Welcome to the Dread Project

Welcome to season two of More Than A Feeling! Inspired by an email from a curious listener who’s been struggling with feelings of dread, Saleem begins investigating. After a call-out to listeners it becomes clear: we’re in a dread-pocalypse right now, and many of us are trying to muscle through it alone. It turns out, though, that there’s a surprising amount of joy and humor in just starting an open conversation about the things we dread, whether it’s the mundane stuff like “Sunday scaries” or our deepest dreads, like losing a loved one, political polarization or fears around the climate crisis. Clinical Psychologists Dr. Ali Mattu and Dr. Rachel Menzies join the show to explain why we have this scary feeling in the first place, and how we can start coping better. 

This “dreadisode” is just the beginning of The Dread Project: a miniseries and interactive listener challenge. Starting Monday, November 14, we’ll publish five days of short episodes about the different things listeners are dreading. Each one tackles dread in a different way, and offers fun, quick, mindful exercises listeners can try – along with Saleem and thousands of others. The goal is to see if we can all feel a little better, even when we’re anticipating the worst. 

Sign up for The Dread Project Challenge at dreadproject.com and you’ll get five days of emails with insights from each day’s episode and the exercise that goes with it. You’ll also find instructions in our FAQ for how to send us a voice memo, telling us what you think of the project. If you send one in, don’t forget to include your name and where you’re from. You might hear yourself on an upcoming episode! You can also follow More Than A Feeling on Twitter at podfeelings. 

Sign up for the Dread Project Listener Challenge here: dreadproject.com. If you’re seeing this after the challenge has begun, don’t worry! You can sign up and participate anytime.

For more information about More Than A Feeling, The Dread Project, and today’s guests, check out our show notes at:

https://www.tenpercent.com/mtaf-podcast-episodes/welcome-to-dread-project

And if digging into dread is very difficult or intense for you, some additional resources that could help are listed below.

Search for a therapist: 

• Alma 
• Zencare
• APA Psychologist Locator 

Mental Health Resources:

• How Right Now | Finding What Helps 
• Adult Mental Health Resources from the CDC
• Mental Health America 

Apps:

• Try the Ten Percent Happier app for free for thirty days by visiting tenpercent.com/more and check out the meditation pack made especially for working with dread