Thanks to Grow Therapy for sponsoring this episode! Head to to the site to find your estimate and get started today!If you’ve never felt like a “people person,” this video is for you. I break down the practical strategies I’ve used to function in society without pretending to love it—or becoming someone I’m not.This isn’t about becoming social, charismatic, or likable. It’s about surviving—and occasionally enjoying—human interaction when your default setting is avoidance.If my videos have helped, my new book, The Light Between the Leaves, goes even deeperhttps://bit.ly/DrScottLightBetweentheLeavesYTNext Steps: 📩 Get Practical tools for navigating life with depression and anxiety, delivered weekly. https://bit.ly/SelfHopePsychologyDepression and Anxiety resource:🪣 Get my 5-day guide to reclaiming your time and energy despite mental health struggles. https://bit.ly/DrScottBucketTheory♥︎ 2 Unique ways to work with me - https://drscotteilers.com😴 Dramatically improve your sleep in 2 steps with my new Sleep Workbook.https://www.drscotteilers.com/resources#how-to-sleep-better📖 My book: For When Everything is Burninghttps://bit.ly/forwheneverythingisburning Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client. But I do care.
Get $50 off at shortform.com/drscott and start learning more from NonfictionSome people are born resilient. Others have to build it from scratch. In this video, I break down what resilience actually is (and what it isn’t), why you can’t will it into existence, and the 10 practical strategies that helped me go from painfully sensitive to functionally resilient in a harsh world.This is for the people who feel everything deeply, overthink everything, and still want to keep going anyway.If my videos have helped, my new book, The Light Between the Leaves, goes even deeperNext Steps: 📩 Get Practical tools for navigating life with depression and anxiety, delivered weekly. Depression and Anxiety resource:🪣 Get my 5-day guide to reclaiming your time and energy despite mental health struggles. https://bit.ly/DrScottBucketTheory♥︎ 2 Unique ways to work with me - https://drscotteilers.com😴 Dramatically improve your sleep in 2 steps with my new Sleep Workbook.https://www.drscotteilers.com/resources#how-to-sleep-better📖 My book: For When Everything is Burninghttps://bit.ly/forwheneverythingisburning Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client. But I do care.
Most people don’t realize what mattered most to them until it’s already gone—and by then, all that’s left is grief, regret, and the feeling that you wasted time you didn’t know was precious.
The human mind is terrible at appreciating the present while we’re still living it.
In this episode, I share a set of practical ways to recognize what truly matters before you lose it—from doing things like it’s the last time, to putting a price tag on what you’d never trade, to a few unconventional techniques that can snap gratitude into focus when your brain refuses to cooperate.
This is a chapter preview from my upcoming book The Light Between the Leaves, releasing April 2026 and available now for pre-order. This chapter is called “Remember What Matters Most.”
Get the book here.https://bit.ly/DrScottLightBetweentheLeavesYT
Next Steps:
📩 Get Practical tools for navigating life with depression and anxiety, delivered weekly. https://bit.ly/SelfHopePsychology
Depression and Anxiety resource:
🪣 Get my 5-day guide to reclaiming your time and energy despite mental health struggles. https://bit.ly/DrScottBucketTheory
♥︎ 2 Unique ways to work with me - https://drscotteilers.com
😴 Dramatically improve your sleep in 2 steps with my new Sleep Workbook.
https://www.drscotteilers.com/resources#how-to-sleep-better
📖 My book: For When Everything is Burning https://bit.ly/forwheneverythingisburning
Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client.
But I do care.
Thanks to Huel for sponsoring this video! Get 15% off Huel’s newest and existing products by heading to nhttps://huel.yt.link/1cTKz1e and using code SCOTT10 (new customers only, min $75 purchase).Depression isn’t just sadness—and having “a good life” doesn’t make you immune to it. In this conversation, I break down the two very different ways depression shows up, why success and stability don’t protect your mental health, and how purpose, pressure, and meaning shape both work and well-being.We also explore discipline, isolation, alcohol, motivation, and why mental health improvement requires effort—but not constant self-punishment. If you’ve ever wondered why things should feel good but don’t, this episode is for you. If my videos have helped, my new book, The Light Between the Leaves, goes even deeperhttps://bit.ly/DrScottLightBetweentheLeavesYTNext Steps: 📩 Get Practical tools for navigating life with depression and anxiety, delivered weekly. https://bit.ly/SelfHopePsychologyDepression and Anxiety resource:🪣 Get my 5-day guide to reclaiming your time and energy despite mental health struggles. https://bit.ly/DrScottBucketTheory♥︎ 2 Unique ways to work with me - https://drscotteilers.com😴 Dramatically improve your sleep in 2 steps with my new Sleep Workbook.https://www.drscotteilers.com/resources#how-to-sleep-better📖 My book: For When Everything is Burninghttps://bit.ly/forwheneverythingisburning Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client. But I do care.
