#77 Rewiring Minds: Neurotechnology, Brain Stimulation, & Owen Muir's Unconventional Path to Psychiatry

Mental Health Today - A podcast by Ken Stearns

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In this episode, Owen Muir discusses his journey into becoming a medical doctor. He initially had no intention of becoming a medical doctor during college and actively tried to avoid it. Despite his efforts, he eventually found himself on the path to becoming a psychiatrist. Owen explains that he has bipolar disorder, which played a significant role in shaping his career. He shares his educational background, including attending the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, completing his general psychiatry residency training at the Zucker Hillside Hospital, and specializing in child psychiatry at NYU Bellevue. Owen mentions his passion for music, recording engineering, and the parallels he found between audio engineering and brain stimulation techniques. He highlights the importance of synchronizing brain rhythms and discusses how transcranial magnetic stimulation can help retune the brain and alleviate conditions like depression and PTSD. Owen also touches on the impact of mentalization-based treatment and group therapy. Finally, he introduces a breakthrough in getting mental health treatments paid for through independent validation and the fiduciary duty of employers to provide cost-effective healthcare options for their employees.