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From Mountjoy Prison to the TEDx stage, Wayne Hart's story is a remarkable tale of conviction, in every sense of the word. In this interview he takes us on the journey from a tough and abusive childhood to graduating with a Master's degree and his determination to give back to society in any way he can. The word 'inspirational' can be overused at times but Wayne's is truly an inspiring story of overcoming a criminal past, drug addiction and  numerous stays in prison. Now his path is one of helping others who have faced similar challenges, not least by giving a TEDx talk from the very prison in which he had previously been incarcerated! It was a privilege to meet him and I hope you enjoy our interview. (Contains Strong Language)Wayne's talk is available at https://youtu.be/rablOUMXDhw or search for Building Bridges Not Barriers/Wayne Hart/TEDx on YouTube.

Hi everyone, I'm delighted to be in double-digits and sharing episode 10 of my podcast with you. I hit the road for this one and travelled to meet indomitable Waterford native Jennifer Davy (@wellbeingwarrior.ie) who talks with humour and compassion about how depression showed up in her life alongside motherhood. She describes how her warrior spirit and willingness to engage wholeheartedly with her wellness tools has helped her to find a new passion in her life. Combining her burgeoning lifecoaching skills with her insightful and honest social media posts and discussions she is already helping others on their own personal mental health journeys, including the students in the secondary school where she teaches. They're lucky to have her and I'm delighted to share our chat with you. Enjoy!  

If our mental health is like a garden that needs tending then what do we do with our weeds? In this episode award-winning landscape gardener and designer Niall Maxwell (www.niallmaxwell.ie) discusses the value of our psychological ‘weeds’ and the benefits of embracing the darker sides of ourselves - so we don’t become ‘like a baby with a chainsaw’! He discusses how grappling with and ultimately owning his demons within brought him a renewed sense of meaning and purpose, both personally and professionally. I learned a lot from listening to his insights and hard-earned wisdom and I’m delighted to share them with you here. It’s fascinating stuff – enjoy! 

A recurring theme on these episodes is the importance of getting support when you're struggling. You don't need to do it alone! So what are some of the options available to you and how do you look for support if it's not something you're used to doing? In this episode I look at some of the various supports out there and de-mystify the process of putting your hand up when you need to. Here's a few simple and practical steps you can take which I hope you'll find helpful. Plus, I ask for a little help myself! 

What do you get if you cross an electrician, a special needs assistant, a taxi driver, a trainee psychotherapist and a poet? The answer is Daniel Breslin, my guest on the show this week! A planned chat about the connection between creativity and mental health evolved into a much broader discussion as Dan opened up about some of the challenges he's had to wrestle with over the years. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to him and I hope you do too. And check out his poetry at danielbreslinpoetry.com and on Facebook.

In this episode I'm joined by a good friend of mine, Declan Cox, to discuss the topic of Values. In these challenging times when a lot of us may have big decisions to make in the face of considerable uncertainty, it can be really helpful to take a bit of time to think about our Values. What are they? How can they help with making decisions? Where do we get them from? Join me as I explore a topic that doesn't get talked about too often but which can make all the difference.

Continuing the conversation with my ex-wife about the difficult journey from conflict to co-operation in the years following the breakup of our marriage. This episode focuses on what helped us deal with the anger and stress that we both struggled with and how we found an equilibrium in our new reality as ex-partners and ongoing parents. 

In my first podcast interview I jump in at the deep end for a frank conversation with my ex-wife Siobhan about our marriage break-up and the challenging aftermath. Relationship break-ups can often be times of enormous stress and conflict, and ours was no different. We talk honestly about the impacts and fallout of this difficult time, and how it affected our mental health. Pt. 2 will be out next week. 

In this week's episode I roll up my sleeves, once again get comfortable being uncomfortable, and tackle a topic that we often shy away from but which most of us will experience at some point in our lives. Shame. What is it? How does it affect us? What can we do about it? Using some personal examples from my own relationship with Shame I hope we can all get a little less nervous about something that's pretty hard to avoid.

Welcome to Episode 1 of my mental health podcast. I'm Kerry Lawless and in this episode I'll be telling you about what I'm trying to do with The Suicidal Man Podcast. I'll also tell you a bit about the inspiration behind the name, I'll introduce myself properly (since you've probably never heard of me!) and offer up a few simple suggestions for looking after our mental health. I'm hoping you'll join me for a new podcast which values honesty, openness and vulnerability. Thanks for checking it out and I hope you find it useful. 

Just a little teaser for the launch of my new mental health podcast The Suicidal Man. Coming soon....