Dr. Jennifer “Jenn” Veilleux is a professor, licensed clinical psychologist, and author of "Open to Emotion". She studies how our beliefs about feelings—and our ability to handle tough ones—shape mental health. In this episode, she shares practical tools for understanding and regulating emotions, and catches up with Dave on her life and career sinc…

Olivia Candocia blends theater and therapy to help people embrace authenticity and find connection through play. Olivia is a mental health counselor and drama therapist whose journey has woven together performance, creativity, and education. With a background as an actor, theatre director, voice actor, and preschool teacher, she first earned a B.S.…

David Vox Mullen is a Chicago-based filmmaker, nationally touring stand-up comedian, musician, and producer with over 25 years of experience in the entertainment industry. In this episode, he speaks with Dave about role models and father figures - especially the Heavenly Father and Jesus. David is the co-founder of Under The L Productions, former f…

Anne, a 31-year-old musician, improviser, and educator with bipolar 2 and PTSD symptoms, opens up about her childhood trauma, self-harm, relationships, and long search for treatment. She improvises a song with Dave and shares the insight: “It’s okay to have feelings. It’s a part of the human experience.”…

Tatyana Frost is a writer and advocate for mental health and diversity in technology. Diagnosed with bipolar disorder, she speaks about coping with suicidal depression and the stigmas she has faced. She is writing a memoir titled The Madness Effect, which celebrates finding pride in one's mental health journey.…

Steel Maggie is a songwriter from Los Angeles who creates bold dance pop music. Living with bipolar disorder and a history of addiction, she discusses reclaiming the label "crazy" and her podcast Mind Made Wrong. She and Dave reflect on their shared podcast missions. Maggie is active on Instagram, Spotify, YouTube, and steelmaggie.com.…

Tim Davis is the author of TRIPOLAR: The Story of a Bipolar Triathlete. He’s also a coach, science teacher, 12-time Ironman finisher, and 7-time 100-mile ultramarathon finisher. He shares his story of addiction, mental illness, family loss, and recovery. More info is available at ultratimdavis.com.由Dave Asher

June Converse is an author and blogger who shares an authentic look at the daily emotional realities of living with bipolar disorder. After several downward spirals, she now writes from a place of inspiration and empathy. She has published two novels (Decide to Hope and Journey to Hope) and can be contacted via Instagram and Facebook. Her website i…

Carl LaMark is a composer, pianist, and recording engineer born and raised in Chicago. He shares about living a life of music while coping with loss, anxiety, and clinical depression. He also reflects on his experience falling ill with COVID-19 earlier in the year.由Dave Asher

Alex Rembold is a Chicago-based singer-songwriter and improvisational actor. He has performed at the iO with the musical improv group "La Di Da" and is the host of the podcast Little City; Big World. He shares about his experience living with Bipolar 1.由Dave Asher

Eric Majeski is an innovator, a musician, and a holistic healer/counselor-in-training. He’s currently in grad school cultivating new solutions for the addiction epidemic and studying mental health counseling. Eric performs and tours across North America with his band the Mystic Hearts. He is a fierce mental health advocate and maintains a transform…

Luke Warner is an improviser, rapper, comedian, and world traveler. Luke chats with Dave about the use of offensive language and content to reach an audience. They discuss Luke’s history with mental health and dig deeper into how people communicate in art, politics, and life. Luke, a.k.a. “Uncle Tasty,” improvises a rap with Dave on keys.…

Scott Gilmore, a Chicago-based dual citizen from Canada, is a former paramedic and aspiring actor/performer. After a more than 15-year-long battle with alcoholism, addiction, and several relapses, he is nearly six months sober. He recounts his story of ups and downs with Dave, his struggles to avoid taking one more drink, and the wisdom of being a …

Liz Komos is a Chicago-based actor and comedian who was born with a physical deformity and chronic illness. Growing up as a square peg in a world of round holes, she developed a passion to live earnestly and with a deep appreciation for every moment. Her goal is to create more access and awareness for others to express their true selves through art…

