De-Stress Yourself Podcast

Hello, you! Another week, another episode and this time we're talking all about "the most wonderful time of the year." Christmas!You'll hear Lucy talking to two brilliant experts: Writer Alice Spencer from 'Inside Out Wellbeing', an online platform and event giving you creative ideas on how to look after your mental health, and Dr Jaya Gowrisunkur giving us some expert knowledge around anxiety and stress.We hope this episode gives you a lil shoulder to lean on right now.

Ok, let's face it... We all suffer with the dreaded Imposter Syndrome from time to time in the workplace, but there are always tips and tricks you can use to get through that feeling. In this week's episode, Lucy's joined by business and mindset coach, Alannis Barnes, for a chat about how we can build the career of our dreams!Whether you're really wanting to just live a happy, calm life or you're wanting to pour your energy into something you're passionate about - you'll definitely take a piece of advice away from this conversation that might help you figure things out. It's hard to know what we want to do with our life, especially when there are now SO many different options - but, remember, you don't necessarily have to stick to just the one avenue. We hope you enjoy this episode - as always, please rate and review on Apple Podcasts

Hello! This week has marked International Men's Day (19th Nov) - the perfect excuse to talk about men and their mental wellbeing. In this episode, we've had a dig into the podcast's archives to find some of the best chats that Lucy has had with some great men, talking about their mental health experiences. For more information on mental health & men: https://bit.ly/3oJV4RfIf you enjoy this episode, as always - (pretty please) rate and review!

Bonjourno! In this episode, Lucy's going to be talking to you about her latest trip to Italy - a last minute booking whilst on annual leave - and how it worked absolute wonders for getting some head space.She'll also talk you through some of her recommended must-have possessions to take away with you (especially helpful if you're somebody who suffers with general anxiety or anxiety around travelling) and how she coped with the *slight few* un-ideal scenarios that occurred during the trip. If you've ever watched a Bob Ross painting video before bed, you'll know exactly how therapeutic and calming looking at mountains can be. Pair it with the ambient sounds of water streams, crunchy footsteps against autumn leaves and coffee cups being placed on a ceramic table outside a local cafe next to the lake, you've arrived in heaven. During the next twenty-so minutes, Lucy talks you through the day she visited Lake Como and why you should *definitely* add it to your bucket list.Hope you enjoy this episode - if you do, please rate and review and help get the podcast heard by more!

Hello! In this episode, Lucy's joined by solution focused psychotherapist and host of Stress Bucket Solutions podcast, Gin Lalli. Gin explains what a 'stress bucket' is and how you can stop it from getting too full - such as allowing yourself to have more down-time, trying new hobbies to put yourself out there and practising having more self-love in your everyday life - especially when it feels like you're drowning in the not-so-great side effects of a 2021 life.To hear more from Gin, head to Stress Bucket Solutions on Apple, Spotify (or wherever you get your podcasts).  If you enjoyed this episode - why not give it a little rating and review on Apple Podcasts! 

At some point in our lives, most of us will have to deal with a toxic person. Whether that's a new work colleague or boss, a teacher, a friend, a sibling or even a parent. For some people, it means being romantically involved with an abusive narcissist. So, what exactly is a narcissist? It's a word we see being thrown around a lot nowadays, especially in pretty coloured Instagram carousels with 'wishy washy' advice. In this episode, Lucy speaks with therapist Victoria, who specialises in recovery after trauma and dealing with Narcissistic Personality Disorder. She explains to us, in a nutshell, which signs to lookout for if you think you may be in an abusive relationship, along with how to manage these relationships - or escape them safely. For more information and help with this, you can find Victoria here: https://www.victoriacumberlege.comIf you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review as it helps us get heard by more! 

Hello! In this episode, Lucy's joined by grief and trauma therapist, Joanna Harris. Joanna talks through the various and unique forms of grief we will all experience at some point in life, along with some very useful coping tips for when this happens and is causing you much distress.Grief isn't just in the one form - being a loss of a loved one - but can actually come in lots of different ways. Maybe you've just broken up with your partner and you're grieving the wider friendship group you've now lost, or you're experiencing a career failure and you're grieving the life you once thought you'd be living. Grief can hit you at unexpected times and can be so challenging to get through.The highlights to take away from this chat: Lean into your grief, accept and feel the sadness, allow yourself to cry on the couch and then take the small steps towards picking yourself back up and giving yourself some much-needed love and TLC.You can find more from Joanna Harris and her brilliant services here: https://www.healingafterloss.co.uk/If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review to help get the podcast heard by more! 

