Dr. Leslie Carr is a psychologist and an expert in how trauma, stress, culture, and technology impact the mind. She’s been active in mental health advocacy and public psychoeducation for over fifteen years, and her work in this space has been featured in The LA Times, ABC News, and Ask Dr. Drew among many other places.
She hosts a podcast called The Nature of Nurture, which explores the mental health challenges that are inherent to being human in the modern age. Despite the difficult subject matter, The Nature of Nurture always endeavors to be uplifting, and it leaves listeners feeling grounded, informed, and empowered as they move through life in the twenty-first century.
She’s often sought out as an expert in her space, and she’s available for quotes. Please email her directly at [email protected] if you’re a journalist working under a tight deadline.
Areas of expertise:
- Trauma, PTSD, and post-traumatic growth
- The impact of lived experience on the psyche, including cultural and family influences
- Toxic family systems and narcissistic abuse
- Addiction and recovery
- Technology and the role that it plays in mental health and political polarization
- Nervous system regulation, and why it’s vital to surviving in the modern world
In the media:
LA Times:
Neuroplasticity — The Brain’s Ability to Adapt
A feature exploring how the brain rewires itself and its implications for recovery and learning.
October 24, 2015
And don’t forget the fun factor. Says Carr: “People don’t give themselves permission to seek out joy and pleasure partially because they underestimate the potential benefit. If you were to focus on experiences that give you joy with a decent amount of consistency, you would quite literally change the way your brain is wired.”
SheKnows:
Supporting Kids’ Mental Health as They Go Back to School
Experts share ways parents can support children’s emotional well‑being during the back‑to‑school transition.
September 5, 2023
“People in generations before us have struggled,” says Leslie Carr, PsyD, a clinical psychologist and expert on how trauma, stress, culture, and digital technology impact the mind. “But young people today seem to be having a particularly hard time.”
Dr. Carr explains that this is a result of a combination of things. First, kids are being exposed, at a young age, to major life upheavals like a pandemic and school shootings. Second, “they’re absorbing it via the internet all the time.” Third, by spending so much of their time on the internet, children are lacking the positive reinforcements that help counteract devastating news stories. “Time in nature, time with friends, getting hugs, playing. There’s less of that when kids are on the internet all the time,” she says.
Bustle:
11 Signs You Might Be Emotionally Abusive Without Realizing It
A thoughtful relationship piece outlining subtle patterns of emotional abuse and what they can reveal about interpersonal dynamics and self‑awareness.
May 3, 2017
If things feel unhealthy in your relationship, be wary of any desire on your part to downplay what’s going on. “Because it can be painful to see oneself clearly, there may be temptations to make excuses or minimize things,” clinical psychologist Leslie Carr, tells Bustle.
213 245 1097