The Just Checking In Podcast

In this episode of Behind The Mic, we checked in with artist, producer and DJ Le Dionisos.Dion puts out brilliant, balearic disco and funk music that is a joy to listen to. Hailing from the Netherlands, Dion studied keys and production at The Conservatorium van Amsterdam. In this episode we discuss his music journey, the self-confidence you need to succeed in the music industry, how he fell in love with DJing and having his first original single played by the iconic DJ Harvey, as well as a couple of his edits. For Dion’s mental health, we discuss the challenge he felt transitioning from high-school to university and the choice he made to spend an extra year in high school to prepare for university. We then discuss the ‘hole’ he fell into after completing university and figuring out what he wanted to do with his life full-time. We finish by discussing growth, personal development and his outlook on his life now.As always, #itsokaytoventListen to Le Dionisos on streaming platforms below: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/60Fms0yhF4pUvCxJ6eEnzH?si=4c16a59fdd5b44bbYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ledionisos4198Bandcamp: https://le-dionisos.bandcamp.com/album/wanderlust-albumYou can follow Le Dionisos on social media below: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ledionisos/Support Us:Patreon: www.patreon.com/venthelpukGoFundMe: www.gofundme.com/f/help-vent-supp…ir-mental-healthMerchandise: www.redbubble.com/people/VentUK/shopMusic: @patawawa - Strange: www.youtube.com/watch?v=d70wfeJSEvkOutro: Le Dionisos - Over and Over: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7q3r6mQDPHU&pp=ygUZbGUgZGlvbmlzb3Mgb3ZlciBhbmQgb3Zlcg%3D%3D

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In episode 228 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with George Mycock. George is the Founder of MyoMinds and a mental health advocate for awareness of Muscle Dysmorphia (MD).MyoMinds mission is to demystify mental health for exercisers and athletes and to create an understanding future for the exercising community.Through research, public talks and their podcast, they work with universities, schools and other public institutions to change the conversation around Muscle Dysmorphia.In this episode we discuss George’s experience of Muscle Dysmorphia, which some listeners may know by the term ‘bigorexia’. Muscle Dysmorphia is a form of Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD), which is defined by: “Being preoccupied by worries that one's body is “too small” or “not muscular enough” despite having a normal build, or in many cases, an objectively extremely “buff” physique.”It can cause the person to create obsessive rituals, behaviours and a mindset that can cause serious psychological distress. In its most extreme form, it can also put that person in extreme danger physically and mentally.George began experiencing MD after he suffered a spinal injury when he was 13 whilst he was playing rugby, a sport he loved and which he had built his identity around. He was told never to play rugby again and was signed off school for a year. After he returned, he suffered an identity crisis and began exercising and bodybuilding heavily in order to rebuild his identity. Unfortunately, through this, he developed MD (which hasn’t been officially diagnosed) and eventually got to the point where he became suicidal and was only saved because by a coincidental miracle. One of his best friends happened to visit his house and she supported him, listened to him and encouraged him to seek professional support. He did that, worked through the issues the MD had given him and has now changed his life, founded MyoMinds and has done some brilliant advocacy work.This includes participating in a LadBible roundtable on Eating Disorders, which included friend of the pod Danny Bowman, Miles Nazaire’s Channel 4 documentary on muscle dysmorphia and many other pieces of work. In this episode we discuss his mental health journey, from avid rugby player, to obsessive bodybuilder and now mental health advocate, how he built his self-esteem pyramid through therapy, what ‘vulnerable narcissism’ is and how we can spot the signs that someone may be experiencing muscle dysmorphia.As always, #itsokaytoventYou can find out more about MyoMinds here: https://myominds.com/You can follow MyoMinds on social media below: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/myo_minds/?hl=enTwitter: https://twitter.com/MyoMindsSupport Us:Patreon: www.patreon.com/venthelpukGoFundMe: www.gofundme.com/f/help-vent-supp…ir-mental-healthMerchandise: www.redbubble.com/people/VentUK/shopMusic: @patawawa - Strange: www.youtube.com/watch?v=d70wfeJSEvk

