Seeing Beyond Fear with Dr. Todd Burstain

In today's episode I had the pleasure of speaking with the brilliant Dr. Todd Burstain (www.drtoddburstain.com), a physician, researcher, and the author of the upcoming book, FEAR ITSELF: Learning to See Yourself Through New Eyes [November 10, 2026]. Dr. Burstain's work on how the brain constructs identity in response to fear and trauma often intersects significantly with the experiences of those in the neurodivergent community. As the former Chief Medical Information Officer at UW Medicine in Seattle and Ochsner Health in New Orleans, Dr. Burstain witnessed fear intensify illnesses, obstruct change, and redefine a patient's sense of self. By applying the root-cause methods of clinical informatics he came to understand how fear’s protective strategies can rewrite human identity.