The holidays can be one of the hardest times of year for mental health — and if you dread this season instead of enjoying it, you’re not broken. You’re human.In this video, I break down a practical holiday survival guide for navigating winter depression, family stress, loneliness, grief, financial pressure, and emotional overload. Whether you’re overwhelmed by too many people, struggling with too few, or just feeling crushed by the season itself, this is a grounded, realistic framework for getting through it with your sanity intact.This isn’t about toxic positivity or “just be grateful.” It’s about boundaries, energy budgeting, nervous system care, and redefining what the holidays actually need to be — for you.If my videos have helped, my new book, The Light Between the Leaves, goes even deeperhttps://bit.ly/DrScottLightBetweentheLeavesYTNext Steps: Get $50 OFF an annual Shortform ( @_Shortform ) sub at shortform.com/drscott and start learning more from nonfiction.📩 Get Practical tools for navigating life with depression and anxiety, delivered weekly. https://bit.ly/SelfHopePsychologyDepression and Anxiety resource:🪣 Get my 5-day guide to reclaiming your time and energy despite mental health struggles. https://bit.ly/DrScottBucketTheory♥︎ 2 Unique ways to work with me - https://drscotteilers.com😴 Dramatically improve your sleep in 2 steps with my new Sleep Workbook.https://www.drscotteilers.com/resources#how-to-sleep-better📖 My book: For When Everything is Burninghttps://bit.ly/forwheneverythingisburning Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client. But I do care.
If my videos have helped, my new book, The Light Between the Leaves, goes even deeperhttps://bit.ly/DrScottLightBetweentheLeavesYT
PTSD is one of the most misunderstood mental health conditions on earth.
In this episode, I explain what PTSD really is, how it differs from Complex PTSD, what happens in your brain and body during trauma, and why some people develop it while others don’t.
You’ll learn the four symptom categories, the overlap with other diagnoses (like anxiety, depression, and BPD), and the treatments that actually work—including exposure therapy, EMDR, and TF-CBT—plus practical self-regulation tools you can start using today.
Whether you’ve been through trauma yourself or are trying to understand someone who has, this is your crash course in what PTSD really means—and why recovery is possible.Next Steps: 📩 Get Practical tools for navigating life with depression and anxiety, delivered weekly. https://bit.ly/SelfHopePsychologyDepression and Anxiety resource:🪣 Get my 5-day guide to reclaiming your time and energy despite mental health struggles. https://bit.ly/DrScottBucketTheory♥︎ 2 Unique ways to work with me - https://drscotteilers.com😴 Dramatically improve your sleep in 2 steps with my new Sleep Workbook.https://www.drscotteilers.com/resources#how-to-sleep-better📖 My book: For When Everything is Burninghttps://bit.ly/forwheneverythingisburning Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client. But I do care.
Do you ever feel like you weren’t meant to be here—like you’re the unwanted guest at a party? I’ve felt that most of my life. I'm sharing the shift that pulled me back from the edge: making a violent commitment to living—taking suicide off the table (Plan B) so I could finally go all-in on Plan A. I cover the “burn the ships” mindset, the difference between having a thought and entertaining a thought, and why small coping tips can feel absurd when the pain is massive—plus what to do instead.If you’re in crisis (U.S.): call/text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org. Outside the U.S., please contact your local crisis line.If my videos have helped, my new book, The Light Between the Leaves, goes even deeperhttps://bit.ly/DrScottLightBetweentheLeavesYTNext Steps: 📩 Get Practical tools for navigating life with depression and anxiety, delivered weekly. https://bit.ly/SelfHopePsychologyDepression and Anxiety resource:🪣 Get my 5-day guide to reclaiming your time and energy despite mental health struggles. https://bit.ly/DrScottBucketTheory♥︎ 2 Unique ways to work with me - https://drscotteilers.com😴 Dramatically improve your sleep in 2 steps with my new Sleep Workbook.https://www.drscotteilers.com/resources#how-to-sleep-better📖 My book: For When Everything is Burninghttps://bit.ly/forwheneverythingisburning Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client. But I do care.