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In this episode of Behind The Mic, we checked in with R&B and pop artist Yasmin Dyer.Yasmin loved musical theatre from a young age as well as dance and drama and was auditioning for musical theatre schools before she decided to focus on music. She then auditioned for the London College of Contemporary Music during the Covid-19 lockdown and successfully got in.She then met previous Behind The Decks guest Ryan Doyle and made a track called ‘Cry for Love’ and she began to alter the path she wanted to go on, crystallising a desire to be an artist and began making R&B music after meeting one of her music mentors Marie. In this episode we discuss her music journey and her transition from musical theatre to the music industry, her debut EP which will be coming out in 2024 and her plans to do more shows as she develops her sound. For music industry issues, we discuss the ultra-competitive nature of the industry and the mental health impact that’s had on her and comparison culture. For Yasmin’s mental health, we discuss the impact that her parents divorce had on her when she was 12 years old, people-pleasing and her struggles with that as a teenager, as an adult and what parts of her life it's affected. We also discuss her diagnosis of OCD when she was 15/16 years old. Yasmin’s OCD manifests in ‘rituals’ and we explore these rituals, how that impacts her daily mental health and the Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) she has done to manage these rituals.We finish by discussing how she finds the right balance in life and her recent ambition to be a personal trainer alongside her music as well.As always, #itsokaytoventYou can listen to Yasmin on streaming platforms below: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4nd0ZOtrG9bfDT10YiSGSt?si=c87a4243d13b4651YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@yasmindyerxoYou can follow Yasmin on social media below: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yasmindyerxo/Support Us:Patreon: www.patreon.com/venthelpukGoFundMe: www.gofundme.com/f/help-vent-supp…ir-mental-healthMerchandise: www.redbubble.com/people/VentUK/shopMusic: @patawawa - Strange: www.youtube.com/watch?v=d70wfeJSEvkOutro: Yasmin Dyer - Demons: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_u7HKPOC6s&pp=ygUSeWFzbWluIGR5ZXIgZGVtb25z

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In episode 227 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Juan Jose Estrada. Juan or 'Pedro' as he is known to his friends, works as a personal trainer in his spare time and in this episode we discuss his fitness journey, from being introduced to sport at a very early age by his parents, before focusing on road cycling and weightlifting as he reached his late teens.As I did with previous guests Mark Wyatt and James Roffey, we emphasise the importance of the relationship between our physical health and mental health, as well as having the right ‘mental diet’ alongside your physical diet. For Pedro’s mental health journey, he was born in Colombia to Colombian parents and moved back and forth between the UK and Colombia several times when he was younger.This brought a lot of instability and he struggled to fit in at times during this period. He moved to the UK permanently when he was around 14/15 years old and we discuss how he worked to fit in at school as the ‘new kid’ initially before finding a positive and supportive friendship group, with his mental health improving from that point onwards. We also discuss his Colombian roots and how his identity as a British-Colombian was formed. When Pedro was 19 he moved out of his parents home and wasn’t making the best choices for his physical health, with some bad habits including smoking cigarettes and weed and we discuss the importance of habits and how little habits can have a big impact on your mental health, for better or for worse. We finish by discussing a bad injury he sustained which hospitalised him and made him bed bound for a few weeks, which impacted his physical and mental health to the point where he was really struggling at one point. We discuss why having a supportive and emotionally intelligent support network is JUST as important as having the courage to open up about your mental health as a man, if you feel it will help you.As always, #itsokaytoventYou can follow Juan on social media below: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dontneedfitness/Support Us:Patreon: www.patreon.com/venthelpukGoFundMe: www.gofundme.com/f/help-vent-supp…ir-mental-healthMerchandise: www.redbubble.com/people/VentUK/shopMusic: @patawawa - Strange: www.youtube.com/watch?v=d70wfeJSEvk

