In this episode, Rena and Kim discuss one of their favorite topics: mental health at work! We discuss how to talk about your mental illness to your boss, when in the hiring process to talk about it, how to create a supportive work environment, coping with panic attacks at work, and using sick days to take care of your mental health. We also talk about bad bosses we've had, how working in the service industry can hurt people's mental health, being mistreated because of our mental illnesses, unconscious bias, not wanting to confirm stereotypes, how stigma about working with mentally ill people can influence the hiring process, and standing up for yourself. This is an important discussion to both of us, and we think you'll get a lot of value out of it too!!
This is going to be our last episode for a couple weeks as we take a little break from recording, but we'll be back and better than ever very soon with lots of amazing new guests!
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IG: @rbarch
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This week's guest episode features artist and musician Zoey Michaels! We talk about Zoey's ADHD diagnosis, how her diagnosis and view of mental illness has evolved, her experience being hospitalized and in treatment programs, growing up as the child of addicts, having an addictive personality, taking Adderall, and dating someone she met in treatment. We also discuss coping with trauma, toxic relationships, being a "therapist teacher's pet," how ADHD influences Zoey's creativity, and how family dynamics shape the way we behave in adult life. Rena and Kim also talk about taking a break from therapy, considering your therapist's feelings, thinking about death, appreciating the small things, and finding a job you're passionate about. This is a LONG episode, but it's packed with so much amazing content. Enjoy, and don't forget to rate, review, and subscribe!
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IG: @zoeymichaels
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Rena: @rbarch
Kim: @kimberlyrolfs
In this episode, Rena and Kim are talking SELF-DESTRUCTIVE BEHAVIOR. We hit on all kinds of self-destruction and self-sabotage, from binge drinking to emotional eating to sex to smoking, and we talk about where these behaviors come from for us and get to the root of why we've used them to cope. We talk about the difference between self-destruction and self-sabotage, why we're more comfortable being unhappy, how impulsive behavior influences creativity, when to embrace destructive impulses, how to avoid getting into patterns of self-sabotage, and what we do in the moment when we feel triggered. We also discuss what it feels like to be in the middle of a depressive episode, getting back into good habits and routines, and the mind-body connection.
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We discuss the trials and tribulations of finding the right medication for your diagnoses, and why we decided to go on medication. We decide which side effects are worth living with in exchange for being able to function every day and how to decide when to go on or off anti-depressants.
Reading List and References:
The Collected Schizophrenias - Esme Weijun Wang
"Psychiatry's Incurable Hubris", The Atlantic
Mind Fixers: Psychiatry’s Troubled Search for the Biology of Mental Illness - Anne Harrington
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Actor, writer, and director Alex Hughes joins us for our first guest episode (!!) to talk about his bipolar II diagnosis, how hypomania and mania differ, what it was like spending a night in the psych ward, finding healthy coping mechanisms, how the way you act in therapy mirrors how you act in life, and his hesitation around going on medication. Also, Rena talks to Alex and Kim about their friendship and creative partnership, how dealing with mental illness helped their friendship evolve, and how they went from a toxic and codependent relationship to one in which they both support each other's mental health (spoiler alert: a LOT of communication).
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Meet Where's My Mind hosts Rena and Kim! Hear about how they met, why they’re doing the podcast, and dig into their mental health journeys. This episode is packed with info - we talk all about our diagnoses and how we got them, when we knew we had mental health issues, family, grief, dating, being impulsive, maintaining friendships, what we wish people understood about our respective mental illnesses, and what we're doing to cope these days. We’re still working on being brief, but we’ve already nailed being open and unreserved!
Kim’s web series featuring a protagonist with BPD: Life or Death, Basically (@lifeordeathbasically, www.lifeordeathbasically.com).
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www.instagram.com/kimberlyrolfs
www.kimberlyrolfs.com