The Mental Gains Podcast

In our last episode of the year, Verna and Matt interview Kay Flowerz. Kay is a self-development author and life coach whose mission is to help women turn their pain into purpose. She shares her own personal journey with depression and grief and how she found her voice as a writer and life coach. She offers valuable ways to navigate grief during the holidays and decrease winter blues.

Verna and Matt have a candid conversation with mental health professional, Christopher Bergman on what his life is like living with severe and persistent depression.

Matt and Verna speak with Mercy Health Psychiatrist and host of WGTE’s “Brain Politics” Dr Rajiv Parinja about trauma and its relationship with mental illness. Dr. Parinja also discusses evolutionary psychology and the current state of mental health.

In Part Two of this two-part series, Matt and Verna ask mental health consumers about their difficulties with the current mental healthcare system. Clients discuss issues they have with mental health insurance coverage, the effects of a decreased workforce, and the difficulties of receiving consistent care.

In Part One of this two part series Verna and Matt discuss the challenges of being mental healthcare professionals. Challenges such as burnout, vicarious trauma, and compassion fatigue are discussed.

Verna and Matt have a laid-back conversation with Marty, who identifies as having a Level 1 ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder). He explains how he discovered he had Autism as an adult and gives us a glimpse into his world of work, relationships, and struggles.

In this episode Matt and Verna discuss alcoholism and addiction. Matt tells the story of his addiction and how he found the road to recovery. Matt's brother, father, and sponsor aid in the telling his story. *This episode contains graphic descriptions of substance abuse.

Verna and Matt explore grief with retired nurse, Nancy Oberhaus. Nancy shares her lifelong struggle with complicated grief over the death of the most important person in her life, a person with disabilities she cared for, for 13 years, who became her best friend and at times reason for living. Following her death, this intense grief haunted Nancy's life for almost 40 years. Nancy and Verna share advice and resources to aid in the healing process.

In this episode of Mental Gains, Verna and Matt address the most important mental health subject of all, suicide. A comedian, Mark Phillip, shares his personal journey through years of suicide ideations and attempts to living a life he never imagined. Crisis experts, Jodie Chappuis and Jen Tucker discuss when, where and how to get lifesaving assistance and support. *Contains sensitive subject matter

In this premier episode of Mental Gains, Matt and Verna tackle stigma. We hear wisdom through a lived experience story from Beth Martin who is diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder and Jessica Hartman from NAMI gives information on their community programs in place to fight stigma.