High-Functioning Depression w/ Research Psychiatrist Dr. Judith Joseph

Therapy in a Nutshell

Therapy in a Nutshell -Emma McAdam

Mental Health, Health & Fitness, Education, Health & Fitness:mental Health, Self-improvement

4.8 • 657 Ratings

🗓️ 13 January 2026

⏱️ 26 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

High Functioning Depression looks like coping with depression by keeping busy and distracting yourself with overwork. Learn 5 ways to overcome depression in this interview w/ Dr. Judith Joseph Learn the skills to regulate your Emotions, join the membership: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com/membership Learn more about Dr. Judith's work and book: https://drjudithjoseph.com/ https://highfunctioningbook.com/ In this conversation, Dr. Judith Joseph discusses high functioning depression, a condition where individuals appear to be functioning well on the outside while struggling internally. She emphasizes the importance of recognizing and addressing this hidden depression proactively rather than waiting for a crisis. Dr. Joseph introduces her framework of the Five V's—Validation, Venting, Values, Vitals, and Vision—as a way to help individuals reclaim their joy and improve their mental health. The discussion also touches on the significance of understanding personal happiness and making small, actionable changes to enhance well-being. Looking for affordable online counseling? My sponsor, BetterHelp, connects you to a licensed professional from the comfort of your own home. Try it now for 10% off your first month: https://betterhelp.com/therapyinanutshell Learn more in one of my in-depth mental health courses: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com Support my mission on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/therapyinanutshell Sign up for my newsletter: https://www.therapyinanutshell.com Check out my favorite self-help books: https://kit.co/TherapyinaNutshell/best-self-help-books Therapy in a Nutshell and the information provided by Emma McAdam are solely intended for informational and entertainment purposes and are not a substitute for advice, diagnosis, or treatment regarding medical or mental health conditions. Although Emma McAdam is a licensed marriage and family therapist, the views expressed on this site or any related content should not be taken for medical or psychiatric advice. Always consult your physician before making any decisions related to your physical or mental health. In therapy I use a combination of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Systems Theory, positive psychology, and a bio-psycho-social approach to treating mental illness and other challenges we all face in life. The ideas from my videos are frequently adapted from multiple sources. Many of them come from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, especially the work of Steven Hayes, Jason Luoma, and Russ Harris. The sections on stress and the mind-body connection derive from the work of Stephen Porges (the Polyvagal theory), Peter Levine (Somatic Experiencing) Francine Shapiro (EMDR), and Bessel Van Der Kolk. I also rely heavily on the work of the Arbinger Institute for my overall understanding of our ability to choose our life's direction. And deeper than all of that, the Gospel of Jesus Christ orients my personal worldview and sense of security, peace, hope, and love https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/comeuntochrist/believe If you are in crisis, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org or 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or your local emergency services. Copyright Therapy in a Nutshell, LLC

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome back to another episode of the Therapy in a Nutshell podcast. I'm Emma McAdam and I'm a licensed marriage and family therapist.
0:07.0	And this podcast is all about taking the life-changing, but usually kind of complicated topics of therapy and boiling them down into simple, easy to understand concepts that you can use in your daily life.
0:19.0	If you find today's episode as helpful to you,
0:20.9	please pass it on to someone else who could benefit from it as well. Each podcast episode
0:24.9	comes from a corresponding video you can find on the Therapy in a Nutshell YouTube channel.
0:29.2	Also, these podcasts are educational and don't replace the advice or direction you may be
0:33.7	receiving from a therapist or other health professionals. Now please enjoy the episode.
0:39.0	Today I'm so excited to introduce our amazing guest. It's Dr. Judith Joseph. She's a psychiatrist
0:44.0	who works in a lab in New York City. She works and tests various treatments for various conditions
0:49.3	all the time. She's a working psychiatrist and has amazing expertise in so many areas. But today we're
0:55.4	going to be talking about high functioning depression. And she recently wrote a book on this.
1:00.0	That's like a bestseller. We're going to be talking about when your coping mechanism for
1:06.1	depression is overfunctioning and why that leaves you feeling numb, empty, or without joy or happiness
1:13.2	in your life. And then, of course, what to do about it? Really excited about this interview.
1:17.7	Let's jump in. Well, Dr. Judith Joseph, thank you so much for being here. I'm really looking
1:22.5	forward to talking with you again. Yeah, it's so great to see you. Thanks for having me.
1:26.8	Yeah, and I'm so excited to talk about this topic that
1:30.1	you're such an expert in high functioning depression. Yeah, what is high functioning depression?
1:34.9	Well, clinical depression is what we mostly know about, right? It's when someone has all these
1:39.7	symptoms of depression like low mood and hedonia, which is a lack of joy and interest and pleasure
1:46.1	and things that really excite you.
1:48.5	And other symptoms like changes in how much you're eating, if you're eating too much, too little,
	...

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