With almost superhuman effort, Ronald Braunstein became the youngest winner in the history of Europe's most prestigious conducting competition, guaranteeing him a career of massive success. He had rocketed to stellar heights. But plagued by mood swings he would not understand for years, he would fly, crash, rise up and crash again. Until he reached a low he thought would destroy him.   

Episode 6 is the first installment of a 3-part story that follows Ronald's life of dizzying highs, crushing lows and nearly impossible triumph.  

Parts 2 & 3 will be out on Jan 22nd & Feb 5th, respectively. Follow us to hear them when they drop!

There's a lot of information about Bipolar Disorder online. A great starting place with solid information is nami.org. Go there and search "bipolar disorder."

For further resources, check out Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance at their website. 

Let us hear from you! We want to know how this story affected you, or any questions or stories you'd like to share. Text, call or leave us a voice message at (424) 240-9302. If you have a detailed story, it's even better to email us an audio message to [email protected].

Find out more about this episode and the Brain Stories documentary series at www.BrainStoriesProductions.com

This episode features an interview of Gwen (the subject of Brain Stories 4th episode, "Three Generations & A Broken Legacy") on Super Feeler, a podcast about Borderline Personality Disorder hosted by Laurie Edmundson. 

Find out more about Super Feeler & the self-discovery, hope, and power of living with Borderline Personality Disorder by listening to more of their episodes here.  

And see you January 8th for the next episode of Brain Stories!

Find out more about this episode and the Brain Stories documentary series at www.BrainStoriesProductions.com

This is an interview episode. Why? Because the story of Lindsay’s family was very well told in the bestselling book, Hidden Valley Road. The book chronicles her family of 12 siblings, six of whom developed a serious mental illness. There’s no need to tell it again. But there is always more to say. And in this episode, Lindsay says it. 

The Episode Producer was Boen Wang whose other work can be found at boen.cool. 

Bob Kolker’s book, Hidden Valley Road can be found here. Please consider donating to the Galvin Family Trust this holiday season. Their website is here: galvinfamilytrust.org. Those who donate will get access to bonus video clips from Lindsay’s interview! Learn more about Lindsay’s involvement in mental health advocacy at her website, lindsaymarygalvinrauch.com. And lastly, you can find Dr. Xavier Amador's TED Talk here.

Let us hear from you! We want to know how this story affected you, or any questions or stories you'd like to share. Text, call or leave us a voice message at (424) 240-9302. If you have a detailed story, it's even better to email us an audio message to [email protected].

Find out more about this episode and the Brain Stories documentary series at www.BrainStoriesProductions.com

Gwen was 10 when she arrived to California from China, the hopes of her entire family on her shoulders. But her dream collapsed in college as she discovered that her grandmother, mother and her all grappled with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). In order to really take care of her family, she would have to forge an entirely new understanding.

The Episode Producer was Sarah Haufrect whose other work can be found at sarahhaufrect.com. 

If you want to hear even more from Gwen, she recently guested on the "Super Feeler" podcast which you can listen to here or wherever you get your podcasts. Check out other "Super Feeler" episodes for even more powerful stories on BPD, hope, and connection.

More information on the Mental Health Warmline for Chinese Communities that Gwen established can be found their website. The number is 1-800-881-8502. 

Lila Galustian, the therapist who specializes in BPD, has her own website: re-discoveringyou.com. 

The National Education Alliance for Borderline Personality Disorder (NEABPD) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the quality of life for individuals affected by BPD and their families. You can learn more and access educational materials on their website.

Finally, go to MindSiteNews.org to sign up for a newsletter from the only national news outlet devoted exclusively to covering mental health.

Let us hear from you! We want to know how this story affected you, or any questions or stories you'd like to share. Text, call or leave us a voice message at (424) 240-9302. If you have a detailed story, it's even better to email us an audio message to [email protected].

Find out more about this episode and the Brain Stories documentary series at www.BrainStoriesProductions.com

Living in a gang neighborhood, concealing his sexual orientation, Adrian already had a full plate when he learned that schizophrenia was hereditary.  His dad had it.  And at 13, he was sure he was going to develop it too.  It was only a question of when. It took him two decades to learn what you truly inherit when your parent lives with a serious mental illness.

Adrian first learned about mental illness at the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) website -  nami.org. You can also find their resources and materials in Spanish. If you want to know more, it's an excellent place to learn about mental illness.  

They also offer Family-to-Family classes for just about anyone, and peer support those who live with a mental illness.    There are hundreds of chapters in the US.   In certain states they’re also available in Spanish. 

Let us hear from you! We want to know how this story affected you, or any questions or stories you'd like to share. Call and leave us a message at (424) 240-9302.  If you have a detailed story, it's even better to email us an audio message to [email protected].

Find out more about this episode and the Brain Stories documentary series at www.BrainStoriesProductions.com

    The books and research cited in the episode can be found below:

• Antonia Hylton’s, Madness
• Jonathan Metzl’s, The Protest Psychosis
• Deidre Anglin is the lead author of this research finding that Black people experienced schizophrenia spectrum disorders at nearly 4 times the rate of White people.  More about her work and research is on her faculty page.

Find out more about this episode and the Brain Stories documentary series at www.BrainStoriesProductions.com

Xavier was a senior in college when he got a panicked call from his brother.  This was his closest brother, his older brother whom he deeply admired, and he was telling Xavier that he had killed their dad.  It would take Xavier nearly a decade to truly repair his relationship with his brother, though not for the reasons you would expect.   But in the process, what he discovered would change the entire approach to schizophrenia for him, and then millions of others. 

Welcome to stigma-free storytelling!

We'd like to know how this story affected you, or any questions or stories you'd like to share.  Call and leave us a message at (424) 240-9302.   If you have a detailed story, it's even better to email us an audio message to [email protected]

Learn more about Dr. Amador and the LEAP approach at www.LeapInstitute.org

Find out more about this episode and the Brain Stories documentary series at www.BrainStoriesProductions.com

This is the trailer for Brain Stories, a ground breaking documentary series profiling those who live with a mental illness and the people who support them.  

There are 13 episodes of true-life stories, surprising, moving and unflinching.  

Welcome to stigma-free story telling.  

Check out the episodes and go to our website for more information and links at   www.BrainStoriesProductions.com

Find out more about this episode and the Brain Stories documentary series at www.BrainStoriesProductions.com