Queer Therapists Talk Wayward

Fabulous and nerdy queer/trans psychotherapists Avery (they/them) and Em (they/them), team up to deep dive into the psychology of Netflix's Limited Series Wayward starring Mae Martin.

They discuss major themes in the show like the mother wound, queer/trans representation, filming production elements, and seek to answer big questions like "what's really going on with all that brie?" 

Each episode invites a guest for even more nerdy cuteness. 

ABOUT AVERY AND EM 

Avery Phipps (they/them) is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist serving a diverse group of clients in the San Francisco Bay. Avery graduated from The California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) Bachelor of Arts and Integral Counseling Psychology (M.A.) programs. Both programs placed an emphasis on cultural humility, holistic healing and the responsibility we have to each other as citizens of this globe. They teach full time and act as co-chair currently in the Integral Counseling Psychology program at CIIS.

Avery’s training as a psychotherapist began at The Integral Counseling Center in San Francisco, a low fee clinic where they served socially and psychologically diverse individuals, couples, and families. They have since built a private practice which serves adults, teens, and families. Their work is founded in relational psychodynamics, informed by strong social justice, feminist values, and often incorporates Astrology and other symbolic ways of knowing. They are also a huge media nerd and Trekkie for life. 

Emily (Em) Marinelli (they/them) is a genderqueer, queer femme, Virgo psychotherapist, professor and author. Em teaches at the California Institute of Integral Studies and City College of San Francisco. In their private therapy practice, Em offers warm and supportive guidance to individuals and couples, using a humanistic, trauma-informed, feminist, social justice, and strengths-based approach.

Their essays have appeared in Alan Squire Publishing Literary Journal, The Blue Rose magazine, Film Obsessive, and TV Obsessive and they were accepted into the 2025 Summer Tin House Workshop. They host the Twin Peaks Tattoo Podcast, where they chat with fans about their Twin Peaks tattoos and what their ink means to them.

Em's debut memoir, Comfort Sequels: The Psychology of Movie Sequels from the 80s and 90s won First Place in the Entertainment and LGBTQ+ categories at the 2024 Bookfest Awards and the International Impact Book Award in LGBTQ+ Nonfiction. Em is proud to be a member of the Marble Valley Dance Collective where they tap dance with amazing artists, and they love cuddling with their rescue pups Radish and Rusty.

Follow Em online @emsmarinelli

Theme music performed by Jeremy Rourke; recorded and produced by Dr Animal Prufrock

Cover Design by Morgan Kerchner