A lake. A glass-calm afternoon. And a monster just beyond where we could see.This is a backstory reading from my new book, The Light Between the Leaves (April 2026) — Truth #2: “Envy is Ignorance.” The story (called “The Lake”) sets up why comparing your life to others ignores what’s under the surface — the unseen predators, pressures, and private costs we never witness. No quick tips here; just the origin story behind a lesson that changes how you look at envy.Pre-order the book now https://bit.ly/DrScottLightBetweentheLeavesYTSubscribe for the next chapter segment (the Application) and more mental-health tools grounded in real life.Next Steps: 📩 Get Practical tools for navigating life with depression and anxiety, delivered weekly. https://bit.ly/SelfHopePsychologyDepression and Anxiety resource:🪣 Get my 5-day guide to reclaiming your time and energy despite mental health struggles. https://bit.ly/DrScottBucketTheory♥︎ 2 Unique ways to work with me - https://drscotteilers.com😴 Dramatically improve your sleep in 2 steps with my new Sleep Workbook.https://www.drscotteilers.com/resources#how-to-sleep-better📖 My book: For When Everything is Burninghttps://bit.ly/forwheneverythingisburning Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client. But I do care.
Thanks to Grow Therapy for sponsoring this video! Find your estimate and get started today!Those “random” waves of sadness? They might be ambiguous grief—grieving the life you won’t have, the alternate selves that never got to exist. In this video I name it, normalize it, and share two frameworks that help:1. Engage the life you have (even if it’s not the one you wanted)2. Grief = Pain + Time (why you can’t rush it or ignore it)If this resonates, you’re not broken—and you’re not alone.If my videos have helped, my new book, The Light Between the Leaves, goes even deeperNext Steps: 📩 Get Practical tools for navigating life with depression and anxiety, delivered weekly. https://bit.ly/SelfHopePsychologyDepression and Anxiety resource:🪣 Get my 5-day guide to reclaiming your time and energy despite mental health struggles. https://bit.ly/DrScottBucketTheory♥︎ 2 Unique ways to work with me - https://drscotteilers.com😴 Dramatically improve your sleep in 2 steps with my new Sleep Workbook.https://www.drscotteilers.com/resources#how-to-sleep-better📖 My book: For When Everything is Burninghttps://bit.ly/forwheneverythingisburning Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client. But I do care.
Depression often feels like numbness—not joy vs. sadness, but a total loss of excitement. In this video, I share the surprising pattern that has ended several of my depressive episodes: finding a spark worth chasing.
I walk through 8 real examples (from gaming and football to fragrances, barbecue, tools, watches, and gardening) and extract the active ingredient you can apply to your own life—even if your “spark” looks different than mine.
MasterClass has great offers this holiday season. If you use my link, you’ll get up to 50% off an annual subscription. Head over to https://masterclass.yt.link/4ns74gv for the current offer and they’ll know I sent you!
If my videos have helped, my new book, The Light Between the Leaves, goes even deeperhttps://bit.ly/DrScottLightBetweentheLeavesYTNext Steps: 📩 Get Practical tools for navigating life with depression and anxiety, delivered weekly. https://bit.ly/SelfHopePsychologyDepression and Anxiety resource:🪣 Get my 5-day guide to reclaiming your time and energy despite mental health struggles. https://bit.ly/DrScottBucketTheory♥︎ 2 Unique ways to work with me - https://drscotteilers.com😴 Dramatically improve your sleep in 2 steps with my new Sleep Workbook.https://www.drscotteilers.com/resources#how-to-sleep-better📖 My book: For When Everything is Burninghttps://bit.ly/forwheneverythingisburning Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client. But I do care.
