Angelica Galluzzo: Advocacy and Insights on Mental Health and Wellness

Angelica Galluzzo from The Revolutionized Mind podcast joins the conversation today as we explore her personal journey with mental health, from her high school diagnosis of depression and anxiety to her current role as a mental health advocate. The conversation touches on her time as an athlete in college dealing with injuries, body image concerns and difficulties in finding a good support group away from home. We also dive into some mental and physical wellness practices that Angelica partakes in and her opinion on mental health in general!

WARNING: The subject of suicide comes up in this episode. If this is triggering and you no longer feel safe, please seek professional help and phone the suicide help hotline: 1-800-273-8255 and dial 1

Check out The Revolutionized Mind:
https://open.spotify.com/show/7vIoxgH4RLyxAYuYonK393

Check out Angelica's Tedx Talk:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Izy1TgMe-tI&ab_channel=TEDxTalks

Follow TRM on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/therevolutionizedmind/

Transcript

Jon: 0:06

Yoyo, welcome back to another episode of the Feel Free podcast. It's your boy John Cerrone. Got a good episode this week. Got Angelica from the revolutionized Mind pod here to talk a little bit about her story, dealing with mental illness, how she's overcome all of those struggles in life, to be the dope ass person that she is. Uh, you could check out her TED Talk. Uh, on YouTube, so that's awesome. Uh, give her a follow on all those social media platforms. You're gonna see all those links in the description. Uh, we're talking mental health today as usual. Uh, some other good things about getting outta ruts and just our thoughts on mental health illness in, in general. So why not fucking stick around, you know what I'm saying? Uh, got a couple other guests coming on in the next couple weeks. I got my buddy Brandon here to talk about his new life with sobriety. So you don't want to miss that when it's coming out. And I got a couple other guests too, but I am still finalizing some shit with that. So without further ado, let's get into the episode. So do you want to introduce yourself for everybody out there?

Angelica: 1:13

Absolutely. Um, so my name is Angelica Galluzzo. I am the podcast host of The Revolutionized Mind. And honestly, I just call myself like a mental health advocate and a podcast host. I do this work professionally. I work for a youth mental health organization in Canada as well as in all my personal life. I have my podcast, I have my social media. Um, I also recently just got certified as a Safe Talk trainer, so, I'm gonna be doing that. My very first one's actually coming up in a couple weeks. So just always looking for new ways to keep this mental health conversation moving forward and using my story and other people's stories to really change at least one small perspective of how you feel yourself about mental illness or someone else out there. Wow.

Jon: 2:03

That's, that's a lot, honestly. That's awesome. Now the, the Safe Talk thing is that, are those like courses or something that people can take? It's

Angelica: 2:11

one workshop, so it's through Living Works Education, um, which actually is internationally recognized and it's just a suicide prevention workshop that anybody can take.

Jon: 2:20

Wow. That's awesome. I'm actually writing that down for later. Um, so with all those accomplishments and everything, and I felt that people who have like a wellness podcast or mental health. Podcast or an advocate in general have obviously gone through, um, some shit in their lives, obviously. So what, what kind of brought you to doing the podcast and the speaking and stuff like, you know, what, what's your story? How'd you get here?

Angelica: 2:46

Yeah, I definitely have a lot of shit. Um, but I always say like the bulk of my mental health challenges really started in high school. I had stuff as a kid, but kind of irrelevant to the bigger stuff that I normally talk about. But I had a very like typical story of that person who, you know, always looked okay on the outside, had a million things going for me, school, soccer friends, like I was always doing it all. But behind closed doors I was really struggling with. I didn't know at the time, but I found out later was a major depression and anxiety disorder. And it was a while of me just struggling by myself before I actually told anyone what was going on. And I always like hesitate at saying tell someone. Cause it wasn't actually me telling someone, it was someone telling me that things were not the same that they used to be. My moods were changing. Um, also noticing some signs of self-harm and. The people closest to me just really knew that something was up. So how my like wellness journey started was honestly like one of the most traumatic nights of my life, but also one of the best nights of my life because it was a time where I was in a very dark head space. I had a plan to end my life and my boyfriend at the time had actually brought that to my parents, who brought me to the hospital, who. Had that whole intervention thing, which was not a great experience to be completely honest. But it was the first time that the people around me really saw how serious what I was going through was. Um, so that kind of like kickstarted the therapy, the medication, the letting people around me know that I was someone who struggled with mental illness. And it kind of just went from there, like slow peaks and valleys of like slowly sharing my story with friends, with family on social media. And there was a lot of like small steps in between, but ultimately led me here. If that answers your question.

