{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"The Ten Thousand Things","title":"Do we ever fully recover from a breakdown?","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":3329,"description":"Possible triggers. A confronting episode but one we are proud of. Sam, Joe, and Ali explore the impacts, recovery and residues of mental breakdowns.The recent Robbie Williams documentary has kicked off many discussions about mental healthRobbie's demeanour on screen reminded Ali of herself. He was had extraordinary energy before his collapse, as did Ali, with full time work, a small child, a backyard farm and making sourdough from scratchIn the present, Ali can see that something inside Williams is 'still broken' or 'empty' even though he remains functional in most areas of lifeThis led Ali to consider her life and self now, and compare it with her perception of self before her breakdownWe collectively navigate Ali's personal journey through mental health challenges, including a severe breakdown that led her into a state of psychotic mania and hospitalization.Joe brings up Donald Winnicott and his concept of the 'good enough parent' which relates to the 'good enough self', which is the best self, because it is the True Self, as opposed to the ideal self, which is a False Self, and is not sustainable (leading to many problems including breakdowns). Winnicott also gave us the idea that 'the catastrophe we fear has already happened'- which also relates to Ali's experience cloWe delve into the changes in energy levels, personal expectations, ambitions, and the perceived self after such an experience.We look for therapeutic and analytic angles to discuss the theme of death and mortality in Ali's breakdownAli's story strongly reminds Sam of Joseph Campbell's idea of the Hero's Journey*. Sam proposes that Ali followed most of the stages of the Journey in her breakdown, but may have remaining analysis to complete on the Road Back to the Ordinary World.We touch on diagnostic perspectives, struggles with unmet expectations, and the thirst for normalcyJoe advocates for spiritual exploration as an intrinsic part of the journey of healing and understanding, and as the best...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/2JAtfDhLe02gUO4tZQPGVO8knrF2fc46Ed_F40DCEtk/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9zaG93/LzQzNzU5LzE2OTEw/MjExMTItYXJ0d29y/ay5qcGc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}