Lively Minds, the UK Mental Health Podcast
Episodes
S3E18 - Random Acts of Crochet Kindness, with Olivia Dieterich
03 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Hosts Will and Ellie interview therapist and crocheter Olivia Dieterich about her book Random Acts of Crochet Kindness and the global movement she fou...
S3E18 - Update + Illustrating Bipolar, with Matt Ottley (Re-Run)
11 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Hello everyone, it’s Will here.As you know, Ellie and I have had to take a break from the podcast due to some ongoing health issues. We are still ho...
See you in 2026!
14 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Hello everyone, it’s Ellie here.Thank you so much to all of you for following our podcast over the last few years. It has meant the world to us, and...
S3E17 - Putting a patient-centred approach into practice, with Dr Alex Curmi
07 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What is a 'patient-centred approach'? What systemic challenges get in the way of making it a reality?What does the biopsychosocial model tell us about...
S3E16 - How do we avoid overdiagnosis whilst respecting people’s experiences? With Dr Elspeth Davies and Dr Helen Salisbury
03 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we are joined by Dr. Elspeth Davies, a medical anthropologist from the University of Oxford, and Dr. Helen Salisbury, a GP and BMJ col...
S3E15 - School and Mental Health, with Caro Giles
05 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we are joined by author: Caro Giles to talk about school and mental health.Caro has worked as a teacher across the education sector. S...
S3E14 - High Functioning Depression, with Dr Judith Joseph
01 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Depression isn’t just about a presence of sadness, it’s also about an absence of happiness. And whilst ceasing to function is a long-understood sy...
S3E13 - The evolutionary basis for anxiety, with Professor Melissa Bateson
04 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Professor Melissa Bateson, an expert in ethology, explains the biological functions of anxiety, its evolutionary importance, and how it prepares human...
S3E12 - Antidepressants, with Dr Alex Curmi
13 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We take a deep dive into SSRIs (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors), which is the most commonly prescribed form of antidepressant in the UK. We d...
Sorry for the delay
06 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Sorry for the delay
S3E11 - Rethinking Happiness Part 2, with Professor Mark Fabian
02 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What does it mean to live a happy life? Can happiness be more than just feeling good? And how might ideas like meaning, community, and values help us ...
S3E10 - Rethinking Happiness, Part 1 - with Professor William Tov
04 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What is happiness? How does it change across cultures? How might notions of happiness change for people with mental health challenges? What does it me...
S3E9 - Collective Care, with Charlie Fitz and Miss Jacqui
07 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of 'Lively Minds,' Ellie discusses the importance of collective care and mental health through a conversation with artists: Charlie Fi...
S3E8 - Understanding self-harm, with Naomi Salisbury
07 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What is self-harm? Why can it be so uncomfortable to talk about? How do we best support those who self-harm?In this episode of Lively Minds, hosts Ell...
S3E7 - The shift to online peer support, with Ellie
07 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ellie's just had a research paper published!In today's episode we discuss how can we learn from the impact that COVID-19 had on mental health peer sup...
S3E6 - Why is North East England so mentally unwell? With Alisdair Cameron
06 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
North East England has the highest per capita use of antidepressant use in England and Wales and has had the highest suicide rate in England for 3 out...
S3E5 - Art and mental health, with Doll
01 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How can art be used as a therepeutic tool to navigate types of grief that go beyond death and bereavement? This is just one of the questions covered ...
S3E4 - Our ingredients for good mental health, with Will and Ellie
04 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Will and Ellie - co-hosts of the Lively Minds mental health podcast, discuss what their ingredients are for good mental health.Follow @livelymindspod ...
S3E3 - The impact of separation for care-experienced children, with Ciara McClelland
05 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How might the impact of detachment from their mother and birth family affect care-experienced children and young people's behaviour and relationships?...
S3E2 - Mindfulness, with Dr Afrosa Ahmed
02 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What is mindfulness? What's the difference between mindfulness and doing things 'mindfully'? What does evidence about the positive impact of mindfulne...
S3E1 - The film & TV industry and mental health, with Rupert Jones-Lee
05 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In 2022, a survey revealed that only 11% of people working in the UK’s film and TV sectors considered the industry to be a mentally healthy place to...
Why we are changing our schedule to once per month ...
22 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Hi everyone, just a quick podcast update today.Ellie and I have decided to reduce the frequency of Lively Minds to once a month. The main reason for t...
S2E8 - Illustrating Bipolar, through pictures, words and music, with Matt Ottley
08 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Australia’s nominee for the Hans Christian Andersen Award 2024, Matt Ottley, talks to us about his new work The Tree of Ecstasy and Unbearable Sadne...
S2E7 - Funerals and mental health, with Andy Jones
24 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
“Sometimes, people just need to be really very sad together”In this episode, we will be talking with funeral celebrant - or ‘funeralist’ - And...
S2E6 - What is dramatherapy? with Ciara McClelland
10 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What is Dramatherapy? How does it work? And how can it help us make better sense of our mental health? In this episode, Ellie and Will chat with Ciar...
S2E5 - Uncovering unregulated therapy in the UK, with Phil Doré and Amanda Williamson
27 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Did you know, that in the UK, anyone - no matter what their qualifications or experience - can set themselves up as a counsellor, a psychotherapist, o...
S2E4 - Arts activism and mental health, with Vici Wreford-Sinnott
13 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How can the arts help achieve positive change for people with mental health problems?Who can get involved? What counts as “activism”? Writer, dir...
