Writing and Press

Maris Pasquale Doran at an LATimes FOB book signing table, a young reader leaning in.

Selected Writing

REAL SIMPLE · July 2026

What Wellness Culture Gets Wrong About Nervous System Regulation

Being regulated does not mean being calm all the time.

TODAY'S AJENDA · September 2026

5 Tools to Help Regulate Your Nervous System

Most of what I recommend, you are already doing throughout the day.

SCARY MOMMY · Quoted

Wait, Are All Moms Just Walking Around With High-Functioning Burnout?

This is what happens when your nervous system is chronically activated.

I also write on Substack

Before this work, I published writing and spoke to audiences on the psychological experience of chronic illness and pain. That work includes entries for Oxford University Press and an international curriculum for the International Association for the Study of Pain, which I co-chaired.

I welcome research collaboration. If you are a researcher, lab, or student studying the nervous system, emotional regulation, or the stories we tell ourselves, I would love to hear from you.

Selected Conversations

SOCIAL REJECT WITH MEGAN ESPINAL · September 2026

The Adults Are Not Alright: How Social Media and Smartphones Affect Grown-Ups, Too

Smartphones and social media promised connection. Too often they remove us from our real lives. We talk about what our habits signal to our kids and how to stay present when distraction is literally at our fingertips.

UBS · BEYOND THE BALANCE SHEET · July 2026

The Connection Between Mental and Financial Well-Being

Our financial lives do not exist in a vacuum. The beliefs and experiences we carry shape the way we earn, spend, save, invest, and plan for the future. When we better understand ourselves, we increase our capacity to make intentional decisions.

THE MONTCLAIR POD

The Sandwich Generation

I joined Senator Andy Kim on elder care costs and an elder law attorney on estate planning, addressing the stress and strain of caregiving across generations.

PULLING THREADS · YouTube

Weaving Authenticity

This conversation covers identity and the work of becoming yourself in midlife, with host Leslie Mathews, JD, MSW.

Cover of Piper Chen Sings with the New York Times Bestseller seal.

Piper Chen Sings

Piper Chen Sings is a New York Times bestselling children's book co-authored with Phillipa Soo about nervousness and excitement arriving together. Writing this book brought the work I do with adults to children and the grown-ups who read with them.

For media inquiries, interviews, and speaking.

Clinical depth. Real life application.

© Copyright 2026 Maris Pasquale Doran. All Rights Reserved.