Dr. Sally Spencer Thomas

Beyond Recovery: What Mental Health Can Learn from the Disability Rights Movement with Dr. Mark Salzer

Beyond Recovery: What Mental Health Can Learn from the Disability Rights Movement with Dr. Mark Salzer

What if the most important measure of mental health is not symptom relief but whether someone is living the life they want? Dr. Mark Salzer of Temple University joins me to explore community inclusion, participation, and what the disability rights movement has been getting right that mental health has been missing.

The Addiction No One Saw: Gambling, Suicide Risk, and Finding a Way Back with Saul Malek

The Addiction No One Saw: Gambling, Suicide Risk, and Finding a Way Back with Saul Malek

Gambling addiction can remain invisible while consuming every part of a person's internal life. Saul Malek joins me to take us inside the hidden world of sports betting addiction -- the secrecy, chasing, shame, and suicidal despair -- and into the recovery that helped him find his way back and his voice as a prevention speaker.

Zero Overdose: Why Overdose Safety Planning Needs to Become the Standard of Care with Dr. Virna Little

Zero Overdose: Why Overdose Safety Planning Needs to Become the Standard of Care with Dr. Virna Little

Dr. Virna Little, co-founder of Zero Overdose, joins me to make the case that overdose safety planning belongs alongside suicide safety planning as a standard of care. We dig into joint safety planning, high-risk periods, and how healthcare systems and first responders can lead this life-saving shift.

Depression as a Love Letter: Human Connection, Life Transitions & Scaling Peer Support with Nick Freud

Depression as a Love Letter: Human Connection, Life Transitions & Scaling Peer Support with Nick Freud

What if your depression is a love letter from your body telling you the character you've been playing is no longer you? Nick Freud shares how his own breakdown became the blueprint for Fellow Humans, a platform designed to scale the one thing that actually heals us: human connection.

The Invisible Sacrifice: Mental Health and Well-Being in Construction with Aaron Witt

The Invisible Sacrifice: Mental Health and Well-Being in Construction with Aaron Witt

Construction workers build everything we depend on - and die by suicide at rates higher than any other industry. Aaron Witt of Buildwitt joins me to talk about the invisible sacrifice, why traditional mental health resources fail workers in the field, and why leaders going first changes everything.

Who Are You When You're Not Performing? Identity, Burnout & High Achievement with John Brown

Who Are You When You're Not Performing? Identity, Burnout & High Achievement with John Brown

After 22 years inside Apple, John Brown learned the hard way: the body always wins. In this conversation, we explore high-performance addiction, identity tied to achievement, and why building multiple "baskets" of self-worth, not just career success, is the real key to sustainable ambition and mental health.

The Text That Saves a Life: Caring Contacts, Peer Support & Suicide Prevention with Brandon Wilcox

The Text That Saves a Life: Caring Contacts, Peer Support & Suicide Prevention with Brandon Wilcox

A simple text - no agenda, no questions, just "thinking of you" - can be the lifeline someone never knew they needed. I speak with suicide attempt survivor Brandon Wilcox to break down the science and humanity of caring contacts, and why showing up imperfectly is always better than not showing up at all.

Unlocking Agency in Suicide Prevention with Dr. Selma Gaily-Luoma | Episode 144

Unlocking Agency in Suicide Prevention with Dr. Selma Gaily-Luoma | Episode 144

In this thought-provoking episode, I sit down with Dr. Selma Gaily-Luoma to explore the transformative role of agency in suicide prevention. Agency, defined as the sense of control and capacity to influence your thoughts, behaviors, and circumstances, is a cornerstone of psychological resilience. We delve into how fostering a sense of agency can be a powerful antidote to feelings of entrapment and despair that often accompany suicidal crises.