Jon: 4:46

Uh, yeah. A absolutely. Were you, so were you diagnosed in high school then?

Angelica: 4:51

I was, um, about a year after things started

Jon: 4:55

for me. Okay. And, and you obviously started seeing a therapist at that time too, right? Yeah,

Angelica: 5:01

I was bouncing around quite a bit. Um, gotcha. Cause it's also that age where you're between a child psychologist and an adult and an adult psychologist. Um, and I was going away to the States for school, so I was in a weird place where nobody was really willing to take me on as a client. Um, so it was a bunch of bouncing around and that was another fun journey in itself.

Jon: 5:23

Of course, I mean, trying to find like a therapist that works for you though is, is part of the journey too, honestly. You know, first one you find's not always gonna be the right one. Um, the thoughts about the suicide that all happened in high school or did that happen any earlier that you said it was kind of irrelevant, but. Were those thoughts taking more form in high school? Right. Yeah. I

Angelica: 5:46

struggled with other mental health challenges as a kid, but the suicidal thoughts definitely started in grade nine.

Jon: 5:52

Okay. Well, we are glad that you're here today, honestly, so you can inspire other people to live a beautiful life too. Um, now after the traumatic night, no, this was in high school, then you got diagnosed. What were the steps after that to making sure it never got that close again?

Angelica: 6:12

Well, it definitely did get that close. Again, it wasn't, I always like to say like, it wasn't that night here at all, and I was fine until today, like right. I. My diagnosis is clinical depression, which means that like it does come, come and go, and there doesn't always have to be something major that triggers those thoughts and feelings. Um, so I've definitely had rocky experiences since then. It's a lot of up and downs with this particular illness in the way that it affects me. Um, so it's been an ongoing journey of like learning how to live with it, which is the title of my TEDx talk, um, because it was. Something that I had to acknowledge that it wasn't really just gonna go away and I wasn't gonna be able to do self-care and all these wellness activities one time and be fine. Um, it's kind of just more of a process of learning to deal with it in the best way for you as it comes up, which obviously looks different based on where

Jon: 7:08

you're at. Right? Yeah. I've noticed that some of the things I used to do in high school or even in college in order to. Uh, bring me out of a dark place in self-care. Don't really translate too well to being in my late twenties. So I think you have to constantly be coming up with new ways in order to help yourself. Right. And innovate like that. So with all this stuff happening in high school and then you go away to school in the States, now this was probably a really big move for you, right? Cuz you're from Canada. Mm-hmm. Then also in between getting a new therapist and stuff. So how, how was college for you then? How was, how was playing sports and all this?

Angelica: 7:48

Yeah, so the next biggest part of my story that is very intertwined with the mental health piece, um, was that I actually went through five major knee surgeries in five years. So that was in between all of that. Um, which means that I did not have the traditional collegiate athletic experience. Um, I actually medically redshirted both years that I was there for two separate injuries. So that was another big piece of the puzzle was growing up this high level athlete, and soccer being such a big part of my life and my identity. Losing that, going through injuries, dealing with my mental health. It was like a lot at once, as I'm sure you can tell. So yeah, mental health piece did not get any better at that point, for sure.

Jon: 8:33

No, that's pretty detrimental, honestly. And now that. For five years at school. So after all the knee surgeries and everything, have you gone back to playing at all? Yeah,

Angelica: 8:44

I still do play today, which I always say like, I'm just so grateful I can still walk. Um, I went to the University of Cincinnati for two years and then I transferred back home to a school a little bit closer. Um, and I did actually continue playing here. Um, it's called the O Uua, it's a Ontario division, so. I was just really grateful. Although it sucked, like a huge part of me was in so much pain and grieving that life and that part of me, um, still being able to like play here and earn accolades in this division was something I didn't give myself credit for at the time, but definitely something that like took a lot of mental, physical and emotional strength. So. Happy I did that and I'm like still playing today, which cannot be like more glad

Jon: 9:31

that I can like still play. Right. That's exciting. And I think you felt like you lost a piece of your identity, but it was always there the whole time, you know? Mm-hmm. So were the, the years in college when you were hurt, going through surgeries and stuff, not playing, were you seeing therapists at school? Because I, I know at colleges, especially over in the United States, uh, they offer free, uh, therapy sessions. I went to a couple of them as well, so, mm-hmm. How was. How was taking mental health different away from home for you than taking mental health seriously? When you were around all your support group and stuff, what are the differences? Yeah.

