Session 419: ICYMI | Some Thoughts On Playing Small
Therapy for Black Girls
iHeartPodcasts and Joy Harden Bradford, Ph.D.
4.8 • 5.7K Ratings
🗓️ 9 July 2025
⏱️ 8 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Today, we’re throwing it back to Session 321 — Some Thoughts On Playing Small.
This quick episode was inspired by a line from Issa Dee, the beloved character played by Issa Rae in Insecure: “How much different would your life be if you actually went after what you wanted?” It’s a question that feels especially relevant now as we head into summer. The days are longer, the sun is out, and so many of us are ready to stretch, grow, and shine a little brighter. So, what would it look like to stop shrinking and give yourself permission to take up more space, both at work and in your daily life, as well as in your relationships and dreams?
I hope this episode encourages you to reflect on where you might be playing small and how you can start showing up more fully for yourself.
About the Podcast
The Therapy for Black Girls Podcast is a weekly conversation with Dr. Joy Harden Bradford, a licensed Psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia, about all things mental health, personal development, and all the small decisions we can make to become the best possible versions of ourselves.
Resources & Announcements
Registration for the 2nd Annual Holding Space for Healers Therapist Summit is now open! Join us July 24–26, 2025 in Atlanta, GA for this one-of-a-kind event designed for Black mental health professionals, offering the tools, connections, and resources to grow your practice, strengthen your brand, and expand your impact in a meaningful way.Register for the summit here!
Did you know you can leave us a voice note with your questions for the podcast? If you have a question you'd like some feedback on, topics you'd like to hear covered, or want to suggest movies or books for us to review, drop us a message at memo.fm/therapyforblackgirls and let us know what’s on your mind. We just might share it on the podcast.
Grab your copy of Sisterhood Heals.
Stay Connected
Join us in over on Patreon where we're building community through our chats, connecting at Sunday Night Check-Ins, and soaking in the wisdom from exclusive series like Ask Dr. Joy and So, My Therapist Said.
Is there a topic you'd like covered on the podcast? Submit it at therapyforblackgirls.com/mailbox.
If you're looking for a therapist in your area, check out the directory at https://www.therapyforblackgirls.com/directory.
Grab your copy of our guided affirmation and other TBG Merch at therapyforblackgirls.com/shop.
The hashtag for the podcast is #TBGinSession.
Make sure to follow us on social media:
Twitter: @therapy4bgirls
Instagram: @therapyforblackgirls
Facebook: @therapyforblackgirls
Our Production Team
Executive Producers: Dennison Bradford & Maya Cole Howard
Director of Podcast & Digital Content: Ellice Ellis
Producers: Tyree Rush & Ndeye Thioubou
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Welcome to the Therapy for Black Girls podcast, a weekly conversation about mental health, personal development, and all the small decisions we can make to become the best possible versions of ourselves. |
| 0:23.8 | I'm your host, Dr. Joy Harden Bradford, a licensed psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia. |
| 0:29.9 | For more information or to find a therapist in your area, visit our website at Therapy for Blackgirls.com. While I hope you love listening to |
| 0:40.4 | and learning from the podcast, it is not meant to be a substitute for a relationship with a licensed |
| 0:47.1 | mental health professional. Hey, y'all. |
| 0:56.7 | Thanks so much for joining me for a fan favorite episode of The Therapy for Black |
| 1:00.4 | Girls podcast. |
| 1:01.6 | We'll get into today's reflections right after a quick word from our sponsors. |
| 1:09.6 | This is an I-Heart podcast. |
| 1:18.2 | Today we're throwing it back to session 321, some thoughts on playing small. |
| 1:23.2 | This quick episode was inspired by a line from Issa D, the beloved character played by Issa Ray in Insecure. |
| 1:30.4 | How much different would your life be if you actually went after what you wanted? |
| 1:35.4 | It's a question that feels especially relevant now as we head into summer. |
| 1:39.5 | And we have to give a shout out to Issa because she had bars like this throughout the entire season that were both |
| 1:44.7 | funny and relatable. The days are longer and the sun is out and so many of us are ready to stretch, |
| 1:50.8 | grow, and shine a little brighter. So what would it look like to stop shrinking and give yourself |
| 1:55.8 | permission to take up more space, both at work and in your daily life, as well as in your relationships and dreams. |
| 2:03.1 | I hope this episode encourages you to reflect on where you might be playing small and how |
| 2:07.6 | you can start showing up more fully for yourself. After you listen, I'd love to hear what comes up for |
| 2:12.9 | you. Let's get into it. |
| 2:24.0 | I've been wanting to experiment with shorter, more actionable field episodes for a minute. |
| 2:28.3 | So today is my first foray into what I'm right now calling. |
... |
Transcript will be available on the free plan in 22 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from iHeartPodcasts and Joy Harden Bradford, Ph.D., and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of iHeartPodcasts and Joy Harden Bradford, Ph.D. and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2025.