Dysfunctional

What if those moments where you’re convinced you’re a horrible person who “shouldn’t even be here” aren’t proof that you’re broken… but that you’re in what my guest calls a shame storm?In this episode I’m joined by Melinda Delisle, MS LCCE – clinical nutritionist, former childbirth educator, and someone who has spent years navigating intense emotional dysregulation herself. We talk honestly about what it actually feels like inside a shame storm, why some of the most popular “healing tools” can make it worse, and how food, supplements and nervous system health quietly drive so much of our emotional world.We get into:- The difference between a shame swamp, a shame spiral and a full-blown shame storm- Why gratitude lists, mindfulness and “just be present” advice can feel like gaslighting when you’re in survival mode- How trauma, high sensitivity and people-pleasing set us up for chronic hypervigilance - The link between nutrition, B vitamins, SSRIs and emotional dysregulation-- Mistaking familiarity for safety – and why so many of us feel unsafe even with “nice” people- Self-parenting, accountability and facing the ways our own dysregulation can make us the “toxic” one at homeMelinda also shares a free upcoming 4-week program she’s creating to help people build awareness, have better conversations around triggers and start finding their way out of constant dysregulation.Substack: https://melindadelisle.substack.com/Free 4-week program: https://melindadelisle.com/foundation/ Instagram: @melindadelisleLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melinda-delisle/

Children with a parent in prison are some of the most invisible kids in the country. In this episode, I sit down with Sarah (founder of charity Children Heard and Seen) and Felix (communications officer) to talk about what really happens to those children when a parent goes to prison, and why nobody is officially keeping track of them.We talk about:How Children Heard and Seen supports kids in the community with mentoring, groups and one to one supportThe shocking reality of children left completely alone at home when a parent is sent to prisonWhy there is no national data on which children have a parent in prisonThe role of media, stigma and vigilante attacks on already vulnerable familiesWhy support must be child led, not focused on “fixing” the parent or forcing contactThe first ever Children with a Parent in Prison Day (25th November) and the national conferenceIf this episode moved you, please share it, talk about it with someone, and check out Children Heard and Seen to see how you can support or spread the word.Link to the conference:https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/hear-me-see-me-parental-imprisonment-lived-experience-conference-tickets-1700692921309?aff=oddtdtcreatorLink to our website: https://childrenheardandseen.co.uk/Lived Experience Blogs written by adults who had a parent in prison as a child:https://childrenheardandseen.co.uk/hidden-voices/#parentalimprisonment

Unbelievably, it has been 1 year since Dysfunctional began so I take a look back over the highs and lows

In this episode Josh talks about:Why the phrase “toxic person” makes some people more uncomfortable than abuse itselfThe difference between “people doing toxic things” and people who are mostly harmfulHow spiritual bypassing and “it’s all trauma” language can erase accountabilityWhy victims get to choose the language for what happened to themEmpathy with no boundaries and why it’s self-destructiveHealthy shame vs toxic shameWhy it’s okay to walk away and even hate someone who hurt you#toxicpeople

Maike is the author of The Confession: A Journey to Acceptance, her memoir of growing up with a father with undiagnosed mental health issues who went on to take his own life. She is a lived experience speaker and volunteer for Survivors of Bereavement by suicide When Maike Mullenders was eleven years old, her dad sat her down and told her he was going to end his life — and made her say goodbye.He survived that night. But ten years later, he died by suicide and left behind a confession to the police saying he’d “been inappropriate” with her — something Maike had no memory of.In this conversation, we talk about what happens when your childhood forces you into the role of caretaker, and how that shapes everything that follows. We explore dissociation, survival, and what it means to grow up reading every tone of voice in a room just to stay safe.Maike shares how decades of therapy, yoga, and community work helped her reclaim her body, her boundaries, and her right to take up space — even without ever knowing the full truth about her past.We talk about:Surviving a parent’s suicide attempts and living with the aftermathThe lifelong impact of emotional enmeshment and hypervigilanceParenting after trauma and breaking generational patternsAcceptance versus forgiveness — and why you don’t need bothLearning to feel safe in your body through movement and presenceThe healing power of community and self-compassionThis episode is about what real healing looks like — messy, nuanced, and deeply human.It’s about learning to live with not knowing, and finding peace anyway.Please take care of yourself while listening.Find Maike here - https://www.linkedin.com/in/maike-mullenders-3021232b7/ https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100091853840552#suicideawareness #mentalhealth

We call it “mental health,” but what if the real diagnosis is a sick system? Wellness anthropologist Aurora Leigh joins Josh to argue that disconnection — not individual defect — sits under our crises of addiction, anxiety, and depression. We dig into stoicism as emotional shutdown, the trap of pathologizing pain, and how somatic, community-based healing outperforms label-and-medicate approaches.Expect Rat Park, the Roseto effect, sexual trauma as an ignored root cause, and Aurora’s “Somatic Regeneration” blueprint for moving the nervous system from survival to open, curious, connected. We finish with practical tools listeners can use today — and a challenge to rebuild policy, schools, and healthcare around safety, love, and belonging.Find out more about Auroara here - https://www.skool.com/simply-sacred-wauroara-leigh-2570/about?ref=9e5561a6facc4f2586229fc89b4fbee6www.simplysacred.ca https://youtube.com/@auroaraleigh?si=Xl7bT3OHHHEyy3s-#mentalhealth

This episode includes candid references to suicide, depression and self-harm.It’s just been World Mental Health Day. I’m asking a hard question with no easy answers. Is the mental health conversation helping… or are there places it’s making us worse?I talk about the tension between compassion and consequence. The risk of romanticising suffering when public figures die. How awareness can accidentally normalise behaviours. Princess Diana speaking about bulimia and what followed. The pathologisation of being human. My own swings, labels I once clung to, and what it takes to pull myself out of a spiral without shaming the struggle.This isn’t anti-awareness. It’s a call to evolve it. Less performance. More truth. Fewer labels as identity. More community and responsibility. Let’s bring the pendulum back to the middle.In this episodeThe double-edged sword of public compassion after tragedyWhen “normalising” crosses into normalising the thing itselfLabels, identity loops and the algorithm effectAppropriate pain vs “mental health” languageFinding the line between care and a loving push to moveIf you’re strugglingPlease reach out to someone you trust. You can also contact crisis support in your country (e.g. Samaritans in the UK, CALM, or your local emergency services). You don’t have to carry it alone.

In this solo episode of Dysfunctional, Josh asks a raw question:Is the world actually worse, or are we just being fed constant content that keeps us triggered?As a highly sensitive person, Josh reflects on how algorithms exploit empathy, why stress has become a hidden addiction, and how our compassion is being stretched to breaking point. He dives into the danger of compassion fatigue, the blurred line between activism and doomscrolling, and why protecting your nervous system matters more than ever.This is a conversation for anyone who feels overwhelmed by the state of the world — and who needs reminding that caring doesn’t mean carrying everything.#highlysensitiveperson