Welcome to Unstyled. I'm your host, Christine Barberick, co-founder and global editor-in-chief of Refinery 29.

Each week, I invite a notable person to come in and talk with us as we explore the funny, inspiring,

sometimes heartbreaking tales of life, work, and love, as told through the things that we wear.

Years ago, the New York-based psychiatrist Samantha Bordman had her own major wake-up call when one of her patients told her that she didn't enjoy going to their therapy sessions anymore. In fact,

she dreaded it. After a bit of prodding, Dr. Bordman came to find what her patient wasn't enjoying

was the fact that each of their sessions seemed to focus too heavily on her problems, what was wrong

in her life, and the things that never seemed to change. As a result, her patient left

their sessions feeling worse, not better. This was a shift for the Harvard trained psychiatrist.

Dr. Bordman realized most of her professional training had been about fixing or managing symptoms.

So she returned to school to study something called positive psychology, a practice that, in Dr. Bordman's words,

puts the focus on building what's strong, not just fixing what's wrong. She now refers to her

work as positive prescription, which is also the name of her website where those hungry for happiness

can find simple, affirming advice on optimizing daily life, and maximizing your mood, even scaling back stress.

Maybe most importantly, her philosophy isn't just giving platitudes about how great you are, though emphasizing your strengths is important.

It's providing fuel through creativity, a sense of well-being, and to a degree style that is very much your own.

This is actually a medical professional who understands the hardwired chemical connection between looking awesome and really feeling awesome.

She believes that building on the things that make you feel good is the key to success that so many doctors miss, just like she once did, but never again.

Hi, Samantha.

Hi.

Thank you so much for being a guest on Unstyle today.

Thank you for having me.

I'm so excited to be here.

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