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Motherhood can be a rewarding but also challenging time in a woman’s life.

According to research conducted by The Mental Health Foundation UK, between 10% and 20% of women develop mental health problems during pregnancy or within a year of giving birth.

Motherhood can be additionally challenging if you have ADHD / Autism and are trying to parent children who are also neurodiverse.

In this episode, I talk to Laura Guckian. Laura has ADHD & Autism and is the mother to three neurodivergent children. Her journey through motherhood has had many challenges, including being hospitalised for two months with her mental health, after the birth of her first son.

Laura now uses her experience to help other mums. She is an accredited life coach for mums, and runs her practice called Mind Mommy Coaching. She also runs The Village, an online community which has helped over 4,000 Moms achieve positive mental wellbeing.

She also hosts the amazing ‘Momfessions’ podcast and her goal is to support other women through their motherhood journey. As ever, this podcast is all about hope and Laura provides hope for mothers who are dealing with similar issues.

I'm an adolescent and adult chartered psychologist for the past two decades. This is a completely free and independant podcast, non-sponsored and ad-free to support you with your mental health. Please support this podcast by sharing and rating it. We all have issues, so let's talk about them.

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The field of psychology and mental health is a diverse one and it covers all manner of treatments to support people who are struggling with their mental health.

Music therapy is an established psychological clinical intervention, to help people whose lives have been affected by injury, illness or disability.

Music therapists draw upon the innate qualities of music to support people of all ages and abilities and at all stages of life; from helping newborn babies develop healthy bonds with their parents, to offering vital, sensitive and compassionate palliative care at the end of life.

In this episode I to talk to Dr Shane Cassidy. Dr Shane is a senior music therapist and the founder of Neurolinks Clinic in Ireland, which provides music therapy for people who are living with a nuerological condition, their caregivers and famalies.

Dr Shane and I have a facinating chat about how music therapy effects the brain and how it it used to help people with all manner of neurological and psychological conditions.

You will never listen to music the same way again after listening to Dr Shane.

I'm an adolescent and adult chartered psychologist for the past two decades. This is a completely free and independant podcast, non-sponsored and ad-free to support you with your mental health. Please support this podcast by sharing and rating it. We all have issues, so let's talk about them.

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Post-Natal Depression effects 12% - 15% of women.

Depression is likely to be under-recognised during pregnancy and postnatally.

Mental health problems are as common in the perinatal period as they are at other times of life.

In this epiosde I speak to Sarah Hoover about her new book,'The Motherload, A Memoir. Episodes from the Brink of Motherhood.' This book is an honest and raw account of Sarah’s experience of living with postpartum depression. It’s also full of hope too about what recovery looks like and how healing happens.

Sarah lives in New York with her husband Tom and their two children. She is an art historian, cultural critic and now a best-selling author.

Sarah and I have a terrific conversation about her book and life.

Please do share this episode with anyone who you feel mey benefit from this information.

I'm an adolescent and adult chartered psychologist for the past two decades. This is a completely free and independant podcast, non-sponsored and ad-free to support you with your mental health. Please support this podcast by sharing and rating it. We all have issues, so let's talk about them.

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If you think you may have ADHD and are undiagnosed, then making sense of this can be overwleming, confusing and challenging.

In this episode I talk to Alex Partridge. If you are a regular listener to this podcast, I spoke with Alex in episode 39 about his ADHD Story.

Aged just 21, Alex founded UNILAD and LADBible, social news sites which now have a following of 100 million people around the globe. Aged 34, he was diagnosed with ADHD.

Alex is the host of the award-winning ’ADHD Chatter’ podcast which has helped countless individuals make sense of their own ADHD diagnosis. His first book 'Now It All Makes Sense,' is his story of ADHD and out now. His book is already a best-seller.

In this episode Alex and I talk about his incredible book and discuss how he made sense of his ADHD diagnosis. His book is filled with invaluable information about his life before his diagnosis and how he learned to live and thrive with ADHD.

Alex's stroy is filled with hope and this episode is not only for people who may have ADHD or undiagnosed ADHD, but also for their family and friends.

