#42 Ned Balme: What you see on the ground as a newsreporter at a crisis, how we can be the champion of teenagers and why community sport is deeply important to the Australian psyche

Ned Balme is a newsreporter and journalist based in Queensland working for Channel Nine and a few years back was a punter for the University of Central Oklahoma. His story is winding and engrossing and his own struggle with his mental health has left a mark for the father he is his two children and how he reports the news. Sadly, technical issues mean 'Weird Fishes' was wiped and unsalvagable, however the rest of this episode is a ripper. Covering The Art of the List around Ned's experience playing College Football in the United States of America, to the day his dad pulled a sickie to take a struggling young lad to the movies and a wholesome Father-Son chat, onward to Ned's experience on the ground during Queensland floods and cyclones, as well as for Brisbane's spate of success in the AFL, this was a brilliant chat to have with my cousin. His moving 'Note To Self' is an ode to a young man in a deep struggle with his mental health and direction, and he has so much value and wisdom to impart on young boys and men who may be feeling the same way. Welcome to the final stanza of Ebbs' episodes (for the time being). Ned Balme. The Ebbs and the Flows is an emotional health movement focused on openness and transparency about the light and the shade of the lives we led and journeys we encounter. The Ebbs and the Flows is not a licensed mental health service and therefore if you are seeking mental health advice, assessment or treatment, you should seek expert advice with a GP, psychologist, psychiatrist or in a crisis, call Lifeline on 13 11 14.For those struggling, or who know somebody who is, help is available:@lifelineaustralia 13 11 14@beyondblueofficial 1300 22 46361800-RESPECT (1800 737 732)@headspace_aus 1800 650 890@kidshelplineau 1800 55 1800For advice specific to Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander people @13yarn 13 92 76For LGBTQIA+ specific advice @qlife_aus1800 184 527The Ebbs and The Flows website: www.theebbsandtheflows.comSubstack: https://substack.com/@theebbsandtheflows For The Ebbs and The Flows Instagram page head to https://www.instagram.com/theebbsandtheflows/At the end of the day, we are all just a work in progress.