A Podcast for Change

I am a 23-year-old master's program student with a passion for podcasting and very little time to start one. Another problem is, I don't have an audience, nor do I think the majority of people are ready to hear my message.

Mental health is something I have always been passionate about, even before I declared my emphasis in Mental Health Counseling. Having a diagnosis myself, I found it frustrating that many professionals in the psychology field would refuse to acknowledge that it was possible to be a successful clinician while also battling your own disorder. I don't want my frustrations with this same issue to later turn into hypocrisy, as I become licensed and bury my own voice on the advocacy of awareness in this topic out of fear that I will not be accepted in my own community.

Here's the scoop: I want to start a podcast about mental health. Not a self-help, manage your stress, conquer your fears, girl-boss platform, but rather a true raw look at what mental health looks like, how it is viewed systemically, how it differs across cultures, and what we can do to change the adversities we face as individuals who suffer from a mental health disorder. My hope is that there will be enough resiliency to shine through the stories and research that it will make up for the lack of quick antidotes and breathing exercises offered by many.

Listening to myself drone on, episode after episode would be too much for me to bear and would defeat the purpose entirely. I want to hear the voices of others, may that be professionals in the field, peers in my program, relatives of someone who suffers from a disorder, or anyone who wants to share their story. There are messages and stories that need to be shared, no matter how hard it is to hear.

It's hard to have a dream and a passion but live in a world where it is not always safe to be out about our struggles. I feel as though that is half the problem - the less we are open about what we face in our own heads, the less likely the system will change.

Mental health matters, at least that's the message we find plastered all over our Instagram explore pages and the occasional Facebook meme account, but unless we are actively seeking raw truth about the mental health system, we are rarely presented with it. I interned as a counselor for individuals who suffer from acute mental health disorders. I was always and still am shocked that when others at my retail job asked me what I do for my placement, they lack general awareness of mental health, the disorders I work with, or even how therapy works.

I have found that unless you delve deep into the psychological world yourself, one often has no idea about the goings-on of another. I don't believe there should be a gap between the "real world" and the world perceived by someone who has a disorder, or someone who cannot get proper mental health coverage due to the system that oppresses them. I want others to have a voice and I want the message to be loud and clear for those who never asked to hear it in the first place.

It's going to take more than a podcast. It will take more than a grad student and a handful of her friends, who aim to slowly build a following. But at least there's a start.

I'm doing this as a kid who used to lay in bed all night wondering what was wrong with them.

I am doing this as someone who was struggling with their disorder but for a year could not get the insurance coverage they needed for therapy, nor afford the out-of-pocket, sliding scale fee.

The stigma in mental health will not go away with niche posts and cute bubble letters. The stigma will fade as more of us tell our story, share our heartbreaks, our challenges, fears, and strengths in the face of defeat.

I am doing this for you. I am doing this for me.