Minding Your Mind

Sometimes we realise we’re not perfect. It’s very confronting. If you want to change something about yourself – become less irritable, or more assertive, stop losing your temper, worry less – how do you do it? Are our character traits hard-wired, or can we change our brains and improve ourselves? If you have any questions or comments email Ian and James at mindingyourmind2@gmail.com . Let them kno...

High profile athletes look like they’re living the dream, but they are often under tremendous psychological pressures. They might have support from psychologists etc, but does that actually help? What can we learn from high profile sportspeople about what psychological strategies work, and which don’t? If you have any questions or comments email Ian and James at mindingyourmind2@gmail.com . Let th...

What is ‘burnout’? A temporary loss of motivation and energy at work that can be fixed by a week at the beach? Or an indicator of mental exhaustion and a sign a person might be psychologically unwell? If you experience ‘burnout’, what should you do? If you have any questions or comments email Ian and James at mindingyourmind2@gmail.com . Let them know any other topics you’d like them to cover. To...

As kids grow up, the two places they learn most about mental health and wellbeing, are at home and at school. What role do educational institutions - childcare, school, tertiary education – play in teaching children and young adults about mental health? How do they do it? Should they be doing more? What is the right balance between challenging students to help them build skills and confidence, and...

What runs in families and what doesn’t? We inherit eye colour and height, but can our parents also pass on an anxious temperament? What about optimism? A quick temper? Shyness? Ambition? A vulnerability to depression?  We discuss what we inherit, and what we don’t. If you have any questions or comments email Ian and James at mindingyourmind2@gmail.com . Let them know any other topics you’d li...

As children grow up, how do they learn to assess risk and make good decisions? How do parents help kids learn to weigh up risks, when usually their instinct is to protect the little darlings. At what age should you let your kid walk to the shops alone? Where is the sweet spot between ‘helicopter parenting’ and going ‘free range’? Daisy Turnbull, author of 50 risks to take with your kids, joins us....

Anxiety is the most common mental health problem in children. Children can feel anxious about meeting new people, entering new situations, being alone, school marks, dogs, and more. Being a bit anxious about danger keeps kids safe, but too much anxiety can feel horrible, and stop kids from socialising and experiencing new things. What can parents do to help an anxious child? If you have any questi...

When someone tries to take their own life, it’s common for family, friends and workmates to think, ‘What did I miss?’ What are the signs someone is considering suicide? What can you do if you notice them? If you have any questions or comments email Ian and James at  mindingyourmind2@gmail.com  . Let them know any other topics you’d like them to cover. To find out more about depressi...

The term ‘Self Help’ is a promise; ‘If you do this activity, you will feel better’. But which Self Help practices actually help? We assess common self-help practices, from yoga to reading, exercise to socialising, meditation to ‘purposeful activity’ and assess the benefits of each. If you have any questions or comments email Ian and James at  mindingyourmind2@gmail.com  . Let them k...

Are we humans primarily rational or emotional? Are our decisions driven by carefully worked out thoughts? Or are we bundles of emotion, driven by feelings? When you make a big decision, do you work out the pros and cons in a rational way? Or, deep down, are feelings – fear and hope especially – in the driver’s seat? How much does the balance between making emotion and thought based decisions vary...

Despair and Hope. Opposite sides of the same coin. What is despair? Is it normal and natural, or a sign of poor mental health and something that should be ‘cured’? Can despair be appropriate and even, sometimes, useful?  What about hope? Is it a bright shiny jewel that helps us through tough times, or dreamy escapism? Does hope that things will improve sustain us in the tough times, or is it...

Sam Hockey’s first experience of the mental health system was as a young person seeking help. Now he works within the mental health system. We hear how Sam’s experience as a patient has shaped his work, and his views on how to improve mental health and it’s treatment. You can listen to the Facing It podcast co-hosted by Sam and Haley Venables here . If you have any questions or comments email Ian...