Today is Suicide Prevention day, which means raising awareness for the people who have lost their lives, families affected by this and people who are struggling right now. In this special episode, Lucy talks through her own experiences with depression and feeling low, along with what helped her to get through to the other side. If you're affected by the things mentioned in this episode, please remember there is help out there and there is light at the end of the tunnel - even if you can't quite see it yet. For more info and help, visit any of the below links:https://mentalhealth-uk.org/https://www.samaritans.org/support-us/campaign/world-suicide-prevention-day/https://www.rethink.org/get-involved/awareness-days-and-events/world-suicide-prevention-day/If you could rate and review the podcast, it will help the episode get heard by more people. ❤️

'Stress isn't always bad, sometimes we just need a bit of help to see it differently." Nicky Lloyd Greame set up 'The Stress Specialist' after experiencing chronic stress at work. Now, she helps workplaces and individuals to re-calibrate, re-energise and re-focus their mindset to transform their lives. If you feel like you are underperforming, experiencing 'creative block', dealing with difficult people in work or your job stress is spilling over into your personal life - this episode is for you. There are so many ways we can help with feeling stressed, anxious or depressed at work, simply by implementing small 'good habits' into our days and shifting our mindsets ever-so-slightly. If you've enjoyed this episode, why not go and leave the pod a shiny review on Apple Podcasts - as this helps us get heard by more people

"Sweat, stretch and strengthen" - The three simple ways of looking after your hormones. This week, Lucy talks with nutritionist and hormone expert Nicki Williams about the connection between hormones and mental health. Nicki tells us how linked stress can be to issues such as a 'hormonal imbalance; and gives us some simple tips and advice for looking after our bodies and regulating our hormones. If you like this episode, head to Apple Podcasts to rate and subscribe!Find Nicki on social media: @happyhormonesforlife

Back with a series three and back with a boom! This episode is all about being true to yourself and going for whatever the hell you want to do in life - even if it means disappointing others. Lucy's joined by upcoming rapper Aadarsh Gautam, otherwise known as 'Hyphen', who left a career in finance to make (brilliant) music. In his lyrics, Hyphen gives a real insight into his life, with honest and raw stories about his experiences with depression. Since leaving his job and releasing these songs, he's now also gained a bigger social following, especially on Tik Tok!Find him on Instagram: @thisishyphenIf you like this episode, why not head over to Apple Podcasts and leave a sparkling review! 

Whether you've always dreamt of hearing your music played on a national radio station or you'd love to be the one behind the mic pressing play, getting your foot in the door can be incredibly stressful.In this week's episode, I'm joined by the host of BBC introducing in Cambridgeshire, Ellen Ellard. We talk about everything from her unique career journey into presenting to ways that she manages the stress in her life. As a music expert, Ellen also shares some of her best tips for upcoming artists who want to get their music out there and heard. I really hope you enjoy this episode! As always, please rate and review - much love. 

Right now, more than ever, it's important that we keep talking about body confidence and being kind to ourselves. If you've been eating more comfort food than usual at the minute and you're struggling to button up your favourite pair of jeans - Lucy is right there with you!Zoe Louise (@ZoeLouiseLondon) is all about practising self love, self acceptance, embracing what makes you unique and doing all the little things that make you feel great about yourself.  She joins Lucy for a chat about fashion, self-love, dressing up for yourself, the importance of listening to uplifting music and knowing when it's time for a self-care pamper sesh.

This week, Lucy wanted to share with you her full experience of having CBT sessions for stress and anxiety. In this episode, she breaks down the type of things we discussed in the therapy sessions, what she's taken away from it and what tools she now uses every day to help shush the 'inner troll'! As mentioned in the episode, going to therapy is very personal to each individual. Remember, if you do choose to do this, nobody at all has to know about it but you. If you're not sure therapy is for you but you do find it interesting and would like to maybe read more about it at home, then there are so many books - including my favourite: 'Change Your Thinking With CBT' by Dr Sarah Edelman.

