maria and Catherine are both UK-based child and adolescent psychotherapists who have developed a successful time-limited model of working with adolescents and their parents in an NHS adolescent crisis team. Their time-limited model considers a crisis as a developmental opportunity that underlies the centrality of parent involvement as part of the therapeutic endeavour. Their paper in the Journal of Child Psychotherapy describing their pilot study is listed as one of the top ten read papers in the Journal and gives hope to professionals working in this challenging field. Papadima, M. Campbell C. et al. Brief Psychodynamic psychotherapy for adolescents and their families in crisis: A pilot study. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0075417X.2024.2414736 Psychoanalytic Crisis Work with Adolescents: An Independent Approach (In Press) https://www.routledge.com/Adolescence-in-Crisis-An-Independent-Psychoanalytic-Approach-to-Adolescent-Mental-Health/Papadima-Acheson-Tzikas/p/book/9781032972237 Acheson, R. & Papadima, M. (2023). The search for identity: Working therapeutically with adolescents in crisis. Journal of Child Psychotherapy, 49(1), 95-119.

In this episode, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and Clinical Psychologist Dr Ruth Schmidt Neven talks to Rhonda Galbally. They discuss her hugely distinguished career as a tireless advocate for disability reform, starting from her own personal experience and including her roles as a disability Royal Commissioner and on the Board of the Disability Insurance Scheme. Rhonda has also been at the forefront of reform with respect to health, welfare and mental health through the development of the Health Issues Centre, as the inaugural chief executive of the Victorian Health Promotion Foundation and as a Ministerial Adviser. The official DRC website DRC Volume 7 online: https://disability.royalcommission.gov.au/publications/final-report-volume-7-inclusive-education-employment-and-housing Recommendations and summary PDF link: https://disability.royalcommission.gov.au/system/files/2023-09/Final%20Report%20-%20Volume%207%2C%20Inclusive%20education%2C%20employment%20and%20housing%20-%20Summary%20and%20recommendations.pdf Education: https://disability.royalcommission.gov.au/system/files/2023-09/Final%20Report%20-%20Volume%207%2C%20Inclusive%20education%2C%20employment%20and%20housing%20-%20Part%20A.pdf All Means All website: https://allmeansall.org.au/

In this episode Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and Clinical Psychologist Dr Ruth Schmidt Neven talks to Dr. Matthew Roberts. Dr. Roberts is a Melbourne based psychiatrist and psychotherapist clinical teacher and writer, and in this episode, he dives deeper into his extensive experience in perinatal mental health, his trauma informed clinical practice, and his father-inclusive work as one of the founders of the Australian Fatherhood Research Consortium. Dr. Roberts has distilled his learning and clinical experience into a model called CRESTING that stands for Collaborative, Relational, Evolutionary, Somatic, Trauma-Informed Narrative Growth. Australian Fatherhood Research Consortium: http://mappresearch.org/fatherhood-consortium Richard Fletcher, The Dad Factor: https://books.google.com.au/books?id=buVOYgEACAAJ&source=gbs_book_other_versions Bruce Ecker et al, Unlocking The Emotional Brain: https://www.google.com.au/books/edition/Unlocking_the_Emotional_Brain/wSxcEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 Bessel van der Kolk The Body Keeps The Score: https://books.google.com.au/books/about/The_Body_Keeps_the_Score.html?id=NKOOEAAAQBAJ&source=kp_book_description&redir_esc=y Daniel Stern The Interpersonal World of the Infant: https://www.google.com.au/books/edition/The_Interpersonal_World_of_the_Infant/MUtWDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 Donald Winnicott Playing and Reality: https://www.google.com.au/books/edition/Playing_and_Reality/JHMdZC08HhcC?hl=en&gbpv=0 For Bowlby, Jeremy Holmes John Bowlby and Attachment Theory: https://www.google.com.au/books/edition/John_Bowlby_and_Attachment_Theory/30HFBQAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 Dr. Roberts' clinical science communication and social commentary blog: www.mydoctorshandwriting.com Dr. Roberts' psychotherapy, arts and culture blog: www.thenormalgrownup.com Dr. Roberts' solitary original sole author paper: https://www.racgp.org.au/afp/2016/august/there-from-the-start-men-and-pregnancy