S2E3 - Tackling misinformation about OCD, with Matthew Antonelli and Stuart Ralph
28 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How many times have you heard someone say “I’m being so OCD” to describe a random bit of preciseness or when they need to double-check something...
Podcast Update
21 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
A podcast update!Listen | Donate | Connectat www.anyamedia.net/livelyminds
S2E2 - Learning Disability and Mental Health, with Paul Wilshaw
07 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Why is mental health and learning disability so often confused? How do they interact? Why are learning disabled people more likely to experience menta...
S2E1 - What is 'Pure O' OCD (and does it exist)? With Stuart Ralph
24 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to the first episode of SEASON 2 of Lively Minds!In this episode, we will be talking to Stuart Ralph who featured in what is currently our mos...
S1E22 - Mental Health Hospital - (MORE of) your questions answered! (part 2)
20 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We asked for your thoughts and questions, and you did not disappoint! Thank you to everyone who contacted us. In the second of our 2-parter, Ellie wil...
S1E21 - Mental Health Hospital: YOUR questions answered (part 1), with Ellie Page
13 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We asked for your thoughts and questions, and you did not disappoint! Thank you to everyone who contacted us. In the first of another 2-parter, Ellie ...
S1E20 - Reconceptualising mental health through the social model of disability, with Vici Wreford-Sinnott
29 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The social model of disability offers a radical alternative to the way we understand our mental health problems.Rather than focusing on health problem...
S1E19 - What is Clinical Anxiety? With Karen Lowinger
15 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What is clinical anxiety? And how does it differ from everyday anxiety?We are delighted to welcome back to the show Karen Lowinger, who is a clinical ...
S1E18 - Trauma and Neurodivergence, with Amanda Marples
01 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What is the relationship between neurodivergence and trauma?In today’s episode we are chatting again to Amanda Marples, who is a writer, social work...
S1E17 - Mental Health Hospital (Part 3), with Ellie Page
18 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What are Ellie's hopes for the future of mental health hospitals in the UK?In the third and final part of this three part mini-series, Will chats to E...
S1E16 - Mental Health Hospital (Part 2), with Ellie Page
04 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What is it like to be an inpatient on a mental health ward?In the second of this three part mini-series, Will shall be chatting to Ellie about her exp...
S1E15 - Mental Health Hospital (Part 1), with Ellie Page
20 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What is it like to be admitted to mental health hospital? What does it mean to be “sectioned”? Over the next three episodes, I will be chatting to...
S1E14 - Trauma, with Amanda Marples
06 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What is trauma?In today’s episode we are chatting to Amanda Marples, who is a writer, social worker and mentor with over twenty years experience in ...
S1E13 - Disability and mental health, with Professor Tom Shakespeare
23 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Are mental health problems a ‘disability’?We chat with Professor Tom Shakespeare about the relationship between concepts of disability and mental ...
S1E12 - Speaking publicly about your mental health, with Kema Sikazwe
09 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Kema Sikawe recently appeared in a BBC 3 documentary: Therapy: Tough Talking in which he gives viewers a front-row seat at a series of therapy session...
S1E11 - Decolonising mental health, with Dr Arya Thampuran
26 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In a world dominated by Western approaches to psychiatric health, what does the non-Western world offer in terms of alternative interpretations of our...
S1E10 - Avoiding anxious situations
12 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Is it OK to avoid everyday situations that make us anxious? Or should we always find a way to cope?For people with mental health problems, this questi...
S1E9 - Comedy and mental health, with Hal Branson
28 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Why do so many stand up comedians have mental health problems??In this episode, we chat with Hal Branson about the connection between stand-up comedy ...
S1E8 (Bonus) Podcast Update!
21 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Wondering where this week's episode of Lively Minds is?Here's a podcast update!Follow us on Twitter and more at https://www.bio.link/livelymindsFind o...
S1E8 - Ellie and Will reflect on the show so far
14 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
On this episode of Lively Minds, the Mental Health Podcast, Ellie and Will reflect on their most memorable moments from the conversations so far and d...
S1E7 - Faith, Feminism and Mental Health, with Rabbi Robyn Ashworth-Steen
07 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Rabbi Robyn Ashworth-Steen talks to us about how her feminism, spirituality and career in social justice have intersected with her mental health.We di...
S1E6 - What is happiness? With Professor William Tov
31 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
It turns out that there is no one way to measure 'happiness' and what it actually means depends a lot on where we live in the world.In today's episode...
S1E5 - High functioning mental health problems, with Karen Lowinger
24 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Just because you can go about your day-to-day life doesn't necessarily mean that everything is OK. Welcome to the world of "high functioning mental he...
S1E4 - Men's mental health groups, with Jake Dunn
17 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Speaking during men's mental health week 2022, mental health advocate Jake Dunn discusses his own mental health story, his involvement with men's ment...
S1E3 - Does "mental illness" exist? With Dolly Sen
10 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
"We will label you. We will punish you. And this is true of women in Victorian times who were labelled as 'hysterical'. [In the UK] being Gay was a 'm...
S1E2 - Why is OCD so misunderstood? With Stuart Ralph
03 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Will and Ellie chat to therapist and fellow podcaster: Stuart Ralph about what is perhaps one of the most misunderstood of all mental health condition...
S1E1 - What is Mental Health?
03 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In episode 1 of our brand new series: Lively Minds: the mental health podcast, Ellie and Will ask 'what is mental health?'Drawing on their own persona...
Trailer, Season 1
10 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Led by people with lived experience, Lively Minds is a UK-based podcast about mental health challenges that go beyond the ebb and flow of the everyday...