Alex's book is availble to buy now and I can't recommend it highly enough!

I'm an adolescent and adult chartered psychologist for the past two decades. This is a completely free and independant podcast, non-sponsored and ad-free to support you with your mental health. Please support this podcast by sharing and rating it. We all have issues, so let's talk about them.

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James Longman is the Chief International Correspondent for ABC News, USA. He has covered middle east conflicts, royal deaths and papal appointments.

In his memoir, 'The Inherited Mind: A Story of Family, Hope and the Genetics of Mental Illness', James examines his own mental health issues in the context of his family.

When James was young his father, struggling with depression and schizophrenia, sadly took his own life. As an adult, James began to question if his own bouts of depression were related and if by learning about his father, he could learn about himself.

In this episode I discuss James' thought-provoking book, what he learnt personally, and what scientific research is teaching us about 'The Inherited Mind'.

I'm an adolescent and adult chartered psychologist for the past two decades. This is a completely free and independant podcast, non-sponsored and ad-free to support you with your mental health. Please support this podcast by sharing and rating it. We all have issues, so let's talk about them.

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Why do many men refuse to see their GP, even if they are unwell?

Why are the rates of men seeking help from their GP much lower than that of women?

What happens when a man visits their GP and says they are struggling with their mental health?

Research shows that men are less likely to visit their GP if they have a physical or mental health issue. Research also tells us that men are more likely to have addiction problems and also have higher rates of suicide than women. What is going wrong here, why won't men ask for help and go see their GP?

In this episode I am joined by expert GP, Dr Hugh Coyne. Hugh runs Coyne Medical Practice, a busy GP practice in Fulham, London.

Hugh and I talk about the challenges of getting men to take their physical and mental seriously and how he tackles that as a GP. He also discusses how he talks to his male patients about their health and how to help them accept that they need professional support. Hugh also talks to me about how he assess his male patient's mental health when they visit him about that issue and what they can expect their GP to ask them.

As ever, this podcast is all about hope and Hugh and I provide hope to men and their famalies, partners and friends about how taking their health seriously is an issue they can manage and is also worth dealing with.

I'm an adolescent and adult chartered psychologist for the past two decades. This is a completely free and independant podcast, non-sponsored and ad-free to support you with your mental health. Please support this podcast by sharing and rating it. We all have issues, so let's talk about them.

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Grief is the great universal leveller, we will all experience it at some point in our life. When and how grief comes into our life is something that none of us have any control over. Coping with sudden and unexpected loss is unbelievably difficult.

In this episode I talk to Ben Kennedy about his story of grief and loss. Tragically 4 years ago when Ben was aged 32, he suddenly lost his wife Jo and their unborn child. Ben was thrown into unbearable trauma, loss and grief and had a 4 year old son to take care of.

Ben uses his story to provide hope for other people who are living with loss and grief. As heartbreaking as his story is, it also filled with invaluable knowledge about how to cope with, survive and live with grief.

As ever, this podcast is all about hope and Ben's story provides hope if you are living with grief and loss.

I'm an adolescent and adult chartered psychologist for the past two decades. This is a completely free and independant podcast, non-sponsored and ad-free to support you with your mental health. Please support this podcast by sharing and rating it. We all have issues, so let's talk about them.

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What is dopamine?

What does dopamine do in your brain?

Why should you care about dopamine?

Dopamine is a 'hot topic' right now and social media is flooded with information about this chemical in your brain. There are all kinds of suggestions on how to boost dopamine, why some people chase it and how you can detox from it. Unfortunately not all of this information is factual or correct and in some cases is not from verifiable sources.

In this episode I talk about dopamine and put the record straight as to what it is, how it works in your brain and why this chemical is so powerful. Understanding the features of dopmine is essential to manage it's impact in your life and ensure that it is not causes you problems.

As ever, this podcast is all about hope and I discuss ways that you can work effectively with dopamine and make sure that it is not calling the shots in your life.

I'm an adolescent and adult chartered psychologist for the past two decades. This is a completely free and independant podcast, non-sponsored and ad-free to support you with your mental health. Please support this podcast by sharing and rating it. We all have issues, so let's talk about them.