Nexus Family Healing
Restoring Hope. Reshaping Futures.
A podcast featuring honest, candid conversations about family and mental health
In This Family, a new podcast hosted by Dr. Michelle K. Murray, President/CEO of Nexus Family Healing and licensed marriage and family therapist, explores the impact of mental health within families through honest, candid conversations. The podcast features public and private figures sharing raw, relatable stories about mental health challenges and triumphs. The series highlights how mental health affects the entire family—and how resilience and courage can lead to healing.
If you or a loved one is struggling, help is available. Please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-8255, or text HOME to the Crisis Text Line at 741741.
Newspaper columnist and community leader Ka Vang reflects on surviving war and displacement as a Hmong refugee and the lasting mental health impacts on her family. She shares how generational trauma continues to echo today, as immigration enforcement actions in Minnesota trigger fear and flashbacks within the Hmong community.
After the loss of both her parents, author and artist Tracey Yokas found herself supporting her daughter through grief that developed into an eating disorder and self-harm, all while navigating her own mental health challenges. In this episode, Tracey reflects on parenting through crisis, examining how her own childhood experiences shaped her family dynamics, and the long, complex path toward healing and understanding across generations.
Comedian, writer, and podcast host Ophira Eisenberg joins us to explore generational trauma, hypervigilance, and resilience. Reflecting on her upbringing in a family shaped by unaddressed war-related trauma, she shares how anxiety and anger carried into her own life and parenting — and how she’s learning to face difficult emotions with honesty, humor, and a commitment to keep moving forward.
Acclaimed writer and university professor Jason Tougaw finds time to reflect on a chaotic childhood marked by instability, inherited family myths, and the search for identity in a time when being gay felt unsafe. In conversation, he shares how paying close attention to the patterns he didn’t want to repeat—and finding unexpected sources of healing—helped him build a calmer, more intentional life as an adult.
NPR’s Peter Sagal joins Dr. Michelle K. Murray for a candid conversation about mental health, family history, and personal growth. Known for his humor on Wait Wait... Don’t Tell Me, Peter shares his experience with undiagnosed ADHD, anxiety, and depression, and how reflection and therapy helped him break unhealthy patterns and build stronger family connections.
In this special episode, Dr. Michelle K. Murray offers some practical advice on taking care of yourself and your loved ones during these tumultuous events. She discusses creating a safety plan, setting healthy boundaries, and staying grounded in your values. A short, compassionate guide to help families navigate uncertainty together.
Rapper, singer, and author Dessa shares how she faced big feelings as an adolescent and how she got the help she needed when she needed it. Dessa tells us how family support and a curiosity about health and medicine have served her well.
Actor and writer Bill Corbett shares an honest look at his journey with anxiety, addiction, and recovery, reflecting on how growing up without conversations about mental health shaped his life. He opens up about his breakdown in New York City, his path to sobriety, and the work it took to regain balance.
Author and professor Clancy Martin tells Dr. Michelle K. Murray about what a lifetime of trying to die feels like, about his own complex family, and how just in the last few years he has managed to finally lose that urge to make the worst decision one can make.
Family gatherings during the holidays are a time of connection and joy. They can also be a cause of anxiety or lead to triggering situations. In this special holiday episode of In This Family, Dr. Michelle K. Murray provides practical tips on thriving or maybe just surviving family events.
Sarah LaBrie reflects on growing up with a mother living with severe mental illness, including psychosis and schizophrenia, and the impact it had on her life. Supported by her grandmother and aunt, Sarah navigated childhood instability, complex family relationships, and the long-term effects of trauma.
Comedian and author Maria Bamford reflects on growing up with loving parents who did their best to support her through bipolar II, OCD, and intrusive thoughts—despite not having the mental health awareness we have today. Maria shares how their compassion, humor, and willingness to adapt shaped her life and continues to influence her work, including the way she lovingly (and hilariously) portrays them in her comedy.
