Sierra Katow is a comedian, writer, and actress (The Sex Lives of College Girls). She shares her journey to becoming a comedian, dealing with depression, and how she survived Harvard. Be sure to check out her debut stand-up special, Funt, streaming online.
Bruce W. Brackett (@BWB.Positivity) is an author and artist who, along with his sisters, was taken away from his mother and put into foster care when he was a child. He shares his story of his early childhood pain, his addiction, and the surprising love that he found in his foster parents and his life as a theater kid. Look for his new book How To Breathe While Suffocating: A Story of Overcoming Addiction, Recovering From Trauma, and Healing my Soul.
Dr Samuel Wilkinson is an Associate Professor of Psychiatry and the Associate Director of the Depression Research Program at Yale University. Much of his research has involved the use of ketamine and other psychedelic therapies as well as the power of purpose and altruism in mental health care.
Johnny Crowder (@JohnnyCrowderLovesYou) is the lead singer of a death metal band and a suicide survivor who shares his story, which includes battles with schizophrenia and depression and how he spreads care for humankind through his music. Check out his TED Talk “Why I don’t want to die anymore”.
Valerie is one of Paul’s friends from his support group. She shares stories from her childhood in Rome, which included a philandering and deceptive father. She also digs deep into her own relationship patterns and how she’s trying to break them.
Dr. Arash Javanbakht @Arash_Javanbakht is a psychiatrist and serves as the director of the Stress, Trauma, and Anxiety Research Clinic (STARC) at Wayne State School of Medicine. He shares his work studying PTSD and other trauma, in particular the wild success that has been achieved via Augmented reality tech treatments. Check out his book Afraid: Understanding the Purpose of Fear and Harnessing the Power of Anxiety
Penn and Kim Holderness talk about living with and navigating their marriage through ADHD. They open up about their struggles and share strategies to make living with ADHD a little easier. Look out for their new book, ADHD is Awesome.
A favorite among listeners, this Best Of episode was originally recorded in 2011, in the first months of the podcast. Stand-up Comedian, Skateboarder and co-host (with Karen Kilgariff) of the podcast Do You Need A Ride? Chris Fairbanks (aka @Chris_Fairbanks) talks with Paul about his mother’s battle with alcoholism, Alzheimer’s and Dementia and its effect on him growing up and today. They talk about the link between pain and creativity, peer acceptance, dark voices in their heads and they both share chilling stories about dead people.
A favorite episode among listeners and from the first year of the podcast (2011). How do you cope when you are convinced your life is constantly in danger as a child? First, you band together with your siblings and form an army, then you learn about the sweet oblivion of addiction. Paul’s friend Karma withholds her last name and picture so she can fully reveal the family life that nearly killed her, but ultimately forced her to grow. A fairly heavy interview so Paul throws in a little something after the interview to hopefully make you laugh.