The Royal College of Psychiatrists Podcast

Alcohol use amongst the general population has become more polarised during the COVID-19 pandemic, with those who previously drank heavily reportedly now drinking even more. It is therefore vital that those in the at-risk groups for severe dependency are identified and supported to cut down their intake safely. In this podcast, Dr Peter Rice talks to Dr Jennifer Powell about the most effective ways to help alcohol-dependent patients self-manage their alcohol use during the pandemic and beyond.

Dr Ian Collings, Dr Shridevi Gopi-Firth and Dr Kat Levick candidly discuss the highs and lows of psychiatry, including chickens on the ward, augmented reality and blowing your own trumpet.

Professor Wendy Burn, old age psychiatrist and the immediate past President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists (2017-20), discusses the challenges of stopping antidepressants with an expert by experience, James. James experienced panic attacks, lethargy and extreme discomfort whilst tapering his doses of antidepressants. They also discuss the College’s new patient information resource, Stopping antidepressants, and what more is needed to better support patients.

Sarah tells of her ongoing wait for mental health support, the desperation she felt and how she had to pay for private treatment in the end.

Mike 36, from Durham talks about the strain of waiting for mental health treatment and how support was vital

Mike, 36 from Durham “When you feel that way when you’ve had like suicidal thoughts, and you feel like you’re a burden on everyone, and its a struggle to get through the day, 24 hours feels like a week. And they’re telling you that you haven’t got help for 6 to 9 months - it’s just like, it’s absolutely devastating."

What is it like for a psychiatrist when a patient dies by suicide? In our latest podcast we speak to Dr Ros Ramsay and Dr Rachel Gibbons regarding the kinds of support that are available to psychiatrists and the inevitable philosophical questions that suicide provokes.

If you have been affected by patient suicide, please consider consulting The Psychiatrists' Support Service.

A unique insight into what it was like to work and be a patient on a psychiatric ward during the COVID-19 pandemic.

We hear four personal accounts from Dr Roopak Khara, Dr Abimbola Fadipe, Dr Antonio Metastasio and an Expert by Experience, Sam, who is a patient living in South Wales.

The interviews on the podcast contain topics such as suicide and electroconvulsive therapy.

July 2020 at the College marked our first celebration of South Asian History Month, where we took time to pay tribute to the wonderful Members who are a vital part of College life and contribute so significantly to the field of psychiatry.

We have four psychiatrists telling their stories, not just their journey to becoming mental health professionals, but also their relationship to their own heritage and how this has integrated with them moving to the UK.

All of the interviews are self-recorded, remotely, by our Members in their own homes. So we would like to say a huge thank you to Professor Alka Ahuja, Professor Dinesh Bhugra, Doctor Amrita Varanasi and Doctor Ananta Dave who are telling their personal stories on the South Asian History Month podcast.

We spoke to two psychiatrists who are working during the Coronavirus. Child and adolescent psychiatrist Dr. Jon Goldin, on how we support children and young people through this time, and Professor Neil Greenberg, who is a professor of Defense Mental Health at Kings College London.