Mad Poetry: Mental Illness Reimagined
*Trigger warning: mental illness and suicide*
Welcome to Mad Poetry: Mental Illness Reimagined.
My name is Georgia Vrakas. I am a bipolar woman, a clinical psychologist, a university professor and I write poetry on my mental illness journey.
In this podcast, I will explore the ups and downs of mental illness. In each episode I will be sharing discussion points on mental illness as well one of my poems to encourage reflection on what it is to live with a mental illness.
Why poetry and mental illness? Poetry can offer us valuable perspectives and insights on living with a mental illness. It can also help us in our recovery process. Poetry has been a balm for me. It has grounded me and helped quiet my mind.
I hope this podcast offers you a soft place to land.
I would love to hear from you!
For questions and comments: themadpoetrypodcast@gmail.com
For updates on upcoming episodes check out my IG account @themadpoetrypodcast
Cover art by Jean-François Houle
Intro/outro music: Finding Hope (Emotional Cinematic Inspiring Piano, by Yudi Ashady (ASCAP) via Pond5
Suicide prevention ressources:
Please call 988 in Canada & US
Mental health resources:
For Canada: https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/mental-health-services/mental-health-get-help.html
World: https://www.iasp.info/suicidalthoughts/
Episodes
8 episodes
Bipolar Life
** Trigger Warning: Mental Illness **This episode is a short one and a personal one. It focuses on bipolarity. In it I also share with you my current experience with my bipolar disoder.Resources:If you or some...
Madness as a Space of Resistance
Welcome to Season 2 of Mad Poetry: Mental Illness Reimagined. In this season, I will be delving deeper into madness, how it is constructed by social and cultural norms, how mad people are being oppressed and marginalized by society. I ...
Why do I hurt so bad?
Today’s episode is a short one but tackles a big issue: the inextricable link between physical and mental health. The poem I read is “My knee was born crooked”, the knee pain a metaphor for psychological suffering.
Perimenopause and the Hysterical Woman
This episode is about perimenopause, an issue we do not talk about enough despite it being an important stage of life for women. We also delve into hysteria a long forgotten diagnosis. However, there persists an association between it and the p...
Suicide Prevention Through Hope and Connection
Trigger Warning: this episode will address suicide, suicidal ideation and behavior.If you are having suicidal thoughts please contact one of the resources below and your medical or mental health professional....
Breaking the Stigma
Trigger Warning: Mental IllnessThis episode explores how stigma shapes the lives of those of us living with a mental illness, personally, professionally, and socially. The dominant stories society tells about us cast us at best ...