back from the borderline Podcast By mollie adler cover art

back from the borderline

back from the borderline

By: mollie adler
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About this listen


I don’t want to talk to your personality; I want to talk to your soul. Imagine if your most painful and debilitating mental health symptoms and self-sabotaging behaviors aren’t evidence of 'disorder' or 'dysfunction', but adaptive strategies that once kept you safe. My goal is to help you shift from asking ‘What’s wrong with me?’ to ‘What happened to me?’


The word ‘borderline’ in this podcast has nothing to do with psychiatric labels. It has everything to do with coming back from the inner psychological brink we all experience.


Everyone has found themselves on the edge, in that liminal space where the old self falls apart and the new Self emerges. Here, we explore what it means to undergo true emotional alchemy: that ancient and primordial process of falling apart, confronting the underworld of our psyche, and falling back together into someone stronger, wiser, and more whole.


Many highly sensitive people who identify with the seemingly never-ending list of diagnostic mental health labels contained within ‘the bible of psychiatry’ (the DSM) share the same underlying sense of being irreparably broken, disconnected from their intuition, and paralyzed by life’s existential questions. I believe the resulting—and perfectly understandable—chronic feelings of emptiness and spiritual starvation are the TRUE causes of our current collective ‘mental health crisis.’


Together, we’ll dive into depth psychology, mythology, human consciousness, critical psychiatry, and the impact of trauma to help you begin the process of emotional alchemy. This exploration will help you get to the root cause of your suffering and free yourself from the toxic shame, limiting beliefs, and mental programming that have kept you locked in the chains of your past.


In an era where mental health and spirituality are too often commercialized, I’m not here as a guru with a quick fix to sell you. I don’t believe anyone is ever truly ‘healed’ or ‘cured.’ There is no return to some mythical state of pre-trauma purity, but rather a continuous spiral of unbecoming, unlearning, and transformation. As a fellow seeker, I will be there in your ear, walking alongside you on your path toward wholeness as a sort of parasocial big sister. That, I can promise.


By integrating the concepts we explore together, you’ll begin to see that anyone—even you—can come back from the borderline.


CRAVING MORE? Visit backfromtheborderline.com to dive into my universe, connect with me, access my Patreon, and discover more about my journey and work. Don’t forget to follow Back from the Borderline so new episodes on Tuesdays and Thursdays automatically drop into your podcast feed.

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mollie adler
Hygiene & Healthy Living Personal Development Personal Success Psychology Psychology & Mental Health Spirituality
Episodes
  • why psychiatry failed her: laura delano on misdiagnosis, medication, and coming back to life
    Jul 8 2025

    What is the cost of being a “good patient”? For Laura, it was nearly her life.


    Join me as I sit down with Laura Delano, author of the groundbreaking memoir Unshrunk: A Story of Psychiatric Treatment Resistance. A former “professional psychiatry patient” turned fierce advocate for psychiatric liberation, Laura brings her unique and deeply courageous voice to one of the most urgent conversations of our time.


    At age 14, Laura was diagnosed with bipolar disorder after a single psychiatric appointment. What followed was over a decade of misdiagnoses, institutionalization, and polypharmacy, where at one point she was on 19 different psychiatric drugs. Despite having access to the most elite doctors, hospitals, and treatment centers money could buy (including Harvard-affiliated psychiatrists and the prestigious McLean Hospital) Laura’s condition only worsened. Eventually, she was labeled “treatment-resistant” and attempted suicide. But she survived. And then… she walked away completely.


    In this episode, Laura and I explore:


    • The psychiatric pipeline: how people in distress are pathologized and medicated
    • The trauma of being misdiagnosed with borderline personality disorder
    • The dangers of polypharmacy and long-term psychiatric drug use
    • Why access to elite psychiatric care often makes things worse and not better
    • Her experience inside a “gold standard” BPD treatment program (and why she left it)
    • How reading her own psychiatric records exposed a disturbing split between what was said and what was written
    • What it means to reclaim your life after being medicalized
    • How Laura came to see her “symptoms” as signals pointing to a deeper need for freedom, meaning, and reconnection


    Whether you’ve been personally affected by psychiatric diagnoses and medications, or you’re beginning to question the stories we’ve been collectively told about mental health, this conversation will likely feel like a breath of fresh air. It challenges dominant narratives, honors the complexity of emotional pain, and points toward a different kind of path forward.


    CONNECT WITH LAURA:


    https://www.lauradelano.com/

    https://unshrunkthebook.com/

    https://www.theinnercompass.org/


    If you enjoy this episode, don’t forget to rate, review, and share the show. And for more resources, including my Critical Psychiatry booklist, visit BackFromTheBorderline.com.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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    2 hrs and 3 mins
  • the real reason you’re afraid of the devil (you’re possessed, and it looks nothing like the movies)
    Jul 3 2025

    This episode plunges into the most feared symbols in the Western imagination: Lilith, Lucifer, the Devil, the Serpent, and the Dragon, and asks what we’ve buried, projected, or misunderstood in our efforts to exile them. Even the mere mention of these names makes many people look away. We’ve been taught, almost reflexively, that these figures are dangerous, evil, or untouchable. But that reflex didn’t just happen, it was engineered.


    Across time, empires, churches, and ideological orders have taught us to fear the dark not because it is inherently harmful, but because it threatens structures built on binary control. This episode traces the historical roots of that programming and explores how these symbols, stripped of nuance, became scapegoats for archetypal forces that live within all of us. Sexual sovereignty, primal vitality, sacred temptation, and untamed knowledge. When we repress these forces, they don’t disappear, they warp. And it’s that very distortion that becomes the real source of harm from a personal, cultural and spiritual perspective.


