The topic of mental health has received an increasing amount of media attention in recent years, and rightly so—how we discuss mental health issues has a big impact on how we treat them and how we treat those who live with mental illness. This makes it all the more important for people—whether they live with mental illness or not—to understand what it means to care for your mental well-being and how to improve mental health for all.
Mental illnesses are as varied and unique as the people who live with them. Substance abuse, depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and many other conditions all fall under the umbrella of mental illness. But even those who do not have a diagnosable condition may struggle with their mental health from time to time, especially in light of the stressors of the past few years. While podcasters should not be treated as medical experts and you should avoid using podcasts to replace professional, personalized psychiatric care, mental health podcasts can still be a valuable and reassuring resource for many.
If you've ever felt overwhelmed by navigating the complexities of mental health conditions and treatments, The Hardcore Self-Help Podcast was made for you. Using accessible and sometimes explicit language, Dr. Robert Duff answers listeners' questions about how to make sense of and deal with everything from work-related anxiety to unrealistic family expectations and talking to kids about mental health issues. In addition, each episode revolves around topics submitted by everyday folks—so if there's a question you haven't been able to find an answer to anywhere else, this podcast may be able to help.
One of the best ways to combat mental illness stigma is through humor and a bit of levity. That is exactly what The Hilarious World of Depression seeks to offer. Through his interviews with celebrities who live with depression and other mental illnesses, host John Moe explores important topics such as media portrayals of depression, how being clinically depressed affects your work, how depression interacts with other mental health conditions, and much more. Whether you live with depression or not, this podcast is a wonderful—and surprisingly funny—way to get informed about it.
It seems everyone has their own ideas about what can (and can't) make you happy. Does the secret to happiness lie in making new friends, or stepping away from your smartphone, or eating the right kinds of food? An Audible Original podcast, Happiness…and How to Get It addresses the science behind such theories with hosts Charlie George and Mary-Ann Ochota, as well as the help of qualified guests. Finding happiness may not be as simple as listening to a podcast, but the tips you learn from this engaging, informative series can put you on the right track.
Mental illness can make those who live with it feel both helpless and hopeless. In her 10-part podcast What Do I Do?, host Kelly Holmes talks with well-known people in the arts, politics, and activism about their mental health struggles and what helped them to take control of their lives. As guests share, finding comfort and stability in hobbies and everyday activities like exercise, music, and baking can have an enormously positive effect on negative feelings commonly surrounding mental illness. If you or a loved one are seeking a practical way to cope with a mental health condition, listening to these half-hour episodes might be a good starting point.
Mental health can be an especially thorny issue for Black Americans, who not only have to deal with stressors their white peers can't imagine but also must counter historical and cultural stigma against getting psychiatric help. Hosted by Dr. Joy Harden Bradford, Therapy for Black Girls helps Black women deal with stress in the workplace, in personal relationships, and even in recreational activities like sports. Episodes, which release every week, also discuss how major issues like racial and reproductive justice can impact an individual's mental health and how listeners can deal with injustice in their own lives.
All good parents want their children to be happy, but what happens when your child shows signs of struggling with mental health issues? In this Audible Original podcast, Dr. Tim Sharp takes parents through 10 steps for fostering habits to support a positive outlook and strong sense of self from an early age. Each episode covers one step, so it is most helpful if you listen to the entire series in order. You'll start Habits for Happy Children by assessing what "happiness" means to your family and gradually help your children build a foundation of new habits for lifelong mental wellness. Dr. Sharp also hosts other mental health-related podcasts, including Habits for Greatness and Habits for Good Sleep.
Everyone wants to be happy, but sometimes, our attempts to achieve happiness through career advancement, material goods, and so forth end up doing us more harm than good. In this podcast, Dr. Laurie Santos teaches listeners how to harness "negative" feelings like guilt and anger and to reevaluate their priorities and requirements for a happy life. With more than 80 episodes currently available, The Happiness Lab offers plenty of insight to those who don't understand why they're so unhappy and want advice on how to change their outlook on life.
Across America, the phrase "How are you?" is often treated as a cursory greeting rather than a sincere question. Terrible, Thanks for Asking flips that familiar script. When host Nora McInerny asks her guests "How are you?" she expects—and gets—truly honest and revealing responses. Listening to others share their real and complicated feelings about the tragic death of a parent, a painful betrayal, religion, and assorted mental health struggles is wonderfully cathartic. It might even inspire you to be more honest in your own life—and encourage loved ones to be honest with you.
Achieving sobriety after suffering alcohol and substance abuse is difficult enough—maintaining it over a lifetime is much harder. Veronica Valli and Chip Somers understand that personally—together, they have been sober for almost 50 years. In Soberful, they talk about their experiences, including the messes, dealing with unhealthy relationships, and establishing a new normal,
as well as take on harmful myths about alcohol and drugs. A compassionate yet entertaining look at the realities of addiction and sobriety, this podcast offers hope and companionship for those navigating recovery.
Trauma can result from any type of dangerous or destructive event—regardless of whether you were physically harmed. And it manifests in vastly different ways in different people. In his podcast, Dr. Guy Macpherson interviews experts in relevant fields—psychodrama, sensorimotor psychotherapy, and more—to glean insights into trauma's roots, effects, and treatments. No matter how your trauma has impacted your life—from eroding your self-confidence to provoking physical symptoms—there is likely an episode of The Trauma Therapist that will speak to you.
