Recollected Self: Jaime Mahler on Breaking Toxic Cycles (Part 1)

<p dir="ltr">Today’s episode is sponsored by BetterHelp.</p> <p dir="ltr">Jaime Mahler, MS, LMHC, is a New York-based psychotherapist and mental health educator who recently published her book TOXIC RELATIONSHIP RECOVERY: Your Guide to Identifying Toxic Partners, Leaving Unhealthy Dynamics, and Healing Emotional Wounds After A Breakup.</p> <p dir="ltr">She’s also the powerhouse behind the explosively popular social media brand, Recollected. Her podcast, ‘Unlearned,’ helps people of all sexual orientations and genders to heal from relationship trauma, narcissism, and beyond…certainly a lot of the BS we find ourselves tackling on this podcast. </p> <p dir="ltr">But today, in episode one of this two-parter, we’re focusing somewhat on Mahler’s past, which involved growing up with a self-described “cult-like version of Catholicism.” She revists the types of shame and guilt she experienced within religious surroundings, despite their being a shade less extreme than others we’ve encountered on this show. Even Jaime’s OCD played a role in her religious fervor by tricking her brain into believing one is either purely good or purely evil—wholy faithful or 100% a sinner—eventually leading to semi-neurotic level praying on a daily basis. </p> <p dir="ltr">Ultimately, Jaime's odyssey of self-discovery and faith, coupled with her distinguished therapeutic training, makes her our favorite type of guest: a badass individual who has directly encountered some culty shit, complemented by a sophisticated educational background that not only helped her understand her own experiences, but those of others, too. </p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Find Recollected Self on social media: <a href= "https://www.facebook.com/recollectedselfrising/">Facebook</a>, <a href= "https://www.instagram.com/recollectedself/?hl=en">Instagram</a>, and <a href= "https://www.tiktok.com/@recollectedself?lang=en">TikTok</a>, or visit their <a href="https://recollectedself.com/">website</a></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Purchase Toxic Re