Of Course.. They Make Me Crazy!

Welcome to the podcast Of Course, They Make Me Crazy!

I’m excited for this episode! My bestie Nicole Morris is joining me today. Yay! I’m April Norris.  It’s like we’re almost sisters in so many weird ways.  You probably feel the same way about your best friend.  

Nicole and I have essentially known each other since we were in second grade.  But I moved away when we were little girls. I then came back during my junior year of high school. We graduated from a small town about an hour outside of Cleveland, Ohio called Huron. 

We never kept in contact all those years because we were so young. But we instantly rekindled our friendship on my first day back at high school.

Nicole always heard or even experienced some of my crazy family stories.  And, during all of that I always thought she had the perfect family.

But, come to find out years later as adults …she didn’t.

What we hope you get out of this is episode is that you know or start to realize … who you come from doesn't define you! Your parents birthed you, but you choose your own life!

You can always reach out to me – April Norris.   

Instagram @ofcoursetheymakemecrazy. Clubhouse @theymakemecrazy

Or email [email protected].

Think about joining the private Facebook Group I created. Just send me an email and I’ll send you the link!  Would really love to connect with you.

This is Part II of Growing Up with A Bipolar Mother. 

Dalia Deleon, my guest, shared her stories of growing up as little girl totally confused by her mother’s explosive and abusive behavior.

Dalia explained that it upset her mom when she decided to have a relationship with her biological father.  Why is that so bad?  Well, Dalia said her father physically abused her mother and that he went to prison for it.  She continued to explain when her father got out, he learned his wife was doing the same thing to the kids.

Dalia said her father tried to make things right by trying to get her and her siblings out of that situation. 

I left off by asking Dalia how that played out. That’s where this next episode Part II picks up.

Even though this is a tough topic, we also laugh about several things. 

We hope our stories will help you smile and get through anything you might be working on too.

You can reach out to Dalia at www.daliadeleon.com.

You can always reach out to me – April Norris.

Instagram @ofcoursetheymakemecrazy. Clubhouse @theymakemecrazy

Or email [email protected].

Think about joining the private Facebook Group I created. Just send me an email and I’ll send you the link! Would really love to connect with you and others going through the same thing!

Thank you for joining me on Of Course They Make Me Crazy!

 

I have been popping on this new app called ClubHouse!  It’s totally addicting.  If you love podcasts and breathing new light into your soul, constantly learning new things, and connecting with people from around the world then you should be on it with me!

 

If you’re interested, email me. I will make sure to invite you onto it. As of now, it’s invite only and you must have an iphone.

 

Clubhouse is like several live radio shows or podcasts going on all at once. You scroll through and find the topic that interests you and then click into a room that interests you most.

 

I mention this because that is where I met Dalia Deleon my guest for this episode. 

 

Dalia and I clicked into a room of networking women.  I explained that I have a podcast for those who love and live with someone who has a mental illness.  We connected because she also has a mother who was bipolar. 

 

Dalia’s mom was a bit different than mine.

 

Both of our mother’s had the bipolar disorder. Mine was addicted to pain pills and very loving to us kids even though she experienced severe physical abuse from my biological father who we escaped from.

 

Dalia’s mom was not addicted to pills. She says her mom’s bipolar sickness came through in the way that she had this persona of being a wonderfully nice person at work or in the community and then came home as an angry abusive person. Dalia says her biological father went to prison for trying to kill her mother.  And, that her mom then became mentally and physically abusive to her and her siblings.

   

Together we talk about our experiences growing up in an unsettling environment and what we learned from it. 

Even though this is a tough topic, we also laugh about several things. 

We hope our stories will help you smile and get through anything you might be working on too.

You can reach out to Dalia at www.daliadeleon.com.

You can always reach out to me – April Norris.

Instagram @ofcoursetheymakemecrazy. Clubhouse @theymakemecrazy

Or email [email protected].

Think about joining the private Facebook Group I created. Just send me an email and I’ll send you the link! Would really love to connect with you!

Hey There …

You’re not alone!  Depression hits all of us.

Brian, one of the hosts of The Zero Dark Nerdy Podcast talks to April Norris about living with depression. 

He's the host of a peppy podcast known as the World’s Most Notorious POP Culture Podcast covering Movies, Video Games, Cosplay, Toys and Music ... but it's not always fun and games for him.  

He shares how he deals with his dark days. He’s coming to us with his own personal perspective and struggles.

We both hope you know you are loved by so many and better days are ahead. 

 You can reach out to Brian on IG @zdn_podcast or email [email protected]

You can always reach out to me - April Norris on IG @ofcoursetheymakemecrazy

Or email [email protected]. If you’re on clubhouse @theymakemecrazy

Think about joining the private Facebook Group I created. Just send me an email and I’ll send you the link! Would really love to connect with you!