If you're feeling high levels of stress, panic, anxiety or anger - then this episode is for you.As an experienced panic-attack'er, Lucy's had plenty of chances to learn how to calm herself down - especially in the most stressful of environments. Her finest memory to this date being a panic attack in the middle of a busy Notting Hill Carnival - whilst wearing hot pants.  How fabulous!In this episode, Lucy will purely focus on calming you down and helping you release some tension. If you feel you need it, just take a couple of minutes with this episode in your headphones and focus on your breathing. Remember - as always - you're not alone with this.Please come back to this episode, whenever you need it.

Do you ever feel ugly, talk yourself out of something or convince yourself that you're not good enough for the simplest of tasks? That's your inner bully trying to shatter your confidence!In this episode Lucy is joined by the brilliant mindset coach, Dave Cottrell, who breaks down these toxic thoughts and explains exactly how you can stop them from holding you back in life.Along with opening up about his own mental health battles, Dave runs through the first steps that everybody can all try for working towards better self-esteem. It's amazing how adjusting the phrases you tell yourself by just one word can actually make a huge difference!For more mental health and confidence tips, find Dave on Instagram: @MindsetbyDave

This episode is a really special one. Recently, Kairo Francois-Esprit lost his 21-year-old brother, Jaden, to suicide.You'll hear Lucy chat to Kairo about what emotions he's feeling right now, how he's grieving and what advice he would give to somebody who feels like they're in a strange place. Suicide is an uncomfortable topic to talk or hear about but it's perhaps never been more present. Let this podcast episode lead to more open conversations between you and your friends - don't bottle up your feelings, talk them through. The chances are, you're not on your own with this.Visit @TheJadenProject on Instagram or https://www.gofundme.com/f/thejadenproject/Here are some tools and pages that may help you through a difficult time: https://www.instagram.com/calm/ https://www.calm.com/https://www.mind.org.uk/https://www.youtube.com/user/DrJulieSmithhttps://www.samaritans.org/how-we-can-help/contact-samaritan/talk-us-phone

Ok, so Lucy is SO excited to be returning with a second series of the podcast after a lovely break of binge-watching The Fall on Netflix... Especially due to the world's crazy condition right now, it feels like the best time to provide you with some mental well-being tools and books to help you feel calmer. In this first episode of the second series, Lucy be reading you some stand-out quotes and topics covered in some of the amazing books she's got through in the past few months. Here are all the full titles and authors for the books mentioned in the episode: - Women Don't Owe You Pretty, Florence Given- Eff This Meditiation, Liza Kindred - Queenie, Candice Carty-Williams - You Do You, Sarah Knight (author of 'The Life-Changing Magic Of Not Giving A F*ck')All of these books can be found on amazon or in the likes of Waterstones, Amazon and other book stores.

Let's talk Love Island! (And other stuff....)This week, Lucy's joined by the incredible podcaster, producer, social media guru and reality TV obsessed Raj Pander. Along with being a little star-struck from being Radio 1's Reality TV podcast BIGGEST fan, Lucy asks Raj about her career journey including both the ups and the downs. Raj talks us through her experiences working in the media industry - including her roles as an entertainment reporter for BBC Asian Network, social media for ITV and plenty more. Raj also gives some great tips for anyone starting their career, along with how she keeps herself a little less stressed!

Hello you! In this week's episode, Lucy's having a chat with 22-year-old environment & development student, Nicole. Lucy asks her to break down some simple step-by-step advice for how to live more sustainably along with if and why this improves your overall mental health.Find Nicole on Instagram: @EcoWithNicoPlant a tree by visiting: TheTreeApp.org 

The amazing girls from Black Gals Livin' podcast join Lucy to talk about how the events that happened to spark the Black Lives Matter movement has affected their mental wellbeing. In this episode, the gorgeous (inside and out) Vic and Jas tell us how they look after themselves and practise self-care, especially during an overwhelming time.Find them on Instagram (and give their podcast a listen!): @BlackGalsLivin

