Beyond Well with Sheila Hamilton

Nastashia Minto is an author, poet, and spoken word artist with the Soul of a Southern Pastor. In this interview, Nastashia talks about finding faith while abandoning her religion and delivers two of her stunning spoken word performances.

This is one of the most relevant conversations you’ll hear if you hunker down from late November until the New Year. The holiday blues are often a barometer of the stories we tell ourselves about what we should have, and compare those narratives to stories about what others seem to have. We invite you to a discussion on what some view as the hardest time of the year.

Cassidy Quinn is one of the most beloved Northwest news and entertainment personalities. As host of a tv news program, Tonight with Cassidy, a radio show and a popular Youtube channel, Cassidy barely has time to sleep. In this episode, Cassidy talks about what it took to finally admit that she was suffering from depression and anxiety, and how she lives well despite her diagnosis.

Israel Nebeker is the founder of Blind Pilot and a singer/songwriter whose music now reaches millions of fans. In this episode, Israel talks about confronting one of the darkest periods of his life by wandering into the Black Forest in Germany—with no path to follow and not sure if he would ever find his way out. It was only by confronting his loneliness, his fear, and his belief that he was power...

As an actor on the hit series American Vandal and someone who is constantly in the public eye, Kiah Stern has no plan B. She’s working plan A with an intensity and focus rarely talked about when people dream of becoming a star. We talk with Kiah about how best to deal with a barrage of “feedback,” solicited or not. From her body to her hair to her various film and tv roles, Kiah (who played Jenna...

People are increasingly unsure about kids, and the US and European fertility rate is at an all time low. According to Pew Research, 1 in 5 people will remain childless. This week, the Beyond Well Team talk about the growing number of people who are intentionally childless. If you are attempting to decide whether to have children, this episode is for you. As a farm girl raised in eastern Oregon, Ja...

Ron Artis II is growing into a newly accessible and emotionally acute period of his life. His new album, Love is Love, is a departure from the funk and soul fans are accustomed to from his wildly popular band, Ron Artis II and the Truth, but its stunning lyrics and melodic sound reveal a growth Ron himself says he nearly missed, “From the age of thirteen to eighteen, while I was concentrating on b...

Bestselling-Author Cheryl Strayed met her husband nine days after she’d finished her now famous journey along the Pacific Crest Trail. “The woman I was before that hike would not have been ready to meet and fall in love with Brian.” Brian Lindstrom and Cheryl speak candidly with the Beyond Well Team about the intention and communication necessary to maintain a purposeful, values-oriented relations...

Pop Superstar Lauv is on top of the world with the kickoff of his How I’m Feeling Tour, and he’s using his global platform to promote mental health. In every show, Lauv takes a few minutes to describe his descent into depression and severe OCD, and why he credits therapy and medication with allowing him to regain his creativity and confidence.   Lauv has partnered with Microsoft to create a worldw...

Kathleen Lane is the author of The Best Worst Thing, a young reader’s book for anxious kids and the founder of  www.createmorefearless.org a program that uses creativity to explore, express, and connect. This episode includes tips for anxious children and pre-teens as well as brilliant takeaways for parents who cope with adult-sized worries.

Lyme Disease is the fastest growing infectious disease in the world, eclipsing the HIV/Aids crisis by over 10X. It is now reported in all 50 states and 79 countries. The CDC estimates 400,000 new cases per year, but even that number is thought to be on the low end of the problem. Lyme has been reported to be associated with various psychiatric presentations because Borreliaburgdorferi can present...

Liz Prato is the author of several award-winning books and story collections. She talks with Beyond Well about the challenge of a creative life while living with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.  Liz says, “Chronic Fatigue Syndrome has forced me to get very quiet with myself, and ask who am I, apart from this body?” Liz’s insight into the psychological and physical toll of Chronic Fatigue is both illumin...

If you’ve ever passed a homeless teen on the street and wondered, “How did they get there?” or “How can I help?” this interview with Rei Scozylakas is worthy of your time. Rei Scozylakas wasn’t dealt an easy hand in this life. But, as you can hear in our conversation, Rei’s story isn’t just one of struggle. In fact, that’s not even the most compelling part of their story “Nobody is born wanting to...