Thanks to Grow Therapy ( @growtherapy__ ) for sponsoring this video! Head to https://growtherapy.yt.link/708THHv to find your estimate and get started today!AI therapy might seem like the future—but what happens when algorithms try to replace empathy? I'm talking with tech journalist Jacob Ward ( @byjacobward ) to unpack the growing overlap between artificial intelligence and mental health, exploring both the potential and the danger.W're talking about why AI chatbots can’t yet replace human therapists, what emotional reliance on machines could mean for society, and how unchecked tech incentives risk creating a generation that feels connected but never known.If you care about psychology, ethics, or the future of therapy, this one’s essential.If my videos have helped, my new book, The Light Between the Leaves, goes even deeperhttps://bit.ly/DrScottLightBetweentheLeavesYTNext Steps: 📩 Get Practical tools for navigating life with depression and anxiety, delivered weekly. https://bit.ly/SelfHopePsychologyDepression and Anxiety resource:🪣 Get my 5-day guide to reclaiming your time and energy despite mental health struggles. https://bit.ly/DrScottBucketTheory♥︎ 2 Unique ways to work with me - https://drscotteilers.com😴 Dramatically improve your sleep in 2 steps with my new Sleep Workbook.https://www.drscotteilers.com/resources#how-to-sleep-better📖 My book: For When Everything is Burninghttps://bit.ly/forwheneverythingisburning Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client. But I do care.
This is an excerpt from my new book, The Light Between the Leaveshttps://bit.ly/DrScottLightBetweentheLeavesYTThis is my most vulnerable story yet—about losing myself, chasing belonging in all the wrong places, and choosing to protect what’s still alive inside. If you’ve ever felt numb, polluted by others’ values, or tempted to give up on the “old you,” this is for you.If it resonates, drop a comment, share it with someone who needs it, and subscribe for the next section: the application—how to use this in your life.Next Steps: 📩 Get Practical tools for navigating life with depression and anxiety, delivered weekly. https://bit.ly/SelfHopePsychologyDepression and Anxiety resource:🪣 Get my 5-day guide to reclaiming your time and energy despite mental health struggles. https://bit.ly/DrScottBucketTheory♥︎ 2 Unique ways to work with me - https://drscotteilers.com😴 Dramatically improve your sleep in 2 steps with my new Sleep Workbook.https://www.drscotteilers.com/resources#how-to-sleep-better📖 My book: For When Everything is Burninghttps://bit.ly/forwheneverythingisburning Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client. But I do care.
You can live in a beautiful world and still feel trapped in a nightmare—because what’s inside you shapes everything you see. In this video, I share my most personal philosophy on depression: why your relationship with yourself is the road that connects you to everything good, and what happens when you stop maintaining it.
This isn’t about quick fixes—it’s about understanding why neglect, shame, and self-hatred cut you off from joy, love, and even God, and how caring for your mind, body, and spirit repairs that connection. The world doesn’t have to change before you can feel better—but you do have to keep your road open.
If this resonates, you’re not broken—you’re just rebuilding the path home.
Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client.
But I do care.
Depression kills energy, motivation, and hope—and the things that help most (therapy, meds, exercise) all require the very energy you don’t have. In this video, I share 10 micro habits that are simple, realistic, and proven to make a dent when you’re running on empty.These aren’t miracle cures—they’re small switches that make it possible to start healing again. Learn how to rebuild self-trust, challenge negative thoughts, use “opposite action,” stop rumination, and remember that your brain’s glitch doesn’t mean you’ve changed.Pick two or three of these to start. Small doesn’t mean weak—especially when you stack them over time.If my episodes have helped, my new book goes even deeperhttps://bit.ly/DrScottLightBetweentheLeavesYTNext Steps: 📩 Get Practical tools for navigating life with depression and anxiety, delivered weekly. https://bit.ly/SelfHopePsychologyDepression and Anxiety resource:🪣 Get my 5-day guide to reclaiming your time and energy despite mental health struggles. https://bit.ly/DrScottBucketTheory♥︎ 2 Unique ways to work with me - https://drscotteilers.com😴 Dramatically improve your sleep in 2 steps with my new Sleep Workbook.https://www.drscotteilers.com/resources#how-to-sleep-better📖 My book: For When Everything is Burninghttps://bit.ly/forwheneverythingisburning Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client. But I do care.
