YOU ARE NOT ALONE - A companion online community discussion board for The Mental Illness Happy Hour podcast with Paul Gilmartin

I have been bothered about this for a long time: I am really, really tired of seeing a majority of very young, very pretty, and very white Hollywood types as the subjects of the podcasts. There has been some diversification, including listeners and therapists, but the great majority are actresses, models, screenwriters, producers and comedians. The great majority are also under the age of 40, or if you like, under 45. While this may be interesting to some, it is not helpful for me. Yes, in the beginning, it was a relief to know that people working their careers in the Hollywood entertainment industry (some quite well known) also struggled with depression. However, as time went on, I grew tired and frustrated with "Yes, I was so depressed when I played Late Night with Conan O'Brien". Where are the accountants, nurses, security guards, house cleaners, truck drivers, school teachers, day care workers, customer service representatives, garbage truck workers, department store sales people, factory workers, gas station employees, nannies, secretaries, paralegals, bank tellers, fast food workers, waiters, bookkeepers, file clerks, mailroom employees, postal workers, bus drivers, janitors, insurance salespeople, etc. -- in other words, the rest of us? And where are all the podcasts for people over the age of 45? Hello, baby boomers?? Do we not count?

Additionally, I get a creepy "ew" feeling from some of the questions on the surveys. Perhaps because it seemed that every time I listened to a podcast, the Shame and Secrets survey results were read. And then at some point, Paul said that he used people's fantasies for his own gratification and that he felt guilty about it. If I was in group therapy with Paul, I would DEFINITELY express how extremely uncomfortable that made me. Like it or not, he holds a leadership position on his website and podcast. Having said that, I guess he can do whatever he wants -- it's his podcast and website. But it made me feel REALLY uncomfortable. Paul has kind of an obsession with his genitals -- I get it, I really do. But enough already. Save it for your own therapist.

Anyway, this has been bothering me for a very long time.

The first part of this I totally read. I've been to LA once - I was carsick and ended up puking in a Ralph's bag on the way to LAX. Every respect for the city and its occupants and I'm very happy to see Paul able to pull the caliber of person who did write on Conan (the Barbarian?). That said, I'm a young schlub unable to find work in a field that doesn't kill my soul inside every day. I act as well as a damp paper bag and I write like a dyslexic badger. The actor-types are awesome, but a dyslexic badger-writing prole can't relate to a variety of stand-up comedians. I really want to again say that I am very happy for those people and I totally get how LA may produce an overabundance of that type of person, but I'd love to hear more about people with less overtly-traumatic stories who still suffer. I mean, I was kidnapped by my father and I'm mentally unwell, but I lived a suburban life until I revolted and have always enjoyed the station of class privilege that my parents brought me into. I certainly am not like the previous couple of podcasts getting dropped off at street corners to live somewhere else. Both of the people I'm thinking of are people I wish only happiness upon and people whose stories shot me right in the heart, but neither are people who immediately relate to me.

I actually really want Paul to have a Labour Day Episode (talking about labour and workplaces), and I've been wanting to articulate this for a while. I wish there was a survey about where we work and how it makes up feel. We are either upset about not being at work for want of money or pissed that we are at work. 8 hours is a lot of your waking day and I sense a critical blind spot in the show for the plight of labour. I'd love to hear from doctors and lawyers and engineers about how stressful and upsetting their workplaces are; I'd also love to feel less alone about the pain I feel from working blue-collar prole jobs on a contract basis. This week's episode was quite nice. I'd also love an Elder's Day - the abuse they must have suffered in the wanting times of the 1930s would be heartbreaking but revealing. We also tend to ignore the elderly and that really bothers me.

I can relate to these two posts that ask for more interviews with people in traditional jobs and lifestyles. I think the audience of listeners who could relate to them would be much larger. I do appreciate the past guests, no matter their background or profession, about how open they are with their very personal experiences. It takes a lot of strength to do what they have done, and I would like to say thank you to all of them who bared their souls for all our mutual benefit.

As for Paul selecting mostly comedians and other performers: for one, this is HIS podcast, and I think part of doing it is to help him work through his own challenges. Two, all these "stars" were "normal" people before they became "stars".

In the end, I'm sure Paul wants the podcast and the blog to be more successful, so I am sure he is thinking about how to do that a lot of the time. I have a suggestion for the blog, and it will be a bit blunt, but I will post it in that section. Paul, just know that my suggestion will be for the better of the Forum, and in NO WAY diminishes the gratitude I have that your podcast or website exists. I am truly grateful.

InMyMind