Your Life Sucks

In this pod, Shai Wasserman, a rising high school Junior from NJ (Socials: shai_daniel13) details his brutal recovery from anxiety, depression, and subsequently, substance abuse.

Topics Covered:

🧠 The bullying that Shai endured, and how this led to physical fights.

🧠 Shai’s tween hatred of the Jewish community, and, as a result, his self-hatred.

🧠 Shai’s spiral into substance abuse

🧠 Shai’s hospitalizations, and his parents decision to send him to wilderness therapy

🧠 Lessons that Shai learned from wilderness and residential therapy

🧠 Shai’s sit-down with himself, and what’s keeping him clean and healthy today.

Shai’s story and voice are truly one a kind. I was absolutely struck by Shai’s experiences and bravery.

Tune in!! 🧠🎙

🧠 Listen and subscribe to the Your Life Sucks podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts! 🎙

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Today, for the first time in 4 months, I had a fantastic podcast convo! I chatted with Jess Baden (Socials: @jessmbaden), a rising Junior at UConn, about her childhood and teenage anxiety, phobias, and mental health advocacy.

Topics Discussed:

🧠 Jess’ debilitating generalized childhood anxiety

🧠 Jess’ specific phobias, and how they prevented her from going on trips and participating in class

🧠 Jess’ sudden decisions to expose herself to her fears, and what she learned from those experiences

🧠 How Jess combats her phobias today

🧠 Jess’ sweeping and impactful high school mental health programming

Jess is a fantastic and introspective speaker! This is a great episode to listen to to get back on that Your Life Sucks podcast grind! 🙉🎧🙉

Tune in! 🧠🎙

🧠 Listen and subscribe to the Your Life Sucks podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts! 🎙

🧠 5️⃣⭐️ The podcast on all platforms

🧠 Follow - Instagram @theyourlifesuckspodcast 👍

🧠 DM for all inquiries 📞

New Episode Today!!

Today I chatted with Zach, a teen from California who directs Talk with Zach, an organization aimed at destigmatizing and creating conversational change around mental health.

We chat about:

🧠 The loss of Zach’s grandfather, and how he was both explicitly and implicitly told to “man up” and get over his feelings

🧠 How this experience caused Zach to realize that mental health is not spoken about enough, and ultimately, to create Talk with Zach

🧠 The mission statement of Talk with Zach, and how Talk with Zach advocates for mental health related change

Zach is truly an trailblazing person, whose narrative is nothing other than inspiring. You can find his work @talkwithzach on Instagram and at https://talkwithzachofficial.com .

Tune in!! 🎙🎤

🧠 Listen and subscribe to the Your Life Sucks podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts! 🎙

🧠 5️⃣⭐️ The podcast on all platforms

🧠 Follow - Instagram @theyourlifesuckspodcast 👍

🧠 DM for all inquiries 📞

Today I chat with the greatest #bossbitch, Naama Teitel, about her school related anxiety and how her mental health led her to switch schools twice.

We discuss:

🧠 ✏️ Naama’s school anxiety — her fear of class presentations and in-school panic attacks

🧠✏️ How discussions her school psychologist led to the realization that her current school wasn’t right for her

🧠✏️ The difficult transition of switching schools, and how she began to flourish without school stress

🧠✏️ Deciding to switch back to her old school, and entering her senior year with an improved mental health

Naama is a hilarious and intellectual teen whose story has changed my perspective on how high schools approach mental health.

You can find Naama’s Instagrams @naamateitel, @beauty.by.naama, and @naama_singing

Tune in!! 🎙🧠💪👑

🧠 Listen and subscribe to the Your Life Sucks podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts! 🎙

🧠 5️⃣⭐️ The podcast on all platforms

🧠 Follow - Instagram @theyourlifesuckspodcast 👍

🧠 DM for all inquiries 📞

Today I chatted with Hitika Karla, the 17 year old founder of The Lone Ally Foundation, about her experiences with loneliness. 😴😕 We talked about different types of loneliness, and how speaking to friends can make a person feel SO much more heard.

TOPICS COVERED: 📝📄

🧠 Hitika’s big downs in 8th grade, and how a meltdown with a friend led her to realize that many mental health issues can be significantly helped through talking

🧠 Hitika’s realization that we all experience loneliness, and her starting The Lone Ally

🧠 Hitika’s theories on the importance of human connection

🧠 Her advocacy today

🧠 Much more!

MENTIONED IN THE POD: 🗣

🧠 Hitika’s work, The Lone Ally Foundation:

@thelone.ally

Be sure to tune into this conversation, abundant with great anecdotes, info, and tips & tricks!! 📻🎙

🧠 Listen and subscribe to the Your Life Sucks podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts! 🎙

🧠 5️⃣⭐️ The podcast on all platforms

🧠 Follow - Instagram @theyourlifesuckspodcast 👍

🧠 DM for all inquiries 📞

Today I interviewed Livi Redden, a mental health advocate from San Diego.

Livi is the podcast host of “Today is the Future”, mindset educator, entrepreneur, and writer. She teaches teens and twentysomethings how to intentionally create their life and embrace who they are through the power of emotional intelligence, mindfulness, mindset shifts, and accountability. Her book “The Sooner you Know the Better” comes out in February.

