Mental Health Episodes

Lyubim Kogan shares an extraordinary journey that spans surviving the Cold War, competing in the 1998 Winter Olympics, living through 9/11, and walking away from financial success to help wounded veterans rebuild their lives. Through his nonprofit Wings4Heroes, Lyubim helps amputee and deaf veterans rediscover confidence, purpose, and healing through paragliding, rehabilitation, and community. This episode is a powerful conversation about trauma, resilience, service, and humanity. It shines a light on the emotional struggles veterans face after returning home and the life-changing impact of connection, purpose, and adventure therapy.

Rachel Waters shares the unimaginable story of being charged with murder after caring for her dying mother in hospice. What began as an act of love turned into a legal nightmare that nearly destroyed her life. Now, she’s fighting to protect caregivers nationwide through Marsha’s Law.

After being told he would need multiple joint replacements and live with chronic pain, Daniel Esposito refused to accept that fate. Through years of relentless research and experimentation, he transformed his health and became a national champion athlete. In this episode, he shares the mindset, science, and methods behind his remarkable recovery and mission to help others.

Graham Robinson shares his powerful journey of overcoming childhood trauma and the long-lasting impact it had on his life, relationships, and identity. Through personal experience and professional insight, he explains how unresolved pain can shape behavior and why healing is possible at any age. This episode is a must-listen for anyone ready to confront the past and take the first step toward emotional freedom.

Jim Ebert shares his journey from legendary music producer to founder of Cancer Can Rock, a nonprofit helping cancer patients record their final songs. As a 25-year brain cancer survivor, Jim brings a deeply personal perspective on life, music, and legacy. This episode is a powerful reminder of what truly matters and how music can preserve it forever.

Amy Dickens shares her powerful journey from social anxiety, burnout, and fear into a life driven by joy, play, and purpose. Through van life, global travel, and bold personal growth, she discovered that joy isn’t something you wait for—it’s something you practice. This episode will inspire you to take small, courageous steps toward a more authentic and joyful life.

Reed Davis, founder of Functional Diagnostic Nutrition, joins Rich Bennett to explain why most health systems chase symptoms instead of addressing root causes. Drawing from decades of experience and thousands of lab analyses, Reed shares his frameworks for identifying hidden health stressors and rebuilding wellness through lifestyle changes. If you have ever felt like your symptoms are being managed instead of solved, this episode offers a new way to think about healing.

Amy Harding shares the deeply personal story behind Ethan’s Hope: Paws and Hands Rescues and Recoveries, a nonprofit inspired by her son Ethan’s vision before he passed away from addiction. The program pairs people in substance recovery with hard to adopt shelter dogs, allowing both to heal through trust, responsibility, and connection. Amy explains how grief transformed into purpose and how Ethan’s legacy is now changing lives on both ends of the leash.

Irina Shehovsov shares her journey from emotional exhaustion and single motherhood to becoming a bestselling author, speaker, and podcaster. After hitting a breaking point, she chose personal growth over survival mode and rebuilt her life from the inside out. This conversation explores healing unworthiness, breaking free from victim mentality, and discovering the gift within.

What happens when a marriage looks perfect on the outside but intimacy quietly disappears? Xanet Pailet shares her journey from a 26-year sexless marriage to becoming a leading intimacy and emotional safety coach. This honest, eye-opening conversation dives into communication, emotional connection, desire gaps, and how couples can repair and reignite passion before it’s too late.

In this powerful solo episode, Rich dives into the art of showing up for others even when it costs you time, comfort, or convenience. He shares personal reflections as a Marine Corps veteran, husband, father, and business owner about why real relationships are built in the uncomfortable moments. This episode challenges listeners to choose connection over convenience and lead by example in their families and communities.

Jenny C. Cohen shares an unforgettable journey of resilience—surviving breast cancer, navigating family trauma, and using dance as a powerful path to healing and embodiment. From elite performance stages to the hardest moments of motherhood, Jenny reveals how reconnecting to your body can restore hope, confidence, and purpose. This is a raw, inspiring conversation about visibility, truth, and turning pain into power.

In this heartfelt conversation, Rich sits down with Carter Polakoff, President and CEO of Port Discovery Children’s Museum, to explore why play is essential not just for kids, but for parents, caregivers, and families as a whole. Carter shares her personal journey from intern to CEO, how Port Discovery supports neurodiverse families and military households, and why joy, curiosity, and connection belong at the center of education.

Tony DeMaio, founder of Helping Heroes USA, joins Rich Bennett for a deeply moving conversation about veteran suicide prevention, compassion, and the power of human connection. Tony shares real warning signs, practical ways anyone can help, and the incredible role his service dog Coco Bear plays in bringing comfort to veterans and seniors. This is an episode every listener should hear and share.

What does it really mean to love someone through addiction? In this powerful and unfiltered episode of Conversations with Rich Bennett, Rich is joined by cohost Wendy Beck for a deeply moving conversation with Alicia Bloss. Alicia shares her personal journey of marriage, motherhood, mental health, and standing beside a spouse through active addiction and long-term recovery. Together, they unpack the emotional realities families face, including denial, resentment, enabling versus survival, therapy, and what it truly takes to rebuild trust after rehab. Alicia also explains the difference between sobriety and recovery and why healing does not end when addiction does. This episode is for anyone who has loved someone battling addiction or who is seeking hope, clarity, and understanding on the road to recovery.