You can also listen to all the podcasts at www.ofcoursetheymakemecrazy.com

Hey Everyone!  Thank You for joining me on Of Course They Make Me Crazy!  I’m the host, April Norris.

 Joining me for this episode is Warren.  He recently started co-hosting a podcast with his friend Graham called The Flawed Dads Guide To Parenting.  

The two of them talk about their struggles of raising their children. Two men trying not to play it cool! So, refreshing, right?

They discuss parenting topics and the idea that none of us are perfect parents, but we can always be better ones.

Warren started the podcast as a response to one of his daughters suffering from the desire to commit suicide and how he was struggling as a parent to reconcile how to deal with the situation.

He and Graham believe recognizing that no parent, including themselves is perfect and that is the first step to improvement.

Whether you’re a dad or mom… you should listen to listen to this… for your own peace of mind!

Warren’s daughter is only 8 years-old having suicidal thoughts. There have been other 8 year-old children in the U.S. that have gone through with the threat!

It’s scary to think about, but with all the technology at their fingertips, this topic is something none of us can ignore!

You can reach out to Warren on IG @flaweddadpodcast or email [email protected]

You can always reach out to me April Norris on IG @ofcoursetheymakemecrazy

Or email [email protected]. If you’re on clubhouse @theymakemecrazy

Think about joining the private Facebook Group I created. Just send me an email and I’ll send you the link! You can also listen to all the podcasts at www.ofcoursetheymakemecrazy.com.

Love,

April Norris

#Mentalhealthpodcast #Crazyfamilystories

Hi There!

Thank you so much for joining me for the podcast, Of Course .. They Make Me Crazy! I’m the host April Norris.

This episode hits my heart. Many of you know, I started this podcast because I grew up with a bipolar mother. When you live with someone with a mental illness.. it can cause havoc in everyone’s life. My beautiful mom, Joni was a victim to that too. She grew up with many ill people around her. One being my biological father. They met and had me at 15 years-old. She stayed with him as long as she could and he beat her. I witnessed it as a little girl.

I say this episode hits my heart, because joining me for this episode is this strong young woman named Clara Baldwin.

Baldwin just published a book titled - Peace Over Pieces Anthology. It contains 16 stories from real domestic abuse survivors, including her own story.

There's a line that she writes in it saying, "I feel it’s needed to stop the stigma of why she or he just doesn't leave.” In the situation of abuse, it’s not the victim's fault, and abuse can be a much more complex and suffocating than people realize.

I relate to that because for many years I held judgement on my mom for not leaving or not turning around and inflicting as much pain on my biological father as he did on her. I can have pretty twisted thoughts sometimes!

Even if you weren't the one being abused ... the trauma of witnessing it is still horrific.

Clara Baldwin shares her story of growing up with an abusive father. And, she's grown up to do amazing things. It goes to show you things can get better!

Whether your living in an abusive household now or have ... we believe hearing this episode might give you mental strength you need.

You can find Clara Baldwin and her book at www.peace-over-pieces.org.

Please reach out to me at [email protected]. Think about joining the private Facebook Group I created. Just send me an email and I’ll send you the link. It’s also in the IG bio page on @ofcoursetheymakecrazy.

And, you can listen to all the podcasts at www.ofcoursetheymakemecrazy.com

Love,

April Norris

#Mentalhealthpodcast​​ #Crazyfamilystories​

Three ladies named Dr. Alyssa, Nikki and Heidi share a unique bond of finding out their husbands are transgender women.

They're sharing their journey with April Norris of finding their bright lights of friendship during their darkest days.

Yep, like a Caitlyn Jenner situation!

As you’re listening … April truly hopes you will find some sort of energy to keep going in whatever trauma you’re dealing with. Hearing their stories of being able to move forward (albeit they still have their struggles) from this major life blow that doesn’t only involve them, but their family, friends and children.

They all raise children together. All three have boys and the boys all have new mommy's.

Hear how they met their then husbands, how they came out to their families and how everyone is doing today.

Dr. Alyssa, Nikki and Heidi have their own podcast called Thanks, It's The Trauma. You can find them on Apple podcasts, Instagram and on their website thanksitsthetrauma.com.

Please reach out to me at [email protected]. Think about joining the private Facebook Group I created. Just send me an email and I’ll send you the link.

It’s also in the IG bio page on @ofcoursetheymakecrazy.

And, you can listen to all the podcasts at www.ofcoursetheymakemecrazy.com

Love, 

April Norris 

#MentalHealthPodcast #CrazyFamilyStories

Hi There! This is April!  Happy New Year!

Ok, so what you’re about to listen to is a conversation between myself and my friend Jolona Kinlaw. She has a blog called JustJoBlog.com.  She’s a licensed clinical mental health counselor who writes about the struggles of having a child with autism. We did a podcast about that topic awhile back, but then we kept talking about everything else under the sun.  The podcast became too long so I had to cut a lot out.