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In episode 226 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Laura Dodsworth. Laura is a author, journalist and photographer. We came across Laura through her latest book, 'Free Your Mind: The New World of Manipulation and How to Resist it', which she co-authored with Patrick Fagan.She is also the author of several other books including ‘A State of Fear: how the UK government weaponised fear during the Covid-19 pandemic’, ‘Bare Reality: 100 women, their breasts, their stories’, ‘Manhood: The Bare Reality’ and ‘Womanhood: The Bare Reality’.In this episode we discuss Free Your Mind through a mental health lens, Laura’s wider journey in broadcasting, media commentary and photography, as well as a very ahead of its time Channel 4 documentary called 100 Vaginas! For Laura’s mental health we discuss how the concept of trauma has informed all of her work as a professional, her father’s struggle with addiction and what affect her parents divorce had on her. We finish by discussing the mental health impact of the menopause on Laura and the taboo about it in the wider mental health conversation.As always, #itsokaytoventYou can purchase a copy of Free Your Mind here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Free-Your-Mind-Manipulation-Resist/dp/B0BVGL98X9/ref=sr_1_1?crid=GMC0LJV1EO0L&keywords=laura+dodsworth+book+free+your+mind&qid=1706960651&sprefix=laura+Dodsw%2Caps%2C307&sr=8-1You can follow Laura on social media below: Twitter: https://twitter.com/BareRealitySupport Us:Patreon: www.patreon.com/venthelpukGoFundMe: www.gofundme.com/f/help-vent-supp…ir-mental-healthMerchandise: www.redbubble.com/people/VentUK/shopMusic: @patawawa - Strange: www.youtube.com/watch?v=d70wfeJSEvk

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In episode 225 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked back in with Irish farmer Gar Lock.We first checked in with Gar in JCIP #196 where we discussed his upbringing which involved criminality, serving prison time and how he turned his life around to become a farmer and a father of five children. We also discussed the work he has been doing to help other former prisoners to change their lives for the better. In Part 2, we have a free-flowing conversation about the influence that fitness guru David Goggins has had on Gar's life, how we tackle the loneliness epidemic in men and how and where men can find meaning if the traditional route of a family is out of reach. We also discuss how to provide a positive message for men that stops them from falling prey to the problematic online male influencers stepping into the vacuum society has left.We finish by discussing fatherhood now some of Gar's children have flown the nest and how he sees his life going forward once all of them have done so.As always, #itsokaytoventYou can listen to Part 1 of Gar's journey here: https://soundcloud.com/venthelpuk/jcip-196-gar-lockSupport Us:Patreon: www.patreon.com/venthelpukGoFundMe: www.gofundme.com/f/help-vent-supp…ir-mental-healthMerchandise: www.redbubble.com/people/VentUK/shopMusic: @patawawa - Strange: www.youtube.com/watch?v=d70wfeJSEvk