    This episode is a sober attempt to bring a sense of maturity, complexity, and symbolic depth to things we’ve been told never to touch. Through myth, history, psychology, and cultural critique, we’ll uncover how our refusal to face the dark makes us more susceptible to possession by it. Not in a supernatural way, but through repression, denial, and disconnection.


    If you’ve ever sensed that your fear of “evil” might be masking something more nuanced, more human, and more initiatory, you’re one of the few who is actually ready for this conversation. It’s my hope that you’ll leave with a clearer sense of how archetypes influence behavior, how light and dark must be held in conscious balance, and how growing into true psychological adulthood requires the courage to face what once frightened you.


    ✧ WANT THE FULL EPISODE? ✧ Every other week, I release extended, premium episodes exclusively on Patreon. If you’ve found value in what you’ve heard so far, you can unlock the full version by visiting patreon.com/backfromtheborderline or clicking the link above. Just search the episode title and dive in. This podcast is how I support my family. It’s my full-time work. Aside from a few dynamically inserted ads, it’s made possible ENTIRELY by listener support. I already share hours of free content each week, and premium episodes like this help me keep going without having to sell out my voice. If you believe in the value of this work, joining my Patreon is the most direct way to sustain it.


    Pro Tip: iPhone users should sign up through a browser (Safari or Chrome) to avoid Apple’s extra fees.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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    38 mins
  • the psychology of love island USA S7: why it broke the internet (and what it says about us)
    Jul 1 2025

    This is an in-depth psychological breakdown of Love Island USA Season 7, one of the most viral and culturally polarizing seasons in the franchise’s history. Drawing from attachment theory, nervous system insight, and cultural analysis, the episode offers a detailed look at how cast members like Huda, Jeremiah, Amaya, Taylor, Nic, Olandria, and Cierra reflect deeper dynamics playing out in dating, performance, and projection.


    Topics covered include emotional regulation, love bombing, anxious-avoidant patterns, limerence, and how fan responses mirror broader collective behavior. The episode explores the mechanisms behind character editing, viewer identification, and the emotional architecture of shows that rely on real-time voting and public judgment. Listeners will come away with a clearer understanding of why these characters triggered such strong reactions, what their arcs reveal about contemporary dating psychology, and how spectacle intersects with vulnerability in the current media environment.


    If you’re new here, Back From the Borderline is a weekly deep-dive show unpacking the emotional, psychological, and relational patterns beneath the surface of our culture. Each episode blends grounded analysis with long-form reflection on identity, attachment, and the unconscious dynamics shaping how we relate to ourselves, to others, and to the world. Make sure to follow Back From the Borderline on the podcast app you’re listening to right now. New episodes drop every Tuesday. To access my book recommendations, Substack articles, or join the Patreon community, visit backfromtheborderline.com.


    ⏱ TIME STAMPS


    00:00 – 12:30 | INTRODUCTION: Spoiler alert, cultural context, and why this Love Island season demanded a full psychological breakdown.


    12:28 – 49:49 | HUDA & JEREMIAH: “Mommy? Mamacita?” Main character energy collides with quiet avoidance. The spark that lit the season’s first fire.


    49:54 – 1:04:47 | AMAYA: Soft-hearted in a game that rewards detachment. Too tender, too soon, and the villa didn’t know what to do with her.


    1:04:51 – 1:23:58 | NIC & CIERRA: Golden retriever meets grounded queen. Can she anchor him, or will he drift again?


    1:23:57 – 1:44:59 | TAYLOR & OLANDRIA: She chose patience. He chose Clarke. The heartbreak that cleared a path for Nicolandria.


    1:44:59 – 2:06:27 | FINAL ANALYSIS: Love Island as mirror, spectacle, and modern-day shadow work.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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    2 hrs and 6 mins
All stars
Most relevant  
I started listening to this podcast to learn more about borderline personality disorder so that I could better understand a loved one with BPD traits. Mollie is uniquely qualified to host this podcast as someone who is on her own journey with BPD. There's been a wealth of useful information here as well as destigmatizing of BPD. I think this podcast is valuable to anyone struggling with regulating their emotions or to their loved ones, not just to people with a BPD diagnosis or suspected BPD. Mollie is so generous with her experience and her knowledge and her voice is very soothing, which makes these a very easy listen.

More than just BPD, great mental health pod

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Helps me truly do the emotional alchemy talked about on here I feel
Honest, insightful, compassionate, and smart in all the best ways

Beautiful

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This Podcast has helped me incredibly. As a parent of a fourteen year old daughter who has not “officially” been diagnosed with BPD, but displays all of the characteristics, BFTB has helped open my eyes. I have been unable to understand what my daughter is going through, as she has never been able to talk to me about what she’s feeling. Hearing all of this explained through the experiences of Mollie, and her guests really has changed the way I see behaviors with her. There is invaluable information here.

View from a parents eye

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Amazing podcast; Extremely informative and thought provoking. I love how it helps to inform about bpd and cptsd with a compassionate lens. The added touch of spirituality adds a fresh and lovely blend. Mollie never fails to deliver each topic, and no topic seems gratuitous. This podcast helps many with bpd to come to terms with their condition and for individuals to have compassion for themselves. Thank you, Mollie. You help a lot of people like myself to feel seen.

Amazing, to say the least.

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I am in love. I just discovered this today and I've already listened to 13 episodes...some of them twice! Mollie is a delight to listen to. Her language is hard-hitting and authentic. Her research is real, her guests are genuine, and her conversations are raw. Great resources--books, social accounts, podcasts, songs, interviews, etc. I've gone through a half box of tissues, and I've almost peed myself laughing. For my first podcast ever, this did not disappoint!!!

Poignant, relevant, accurate!

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