We were just being gabby girls … but we talk about somethings that might be helpful to you! We talked about the internal fight we have with ourselves in the morning … are we going to put on our positive panties or be negative nellies. It’s so much easier to be negative, so what do you do to snap out of that?

Gotta exercise that mental muscle!

Talk about having to tip toeing around old friends not really understanding your new ways .., and how that puts pressure on you. Don’t let people tell you how to live.

And, talking to God … even challenging him!

It’s a quick 13 minutes. Hope you enjoy.

If you want to reach Jolona  … you can also find her on Instagram @j_u_s_t_jo

As always, I hope you find love and peace in your day!

Think about joining my private Facebook Group “Of Course.. They Make Me Crazy! Venters!”

Pop on my website www.ofcoursetheymakemecrazy.com and send me a message. I’ll send you the link. It’s also on the IG Bio page @ofcoursetheymakecrazy

 

Love,

April Norris

Of Course … They Make Me Crazy Podcast Host

#mentalhealthpodcast #crazyfamilystories

Happy New Year! 

Well, how do you all feel now that 2020 is behind us? 

I know we’re all relieved. But we can’t fool ourselves, things will carry over. Although, I do think we’re better equipped to handle hard things because of it!

2020 was a big wake-up call that many of us needed to learn to appreciate what we have because it’s not always guaranteed.  Or, to appreciate what we didn’t have!

Flipping through Instagram you see so many funny things. Someone asked, “What did Covid give or do for you?” There was a comment saying, “It gave me a fat ass and a zitty face! And to make it worse, it also gave me a fat face and a zitty ass!” Thought that was hysterical!  But, the struggle is real!  

Well, for me last year, allowed me to start this podcast while I was furloughed during the first shut down. My first episode uploaded on June 12, 2020. I’m grateful I was able to have that time to start this.    

Truthfully, I wish I had more time to spend on it. I work a full-time job and have other responsibilities which can get exhausting. You know?

Last week, I started thinking about pausing the podcast for a bit.  I’m in the process of designing a website for it and I really need to get new equipment and learn new things which takes up so much damn time!  Ugh! I thought that might be my best option.

And, then to make things worse, I was listening to Ed Mylett’s podcast and one of his guests posed the most annoying question! Well, it’s the most annoying question to me.  His guest asked the listeners, “Do you know your WHY?” I thought, “God Bless America! Here we go!”

I didn’t turn it off though.  Even though I hate to hear it, I know it’s important. I think I find it so annoying because the next thing “they” normally say is, “You must know your WHY before doing anything else!” Like don’t move! Freeze! If you know your why then you’re free to go. If not, you’re a loser and get to work, dammit!

Here’s the thing, I know my WHY! Still annoys me though. This podcast is about my WHY!  

You’re probably thinking, “April, why should I give a shit about your why?”  Well, you shouldn’t! But I want you to know your WHY!

Ask yourself that question.  Ask, “why do I do the things I do?” And then grab a pen and paper and just start writing. Don’t even think about what you’re writing … just write. Maybe start by writing the names of everyone that is important to you.  It helps you understand yourself … well hopefully!  If it doesn’t… ask why!

I know I’m the one being annoying now! 

I bring this up because I was in bed staring at the ceiling a few nights ago contemplating pausing this podcast so I can catch my breath. And, as I was seriously considering it … my WHY popped in my head. 

But then so did another thing Ed Myletts’s guest mentioned in that same episode.  He said, “now write your WHY to your avatar person.”

Truthfully, I had to look up what avatar meant. LOL! I was like, “Great just another thing to do and what the hell does avatar even mean?”

In case you’re a dumb ass too … avatar is a figure representing a person. I’m just kidding.

This haunted me all day.  I listen to Ed Mylett on my way to work in the morning and I was still thinking about it at night.

He said, “Who would benefit from your why”?

I thought, “Ok, this will be a great way for me to start 2021 and maybe give me my podcasting mojo back. Perfect, I’ll make up an avatar and speak to her.”

Welcome to our Merry Christmas episode, Sugar Plums!

April says, “Christmas was our mom’s favorite holiday.  She always made it special. My sister Amanda and I want to take you down memory lane with us as we talk about our holiday household shenanigans!”

So … on Dasher, Dancer, Prancer and Vixen … hop on our sleigh and press play!

Would love for you to share your family memories with us too. Comment on our YouTube channel under April Norris Of Course.. They Make Me Crazy! Or simply email April [email protected]

I would love for you to join my Free Facebook Group too!  It’s called Of Course.. They Make Me Crazy Venters!  You can find the link to that on Of Course.. They Make Me Crazy‘s Instagram bio page.

Happy Holidays!

XOXO

April Norris