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In this episode of Behind The Decks we checked in with Joe White. Joe is a DJ, music promoter and cousin of our Founder Freddie Cocker. He is also the Co-Founder of DJ collective, Social Groove, alongside his other co-founder, Tommy Oriel, who will both be performing at Just Checking In Live #5.Joe began life buying and playing Drum & Bass (D&B) vinyl records before meeting his now DJ partner Tommy whilst he was doing his plumbing apprenticeship. Joe then took a life-changing trip to Ibiza in 2011 and from that moment, not only was his love of all forms of dance music crystallised but he wanted to put on club nights himself. He started a night called ‘KAKED’, before moving on to try a different night called ‘Ad-Hoc’ and then another one called ‘Music Club’.After a hiatus, Joe and Tommy came back together to form Social Groove, where they do DJ sets together as well as put on their own club nights.In this episode, we chart his 15+ year music journey, buying his first pair of decks, his favourite memories of the club nights he put on, his dance music awakening and education and all the highs and lows that come with being a music promoter.For Joe’s mental health, his difficulties have revolved around his issues with addiction and undiagnosed ADHD, which has shaped much of his life. We discuss the impact that the undiagnosed ADHD had on his education, how his teachers and peers perceived him and how he found those labels uncomfortable and limiting. Joe is in the process of getting a diagnosis at time of recording and we explore how many young men, largely working-class ones like Joe who exhibited strong ADHD symptoms but were left unchecked, felt ‘lost’ or dismissed for being who they were. We also explore whether this pendulum has swung too far the other way, its implications and how that’s impacted men like Joe being able to get a diagnosis at a time when NHS waiting times are not in a good place.Joe took part in Movember in 2023 to generate awareness of addiction issues and we finish by charting his recovery journey, what has worked and not worked for him and a nuanced conversation about sobriety.As always, #itsokaytoventYou can follow Social Groove on social media below: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/socialgroove_uk/Support Us:Patreon: www.patreon.com/venthelpukGoFundMe: www.gofundme.com/f/help-vent-supp…ir-mental-healthMerchandise: www.redbubble.com/people/VentUK/shopMusic: @patawawa - Strange: www.youtube.com/watch?v=d70wfeJSEvk

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In episode 224 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Andy Noon. Andy currently works as Head of Centre at the Liverpool branch of a charity called James' Place.James’ Place is a charity offering free, life-saving treatment to suicidal men in their centres, currently in Liverpool, London and Newcastle.The charity was founded by Clare Milford Haven and Nick Wentworth-Stanley following the tragic death of their son James to suicide in 2006.Clare and Nick were determined to prevent other families from losing loved ones and set up James’ Place to provide support for men in suicidal crisis whose needs are not met by existing services.James’s Place goal and purpose is to stop men dying by suicide. They do this by intervening at the point of suicide for these men and their professional therapists get quickly to the heart of a man’s suicidal crisis and help him solve it.In this episode, we discuss the work he does at James Place and the work it does for men and the factors and triggers that bring these men to their suicidal state. We dive into what James' Place does to help these men, get back to leading a normal life and most importantly, in the words of James Place, ‘find hope for the future’.We also discuss the importance of avoiding terms like ‘toxic masculinity’, why despite these men feeling suicidal, the vast majority are not mentally ill and are simply responding to negative trauma events in their life such as relationship breakdown, grief, unemployment or other triggers. For Andy’s mental health, he has gone through two periods of his life where he experienced intense mental health difficulties. The first was in 2013 where he began experiencing anxiety and panic attacks. He also failed his university degree but out of shame and stigma, did not disclose it to anyone and put on a lot of weight.He was also in a job he did not want to be in long-term and felt, in his words, ‘stuck’. The second period came in 2020 which came from a culmination of events including a relationship breakdown, grief, a physical injury which made him bed-bound for three months and work-place stress.We discuss both these periods, how they affected his mental health and how he recovered from them.As always, #itsokaytovent If you are a man who requires James' Place support or know a man who does, you can find out more about James' Place here: https://www.jamesplace.org.uk/Contact details for all their centres are also below: James’ Place Liverpool:Email: [email protected] Number: 0151 303 5757Address: 50 Catharine St, Liverpool L8 7NGJames’ Place London:Email: [email protected] Number: 020 3488 8404Address: 20 Bunhill Row, London EC1Y 8LPJames’ Place Newcastle:Email: [email protected] Number: 0191 406 6000Address: 1 Summerhill Street, Newcastle, NE4 6EJYou can follow James' Place on social media below: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamesplaceuk/Support Us:Patreon: www.patreon.com/venthelpukGoFundMe: www.gofundme.com/f/help-vent-supp…ir-mental-healthMerchandise: www.redbubble.com/people/VentUK/shopMusic: @patawawa - Strange: www.youtube.com/watch?v=d70wfeJSEvk