Jam Alker is a leader in the recovery-through-music movement. Following a battle with several addictions, including heroin, Jam returned to his musical roots and used songwriting and expressive therapy to improve his life. He has gained a large following in the process, inspiring others and showing them a light to guide their own paths to wellness.…

Alexia Jasmene is a Chicago-based trans actor/musician/comedian/poet who performs across the country and Chicago at various events, theaters, bars, and digital mediums, trying to open hearts and change minds with her seed-planting storytelling art forms. She has been diagnosed with ADHD since she was 3 years old, lives with anxiety, depression, and…

Norm Holly is a Chicago-based improviser, teacher, actor, and director, who has been inspiring students and audiences for more than 30 years. He’s shared in the evolution of the next generation of performers who are sharing more openly about their mental health. Dave and Norm talk politics, improv, addiction, and the way in which artists are “broke…

Thomas Schuberth is a Chicago-based podcaster with Asperger Syndrome. He struggles with depression and anxiety. He and Dave explore experiences with difficulties in relating to people due to an unquiet mind, misinterpreting social cues, and emotions that are at times more extreme. They sing two improvised songs together.…

Violet is a musical artist who writes, produces, and performs hard rock and indie pop music all around the city of Chicago. She speaks about her experiences with mania, depression, addiction, and gender dysphoria.由Dave Asher

Brandon Krisko is an actor and an improviser who recently relocated to Chicago after graduation from Washington University in St. Louis. As a Psychology major with a diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder, he is passionate about advocating for a greater understanding of and compassion toward individuals with mental health disorders.…

Rebecca Shrom is a Chicago-based actor/improviser. She was diagnosed with anxiety and major depression at a very young age. She speaks with Dave about her experience with electroconvulsive therapy as well as her feelings about the stigma surrounding mental illness.由Dave Asher

Anderson Lawfer is a Chicago-based producer, director, and event host. He is a proud recovering addict and speaks with Dave about his history with addiction and the family of artists who support each other. They improvise a song together inspired by “Lean On Me.”由Dave Asher

Rob Gaughan is an improviser, truck driver, and spiritualist whose own challenges in life set him on a path 20 years ago to understanding the many depths and dimensions of anxiety and addiction while working to de-stigmatize the pursuit of mental wellness.由Dave Asher

Alwyn Mothershed is a Chicago-based comedy person, raised in Nashville by improvisors. She was recently diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder. She says people associate BPD with “horrible people” and that some days she feels that way herself. She confides, however, that through positive experiences with medication and a psychiatrist, she h…

Ryan P. C. Trimble is a Chicago-based writer and actor, who has lived his whole life with Tourette Syndrome. He speaks about how his condition has informed the construction of his personality, as well as the insights it gives him into life with a special perspective. He relates these things with his experiences with improvisation and sings a couple…

Aram Vartian is a 43-year-old multimedia producer with a diagnosis of bipolar. He creates actual role-playing podcasts and speaks about how his illness has affected his work life, professional relationships, and friendships.由Dave Asher

In this episode I talk about my experience with my new iPad Pro and give some insight to how it brought out my inner self, as well as all the cool and unique ways I’m using this innovation in my day to day life. As well as its potential to replace a traditional laptop.

Stephen Reichelt is a Chicago-based musician and music educator specializing in orchestral double bass, jazz, rock, and composition. He has experienced drastic ups and downs throughout his life due to issues with depression and substance abuse. He sings two improvised songs with Dave and describes his experience on the podcast to be a form of expre…

Carol Pearson is a former comedienne who studied improv in Chicago and recently moved to Indiana. She muses on the struggle of being depressed, comparing it to grieving, and speaks to suicidal ideation. She goes on to speak about her history with improvisation as a mode to get in touch with emotion and flow. And, she sings an improvised song called…

Aurelie De Foresta is a 28-year-old French theater artist based out of Lyon and Paris. She speaks about her manic episode in the wake of the Paris terrorist attacks in 2015, and the depression that followed. She improvises three songs about her medication, the ups and downs of life, and a musical suicide note. She notes that working in the theater …

