The Dark Humor That Saved My Life in the Psych Ward

In this episode of Stories and Stanza, host Abhra sits down with Robert Rickelmann for an unflinching conversation about a life shaped by mental illness and addiction. Robert grew up with crippling anxiety — and discovered early on that alcohol made him feel fearless, confident, and finally comfortable in his own skin. That relief came at a devastating cost. What began as a coping mechanism consumed his law school career, his sense of self, and nearly his life. In 1996, Robert made a major suicide attempt that landed him in a psychiatric hospital for a month, where he was diagnosed as Seriously Mentally Ill — carrying diagnoses of generalized anxiety disorder, severe depression, OCD, and borderline personality disorder. The years that followed brought repeated hospitalizations, a long and grueling journey through medications, and immeasurable strain on his marriage. Through it all, Robert scribbled notes on scraps of paper — in psych wards, in dark moments, in the margins of a life he was trying to hold together. Those fragments became a memoir. After years of rejections from agents and publishers, he signed with Apprentice House Publishing, releasing Jumping Off the End on May 5, 2025 — timed deliberately with Mental Health Awareness Month. This conversation covers the seductive lie of alcohol as self-medication, the stigma men face when seeking help, dark humor as a survival tool, the invisible weight carried by caregivers, and what it means to be sober since January 10, 2013. Robert's book is available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Jumping-End-Lifetime-Struggle-Alcoholism/dp/1627206604/ Stories & Stanza A podcast for curious minds Follow Us FacebookInstagramYouTubeXWhatsApp Channel Listen & Read ▶ Spotify▶ Apple Podcasts✎ Read on Substack Tools We Love ↗ Grow on YouTube with vidIQ🎤 Edit Podcasts with Descript☕ Buy me a coffee Wish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack.📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram☕ Buy me a coffee🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.