Good Grief, We're All Mental

Julia talks about atypical grief, specifically disenfranchised grief and how it relates to the coronavirus pandemic. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/ggwampodcast/message

Julia talks about the power of asking a simple question -- especially in the context of the pandemic and holidays. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/ggwampodcast/message

Julia talks about trauma, trauma therapy, and what she refers to as trauma stigma. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/ggwampodcast/message

Julia talks about toxic positivity as it relates to mental health, grief, and current events. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/ggwampodcast/message

Julia talks about normalizing therapy, and the perils of toxic masculinity in a mental health context. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/ggwampodcast/message

Julia discusses (and reads) an essay she recently published on Medium.com titled, "The Long Path: Healing the Wounds of Childhood Loss and Trauma." --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/ggwampodcast/message

Julia talks candidly about reaching a breaking point mentally & emotionally. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/ggwampodcast/message

These are scary, uncertain times for all of us -- some more than others. Those who already struggle with mental health (such as depression/anxiety) may find that they are struggling more than usual right now, and feeling alone due to the social/physical isolation we're all currently faced with. Those who are in recovery for addiction and/or alcoholism may be struggling to continue on their path of recovery due to the overwhelming stress of this situation, and/or the inability to physically attend support meetings that for many are a lifeline.

There are so many mental health impacts being felt right now that we need to be aware of and paying attention to -- and that may be falling by the wayside as there is such an intense focus on the physical effects of this virus.

As important as it is to stay physically healthy right now, we also have to take care of our minds and our emotions -- and look out for each other. 

Episode Notes

In this episode, we share resources for anyone struggling with mental health, suicidal thoughts, or domestic violence right now .

Need Help? Know Someone Who Does?

• Contact the Disaster Distress Helpline: Call 1-800-985-5990
• Text TalkWithUs to 66746 (1-800-846-8517)
• Contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline: Call 1-800-799-7233

Related Links:

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/managing-stress-anxiety.html?CDC_AA_refVal=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fcoronavirus%2F2019-ncov%2Fprepare%2Fmanaging-stress-anxiety.html

https://calmatters.org/health/coronavirus/2020/03/coronavirus-mental-health-tips-therapists-california/

https://www.nami.org/About-NAMI/NAMI-News/2020/Information-on-the-CARES-Act-for-People-with-Mental-Illness

--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/ggwampodcast/message

Long ago (a couple of months ago) in a galaxy far, far away (okay it was actually Earth), we announced our plans to launch a podcast focused on grief and mental health called Good Grief, We're All Mental. Since then, we've been busy behind the scenes brainstorming, planning, mapping out ideas/episodes/guests...and here we are -- finally -- with (drum roll please): Episode 1! 

Good Grief, We're All Mental (also known as GGWAM) was born out of host Julia Morin's life experiences and passion for mental health, grief, and ending the stigma surrounding both of these deeply personal, difficult life experiences. Co-host Angela Cirrone decided to come along for the ride and share her own experiences, stories and perspective. 

The goal of the podcast is to normalize, humanize and destigmatize grief and mental health.  More than anything, we hope to provide a platform for sharing some very important stories related to grief and mental health, and build a supportive, safe, compassionate community. 

Thank you for coming on this journey with us. 

-Julia & Angela 

Episode Notes

In this episode, Julia mentions an essay she wrote and had published about her past struggles with depression and anxiety. You can read it on the Manifest Station here: https://www.themanifeststation.net/2016/09/15/unbecoming/.

--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/ggwampodcast/message

We're ramping up to get the Good Grief, We're All Mental podcast off the ground very soon, and we want your questions/ideas on grief and mental health! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/ggwampodcast/message