This week, Lucy chats with two amazing Psychotherapists, Jacqueline Miller and Karen Hartley, to get some professional tips and advice with how to look after your mental well-being during the on-going Black Lives Matter movement and what you can do to help others.Black Lives Matter: https://blacklivesmatter.com/

Ever feel guilty when you're not being 'productive' enough? In this episode, Lucy's invited her boyfriend Ben to talk about 'toxic productivity' and how to recognise and beat those unhealthy habits within your workload, endless hobbies or self-esteem.Reminder: If during lockdown you haven't started writing that novel, ran a 12k, become a chef, learnt a new language and started your own YouTube channel - THAT'S OKAY!If you have and it makes you happy, then that's brilliant! But if not, don't be too harsh on yourself, right now just surviving and getting through each day is enough.

In this episode, Lucy's ready to delve into her panicky past and share the nitty gritty details with you all... Whether you're completely new to the feelings of panic attacks, negative thinking or stress-overload from a life event, or you came out the womb nervous, then this will hopefully give you a friendly reminder that you're certainly not alone with these feelings!Enjoy and find more information on anxiety and depression here: https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/your-stories/how-i-m-managing-my-anxiety-and-depression-during-lockdown/

If you suffer with self-doubt and accepting the skin you're in, or you just love hearing stories from totally different perspectives, then this episode is for you!Influencer Joanna Kenny is known for pushing the boundaries with self-acceptance and has recently featured in a range of magazines and online brands such as 'Glamour' for posting pictures showing her natural lip hair, enhanced with mascara. On her social media, Joanna posts regular pictures of 'Instagram vs Reality' to remind everyone that what we see online isn't always the real story. In this episode, she talks about her experience with acne and what she's doing to raise awareness and help people across the world. Follow Joanna on Instagram: @joannajkenny

Insomnia is just the WORST, right? If you're prone to feeling higher levels of anxiety and stress, then you'll probably know the feeling of those dreaded sleepless nights quite well. This episode is all about being kinder to yourself when you end up in those late night situations, along with some tips and tricks you can try to do for a better night's sleep.A great book you can try if you're struggling to sleep: Fearne Cotton's Quiet 'Silencing the brain chatter and believing that you're good enough' - you can find it on Amazon.

That phrase we now here everywhere... 'Self love'. But what does self-love actually look like?In this episode, Lucy talks through her journey to self-acceptance and what it actually means to fully accept your flaws. She's also joined by @beth_without_a_bowel who gives us a real, raw insight into life with Crohn's disease.

Today's episode is all about living with an invisible, chronic illness. Lucy talks about her experience with juggling a life and career in the media industry whilst battling with a chronic stomach condition. You'll also be hearing from the amazing Jameisha Prescod - sharing her own journey of living with an invisible illness and her mission to normalise people being open about living with conditions like Lupus and IBS.For more information and help, head here: https://bit.ly/37Gdf2d

Have you ever tried painting when you're feeling stressed out...?It's been proven that getting the paintbrushes and paper out and pouring your feelings into watercolours can actually really help you to completely relax, unwind and take your mind away from the ever-growing to-do lists. This week, Lucy's cousin, Lauren Ashley Art, joins the podcast to talk about her journey with 'paint therapy' and how she copes with her mental health through her art. Follow Lauren on Instagram: @_laurendesigns_Find more info on 'art for mental health': https://bit.ly/3yNZtXm

Ever feel completely overwhelmed by stress? Same. This podcast is a safe space for you to come for reassurance that you're not alone - no matter what you're going through. Host Lucy be sharing her own experiences with some raw and honest personal stories, learning new ways of looking after our mental wellbeing and chatting to some SUPER wonderful people.Let's beat those overflowing stress buckets - welcome to the De-Stress Yourself Podcast!

Hello! Welcome to the De-stress Yourself Podcast. In this first episode, Lucy talks about her background with suffering from anxiety, starting therapy and how she's learning to beat those nasty thoughts that pop up every now and again. (EVERY BLOODY DAY, MORE LIKE..)Enjoy and feel free to let us know your thoughts on Twitter - @LucyAnnKirwen or on Apple Reviews.