Mental Health

Dr Stephen Bright is a clinically trained psychologist and senior lecturer on addiction at Edith Cowan University. Dr. Bright is the director of PRISM, the Psychedelic Research in Science and Medicine organisation which is a not for profit, independent research charity developing medical and legal processes for the application of psychedelic medicines for improved well being in Australia.

In this conversation Dr. Stephen shares a...

Today we’re speaking with Dr. Tracey Sletten, a senior research fellow from the Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health at Monash University.

Dr. Sletten is an expert on sleep and in our conversation we do a deep dive into how shift work affects sleep and how to improve sleep as much as possible while still working as a shift worker.

If you’d like to connect with Dr. Tracey or her team you can do so via tracey.sletten@mona...

At 16 Emma attempted suicide and was left paralyzed. Now, at 21, Emma is a passionate mental health advocate. She take us on a journey of what led up to her attempt and her thought processes immediately before, during and after and ultimately her recovery. Emma reflects on meaningful ways in which to reach out and support someone that may be at risk. She now uses her story as a powerful instrument to support others.

Emma’s story ...

Today we continue speaking with Professor Sean Drummond, a Cognitive Neuroscientist and Clinical Psychologist at the Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health at Monash University.

In part 2 of our conversation, we explore the relationship between poor sleep and mental illnesses - how one can be caused by the other. We talk about cognitive based therapy for insomnia (CBTI), the current gold standard for the treatment of poor sle...

Today we’re speaking with Professor Sean Drummond, a sleep expert, Cognitive Neuroscientist and Clinical Psychologist at the Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health at Monash University.

We have split this conversation into 2 parts, in this, part 1 we cover the mechanics of sleep, how much sleep do we need, how much we actually get, the price for insufficient sleep, Sleep patterns, Caffeine and alcohol and how they impact slee...

Today we’re speaking with Dr. Jarrod White, a Clinical Psychologist working in private practice at The Viewpoint clinic in Caulfield Melbourne. During Dr. White's research he had the opportunity to conduct face to face interviews with holocaust survivors and Sudanese genocide survivors. During our conversation, Dr. White shares some of his research and the key themes of how trauma is processed and expressed differently within diffe...

Today we speak with Professor Paul Fitzgerald who has been involved in the development, evaluation and clinical implementation of new treatments for mental health disorders for 2 decades. He pioneered the use of TMS in Australia and is internationally renowned as a leader in the field of brain stimulation and device based treatments in psychiatry.

In our conversation we discuss what TMS is, the mechanisms of how we believe it work...

Today we talk to Phil Armstrong, CEO of the Australian Counselling Association (ACA), about the ethics of client patient dynamics and what happens when a clinician develops romantic feelings towards their client or visa versa. Phil, as the head of the ACA, is in the perfect position to provide some guidance and boundaries on these sorts of ethical questions. As you’ll hear from our conversation, Phil draws on his own clinical exper...

What is the difference between a counsellor and a psychotherapist? Today we’re speaking with Dr. Di Stow, the President of the Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia (PACFA) who will explain this in detail. PACFA is a leading national peak body and professional association for counsellors and psychotherapists in Australia with over 4500 members nationwide and as one of the leaders of this organisation, Dr. Stow is we...

Today we speak with Dr Zac Seidler who is a clinical psychologist, researcher and leading men’s mental health expert. Zac currently holds dual roles as Director of Mental Health Training at Movember and Research Fellow with Orygen at the University of Melbourne.

We speak about men’s mental health, masculinity, the idea of toxic masculinity, how men relate to seeking support and help, the role of men in relationships and society, co...

Dr. Gery Karantzas, is an Associate Professor and Director of the Science of Adult Relationships (SoAR) Laboratory at Deakin University and is one of Australia’s leading relationships experts. Prof Gery has edited and authored over 100 publications including a handbook and co-authored text on relationships. Gery writes for the Conversation and Psychology Today, and is regularly contacted by the media to discuss all matters on relat...

Today we speak with Dr. Ranjani Utpala, the Clinical Director of The Butterfly Foundation. Dr. Ranjani Utpala a clinical psychologist specialised in working with eating disorders over the course of her career in the public and private sectors.

The Butterfly Foundation is the national charity for all Australians impacted by eating disorders and body image issues, and for the families, friends and communities who support them. Butter...

We take a deep dive in Personality Disorder, specifically looking at Borderline Personality Disorder. We speak with Prof. Andrew Chanen, a psychiatrist, head of Personality Disorder Research and Director of Clinical Programs and Services at Orygen and a Professorial Fellow at the Centre for Youth Mental Health, The University of Melbourne. He is a Board Director of NEABPD Australia and a past President of ISSPD (International Socie...

Today we speak with 'Lucy' (not her real name) about her journey of living with, and managing, a mother with borderline and bipolar. We look at the impact a serious mental illness can have on family members. It’s a raw, real and honest chat.

For emergency support contact:

000 for police, ambulance or fire services 

13 11 14 for Lifeline, a crisis support and suicide prevention service for all Australians

1300 726 306 Perinatal An...

Prof James Ogloff is a University Distinguished Professor of Forensic Behavioural Science and Director at the Centre for Forensic Behavioural Science at Swinburne University of Technology. In this chat we deep dive into the dark and complex world of psychopaths. We look at what a psychopath is, how they are made, how the tests for psychopathy work and psychopathy in criminal contexts. Prof. Ogloff reflects on some of his clinical a...

Amber Rules is the co-founder and director at Rough Patch - one of the few brick and mortar mental health social enterprises in Australia. Amber is a psychotherapist and a supervisor for other clinicians. She is a passionate about subsidising the cost of mental health for those that need it most.

You can find Amber here:

https://talklink.com.au/psychotherapist/amber-rules

Rough Patch’s socials are @roughpatchcounselling

https://w...

Prof David Coghill is a child and adolescent psychiatrist who holds the Chair of Developmental Mental Health at the University of Melbourne. Professor Coghill has a particular interest in ADHD, disruptive behaviours and psychopharmacology (the study of the use of medications in treating mental disorders). In this conversation we cover what ADHD / ADD is, how it's diagnosed, the difference between child and adult cases and the diffe...

Emma Cholakians is a psychologist and director of a private practice in Melbourne, Australia (Couples Therapy) that specialises in relationship counselling and therapy. We discuss couples therapy as a specific treatment type, what is involved, the costs and level of buy-in required from each person. We also do a deep dive into cheating and what some of the themes are that Emma has observed in her clinical practice.

You can find E...