If my podcasts have helped, my new book goes even deeperhttps://bit.ly/DrScottLightBetweentheLeavesYTWhen someone you love says they don’t want to be here anymore, it’s terrifying. In this video I walk you through a clear, compassionate game plan: the tone to keep (serious but calm), what to do (assess plan/means/intent, increase proximity, explore treatment levels, means-restriction, crisis options), and what not to do (guilt, minimization, adversarial debates).
You’ll leave with practical language, next-step checklists, and ways to stay connected without turning the moment into pressure. Save this for when you need it most—and share it with the people in your circle.
If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, call your local emergency number. In the U.S., call or text 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline; for other countries, search your local crisis line.Next Steps: 📩 Get Practical tools for navigating life with depression and anxiety, delivered weekly. https://bit.ly/SelfHopePsychologyDepression and Anxiety resource:🪣 Get my 5-day guide to reclaiming your time and energy despite mental health struggles. https://bit.ly/DrScottBucketTheory♥︎ 2 Unique ways to work with me - https://drscotteilers.com😴 Dramatically improve your sleep in 2 steps with my new Sleep Workbook.https://www.drscotteilers.com/resources#how-to-sleep-better📖 My book: For When Everything is Burninghttps://bit.ly/forwheneverythingisburning Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client. But I do care.
Feeling a little better—and instantly burying yourself in pressure? In this video I show why that smothers your progress and how to use “better days” to build a system that lasts.You’ll learn the Energy Budget: expenses (drain), income (restore), and Investments (cost now, pay you back later). I walk through specific investments—relationships, sleep hygiene, right-sized hobbies, nutrition, skill-building, and fitness—that raise your floor and ceiling over time.Stop burning your good days on catch-up; start compounding them. Save this for the next clear-sky day.
When motivation dies and everything feels blank, you’re not broken—you’re dissociated. In this video I explain why numbness (anhedonia/emptiness) wipes out motivation and how to function anyway.
You’ll learn three battle-tested strategies: act on values, not feelings; treat yourself like an organic system (sleep, movement, nutrition); and keep showing up for people and hobbies so the spark can return. These are simple—not easy—but they keep your life intact until your feelings come back.
If you’ve lost weeks or years to the void, this gives you a map back: practical steps, zero fluff. Save this for the nights you feel nothing.
Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client.
But I do care.
If the harshest voice in your life is your own, you’re not alone. In this video I map John Gottman’s “Four Horsemen” (criticism, defensiveness, contempt, stonewalling) onto our inner dialogue to explain how self-abuse forms—and why it’s so hard to escape.Then I show you how to rebuild the relationship with yourself using two levers: high commitment (taking “give up on me” off the table) and realistic standards (dropping the inhuman bar). Expect practical reframes, not platitudes—and a path out that’s hard, honest, and doable.If you’ve been withdrawing, sabotaging, or fantasizing about disappearing, this is your sign to try again—with better tools and a fairer contract with yourself.
Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client.
But I do care.
When the house is finally quiet, staying up feels like the only way to reclaim your life — even if tomorrow pays the price. This pattern has a name: revenge bedtime procrastination.In this video, I break down why it happens (agency, FOMO over your own life) and how it quietly wrecks emotion regulation and control. Then I give you three practical playbooks: mindset shifts, sleep-quality wins, and ways to meet those needs during the day so nights don’t have to.You don’t have to choose between living and sleeping. Use these tools to feel more human tonight and more stable tomorrow.
Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client.
But I do care.
Your brain lives in your body—so if you want better mental health, you need a body routine that actually supports it. In this video I share eight high-leverage nutrition habits that reliably boost brain function when motivation and mood are low.
We’ll cover practical wins like smarter hydration, whole-food swaps, protein-first snacks, breakfast that turns the lights back on, omega-3s, and amino acids. I’ll also explain why dialing down alcohol and caffeine often stabilizes mood and sleep more than any “mindset” trick.
This is behavior activation you can do today: change what you do, so your thoughts and feelings can follow. Start with one habit, stack from there, and let your brain feel the difference.
Disclaimer: This content is not intended to be a replacement for receiving treatment. It is purely educational in nature. My relationship with you is that of presenter and audience, not therapist and client.
But I do care.