It is almost a cliché to say that nature is a force for healing—but that doesn't make the statement any less true. And host Florence Williams sets out to prove it in The 3-Day Effect, which posits that just three days out in the wilderness can have a beneficial effect on your mental health. Over the course of six episodes, each featuring a different expert and example of outdoor therapy, you can gain a better understanding of how nature changes the way our minds work and gives us stronger tools for dealing with all kinds of mental health issues, from post-traumatic stress disorder to personal loss.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is all too often treated casually or as a punchline. For those who live with this condition, or anyone who wants to understand what living with it is really like, The OCD Stories is essential listening. In each episode, host Stuart Ralph speaks with someone who has been diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder. They talk about symptoms, how OCD affects their lives, and what helps them manage the condition, providing a real inside look at a misunderstood mental illness.
No single podcast can cover the topic of mental health in its entirety. However, The Positive Psychology Podcast manages to discuss it from quite a few angles. Over the course of more than 130 episodes, host Kristen Truempy and her guests explore the importance of good body image (and how to improve yours), how to cope with stressful global events, how physical exercise benefits your mind, the calming power of ritual, and much more. If there's anything you want to know about staying afloat in the modern world, this mental health podcast just might have the answers you're looking for.
Radiant Minds is an Audible Original podcast devoted to exploring how the mind works and how it influences our physical body. Created by Dr. Indre Viskontas and inspired by famed neurologist Oliver Sacks, it discusses such unique topics as the healing effects of music, how to deal with and overcome traumatic memories, and how freak events like lightning strikes can change our brain chemistry in shocking and unpredictable ways. In short, Radiant Minds offers a fascinating look at the science behind mental health.
While some people swear by meditation as the solution for reducing stress and gaining clarity, others view it as an impossible exercise. In Meditation Minis, hypnotherapist Chel Hamilton makes the practice accessible and easy to fit into a hectic day. In each episode, which all clock in at under 15 minutes, she guides listeners through different forms and methods of meditation, using affirmations, visualizations, controlled breathing, and more. Want to soothe away your stress? Boost your creativity? Mentally prepare for the day or a restful night's sleep? With this podcast, you'll soon be hooked on meditation for your mental well-being. Warning: Do not listen while driving!
Why do people inflict harm on themselves? In The Psychology of Self-Injury, Dr. Nicholas Westers delves into the underlying causes and triggers for self-destructive behaviors, including cutting and purging. Episodes feature interviews with leading mental health experts in the field, as well as individuals with lived experience of self-injury and their loved ones. Together, they reveal what drives people to self-harm—from trauma and abuse in their past to unbearable pressures and problems in their present—and shed light on paths to healing, including therapy, faith, and creative expression.
There are so many conversations around how to perform at work—and on the flip side, how to take care of your mental health. But what about caring for your mental health at work, where you're likely to spend nearly a third of your life? There's a podcast for that, created and hosted by the co-founders of Shine, the daily self-care app to help you de-stress and unwind. In Friends with Mental Health Benefits, Marah Lidey and Naomi Hirabayashia highlight the untold mental health stories of driven start-up entrepreneurs and senior business leaders. Hear how they navigate their own well-being in the workplace and support the mental health of their teams—especially those most marginalized.
There are many different kinds and levels of anxiety. Some affect a person's ability to socialize, while others make it difficult even to leave the house or drive a person to turn to alcohol or drugs for relief. But having anxiety doesn't have to prevent you from living a fulfilling life. In Make Anxiety Your Superpower, host Sarah Wilson speaks with 10 people who have learned to not only live with their anxiety but thrive because of it. This Audible Original podcast provides motivational stories and helpful strategies for anyone who lives with anxiety, whether in the form of mild uncertainty and unease or severe panic attacks.
The best mental health podcasts educate their listeners while remaining accessible through the use of plain language, humor, or insightful interviews. SentiMental is an eight-part podcast that meets all of the above criteria. Hosts Sana Khan and Azeem Banatwalla talk with comedians, internet personalities, musicians, and other interesting people living with a mental health condition, ranging from depression to OCD to bipolar disorder. Through their open and honest conversations, you'll learn about the mythical links between mental illness and creativity, the mental health toll on children growing up around toxic marriages and domestic violence, the long-term effects of sexual abuse, and so much more.
True to its name, Black Mental Health Matters focuses specifically on issues of concern to Black communities in America—from extreme events like COVID-19 and news of hate crimes to more day-to-day crises like facing postpartum depression and ADHD. Through interviews with psychologists, social workers, youth counselors, and activists, host Dr. Kerry-Ann Williams helps listeners understand the long-term mental health effects of microaggressions and injustices, and how Black people can take care of themselves in a world that too often does not treat them with the basic respect they deserve.
In one of the year’s most anticipated new podcasts, Michelle Obama brings listeners deeper into the world of her bestselling memoir, The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times. Where the audiobook initiated a dialogue with listeners on some of life’s biggest challenges—from building lasting relationships and meaningful success to overcoming obstacles and navigating identity—the podcast will explore these themes and more with an esteemed selection of friends and luminaries. In intimate recordings from her star-studded book tour, the former First Lady draws on her trademark humor, warmth, and compassion to elicit moments of startling insight and vulnerability from guests including Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres, Tyler Perry, and Conan O’Brien. The result is a series of searching conversations that will leave you feeling smarter, inspired, and, yes, lighter.