Who do you trust, and why? With COVID, our trust is being tested. What level of trust do families, communities, workplaces and societies need to operate effectively? Why can trust break down? What happens when it does? How do you build it back up again? If you have any questions or comments email Ian and James at  mindingyourmind2@gmail.com  . Let them know any other topics you’d li...

What is the difference between religion and spirituality? What influence does each have on our mental health? The ABC’s Geraldine Doogue joins us to examine what ‘spirituality’ can mean, and  whether feeling connected to something  bigger that yourself is good for your mental health. Geraldine mentions two books in the podcast, The Politics of Hope by Rabbi Jonathan Sacks and Intimacy an...

Is anger useful? Where does it come from? Why is it so hard to control? When we lose our temper, why do we so often regret it? Sure, anger helped us punch out sabre-tooths, but how useful is it the 21st century? If you have any questions or comments email Ian and James at  mindingyourmind2@gmail.com  . Let them know any other topics you’d like them to cover. To find out more about d...

What challenges do people, especially young people and women, face when they present for mental health care?  Psychiatrist Dr Liz Scott joins us to discuss the ways in which people’s experience of mental health services can be less than ideal, and what we can do to improve them. Dr Liz Scott is a psychiatrist and an Associate Professor and Principal Research Fellow at the Brain and Mind Centr...

In the old days we viewed the body and the mind as two very separate things. Not any more.  The Health Report  and  Coronacast  presenter Dr Norman Swan joins us to discuss how taking care of your physical health can also improve your mental health. We discuss, diet, exercise, alcohol, sleep, chronic pain and more. Dr Norman Swan’s new book is   So You Think You Know What’...

What progress have employers made in taking better care of the mental health of their people? Samantha Mostyn AO, a corporate and not-for-profit leader and one of Australia’s’ first mental health commissioners, joins us. In the age of COVID when work, employment and education have been disrupted, what more can be done by business, and the non-government sector to improve mental health. If you have...

This is the Astra Zeneca ep. It’s about how we calculate risk and make decisions. Is our assessment of risk governed by our rational mind, or by our emotions? Do we overestimate the risk of doing something (e.g. taking a vaccine) and underestimate the risk of not doing something (e.g. not taking a vaccine). When we face tiny risks like a 1 in a million chance, are the numbers so big we can’t compu...

Anxiety can be important and useful in helping us to be aware of, and react to, threats, study for exams and prepare for job interviews. But why does worry sometimes get out of control? When does anxiety become a mental health issue? And when it does, how do we get an over-anxious mind under control? If you have any questions or comments email Ian and James at  mindingyourmind2@gmail.com...

In ep 5 we discussed the importance of social connection, and whether modern psychology and wellbeing focusses too much on the individual and not enough on the group. In this ep Professor Jaky Troy, Director of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Research, at USYD joins to us to explore how indigenous Australian culture takes more of a group orientated approach to mental health and wellbeing, an...

Modern psychology focusses mainly on what you, the individual, can do to improve your mental health, but are we missing something? Humans are social animals, so shouldn’t we also focus on what we can do to improve the collective mental health of the various groups we belong to – our family group, friend group, workplace and community.  How do we go about doing that? If you have any questions...

Ian and James discuss lockdown. Being in a Covid lockdown isn’t fun, but until enough of us get vaccinated, they are a fact of life. In lockdown you might feel bored, worried, stressed, uncertain about the future and financially anxious. And day two could be worse. What can you do to take care of your mental health during lockdown? If you have any questions or comments about depression, or other a...

Ian and James discuss body clocks. What are they? How do they work? And how can understanding our own body clock help you control anxiety and depression? If you have any questions or comments about depression, or other areas of mental health, email Ian and James at  mindingyourmind2@gmail.com  . Let them know any other topics you’d like them to cover. To find out more about depressi...

Ian and James discuss Early Intervention. What is it? How effective is early intervention in diagnosing and treating mental illness, especially in young people? What are the signs that a young person might have a mental health condition? If you have any questions or comments about depression, or other areas of mental health, email Ian and James at  mindingyourmind2@gmail.com  . Let...