Lynne Wadsworth is a holistic health coach, certified wellness practitioner, and specialist in women's nutrition, sugar addiction, and perimenopause.

Most women know sugar isn't good for them. They've tried cutting it out, they've done the programs, they've been through the cycles of restriction and relapse. But here's the thing nobody tells them: the sugar was never really the problem. It was always the emotion underneath it. Lynne spent years as a self-described yo-yo dieter and sugar addict — hiding English chocolate in her freezer, watching her blood pressure climb, losing entire afternoons to brain fog and migraines — before she discovered that the food was just a symptom. The real addiction was to the feelings the food was numbing.

Expect to learn why sugar addiction activates the same brain chemistry as cocaine and why that makes willpower a completely useless strategy, how the modern American food system has been engineered to keep you dependent on processed foods without you ever realising it, why yo-yo dieting is physically dangerous and what it actually does to your long-term health, how unresolved grief and loneliness quietly become food addictions, why switching one addiction for another is more common than people admit and how to break the cycle, what the difference between perimenopause and menopause actually is and why most women are blindsided by it, how nutrition directly impacts anxiety, brain fog, and mood — especially for women navigating hormonal changes, why journaling your food and your feelings together is more powerful than any diet plan, and much more.

This conversation will change the way you look at what's on your plate — and what's underneath it.

In this episode of Mental Matters, Asekho Toto sits down with Tammy Young, a former engineer turned psychic medium and author of the new book, Afterlife Bonds. Tammy shares her deeply personal journey of navigating grief after the loss of a pregnancy and how seeking answers outside of conventional frameworks opened her up to a new spiritual reality.

We explore the often-misunderstood world of mediumship and psychic abilities, breaking down the skepticism that surrounds these gifts. Tammy offers practical advice on finding stillness, explaining how achieving a meditative state doesn't always mean sitting perfectly still; sometimes, it can be found in the rhythm of a long run. Whether you're curious about spirit communication, looking for new ways to manage a racing mind, or simply seeking an inspiring story of finding joy after grief, this conversation offers a fresh perspective on balancing our mental and spiritual well-being.

🎙️ Mental Matters is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and iHeart Radio📩 Substack: Mental Matters: Self-Improvement Edition🔗 Work with Asekho: calendly.com/asekhopoetry/60min

My guest today is Leigh Shulman — writer, author of The Writer's Roadmap, and founder of the Inspired Writer Community. Lee left Brooklyn behind with her family to live a nomadic life across Panama, Argentina, and beyond, and in doing so, discovered what it really means to build a writing life on your own terms.

This conversation is for anyone who has ever felt the pull to write but didn't know where to start — and for those who wonder if their words could one day become their livelihood.

🎙️ Mental Matters is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and iHeart Radio📩 Substack: Mental Matters: Self-Improvement Edition🔗 Work with Asekho: calendly.com/asekhopoetry/60min

My guest today is the founder of Wisdom for Complex Kids — a community and coaching program built for parents navigating the world of invisible disabilities, rare genetic disorders, and complex developmental challenges.

After years of misdiagnoses, trial and error, and advocating alone for her son — who was eventually diagnosed with TBR1, a rare genetic mutation — she built the support system she never had, so other parents don't have to go through it alone.

This conversation will change how you think about parenting complex kids, invisible disabilities, and what real advocacy looks like.

🎙️ Mental Matters is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and iHeart Radio📩 Substack: Mental Matters: Self-Improvement Edition🔗 Work with Asekho: calendly.com/asekhopoetry/60min

In this episode of Mental Matters, the host sits down with Jared to explore the critical intersection of mental health, emotional wellness, and the workplace. Drawing from his own corporate experience, Jared opens up about his personal battle with burnout and the gap he discovered in standard workplace resources.

My guest today is a dementia behavioural specialist and author of three books on Alzheimer's disease, with 30 years of professional experience helping families navigate one of the most misunderstood conditions in the world. Her personal journey began when her grandmother was dismissed as a "nutcase" by police — a moment that shaped her entire career. She hosts The Truth Lies and Alzheimer's Show and has since counselled thousands of families through the reality of cognitive decline.

Alzheimer's disease will affect 1 in 3 families before 2050 — and most people still don't understand what it actually is. In this conversation, we break down what dementia really means, why the medical system is still failing patients, and what you can do right now to protect your loved ones.

Expect to learn:

The critical difference between dementia and Alzheimer's disease — and why most people (including 62% of physicians) get it wrong

Why Alzheimer's is far more than memory loss — and the dangerous misconceptions that put patients in harm's way

The modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors, and what you can actually control

Why having heart disease or diabetes dramatically increases your Alzheimer's risk

The shocking gap in post-diagnostic care that leaves families completely lost after a diagnosis

Why the number of Alzheimer's cases is projected to triple by 2050 — and why being proactive is the only real strategy

What it looks like to care for someone with dementia, and the emotional reality no one prepares you for

📬 Mental Matters Newsletter (Substack): https://mentalmattershostedbyasekhototo.substack.com/

📅 Book a conversation: https://calendly.com/asekhopoetry/60min

Today's guest is a filmmaker, screenwriter, actor, and lifelong comic book collector whose work sits at the rare intersection of storytelling and mental health advocacy.