In this episode, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and Clinical Psychologist Dr Ruth Schmidt Neven talks with Dr. Jenifer Wakelyn child and adolescent psychotherapist, author and researcher in the UK. She is the founder of the innovative program Watch me Play! This is an intervention for caregivers and their babies and young children that with the support of a practitioner aims to enhance child development and caregiver relationships by promoting thoughtful individual attention and age-appropriate stimulation. The Watch me Play approach has been manualised and is disseminated across the UK and internationally. References: watchmeplay.info Book chapter: Wakelyn, J. (2019) ‘Developing an intervention for infants and young children in care: Watch Me Play!’ In: Supporting Vulnerable Babies and Young Children, edited by Wendy Bunston and Sarah Jones (Jessica Kingsley). Book: Wakelyn, J. (2020) Therapeutic Approaches with Babies and Young Children in Care: Observation and Attention (Karnac/Routledge). ISBN 978-1-782-20438-1 Recent paper: Wakelyn, J. (2025) Psychoanalytic aspects of the Watch Me Play! approach: the psychic energy of attention, Infant Observation, DOI:10.1080/13698036.2025.2471778

Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and Clinical Psychologist Dr Ruth Schmidt Neven talks with Meena Singh, Commissioner for Aboriginal Children and Young People in Victoria. Meena is a Yorta Yorta and Indian woman, born, raised and living on the land of the Kulin Nations. Meena commenced her legal career with Victoria Legal Aid where she practiced in human rights and criminal law and was the inaugural Asssociate Director Aboriginal Services. She has led legal services and programs at the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service and the Human Rights Law Centre as well as consulting in training and organisational development.   www.acfd.com.au www.centreforchildandfamily.com

In this episode, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and Clinical Psychologist Dr Ruth Schmidt Neven talks with Dr. Fiona Zandt. Dr. Zandt is a clinical psychologist and play therapist who works with children with a wide range of emotional, social and behavioural challenges and their families. Fiona has authored the acclaimed Creative Way series for therapists and runs creative child therapy workshops for professionals. www.acfd.com.au www.centreforchildandfamily.com

In this episode, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and Clinical Psychologist Dr Ruth Schmidt Neven talks to Liana Buchanan, Principal Commissioner for Children and Young People for the State of Victoria. Liana is also part-time Commissioner of the Victorian Law Reform Commission. She has a background in oversight and system reform for people experiencing disadvantage and those affected by family and sexual violence and abuse. www.acfd.com.au www.centreforchildandfamily.com

In this episode, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and Clinical Psychologist Dr Ruth Schmidt Neven talks to Dr Catherine Page Jeffery, lecturer in Media and Communications at the University of Sydney. Her current research addresses digital media and families with a particular focus on parenting in the digital age and its accompanying anxieties. She is the author of a new book Parenting in a Digital World Beyond Media Panics: Towards a new theory of parental mediation, published by Routledge. www.acfd.com.au www.centreforchildandfamily.com

In this podcast, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and Clinical Psychologist Dr. Ruth Schmidt Neven talks with Dr. Catherine Olweny. Catherine is a specialist paediatric anaesthetist who in the course of her work, is aware of the high levels of stress and anxiety experienced by children having surgery and other medical interventions. She has taken the unusual path in addition to her specialist medical work, of training in clinical hypnosis and therapeutic child play. Dr. Olweny is also the key area lead in promoting trauma-informed preventive care in the tertiary hospital setting, which includes both practitioners and patients.   www.acfd.com.au www.centreforchildandfamily.com

In this podcast episode, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and Clinical Psychologist Dr. Ruth Schmidt Neven talks with Dr. Judith Edwards about her recently published book Grandmotherland. A far cry from conventional ideas of how to be a grandmother, Judith explores the challenges and risks of this important phase of the family life cycle. Judith has published extensively in the field, and she has a particular interest in the links between psychoanalysis, culture and the arts and making these ideas accessible to a wider audience. References:  www.acfd.com.au www.centreforchildandfamily.com

In this podcast episode, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and Clinical Psychologist Dr. Ruth Schmidt Neven talks with Journalist Virginia Tapscott who has written extensively about the undervaluing of mothering and the devaluation of caregiving in general. Virginia is based in country New South Wales. She has four children, and her writing and reporting have ranged from agricultural issues to gender equality, what children need for healthy development and the impact of sexual abuse.   References:  www.acfd.com.au www.centreforchildandfamily.com

In this podcast episode, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and Clinical Psychologist Dr. Ruth Schmidt Neven talks with Dr. Jon Jureidini, Child Psychiatrist and Head of Psychological Medicine at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Adelaide. Dr. Jureidini also heads the Critical and Ethical Mental Health Research Group at the University of Adelaide. He explains the problems associated with pathologising all things emotional in our world, and how we need to attend to the social determinants of mental health in the community. Talking Child Development is brought to you by the Association of Child and Family Development. References:  www.acfd.com.au www.centreforchildandfamily.com

In this podcast episode, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and Clinical Psychologist Dr. Ruth Schmidt Neven talks with School Psychologist Brydie Huggins about the current problem of school refusal or ‘school can’t’. Brydie has worked across the developmental spectrum from kindergarten to year 12 in public and private school settings. Talking Child Development is brought to you by the Association of Child and Family Development. References:  www.acfd.com.au www.centreforchildandfamily.com