Jasper spent years throwing punches in the cage, but his toughest fight has always been against himself.

Through a childhood marked by instability. Jasper was constantly moving and having to start over, causing frustration and anger that had nowhere to go until he found martial arts.

MMA gave him identity and purpose, so much so that he's struggled to define himself as more than a fighter.

Now, he’s building a life around his personal training business, teaching others how to defend themselves and showing that there's more to being a man than winning.

This is Jasper Buck...

The suicide rate for people living with bipolar is between 10 and 30 times higher than the general population, accounting for up to a quarter of all suicides in Australia.

Research shows up to 60% of those with the condition will make at least one attempt on their life. Father of three, Chris Fraser is one of them.

He experienced multiple extended bi-polar episodes in his early and mid-thirties, when months of mania were followed by even longer periods of severe depression – throwing his life into chaos.

With therapy, the right mix of medication and the support of his family, Chris has clawed his way out of a seemingly bottomless abyss; emerging with his own blueprint of how to manage bi-polar and make life worth living.

This is Chris Fraser…

Mark suspected he was gay from the time he was a young boy and had it confirmed by the time he made it to high school.

Raised in a conservative, religious household, he was conditioned to believe that being gay was wrong and that belief, coupled with fear of his parents’ reaction kept him in the closet till he was 28.

When he did come out, those fears were realised. His parents weren’t supportive and the most difficult time in his life followed; but he was finally free to be himself.

A successful entrepreneur, business owner and car enthusiast, Mark’s proudly not defined by his sexuality, which he says is just part of who he is, not his whole world.

He’s got what some may say are controversial opinions about being part of the LGBTQIA+ community and he’s not afraid to call it how he sees it.

This is Mark Cawdron-White...

Imagine if your psychologist was that rough looking bloke you met down the pub who gave surprisingly solid advice - that's the kind of vibe you get from Simon Tyler.

Simo's a clinical psych and a mentally healthy workplace consultant, he also cuts his own hair and does an awful job of it...

His therapy style's shaped by his early career in construction and a lifetime of his own mental health struggles.

He's straight up, pragmatic and stands right alongside his clients as someone who's been there and sometimes still is.

We talk about how to reframe your thinking and celebrate the little wins in life amongst all the financial pressure and global instability, to avoid hopelessness.

We also get into how he's making therapy work for men, mental health culture in the workplace, and where we need to go from here as a society to really see some progress.

This is Dr Simon Tyler...

When we think of a typical drug addict, we think of someone who turned to drugs in an attempt to cope with trauma and often childhood abuse. That wasn't the case for Culley.

He describes having the perfect childhood, growing up with great parents who gave him all the love he could've asked for; but that didn't stop him getting on the ice and every other drug you can think of - choosing a life of chaos.

Dealing to feed his addiction and his ego, believing himself untouchable, Culley lived that life for a decade, before it all caught up with him.

Jail was the wakeup call that finally snapped him out of his toxic mindset, starting the long overdue process of self-discovery with a sober mind.

Now 8 years clean, Culley's living an honest life as his authentic self, working for everything he has in a real job, building himself up and doing his best to stay on top of his mental health with the help of therapy and tools gained from the hard lessons he's learned.

This is James Culley...

Over the Christmas holiday period we're taking you back to some of our most memorable moments from our most popular episodes.

Kian Rafie is a junior lawyer who got what he thought was the dream start to the career he'd always wanted, when a mental health crisis threatened to derail it.

Scroll back in our podcast library for the full episode:

Legal Battle: A Junior Lawyer's Mental Health Recovery | Kian Rafie

___

We’re grateful to be producing our latest series in partnership with Credit Union SA – a proudly local team who love supporting the community and helping South Australians thrive through banking. Their support is critical in helping us shed light on men’s mental health.

Over the Christmas holiday period we're taking you back to some of our most memorable moments from our most popular episodes. For many years, Nathan hated the man staring back at him in the mirror. Deeply sad and angry, with no clue what was at the core of his distress, it took doing the hardest thing he'd ever done to start making progress - asking for help.

Scroll back in our podcast library for the full episode: The Tornado Within | Nathan Schulz

___

We’re grateful to be producing our latest series in partnership with Credit Union SA – a proudly local team who love supporting the community and helping South Australians thrive through banking. Their support is critical in helping us shed light on men’s mental health.

Over the Christmas holiday period we're taking you back to some of our most memorable moments from our most popular episodes. Addicted to drugs and gambling in his late teens and early twenties, Angus eventually came to a fork in the road that was life or death...

Scroll back in our podcast library for the full episode: The Trifecta: Quitting Drinking, Cocaine & the Punt | Angus Wood

___

We’re grateful to be producing our latest series in partnership with Credit Union SA – a proudly local team who love supporting the community and helping South Australians thrive through banking. Their support is critical in helping us shed light on men’s mental health.