Mental Note

Picture this: a warm July breeze stirs my hair as I sit on the back porch. My toddler, illuminated by moonlight and the twinkle of fireflies, gently spins in circles, hands waving in the air as she moves to the strumming of a guitar mixed with the call of cicadas in the trees. It's the sort of moment that feels infinitely removed from the typical noise of daily life. Here, there are no email alerts, traffic jams, or checklists. Only laughter and contentment.

So, at the start of this new year, I'm asking, "how do I get more of these moments and less of the hamster wheel? How can I stop living on other people's terms and tune in to my inner voice?" To explore these questions, I can think of no one better than the strummer of the guitar from that moonlit summer night - my friend and 71-year-old neighbor - Vollie McKenzie.

Vollie is a man of many outlets. He spent over 40 years as a mental health professional, plays tennis daily, and is a known performer in the Southeast. He also has a recovery journey of his own that includes life-long struggles with anxiety, depression, and body dysmorphia.

I invited him on the podcast to talk about the process of finding his own voice and how that intersects with his mental health journey. Along the way, Vollie will sing and play pivotal songs to guide the narrative.

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Mental Note Podcast is brought to you by Pathlight Mood and Anxiety Center and Eating Recovery Center. If you'd like to talk to a trained therapist or learn more about their programs and free support groups, please call them at (877) 850-7199 or visit our website mentalnotepodcast.com

Resources:

• Our Website: www.mentalnotepodcast.com
• Pathlight Mood and Anxiety Center: www.pathlightbh.com
• Eating Recovery Center: www.eatingrecoverycenter.com

What do you do when prayer is not helping your depression but actually making it worse?

For author and speaker Abraham Sculley, answering this question and finding lasting freedom from his mental illness meant rethinking and challenging a lot of the ideas he grew up believing. But this son of Jamaican immigrants knows how to persevere.

Join us as we explore Abraham's transformation into the person he is today — a mental health advocate with a special passion for showing how accessing mental health care doesn't mean going against your faith.

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Also, be sure to check out Abraham's book and podcast! Links are in the resources list below.

Mental Note Podcast is brought to you by Pathlight Mood and Anxiety Center. If you'd like to talk to a trained therapist or learn more about their specialty track for OCD, depression and trauma, please call them at (877) 850-7199.

Resources:

• Our Website: www.mentalnotepodcast.com
• Pathlight Mood and Anxiety Center: www.pathlightbh.com
• Abraham Sculley's Website: www.abrahamsculley.com
• Abraham's Book: Unlearn The Lies: A Guide to Reshaping the Way We Think about Depression - Purchase Here
• Abraham's Podcast: Unlearn The Lies Podcast - Listen Here

Here's the thing about sleep - one in three American adults simply do not get the sleep they require on a regular basis. That's not ok! Sleep deprivation kicks off a cascading series of consequences for our physical health, relationships, sense of self, and emotional stability. But finding our way to a better night's sleep is no easy task - that's why we created this episode.

We speak with two people about reigning in sleepless nights. First, we meet paramedic Sydney Fitzgibbons who finally recovered from chronic insomnia. Second, we sit down with Dr. Karima Clayton - a professor at NYU and sleep expert who works with veterans in New York to overcome sleep disorders. Through Dr. Clayton, we'll learn the 8 steps of sleep hygiene and why getting better sleep is crucial to a well-rounded life.

Sponsor:Mental Note Podcast is brought to you by Eating Recovery Center and Pathlight mood and anxiety center. If you'd like to talk to a trained therapist to see if treatment is right for you, please call them at (877) 850-7199.

Resources:

• 8 Sleep Hygiene Suggestions + Timestamps:

1. 1. Mind the caffeine consumption - 18:50
   2. Designate the bed as a sleep-only zone - 19:55
   3. Find a sleep routine that winds you down - 20:40
   4. Follow consistent times for both falling asleep and waking up - 21:00
   5. Sleep space ambiance - 24:26
   6. Mindfully Move your body but keep it relaxing if you like to be active before bed - 25:25
   7. Avoid napping if possible - 26:10
   8. Get out of bed if you can't sleep - 27:45

• mentalnotepodcast.com

Kim Gould Fry is on a mission to help restore your relationship with your body and introduce you to intuitive movement - no big deal, right?

Her approach focuses on both physical and mental health through training and partnering with fat and large-bodied instructors, offering counseling that connects mind and body, and creating resources like the free "Essential Guide to Enjoying Exercise"

We sat down with her and one of her favorite barre instructors, Natalie Sanders, to talk about what it takes to enjoy body movement outside of diet culture.

Sponsor: Mental Note Podcast is a creation of Eating Recovery Center and Pathlight mood and Anxiety Center.

• Reach a trained therapist at (877) 850-7199

Resources:

• Website: www.autonomytherapyatx.com
• Autonomy Resource Page: https://autonomytherapyatx.com/favorite-reads
• Intuitive Movement Masterclass e-course: https://courses-autonomymovement.teachable.com/p/debunking-movement-myths24
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/autonomytherapyatx/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AutonomyTherapy
• Natalie Website: https://www.bodyposibarre.com/
• Natalie Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bodyposibarre/

At first, Mimi Cole couldn't understand why she was so terrified of going to hell. She did all the right things, prayed often, and continually confessed sins but her fears only got worse. Pretty soon, she also began obsessing about accidentally running someone over with her car - what was going on?!

