On this week’s episode of The Hardcore Humanism Podcast, we talk with mental health advocate Lily Cornell Silver. Silver is the daughter of the late Chris Cornell of Soundgarden, Temple of the Dog and Audioslave, and music industry manager Susan Silver. On July 20th, in honor of what would have been her father’s 56th birthday, Silver launched the Instagram Television (IGTV) interview series Mind Wide Open, which tackles the difficult topic of how we understand, cope with and challenge the stigma of mental illness. Her show includes guests from varying backgrounds, including rock stars such as Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam and Duff McKagan of Guns and Roses, academic scientists such as Marc Brackett and David Kessler, and leaders of charitable organizations such as Harold Owens of MusiCares and Laura Lipsky of The Trauma Stewardship Institute, all sharing their experience struggling with and/or working with mental illness.

 One of the most powerful things that we as a society can do is be willing to share our personal stories and talk about mental illness in a public forum as Silver is doing with Mind Wide Open. Having people from all walks of life, including our most famous rock stars talk about mental illness humanizes the experience, and models the types of open and in-depth conversations we need to be having in order to learn from each other about the causes and treatments of mental illness. And by doing so, Silver is helping us all challenge the stigma of mental illness and tear down one of the biggest barriers to efficacious treatment. In our discussion we talk about why she chose the path of becoming a mental health advocate, the barriers she has faced in pursuing this path, and where she sees Mind Wide Open and her advocacy work going in the future. 

 We hope you find this discussion informative and helpful as you chart your path to purpose. If you enjoy the podcast, we would be so grateful if you’d leave a rating and write a review!

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