Lead Yourself First

In this Mini Cast Monday we cover a quote in the book Rising Strong by Brené Brown, which is to "choose courage over comfort".

We listen back to a soundbite from EP07 with Leon Ruri founder of Haka For Life, as he explains how he implemented this in his life, making the heartbreaking decision to choose courage in the form of truth, over comfort, which would've been to continue living a life of deceit, manipulating the way he was perceived by the woman he loved. 

 

Open Up:

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In this episode we meet Dr Pamela Dunn, Author of the book "Survived " and co-founder of Perth Photo Medical Centre, as she Opens Up about her battle with Guillian Barré Syndrome, a disease where the immune system attacks the nervous system. She details her decline from a 'normal' life, to the moment she woke up from an induced coma without the ability to move or speak, which she endured for the following 7 weeks! 

Pamela also Opens Up about her divorce 10 years earlier which saw her embark on a path of self development that would ultimately give her the tools to persevere though her battle with GBS.

This is a story that shows the true power of an optimistic mindset fused with steely determination to work through trauma, no matter how difficult it seems. 

Open Up:

  [email protected]   Website: https://openuppodcast.com
  Free FB community: http://bit.ly/MakingMentalHealthMainstream   Public FB page: http://bit.ly/OpenUpPodcastFB   Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/open_up_podcast/   iTunes: http://bit.ly/openuppodcast-iTunes  

Dr Pamela Dunn

Personal Facebook

Perth Photo Medical Centre FB

Website

In this episode we look at how looking back and auditing the events that've occurred in your past, are impacting your behaviour in the present. 


Poem:

Have you taken time, To assess your life and ask why, Why you feel how you do, Or why you’re acting irrationally, Compassion is needed with others its true, But you deserve it also, More so to reverse the patterns you’ve programmed, From the past that are painful, Than to coerse the view the world has of you, Thats distasteful, Grateful will you be when you finally see, That your beliefs are clay with which you’ve continuously played, To shape and form your habits, For you’ll know that if you water it with questions,  Relief will be destined, And the life you detested will leave, So what you envision may eventually happen.    Thats the importance of a self audit, It sounds easy, But trust me its not, It’ll be uncomfortable, It'll take time,  And like a constable you’ll have to police your mind, But for true change as humans who are pursuing a life without ruins, Thats the best option we’ve got.  

  Open Up:   [email protected]   Website: https://openuppodcast.com
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In this episode we meet Julian Pace, Founder of Happiness Co and the Man Enough Movement as he Opens Up about an issue with abandonment as a child, dyslexia, and losing his father to suicide. 

Julian also Opens up about how he handled the aftermath of his fathers passing, eventually suffering more loss, pain and grief as his cousin and best friend would eventually take their own lives too.

Julians story is one that highlights the need to acknowledge your pain and your trauma rather than masking it, as well as taking action step by step, day by day, in a bid to create real lasting change. 

Open Up:

[email protected]   Website: https://openuppodcast.com
  Free FB community: http://bit.ly/MakingMentalHealthMainstream   Public FB page: http://bit.ly/OpenUpPodcastFB   Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/open_up_podcast/   iTunes: http://bit.ly/openuppodcast-iTunes  

Julian Pace:

Personal Facebook

Happiness Co

Man Enough 

Website

In this 6minute bite we touch on the importance of taking the time to ask yourself whether you're happy or not!


Poem:

Its the most important question we can ask ourselves and others, Yet it hides, In our minds like a mine, Or kids under covers, Kept in a destination thats safe guarded instead, So it patiently resides inside our heads, Until the soil of our soul has been fed, Seeded with awareness, In all fairness its fearless to bring it forth, But a deposit is needed to retrieve it from the vault, Because revolt will the ego, While pleading for reprieve,  And not to receive this assault on its existence, A beating on all its ever known, Defending the self its help resistant, Insistant on pretending its created a healthy system,   As a result we've delicately sewn this life of comfortability conformity and routine, Handcrafted without higher intention, An invention designed for ascension, To sit atop a pyramid plastered with acceptance, Among a myriad of other rewards and feelings, An end without the meaning, Attention and applause is what you’ll receive, But is it what you need?  Have you ever stopped to think? Think about what you’re doing and why? Or how its impacting your life?  So for the first time, Confide in rather than deny yourself, Part with a part of your ego and invest in, Attaining that one question, T hats remained stealth, Collecting dust on the shelf, And once you have it make it snappy, Now genuinely ask yourself aloud, "Am I happy?" 
Open Up:   [email protected]   Website: https://openuppodcast.com
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In this episode we meet Beth Banasik as she Opens Up about being born with a lazy eye, how it resulted in her having to wear an eye patch as a kid, resulting in being told she was different. Beth also Opens up about the sexual abuse she suffered at 9yrs & 17yrs, along with how those impact events shaped her personality and her life.

