I've never paid much attention to reality tv stars or to social media influencers, but there's always been something about Tully Smythe, aka Instagram's @tee_smythe, that I've found compelling. There's always seemed to be a depth there, but I never knew why. Now I do. Tully was 15 and the eldest of 3 kids when her mother was diagnosed with dementia. To this day, the family employs various strategies to cope with the disease.

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A couple of weeks ago my sister Sherri said to me, "I reckon my friend Lynne would be a good nitty gritty. She’s in a wheel chair, and she’s very prepared to tell the story of how she ended up in it." Quite simply, I dare you to hear this story and not feel like a complete wimp by the time it’s over. The thing about Lynne though, is that she’s obviously been a bad arse since the day she was born. This ep features beautiful traditional Tibetan music from my friend Tenzin Choegyel and there's lots of his music on Itunes.

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The creator and star of Please Like Me, Josh Thomas ruminates on everything from ADD medication to moving his dog to America and his fears for the outcome of the stupid Same Sex Marriage survey.

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Paul Weeks was one of the 227 passengers onboard MH370 when it disappeared. Danica weeks is his wife, and she talks about her life before and since the mystery began.

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Sri Lankan/Australian comedian Dilruk is living his dream, making people laugh and working with his idols. He's found the key to maintaining gratitude, but like many of us, he has a few personal obstacles he struggles to overcome.

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We're back! After a long break to focus on my other podcast, Australian True Crime, it's time to have some interesting conversations about other things, and what a place to start - suburban ghost busting with the big, beautiful, brash personality that is Jody Turner. Be warned, Jody's ghost hunting requires a lot of swearing!

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What happens at the end of life when cancer finally catches up? For Julia Watson there was a wonderful feeling of being overwhelmed with love. Humanitarian, mature age student, published author, mother and wife Julia passed away on Sunday 18th December 2016. In January of 2015 she was given 6 to 9 months to live, which she managed to stretch out into almost two joy-filled years. Listen to Meshel Laurie speak to Julia from her bedside in a touching conversation about life, love and family, then hear again their first talk about Julia's book Breakfast, School Run, Chemo, and how cancer shaped her identity. Show notesOur thoughts go out to Julia's family. You can find her blog here.And to donate to the family fund go to:  https://www.gofundme.com/julia-watson-family-fundLeave comments on Meshel's facebook page.And her twitter is here.Please leave a review and a rating for this show in itunes.

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Let’s talk about the very thing we like to talk about the least. From why we need to teach our kids about it, to what makes a nice death and what happens in your final days. Through conversations with a palliative care nurse who has seen many a last breath and has some eerie ghost stories to share, and a woman who runs ‘death cafés’, Meshel Laurie explores the guts and glory of death. We can’t avoid it (despite our best efforts) so let’s talk about it.Show notesWith thanks to Jenni from The Wellcare Program and Kerri Noonan from The Groundswell Project.Leave comments on Meshel's facebook page.And her twitter is here.Please leave a review and a rating for this show in itunes.

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Trigger warning: this podcast discusses sexual abuse, mental illness and suicide.From the age of 11, Manny Waks was groomed for sex. The Jewish activist was brought up in an Orthodox-Jewish community and routinely abused. When he was 17, Manny became a whistle-blower on childhood sexual abuse in the Orthodox Jewish community. He speaks to Meshel about the effects of his pursuit for justice on his family, plus his exile from Australia and his struggle to keep fighting through the depression.If this podcast brings up issues for you around sexual or emotional abuse, please call Bravehearts on 1800 272 831. If you are concerned about the welfare of a child you can get advice from The Child Abuse Prevention hotline on 1800 688 009 or call The Child Abuse Report Line on: 131 478 (Open 24 hours). You can also call Lifeline on 13 11 14.Manny Waks is Jewish community leader and activist, and the author of Who Gave You Permission? Hear more from Manny on his blog. Leave comments on Meshel's facebook page

And her twitter is here

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Last time we heard from Luke Williams, he was talking about that time he moved in with junkies to research addiction to crystal meth. Now he's back with Meshel for Part Two, to talk about his experiences with and as a money boy in Pattaya Thailand, the sex capital of the world, and how he started having sex for money when he was completing his law degree in Melbourne.Luke Williams is a freelance journalist and author of The Ice Age: a journey into crystal meth addiction. Leave comments on Meshel's facebook page

And her twitter is here

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