Mental Illness Happy Hour

The writer/performer opens up about her anxiety, panic attacks, OCD, shame and body issues. She also reads excerpts from Okay Fine Whatever: The Year I Went From Being Afraid Of Everything to Being Afraid Of Most Things, her hilarious new book about taking risks and challenging her fears, especially social phobias. More About Our Guest For more on Courtenay go to www.CourtenayHameister.com  Follow her on Twitter @Wisenheimer

No guests, just some of Paul's thoughts on traditions and holidays; how we hide our feelings and some great, very honest (and one very dark) listener surveys including the best holiday Awfulsome moment yet.

Born in India, raised in Texas, 33 year-old Iraq War veteran, ultra-runner and global philanthropist talks about his lifelong struggles with moderation, getting his identify from his accomplishments or dangerous/crazy/extreme behavior, feeling unworthy and battling survivors guilt after losing a fellow soldier.  He also talks about spirituality especially finding purpose through sacrifice and service. Akshay is the author of the book Fearvana (with a forward by the Dalai Fucking Lama!)

Coming from an anxious family, coupled with not fitting in, being bullied by her ballet teacher (and having red hair), then as a young teen, developing vaginismus, Becky spent her 20s resigned to never dating or having a partner. Surgery, talk therapy, physical therapy and giving dating another try has proved to be more helpful than she expected. Older eps can be found ad-free only at Stitcher Premium for $4.99/month.  Get a month free w/offer code MENTAL at signup at www.StitcherPremium.com/men

Recorded live in Minneapolis at Sisyphus Brewing, Paul and Kjell reunite and share stories of bombing onstage, panic attacks, depression, meds, feeling lazy, future tripping, anger at partners, living in parents' basements, self-doubt, dead-end jobs and self-sabotage. Older episodes can be found ad-free exclusively at Stitcher Premium for $4.99/month.  Get one month free with offer code MENTAL at signup at www.StitcherPremium.com/mentalpod  hear guests like Tiffany Haddish and Maria Bamford.

One of her first memories is seeing her mother's boyfriend shot dead in front of her at four years-old. The mother she adored was fiercely protective of her except when it interfered with her dangerous lifestyle. A great chat about mental health - especially among POC -, complicated relationships with mothers, the cycles of generational dysfunction and trauma in the black community and the challenges raising her teenage son in a mostly white community.

The former screenwriter, mother and podcaster shares about her relationship with her "party-animal" husband Bert Kreischer and her tumultuous childhood split between a mentally-ill narcissistic mother, a lovesick broken father, and a grandfather with severe combat PTSD from being the one of the first soldiers to enter Nagasaki after the atomic bomb detonated. She describes how she faced her pain, changed her life and is trying to grow into the person and mother she never had.

The improviser/actor (UCB's Wild Horses) opens up about her struggles with feeling like a fraud, people pleasing, shame, FOMO, feeling undeserving or that her authentic self is just too much for people. Older episodes can be found ad-free exclusively at Stitcher Premium for $4.99/month.  Get one month free with offer code MENTAL at signup at www.StitcherPremium.com/mentalpod   Hear guests like: Tiffany Haddish, Marc Maron, Maria Bamford, and more.

The filmmaker (Earbuds) podcaster (Comedy Film Nerds and Conversations From the Abyss) writer (Pacified: A Handbook For the New Freaked-Out Dad) and comedian sits down to talk about anxiety, depression, parental stress/anxiety and feeling career disappointment/frustration/doubt.  He also talks about the Earbuds documentary and the importance of human connection not only in dealing with mental struggles but between podcasts and listeners. Older episodes can be found ad-free exclusively at Stitcher Prem

What is it like to be famous before you’re famous? What is it like to walk in the shoes of another person? Each episode of IMAGINED LIFE takes you on an immersive journey into the life of a world-famous person. It’ll be someone you may think you know, even admire -- or maybe the opposite. You’ll get clues to your identity along the way. But only in the final moments will you find out who “you” really are. So sit back, let go, and -- imagine your life. Subscribe today at wondery.fm/crews

The writer (Danger & Eggs) standup (Comedy Central: This is Not Happening) & podcaster (Reality Bytes) shares about her childhood under communism in the Ukraine, her battles with bipolar (loving the mania), surviving cancer and how to help or talk to someone with it and how all of us can help the #MeToo movement, especially powerful people who caused harm. Older episodes can be found ad-free exclusively at Stitcher Premium for $4.99/month.  Get one month free with offer code MENTAL at signup.

"Bored", "lazy", "scattered" "hyper"; Are these fair or accurate labels? Is there anything we can do to help our brains or motivation? Jessica shares about her past struggles with these labels and how we can find what our brain likes so we don't label and fight it, rather understand it and work with it. Older episodes can be found ad-free exclusively at Stitcher Premium for $4.99/month.  Get one month free with offer code MENTAL at signup at www.StitcherPremium.com/mentalpod  

The standup & cohost of the "Crazy in Bed" podcast opens up about being an only child & a "weird kid" who couldn't appreciate her uniqueness and desire to belong until college. She shares about her battles with social anxiety, bulimia, drinking, insomnia, racing thoughts, being left out and feeling guilty for coming from privilege.  She and Paul also talk about their histories of taking meds and their side effects and finding a home in support groups despite thinking they wouldn't work.

The standup, actor and author shares about familial loss, his lifelong OCD rituals, and growing up in a home where the harsh and often brutal realities of the world were discussed with the kids, helping them empathize but also took an emotional toll. Older episodes can be found ad-free exclusively at Stitcher Premium for $4.99/month.  Get one month free with offer code MENTAL at signup at www.StitcherPremium.com/mentalpod   Hear guests like: Tiffany Haddish, Marc Maron, Maria Bamford and more

The actress, author (Out Came the Sun) and granddaughter of writer Ernest Hemingway shares about the him, her family, acting, generational trauma, mental illness, addiction/alcoholism and dysfunction and how she has learned to deal with her anxiety, codependence, depression and fear of letting go. Older episodes can be found ad-free exclusively at Stitcher Premium for $4.99/month. Get one month free with offer code MENTAL at signup at www.StitcherPremium.com/mentalpod