“K” is a Chicago-based graphic designer who has battled bipolar, depression, and anxiety. She speaks about coming out to her friends and family about her mental health. She describes her journey of coming out as gay as well, and her own battle to identify herself along both of these lines. She describes these decisions and the reactions she receive…

Matt Griffo is a comedic songwriter and performer who tours around the world. He has struggled with depression since childhood as well as memory loss. He sings one of his comedic songs and improvises two others: one about memory loss, and a song of gratitude to someone special.由Dave Asher

Rebecca Montalvo is an actor, musician, and family lady living in Chicago. She speaks about depression and self-medication through both drinking and performing. She sings songs about depression, the process of how alcohol affects her emotions, and coping mechanisms for social anxiety. She also shares about how she talks about mental health with her…

Charles Torpe, a member of the Long Term Recovery movement, has been sober for 27 years and has worked in the field of human services for more than two decades. He speaks candidly about getting sober, mending relationships with members of his family, and his missions in life. He improvises a song with Dave about the power of recovery…

Noelle Hoffman is a Chicago-based comedian who has struggled with an eating disorder as well as depression. She speaks about addictions to smartphones and social media, and the power that these have over our mental health, as well as how we discuss it. Finally, she reveals “the most important relationship” that we have.…

Beth Chrome is a Chicago-based editor and improviser who has a bipolar diagnosis. She speaks about her recollections of being manic and her experience with the subsequent depressions. She describes her current life of maintaining her health, and moving to a lower-stress job that doesn’t pay the bills but keeps her going.…

“Orphan Schlitz” is a low-fi punk noise musician based in Chicago. He struggles with mental health, but has never sought diagnosis beyond his own description as a maniac. He relies on family and the government for assistance, and takes pride in being a menace to society. He speaks about music, recognition, existentialism, and alternate dimensions.…

“Dee” is a transgender computer programmer who struggles with depression and food addiction. During the interview, she drops hints at something having happened to her in the past. As the interview continues, Dave persuades Dee to improvise on a harmonica, and then Dee shares a secret from her past.由Dave Asher

Bailey is a 27-year-old special education assistant who has struggled with panic disorder, ADHD, and depression. She shares her experiences connecting with a special needs child to adjust better in school and make more friends. She offers that things would improve, if it were easier for people to open up about their mental health.…

Bryan Kuhn, a Chicago-based singer-songwriter, opens up about his experience with music, overcoming addiction, and battling depression. He performs a live version of one of his songs and improvises a new one. He has found a new mission with his music—to heal himself and others.由Dave Asher

Timothy Swaim, a Chicago-based performer, decided to quit using alcohol just a few weeks ago. He reveals that he has attempted to quit before in the past, and conveys his struggle with addiction and depression. He says he always wants to be seen as “someone who is always going to be fine” and begins to reconcile this with the need to ask for help.…

Alexandria Springer is a support group facilitator with the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA) who has rebounded from depression in the past. She speaks about the value of emotional vulnerability in making connections, and how she can leverage her past experiences to empathize with the newer members of the group.…

Mandy Miller, a musical comedian in Chicago, is very open about her illness, and how people respond when she tells them about her panic disorder and anxiety. She sings an improvised song about “Airplane Klonopin,” and gives a vivid description of what a panic attack feels like.由Dave Asher

Tyler Pistorius, a Chicago-based filmmaker, reveals his experience with suicidal ideation, self-harm, self-doubt, and PTSD brought on by a mass shooting on his former college campus. He says, “There are people out there who love you. Who want to see you succeed. People who are going to need your help.” He concludes: “Suicide can not be an option fo…

Hannah Gray, a 25-year-old with Bipolar 1 says, "Mental illness is one of the most intimate things you could possibly deal with as a person... It's in your mind and that's where your identity is," she continues. "It can be hard to distinguish the two; sometimes it feels impossible."由Dave Asher