Just as she started to feel crushed by cascading illogical behaviors, she received a diagnosis - OCD - and began working with a treatment team to get her life back.

Now, this North Carolina grad student has taken her experiences and used them to spread mental health awareness as a social media influencer and clinician in training. We talk with Mimi about her journey and also hear from Dr. Charles Brady about what happens to someone with OCD and what treatment options are available to help people find recovery.

Sponsor: Mental Note Podcast is a creation of Eating Recovery Center and Pathlight mood and Anxiety Center.

• Reach a trained therapist at (877) 850-7199
• Register for their online annual conference: www.pathlightbh.com/event/pbh-conference

Resources: Website: www.mimi-cole.com Instagram: the.lovelybecoming Website (Dr. Brady): www.kitsapocd.com

With infection rates falling and vaccination rates rising in the United States, it seems like the summer has almost returned to normal. But maybe it's easier said than done…

What are ways that prolonged loneliness and isolation may affect us? What self-knowledge can we glean from the worst pandemic in 100 years?

Dr. Zach Rawlings will guide us in taking a deeper look at the various ways people respond to loneliness + solitude and how those responses influence our post-pandemic mental health.

Sponsor: Mental Note Podcast is a creation of Eating Recovery Center and Pathlight mood and Anxiety Center.

• Reach a trained therapist at (877) 850-7199
• Register for their online annual conference: www.pathlightbh.com/event/pbh-conference

Resources: Website: www.zachrawlings.com

Have you ever felt the need to hide your true self? Shame, fear, and self-hatred are powerful forces, and breaking free from them is worthy of the grandest party you can imagine.

In celebration of pride month and the joy of self-expression, we're sitting down with choreographer and recovery advocate Ryan Walker Page to share his story of coming out, shedding shame, and finding recovery.

Along the way, Ryan invites us to reconsider the parts of ourselves we are the most ashamed to reveal. In fact, he counts those "imperfections" as the precious source of wisdom that catapulted his successful career into working with people like Lil Nas X, Renee Zellweger, Samuel L Jackson, and many many more. In Ryan's world, coming out isn't just a singular event, but a beautiful lifelong unfolding.

Sponsor: Mental Note Podcast is a creation of Eating Recovery Center and Pathlight mood and Anxiety Center.

• Reach a trained therapist at (877) 850-7199
• Register for their online annual conference: www.pathlightbh.com/event/pbh-conference

Resources: Website: https://www.ryanwalkerpage.com/

Jen Ponton possesses seemingly boundless energy:

Most known as the fiercely feminist fat activist 'Rubi' on AMC's critical darling Dietland, she is an award-winning actress and body liberation activist. With a television resume that includes 30 Rock, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Orange is the New Black, Law and Order: SVU, The Blacklist, and Blue Bloods, she also starred in the late Ash Christian's body-positive romantic comedy, Love On the Run. In 2020, she delivered the TEDx Talk "Hollywood's Fatphobia Problem." She also hosts All the Fucks, a storytelling podcast about caring too much.

On top of all that - she's simply wonderful to spend time with. With quick wit and relatable storytelling, she has the rare ability to communicate hard truths while also not taking herself too seriously. She sits down with host Ellie Pike to discuss Fatphobia, activism, Hollywood, and practical ways to push back against the marginalization of fat people.

Links:

• www.jenponton.com
• www.mentalnotepodcast.com

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Mental Note is a creation of Eating Recovery Center and Pathlight Mood and Anxiety Center. To speak with a trained therapist for free to see if treatment is right for you, call (877) 850-7199

Register for the all virtual annual conference below: REGISTRATION LINK

It's no secret that a lot of us are uncomfortable with the shape and size of our bodies -thanks in no small part to the $72 billion dollar a year weight loss industry devoted to the thin ideal. Even most health care providers will ask patients to drop weight if their BMI is above "average." But why?

The Health at Every Size movement - HAES for short - invites us to reconsider our obsession with weight and instead focus on health behaviors. HAES principles seek to advance social justice, create an inclusive and respectful community, and support people of all sizes in finding compassionate ways to take care of themselves. But what do those principles look like in daily life?

To cut through a lot of the misinformation out there, we've invited Meredith Nisbet, L.M.F.T., C.E.D.S. to answer some of our most common questions when it comes to body size.

HAES Resources:

• HAES Website
• Database of HAES aligned businesses and medical providers
• Social Media Accounts:
  • @thenutritiontea
  • @bodyimagewithbri
  • @colleenmwerner
  • @therapywithmere
• Meredith Nisbet

Therapy Resources:

• Eating Recovery Center (877) 850-7199
• Insight Behavioral Health (877) 850-7199

In our last episode, Dr. Charlynn Small and Dr. Mazella Fuller took us through some of the history and impact of the mental health profession's relationship with the black community. While that episode helped set the context for today's conversation, you can also listen to this episode as a stand-alone podcast.

Today is all about exploring practical tools for becoming more inclusive and equitable in supporting mental health. We hope it gives you some ideas for growth!

Sources:

mentalnotepodcast.com

Dr. Mazella Fuller Bio

Dr. Charlynn Small Bio

Treating Black Women With Eating Disorders: A Clinician's Guide

Treatment Assessment Hotline: (877) 850-7199