The Mental Matchup

Tara Kerr is our guest on The Mental Matchup this week. Tara grew up in NYC and is currently a senior on the women’s lacrosse team at William and Mary. Tara discusses how she struggled at the beginning of college with loss, injury, and dealing with the strict rules of COVID. She used journaling and affirmations as constructive ways to help deal with difficult times and has created her own mental health and wellness Instagram to help record her journey, @tsgoodvibes. Tara also touches on opening up to her teammates and sharing her personal story.

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#103: In this week’s episode of The Mental Matchup, Brandon Allen connects with Kat. Brandon was born and raised in the Bronx, NY, and then moved to Lancaster, PA, when he was ten years old. He went on to play college football at Towson University and is now a mental health advocate after going through a difficult period in college when he questioned his self-worth. Brandon talks about his struggles with mental health and how his passion helped him create his brand @loveyourself.

TW: Suicide

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#102 - During this episode, we are joined by Hannah Terry. Hannah is a Morgan’s Message Ambassador and a member of the Johns Hopkins women’s lacrosse team. Throughout the episode, Hannah speaks about her experiences with the recruiting process, working through people pleasing and learning how to combat intrusive thoughts. Kat and Hannah also touch on the importance of learning healthy coping mechanisms when you experience negative thoughts or experiences. In Part 2 of our conversation we focus on Hannah’s journey through injury, advocating for herself and her healing journey.

TW: Depression, Panic Attacks

Welcome back to Season 6! During this episode, we are joined by Hannah Terry. Hannah is a Morgan’s Message Ambassador and a member of the Johns Hopkins women’s lacrosse team. Throughout the episode, Hannah speaks about her experiences with the recruiting process, working through people pleasing and learning how to combat intrusive thoughts. Kat and Hannah also touch on the importance of learning healthy coping mechanisms when you experience negative thoughts or experiences. We can’t wait for you all to listen to all of the amazing guests we have lined up for Season 6!

TW: Depression, Panic Attacks

#100: to have Dennis Gillan join the podcast. Dennis is the Executive Director of the Half a Sorrow Foundation, a foundation that strives to improve the mental health of individuals and organizations through conversation. He also has a TedX Talk and is the author of the book Nice Shoes!: A Little Compliment Can Go a Long Way, which we will link below. During the episode, Dennis speaks about losing two of his brothers to suicide and how that impacted his own mental health. He truly embodies the belief that an open dialogue with others will help break the stigma surrounding talking about your own mental health and we are honored to have him as our guest for such a milestone episode!

TW: Suicide

Dr. Madison Bailey joins The Mental Matchup this week! Madison grew up in Phoenix, AZ and was a three sport athlete who ultimately focused on softball. She went to Manhattan College and graduated in 2016 before going to grad school to get her Masters and Doctorate at California Lutheran University. During the episode, Madison discusses how her experience with anxiety and control issues was one of her first introductions to the world of mental health and how she dealt with a series of life altering events. She is such a great advocate for mental health and we can’t wait for everyone to hear this episode!

In this week's episode of The Mental Matchup, Brock Turnbaugh joins the podcast. Brock grew up in Northern Maryland and was a three sport athlete at Hereford High School. He went to play lacrosse as a goalie at Johns Hopkins University and discusses the transition from high school to college and how he was often hyper focused on other people versus focusing on himself. During the episode, Brock opens up about his own internal battle with self confidence and finding his passion connecting mental health and athletics. He is currently in school at Loyola University Maryland getting his Masters in Clinical Professional Counseling. Brock also works with student athletes through Morgan’s Message at the Johns Hopkins chapter!

This week on The Mental Matchup Glory Johnson joins the podcast. Glory grew up in Syracuse, NY and graduated from Old Dominion University in 2020 as a member of the Women's Lacrosse team. As an athlete, she experienced many ups and downs including performance anxiety, falling out of love with the sport and transferring schools. She now works as a breathwork facilitator and life coach and we are excited to welcome her onto the podcast!

For this week’s story submission episode, we’re highlighting 2 incredible stories. First off we have “Finding My Purpose” by Lily Parker who shares her experience with the college recruiting process and how it affected her overall mental health. Next up, Alexandra Castro Iberico wrote a story titled “Ambivalence”. As a competitive rower, she discusses the unrealistic expectations of perfection as an athlete and how perseverance is critical. Thank you all for letting us share your story with our community! Don’t forget to check out all our story submissions on The Mental Matchup stories site linked here and if you're interested in submitting a story, please reach out to [email protected]!

TW: Disordered Eating and Mention of Panic Attacks/Anxiety