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In episode 223 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with George, Founder of from men's media platform, TheTinMen. TheTinMen explores issues around men's mental health, aims to widen perspectives around men as a sex, asks uncomfortable conversations, expose ugly truths and discusses the unpopular other half of gender equality.George started the platform around the end of 2019 and the start of 2020 and started posting on the account and building the platform during the first Covid-19 lockdown. Since then, he has built a significant following and has appeared on the likes of Chris Williamson’s ‘Modern Wisdom’ podcast to discuss the issues he highlights on the platform.George tackles the issues affecting men from a left-wing perspective, like academic and author Richard V. Reeves.In this episode we discuss the origin of TheTinMen and the issues George discusses through a mental health lens. These include: male domestic abuse victims, male suicide, working-class boys and boys more generally struggling in education, fatherlessness, sexual abuse in men’s prisons, the sexualisation of a teenage Justin Bieber by predominantly (but not exclusively) female celebrities and whether male circumcision is male genital mutilation.For George’s mental health, we discuss anxiety, being a carer for a loved one, the impact that had on his mental health and the wider conversation about carers more generally.As always, #itsokaytoventYou can follow TheTinMen on social media below: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetinmenTwitter: https://twitter.com/TheTinMenBlogSupport Us:Patreon: www.patreon.com/venthelpukGoFundMe: www.gofundme.com/f/help-vent-supp…ir-mental-healthMerchandise: www.redbubble.com/people/VentUK/shopMusic: @patawawa - Strange: www.youtube.com/watch?v=d70wfeJSEvk

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In episode 222 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Eric Frydman.Eric works in law and has previously been President and Vice-President of the Jewish Law Student Association at Osgoode Hall Law School at York University, where he studied in Toronto in Canada. As part of his role there, Eric dealt with issues of antisemitism on campus and did a joint statement with the Muslim Law Student Association at the university to build bridges when the Israel-Palestine last ignited in 2021, prior to the October 7th massacre by Hamas.As part of this work, Eric also led two trips to Israel for Jewish and non-Jewish students alike for a cultural programme called iTrek.iTrek introduces tomorrow’s leaders in business, law, policy and STEM to Israel, helping them experience Israel first-hand through peer-led, week-long trips. With over 22,000 graduate student participants across 103 nationalities since its launch in 2012, iTrek brings the richness and complexity of Israel to life through trips that combine education, culture, and fun.After we interviewed British-Palestinian journalist Hamza Ali Shah about the Israel-Palestine conflict from the Palestinian side, we wanted to cover the conflict from the Israeli or Jewish side as well. This desire was strengthened after the horrific events of October 7th 2023 where Hamas invaded Israel by car, foot and even hang-glider, murdered 1,200 Israeli citizens and kidnapped an estimated 240 people.During a six-day ceasefire at the end of November, 105 hostages were released. However, tragically, of the 135 hostages still unaccounted for, Israel says that 19 are believed to be dead at time of recording.In this episode we discuss the events of October 7th, the rise in antisemitism that has exploded since the conflict reignited across the world and the West and the impact that has had on Jewish people in those communities.We also discuss his role as president of the Jewish law student association, iTrek and how we build bridges across what has now become one of, if not, THE most controversial and divisive political issue in the world right now. We discuss the politicisation of empathy and compassion through the lens of this debate and what the future holds for Israelis and Palestinians.For Eric’s mental health, we discuss why he is ‘culturally Jewish’ but not practicing and how he came to that conclusion, the mental health impact of the antisemitism he’s faced in life and the importance of finding your purpose and path forward. As always, #itsokaytoventSupport Us:Patreon: www.patreon.com/venthelpukGoFundMe: www.gofundme.com/f/help-vent-supp…ir-mental-healthMerchandise: www.redbubble.com/people/VentUK/shopMusic: @patawawa - Strange: www.youtube.com/watch?v=d70wfeJSEvk

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