Creating Mental Health Stories in Conversation with Laura Farrell | RDID, Ep 109

Send us Fan MailIt seems only fitting, as the New Year begins, that we take a little look back-- not just at 2024, but at the beginnings of this entire mental health storytelling organization. So we cordially invite you to sit back, get in a comfy, meditation-esque position and join Recovery Diaries Executive Director Gabriel Nathan and writer, editor, RDID producer Laura Farrell, also a somatic therapist, as they talk about how they came to be involved in mental health storytelling, and what they hope to achieve through this new podcast venture. Gabe and Laura have been colleagues at Recovery Diaries for over ten years and they both came to the organization through a heavy dose of serendipity; Laura through a connector while she was looking for work at Philadelphia's local public television affiliate; Gabe through his work in development at a local, non-profit psychiatric hospital. While they may never have intended to end up at Recovery Diaries, they have both gained so much from the organization; from helping individuals with mental health and/or addiction challenges tell their stories through essays and films to gaining a greater perspective about the intersection between storytelling and mental health-- it has been quite a ride! And that ride continues, all these years later, with the creation of the Recovery Diaries in Depth podcast. As essay reading is a core component of Recovery Diaries in Depth, in this episode, Laura reads an essay she wrote for the website several years ago about magical thinking as a trauma response. After her reading, she and Gabe explore the essay’s themes and meaning, particularly in the current political climate. So join Gabe and Laura as we take a peek behind the curtain at this organization that specializes in stories of mental health, empowerment, and change.Conversations like the ones on this podcast can sometimes be hard, but they're always necessary. If you or someone you know is struggling, please consider visiting www.wannatalkaboutit.com. If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please call, text, or chat 988.https://recoverydiaries.org/