In this episode, we speak about how her parents’ unstable relationship and her father’s death affected her childhood/adolescent anxiety and how she’s used her experiences to become the mental wellness advocate she is today.

MENTIONED IN THE POD 🗣:

General Info on ALS: https://www.ninds.nih.gov/Disorders/Patient-Caregiver-Education/Fact-Sheets/Amyotrophic-Lateral-Sclerosis-ALS-Fact-Sheet

Supporting ALS Research and Awareness: https://www.als.org

You can find Livi on IG and TikTok @liviredden and her website at www.liviredden.com . Be sure to check out her book when it drops on 2/22/22.

Tune in to the fantastic, honest conversation today!! 🎙📞

🧠 Listen and subscribe to the Your Life Sucks podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts! 🎙

🧠 5️⃣⭐️ The podcast on all platforms

🧠 Follow - Instagram @theyourlifesuckspodcast 👍

🧠 DM for all inquiries 📞

After a long unplanned hiatus, the YLS podcast is back with a fantastic discussion!

Today I chat with Joe De Sousa, a 22 year old college student from Ontario. He details his anxiety, depression, and ADHD and speaks about society’s projection of men/toxic masculinity.

Topics Covered 📑:

🧠 Joe’s anxiety and depression diagnosis in 12th grade, and why he chose not to seek out help.

🧠 Joining Active Minds at Western U and his discovery of mental health language.

🧠 Joe’s mental health journey in college, including an ADHD diagnosis and new medicine treatment

🧠 Society’s problematic expectations of men

🧠 The advice Joe has received/given to/from peers on how to combat toxic masculinity through speech and behavior

🧠 Much more!

Referenced in the Pod:

Gillette Commercial:

https://youtu.be/UYaY2Kb_PKI

Axe Commercials:

https://youtu.be/28HsB60P0U0

Check out Joe’s Instagram @joedesousa and his work through Active Minds @activemindswestern on Instagram.

I learned SO MUCH from this episode and hope you guys tune in!! 💭🎧🙉🧠

🧠 Listen and subscribe to the Your Life Sucks podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts! 🎙

🧠 5️⃣⭐️ The podcast on all platforms

🧠 Follow - Instagram @theyourlifesuckspodcast 👍

🧠 DM for all inquiries 📞

Listen to me answer deep, thought provoking questions, asked by you guys!! 👉👊😁

QUESTIONS:

T&Ts: 💁‍♂️

1. Who can I speak to if I just need a quick ear?

2. What should I do to relax when I only have a limited amount of time?

3. What are things you can do in the daily if you have momentary social anxiety?

College: 🏫

1. Will you do another college mental health episode?

2. Why do students feel the need to be competitive with each other?

3. How do I not think about college admissions decisions until I get it back

4. How can you best prepare yourself for any college admissions decision: expecting the best, preparing for the worst?

5. What do you think schools can do better abt maintaining mental health?

Conversations: 🗣

1. I’m scared to tell my parents that I want therapy because they won’t believe I’m actually in pain. What should I do?

2. Should I go to therapy if I know I’m not depressed?

3. How can a depressed kid’s friends empathize with them if they’ve never felt depressed?

4. Do you think that anxiety/ADHD is a spectrum?

5. How did I (Ben) learn so much about mental health?

6. If I could choose between working on physical or mental health, which would you choose and why?

Tune in!! 🎙📻🎧

🧠 Listen and subscribe to the Your Life Sucks podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts! 🎙

🧠 5️⃣⭐️ The podcast on all platforms

🧠 Follow - Instagram @theyourlifesuckspodcast 👍

🧠 DM for all inquiries 📞

Today I had an AWESOME conversation with Anna Everts, a freelancer from The Netherlands.

TOPICS COVERED:

🧠 The scientific definition of Autism

🧠 Anna’s definition of Autism

🧠 Autistic masking and how the practice negatively impacts Anna’s mental health

🧠 Anna’s depression and why it took so long for doctors to recognize and diagnose it

🧠 How Autism gave Anna a unique perspective on cultural norms, making them comfortable to explore their gender identity

🧠 How society can work towards making itself more inclusive for people like Anna

I learned A TON from this conversation: I hope you all love this pod as much as I do!!

Be sure to check out Anna’s Instagram (and awesome photography) @peculiarplanets

Tune in! 🎤🎙🤔🧐

🧠 Listen and subscribe to the Your Life Sucks podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts! 🎙

🧠 5️⃣⭐️ The podcast on all platforms

🧠 Follow - Instagram @theyourlifesuckspodcast 👍

🧠 DM for all inquiries 📞

Today I chatted with Kyndra, an up and coming comedian from Atlanta, about the interface of mental health and humor. We speak about Kendra’s struggles with mental health and how she’s used humor to brighten other people and herself.

DON’T MISS OUT on this raunchy, hilarious conversation.

Check out Kyndra @thekyndracrumpshow !

Tune in! 🎙🧠🤣😜😆

#ipeedmypants #humor #thekyndrakrumpshow

🧠 Listen and subscribe to the Your Life Sucks podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts! 🎙

🧠 5️⃣⭐️ The podcast on all platforms

🧠 Follow - Instagram @theyourlifesuckspodcast 👍

🧠 DM for all inquiries 📞