#811 Medical Trauma - Dr. James Jackson#811 Medical Trauma - Dr. James Jackson
Mental Illness Happy Hour
Dr James Jackson talks with Paul Gilmartin about OCD, medical trauma, long COVID and the role of ACT and ERP in finding a way forward. The episode also features Brett and Sherry reading intense listener surveys about abuse, shame and the fight to feel worthy of love.
1:38:12•31 Jul 2026
Facing Medical Trauma and OCD with Dr James Jackson
Episode Overview
- Accepting OCD and treating it as something to coexist with can reduce its intensity more effectively than trying to force it away.
- Exposure and response prevention (ERP) combined with ACT can help people face feared thoughts and situations safely.
- Medical trauma includes critical illness, chronic conditions, surgeries, birth trauma and the emotional toll on families.
- Curious, compassionate healthcare – rather than dismissal or "it’s just anxiety" – is crucial for traumatised patients.
- Honest support from loved ones, therapists and peer groups can make living with mental illness and trauma far more manageable.
“Medical trauma is really difficult, to be sure, and you can live a beautiful life with medical trauma.”
Curious about how others navigate their sobriety journey and broader mental health struggles? This conversation between host Paul Gilmartin and psychologist Dr James Jackson offers a frank look at medical trauma, OCD, and the messy reality of staying afloat when your brain feels like it’s turned against you. Dr Jackson, a neuropsychologist and professor of medicine and psychiatry, opens up about growing up in a conservative community and the sudden onset of violent, unwanted thoughts in his teens.
He later recognises these as OCD, and talks candidly about how shame and secrecy kept him from seeking proper help for decades. You’ll hear how exposure and response prevention (ERP) and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) helped him stop trying to "rip the weed out" and instead learn to coexist with OCD: treating it like "an unwanted house guest" rather than something to be eradicated.
The heart of the episode centres on medical trauma: intensive care stays, chronic illnesses, long COVID, frightening surgeries, birth trauma, invalidating exams and the emotional impact on families. Dr Jackson stresses that mental illness itself can be traumatic, and that support which is honest but kind can make the difference between staying stuck and moving forward. He also calls out medical gaslighting and the harm of "it’s just anxiety", arguing for curiosity and compassion from clinicians.
Paul threads in his own struggles with depression and burnout, explaining why he’s temporarily stepped back from reading the show’s heavy anonymous surveys. To share the load, support-group members Brett and Sherry read and comment on listener surveys, bringing raw honesty about abusive relationships, fetish shame, intrusive thoughts and the search for self-worth.
If you’ve ever felt broken by illness, stigma or the weight of your own thoughts, this episode keeps reminding you: you can hurt deeply and still build something beautiful from your life. What small step towards support or honesty could you take today?
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