In honor of Suicide Prevention Week, we are bringing you multiple stories of hope, resilience, and healing. Lois Chauncey lost her husband to suicide in May, and like many other suicide loss survivors, she feared she would also lose her job due to her complicated grief. Paul Sale, her Supervisor, provided a textbook-like example of how a company should appropriately respond to a suicide loss survi...

Twenty-two veterans die by suicide every day in America, outpacing deaths in combat or war supporting activities. Despite the military’s best efforts to contain a public health crisis, the numbers of deaths continue to rise. The Beyond Well team had extraordinary insight into the causes and potential remedies of military suicides in our conversation with New York Times bestselling author and forme...

Ken Cervera's openness, his honesty and his path to wellness have all been informed by an immensely isolating period in his late twenties when he attempted to end his life. Ken drove his motorcycle through a Los Angeles intersection straight into an oncoming vehicle. Miraculously, both drivers escaped harm.  It is Suicide Prevention Week and we believe suicide attempt survivors can be extremely he...

Edan Armas is an award-winning Spoken Word Artist and Poet and graduate of Stanford University. Armas was the 2019 Baccalaureate student speaker, and an outspoken voice on the topic of student mental Health. Edan’s undergraduate career focused on how emotion manifests in the body, mind and the  collective consciousness.  Edan encourages students to embrace both the tribulations and triumphs of the...

Logan Lynn is a musician, writer, producer, filmmaker, TV personality and LGBT activist. Since 1998, Logan has released nine studio albums and is the former host of Logo's "NewNowNextMusic." But, in the midst of his success, Lynn relied on self-medicating with drugs and alcohol as a response to years of childhood sexual abuse at the hands of a trusted family friend. It wasn't until a therapist ask...

We hire personal trainers to help us get in shape, tutors for difficult subjects, and music instructors to learn to master musical instruments.  So, why are people reluctant to hire a therapist, a person trained to help people better manage their minds? In this episode, Jenna, Sheila and Brian talk about how therapy works and what really goes on in therapeutic sessions.

Sharma Shields wants us all to get real about the things we've done, the mistakes we've made, and the people we are hoping to become. Her writing, including her highly acclaimed novels, The Sasquatch Hunter's Almanac, and the Cassandra, along with her award-winning short story collection, challenges readers to confront the most awful aspects of our society--sexual abuse, poverty, crimes against ch...

Is it the sex itself, or something about sexual activity that is so good for our happiness? You might argue that people who are happier are more likely to have sex more often because they’re in a good relationship and are satisfied with it.  But, why do so many couples get hung up on frequency and type of sex? And how do we begin to communicate our needs honestly, without hurting our partners? Dr....

In this episode, Dr. Jenna LeJeune and Dr Brian Goff go deeper into some of the strategies they use with clients in recognizing, accepting and working with anxiety in order to continue to lead productive lives. Dr. LeJeune and Dr. Goff both practice Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), a unique empirically based psychological intervention that uses acceptance and mindfulness strategies, togeth...

  Long before the death of Anthony Bourdain, Restauranteur John Gorham was addressing the issue of mental health in the kitchen. Restaurant workers have the highest rate of illicit drug use and the second-highest rate of suicide. In this episode, John talks with the Beyond Well team about the structural changes he's made to address anxiety, depression and drug use in restaurant workers. "Anthony's...

Haley Johnsen is a singer-songwriter best characterized by her powerhouse vocals and unique lyrical perspective. Drawing inspiration from acts like Bonnie Raitt, Grace Potter, and Brandi Carlile, Haley sings with a soulful determination. Her songwriting speaks to common themes of loneliness, self-doubt and self-criticism. We talk to Haley about how she copes as a performer despite battling anxiety...

From Ari Mathae: "As I've come out, first as pansexual a couple of years ago and recently as nonbinary, I've had a lot of conversations with my friends and family and coworkers about gender and identity. For me, being nonbinary allows me to make my own rules for how I move within the world and form my own idea of feminine and masculine. But I still struggle frequently with redirecting my mind when...