Screens are everywhere, but at what cost to our families, our kids, and our joy? In this powerful conversation, Rich Bennett sits down with S. S. Coulter to explore how families can reclaim heart, mind, and joy in a screen-filled world. S. S. Coulter is an author, joy coach, and the creator of Planet FASSA, a playful ecosystem designed to help children unplug from screens and reconnect with imagination, creativity, and real human connection. From her FASSA Tales children’s book series to her upcoming Planet FASSA app, she shares practical, compassionate tools for parents who want to raise emotionally healthy, resilient kids without shaming or guilt. This episode dives deep into how screen time is reshaping childhood, why imagination is a muscle that must be exercised, and how play, presence, and conversation help families thrive. Whether you’re a parent, grandparent, educator, or simply someone concerned about the future of our kids, this is a conversation that will change how…

In this episode of Conversations with Rich Bennett, Rich sits down with Dr. Mary Sanders to explore the powerful connection between science, energy, and healing. Dr. Mary shares how chiropractic care, energy medicine, and intuitive awareness help people release burnout, trauma, and imbalance by listening to the body’s innate wisdom.

Poet and author Laura Dilworth joins Rich Bennett and Wendy Beck for a powerful conversation about heartbreak, healing, and the transformative power of poetry. Laura shares the deeply personal journey behind her poetry collection The Heartbreak Chronicles, including writing through heartbreak, postpartum depression, anger, grief, and self-discovery. Throughout the episode, Laura reads several poems live, offering listeners an intimate look into how words can heal when life feels overwhelming. This episode is raw, honest, emotional, and relatable for anyone who has ever loved deeply, lost painfully, or turned to creativity to survive. If you believe in purpose behind pain and the power of storytelling, this is an episode you don’t want to miss.

Alan Katz, the legendary writer and producer behind Tales from the Crypt, joins Rich Bennett for one of the most honest and powerful conversations ever recorded. Alan opens up about Hollywood success, creative betrayal, the disastrous making of Bordello of Blood, and the depression that nearly cost him his life. This episode goes far beyond film and television. Alan shares how healing from trauma transformed him from a writer into a true storyteller and why podcasting has become the ultimate platform for creative freedom. If you care about storytelling, mental health, authenticity, or the future of media, this is an episode you cannot miss.

What happens when a veteran, podcaster, and truth-teller shows up every day for over a decade? In this episode of Conversations with Rich Bennett, Rich sits down with Pete A. Turner, host of The Break It Down Show, to talk about what it really takes to build a podcast that matters. Pete shares real, no-nonsense advice on consistency, monetization, evergreen content, guest relationships, and why most people quit before they ever find their voice. From taking his podcast on the road to using PodMatch to build meaningful connections, this conversation is packed with insight for podcasters, creators, and anyone trying to do meaningful work. If you’ve ever thought about starting a podcast or wondered why yours isn’t growing, this is an episode you don’t want to miss.

From living out of his truck at 27 to generating over $90 million in tech sales, Mark J. Silverman’s story is one of resilience, reinvention, and real leadership. In this powerful episode of Conversations with Rich Bennett, Mark opens up about addiction, long-term sobriety, ADHD, fear, faith, and what it truly means to lead with presence and humanity. Mark shares how listening to guidance changed his life, why fear never disappears, and how meditation, structure, and self-awareness have shaped his success as a coach, author, and speaker. He also dives into writing best-selling books with ADHD, navigating leadership as a spiritual practice, and why helping even one person makes it all worth it. This is an honest, inspiring conversation for leaders, entrepreneurs, creatives, and anyone rebuilding their life with purpose.

Former bartender and opiate addict Eric Turney hit multiple rock bottoms, including jail and failed treatment attempts, before a surprise wake up call changed everything. When he and his partner learned they were expecting their first child, Eric decided he was done burning bridges. He got serious about 12 step recovery and took a chance on a new life as an entry level sales rep at a small promotional products company. Today, Eric is the President and Sales and Marketing Director of The Monterey Company, a custom branded merch company founded in 1989 that creates premium challenge coins, lapel pins, belt buckles, hats, apparel, and more for brands like Google, Amazon, Target, Bentley, Lions Clubs, military units, and local organizations. After the founder offered employees the chance to buy the business, Eric and his partners stepped up and took it over. In this conversation, Eric and I dig into his journey through addiction and recovery, how he rebuilt his life and career, and …

Author and artist Lara Luna never planned on becoming the “angel number lady” in her Florida 55+ trailer park. After years of painting and working as a mobile home agent, she hit a breaking point and started asking bigger questions about why she was here and what she was meant to do. A trip into hidden caves in Lecanto, Florida, where she found 444 and 111 spray painted on the walls, sent her down a rabbit hole of synchronicities, angel numbers, and a full-on spiritual awakening. In this episode, Lara joins Rich to talk about her memoir Trailer Park Angel and the podcast of the same name, where trailer park drama, spiritual signs, and everyday humor collide. She shares how numbers like 444, 555, 666, and 11:11 helped her move out of a fear-based belief system, how her book helped a depressed neighbor feel less alone and protected, and why she believes we never really die. You will also hear hilarious stories about gnome-filled lawns, Captain Crunch the one-eyed alligator, and the “…

Mental health is still one of the hardest things for people to talk about, even while more of us are willing to use words like anxiety, depression, and trauma. In this episode, Rich is joined once again by licensed clinical social worker and executive leader Jennifer Redding, founder of Harford Counseling and co-founder of Pebbles Throw Consulting, to dig into what real trauma-informed care looks like in everyday life and at work.  Jennifer breaks down why mental health has long been seen as a “character flaw,” how social media encourages self-diagnosis and labels, and why there is a big difference between a tough season and a clinical condition. She shares the origin story of Harford Counseling, explains how trauma and substance use are intertwined, and talks about the importance of treating people as whole human beings rather than separating “mental health,” “addiction,” and “life problems” into different boxes. The conversation then shifts into the workplace. Jennifer introdu…