Most people think mental health conversations belong in therapy rooms and wellness podcasts. But here's the thing — some of the most powerful mental health messages ever told have come through film and comic books. The problem is we rarely talk about why those stories hit so hard. This filmmaker found his escape from bullying, isolation, and the weight of male silence not in a therapist's office, but in the pages of Batman comics — and eventually translated that into a career making films that dare to portray the mind honestly.

Expect to learn why comic books became a genuine lifeline for a kid being bullied in school, what Batman actually teaches us about resilience without superpowers, how film and comics are two sides of the same creative coin, why the movie Split remains one of the most honest portrayals of mental illness ever made, what men get dangerously wrong about therapy and emotional suppression, why the male suicide rate is so much higher than female — and what silence has to do with it, how to find the right therapist instead of giving up after one bad fit, why you don't need equipment or a film school degree to start making movies today, and much more.

This conversation will challenge how you think about storytelling, mental health, and the fictional characters that quietly shaped who you are.

You can support the show through Patreon: https://patreon.com/mentalmattersbyasekho

Helen Sernett is a sleep advocate, burnout recovery specialist, and creator of Sleep Lists — a free podcast of relaxation audio tools designed to shut down the anxious mind and help you fall asleep.

Most of us treat sleep like an inconvenience — something that interrupts life rather than powers it. But here's the thing: every time you skip sleep, your brain loses its only window to process trauma, consolidate memories, and clear the cellular waste that builds up during the day. Helen hit rock bottom with insomnia after years of career burnout and tried everything — pills, white noise, sleep podcasts, even marijuana gummies. Nothing worked. So she built her own tool from scratch, and what she discovered changed how she understands the brain entirely.

Expect to learn why burnout is often the hidden root cause of chronic insomnia, how sleep is the only time your brain can separate emotion from memory and process trauma, why alcohol before bed actually ruins your sleep quality instead of improving it, what happens to your brain cells when you don't complete full sleep cycles, how neuroplasticity depends on sleep and why you can't rewire a tired brain, the surprisingly simple "pretend to sleep" technique that can trick your body into real rest, why the standard advice about cold rooms and complete darkness doesn't work for everyone, how morning sunlight exposure sets up your melatonin production 16 hours later, the exact pre-sleep routine order of operations that signals your brain to wind down, why sleeping pills are an emergency tool and not a long-term solution, and much more.

This conversation will challenge how you think about rest — and make you realize that fixing your sleep might be the most important mental health investment you ever make.

Daryl Dittmer is a recovery advocate, entrepreneur, and author of When I Stopped Fighting and When You Stop Fighting.

Most people who struggle with addiction look back and blame their circumstances — the dysfunction, the chaos, the environment. Here's the thing: the circumstances don't matter as much as what you decide to do with them. Daryl started drinking and using drugs at 13, hit a point of crisis before he turned 19, and made a decision that changed everything. What followed wasn't just sobriety — it was the deliberate rebuilding of a life through discipline, breathwork, gratitude, and radical self-honesty. And now he's written the roadmap so others don't have to figure it out alone.

Expect to learn why addiction often starts not from trauma but from something far more ordinary, what denial actually looks like from the inside and why most people don't recognise it in themselves, how a 30-day inpatient program can rewire the trajectory of an entire life, why your upbringing doesn't define your outcome but does shape what you have to work through, how breathwork, meditation, and gratitude function as the three pillars of sustainable mental resilience, why entrepreneurship will expose every crack in your psychological foundation, what it means to shrink your circle not out of arrogance but out of growth, why the best thing you can do for the people you love is to improve yourself, how Daryl's two books differ — one tells his story, the other helps you write yours — and much more.

This conversation will challenge how you think about recovery, resilience, and what it actually means to stop fighting the life you're trying to build.

Jo Ann Fawcett is an author, entrepreneur, survivor of narcissistic abuse, and a fierce advocate for people rebuilding their lives after toxic relationships.

Most people who've been through one bad marriage quietly wonder what went wrong. Jo Ann has been through seven. But here's the thing — she's not a cautionary tale. She's a blueprint. After decades of manipulation, emotional abuse, and losing herself to partners who couldn't acknowledge her worth, she did the hard internal work. At nearly 70, she's debt-free from a narcissist's debts, running her own business, raising her granddaughters to use their voice, and more at peace with herself than she's ever been. The marriages didn't break her. They built her.

Expect to learn why sharing the same religion or values doesn't mean you're compatible with someone, the real reason couples avoid the conversations that actually predict whether a relationship will survive, what narcissists do that makes you feel like the problem when you're not, why therapy only works if both partners are willing to show up for it, how Jo Ann lost 30 pounds simply by leaving a stressful marriage — and what that reveals about what toxic relationships do to your body, what genuine self-care looks like versus the performative version most people practice, why women who come from generations of silenced voices struggle to set boundaries, how to stop letting other people's labels define your story, why it's possible to view every failed relationship as a teacher rather than a wound, and much more.

This conversation will challenge how you think about resilience, self-worth, and what it truly means to love yourself before you can love anyone else well.