Beths story is one of true reflection, introspection and gratitude. Being brave enough to dig up the past and look it in the eyes, as she worked through it all, takings the lessons as learnings to be truly grateful for.

We touch on:
-being yourself
-fitting in
-stepping into the emotion
-dealing with shame
- the power of working through previous traumatic events  

Open Up:

[email protected]   Website: https://openuppodcast.com
  Free FB community: http://bit.ly/MakingMentalHealthMainstream   Public FB page: http://bit.ly/OpenUpPodcastFB   Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/open_up_podcast/   iTunes: http://bit.ly/openuppodcast-iTunes

Poem:

This week is dedicated to mental health,
I myself know the importance,

Of raising awareness, For those unable to raise their hand for help, In the fear they’ll be criticised and scrutinised, So instead they lead a life of lies to hide their why, Why do i feel like this? Why cant I change it? Why do I feel like my life has flat lined?  Embarrassed or ashamed of it, They’ve been courted and cornered, By the stories of their minds, Or words spoken unkindly, Careless are we abiding by the stigma, An enigma this notion, Like a poisonous potion for people, Concocted in hiding in secret, To render us defeated, Its targets forever locked in sight, So they hide and inside they keep it, This feeling that they're different, Misunderstood, Unworthy or simply not needed, So why is this normal? Its because its what we’ve conformed to, Empathising with grievous bodily harm, Yet still we model these farms of people, These cities, On the basis that what you say doesn’t matter,  So words become weapons, Instead grievous mental harm is a conversation thats needs to happen, To present itself in the present, Not the latter, So we become hesitant to use this verbal ladder, To climb over each other emotionally, Emotional be the intelligence thats relevant, To this state and time, For the collective state of mind,  So no matter what you believe in, Remember we were all conceived in the same way,  Changes need to be made, Its night and day, And it all starts with giving our attention, To mental health when its mentioned,  So we as a whole can turn the wheels of prevention, Because right now suicides too damn high, And too many of us detest our lives because of what we think and feel inside, Now with that in mind I urge you, Lets return to the humans that survived and thrived together, Its time to lift each other up, So we no longer have to cover up, Lets design a life where everyones cup is full, Lets shift this paradigm from helping only ourselves to being helpful.

    Open Up:   [email protected]   Website: https://openuppodcast.com
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30 episodes! WOW what a ride! Thank you so much to everyone who has taken the time to listen, I truly appreciate you all!

In this episode we meet David Weir as he Opens Up about the struggles he's faced, having been born with one arm. David also Opens up about the tough realisation he came to when he finally realised that his self limiting beliefs were only providing him a life of mediocrity, then seeking help and eventually "pumping the positive". 

We touch on:
-Self acceptance
-Rejection
-Self limiting beliefs
-The power of positive thinking
-Self development

Open Up:

[email protected]

Website: https://openuppodcast.com
  Free FB community: http://bit.ly/MakingMentalHealthMainstream   Public FB page: http://bit.ly/OpenUpPodcastFB   Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/open_up_podcast/   iTunes: http://bit.ly/openuppodcast-iTunes

In this episode we meet Mitchell Vickeridge as he Opens Up about his 6year battle with an untreated illness which was later determined to be chrohns. He also Opens Up about how he went from a bodybuilder, to what he called "skeletor", eventually having to relinquishing his ego during prolonged bed ridden isolation.  

Mitchs story is one of resilience and acceptance. Being resilient enough to persevere through the struggle mentally and physically, as well as accepting all the lessons that come along with it. 


Open Up:

[email protected]   Website: https://openuppodcast.com
  Free FB community: http://bit.ly/MakingMentalHealthMainstream   Public FB page: http://bit.ly/OpenUpPodcastFB   Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/open_up_podcast/   iTunes: http://bit.ly/openuppodcast-iTunes

This week we meet Lisa Gliddon, owner of That's Delish Cakes, as she Opens Up about the loss of her brother, along with everything she's had to deal with as a result of his decision, including organ donation, finances, his children and extreme grief.

Lisas story is one that reminds us to consider the ripple effects that taking our lives really takes on the people we love and the people we're closest to. 

Open Up:

[email protected]   Website: https://openuppodcast.com
  Free FB community: http://bit.ly/MakingMentalHealthMainstream   Public FB page: http://bit.ly/OpenUpPodcastFB   Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/open_up_podcast/   iTunes: http://bit.ly/openuppodcast-iTunes