Angelica: 10:11

Um, to the first point, so they did hook me up with a sports psychologist. I saw a couple of them and. To be honest, they weren't great fits for me, so I think I just had a really bad experience with them. I didn't feel like they understood me or the severity of what I was going through, because at that point it was my third knee surgery, and that's not very common, like that quickly apart and like during that major life transition. Um, so I just felt like I had so much going on and nobody really understood it. They were, they weren't able to help me in the way that I needed. Um, so that was tough. And also just being away from home. My whole support system was at home, my friends, my family, my club team growing up. So not having them and being in a new environment with new people who didn't understand my mental health struggles or they didn't really know what worked for me or anything like that. Um, it was a lot of like isolation. And then on the opposite side of things, like overly putting myself out there and doing things to distract myself so that I wasn't having to like deal with

Jon: 11:13

everything, right? And, uh, yeah, that, that's a slippery, slippery slope in and of itself. I did the same thing when I went to school as well. Um, I actually had to come back to school or back to Chicago multiple times because my support group was here and I couldn't find a positive support group, not at home. So it's really, it was really difficult, honestly. Um, now, so. Where you're at today. Do you ever overload your schedule now? Because I noticed from your TED talk you have, you have a couple very easy steps for understanding yourself in the moment. Do you still use those steps today? I do.

Angelica: 11:57

Um, some days it's definitely harder though. Um, like I'm, right now, I'm kind of in a little episode, I would say I haven't really been doing the best, if we're being honest. Um, so it's definitely harder to use those steps and like, Do the things to take care of myself when I'm pretty much just focused on survival. Um, but if I am in a good head space, then I definitely am. I'm such like a list person. I love writing out. I always break it down into like my must dos and can dos. Cause I think that really helps me visualize like, these are the things I have to do today and these are the things I can do if I find some extra time or energy. Um, so I'm all about like those little strategies. Trying to stay on like control is a big thing for me. So just making sure that I am in control of my thoughts and feelings and kind of like. Channeling it in a productive

Jon: 12:48

way that's, uh, very difficult. I actually, after having a conversation with Todd over at the bunny Hugs and mental health, and talking to my girlfriend who's a, a special education teacher, they, they say, I have signs of adhd, so I totally understand. You know, trying to wrangle in all of that energy and use it in a productive manner. Uh, I actually make too many lists too, so there's just lists all over my desk, you know, list on list for no reason. Some of them don't get done, so I totally understand. Do you ever overload your schedule because you don't wanna be sad? Like, sometimes I feel like I just need to keep being busy so I don't feel sad.

Angelica: 13:26

Absolutely a million percent. Yes. Um, that's always been my thing though. Like my way of coping was always distracting and avoiding like anything that would get me outside of my thoughts and feelings. Um, the majority of the time I would say like, I do have like positive things like growing up it was soccer. It was like keeping myself as busy as I could with athletics or keeping my body moving so I didn't have to sit still. Um, and as I'm like growing older and outta soccer, it's more just like work, the podcast stuff, social media. Um, I absolutely do that. Yeah.

Jon: 14:04

Yeah. And then we usually work ourselves ragged, and then we find ourselves in a burnout, right? Mm-hmm. Yeah. The, the whole moderation thing is very difficult because I'm either, Filled with energy and doing a bunch of things on my list, right? I'm a go getter or I am completely tapped out and I can't do the simplest of things in a day. Um, so I I totally understand that. Uh, do you have anything, so traditionally right now we're, we're getting older. I don't know. How are, are you coming up on 30? Are you a little older now? I am

Angelica: 14:37

turning 25

Jon: 14:38

this year. Lucky. All right, cool. I am actually turning 30 next week, so Nice. Um, my knees are hurt. Everything hurts really bad. I play a lot of basketball, so I'm injured a lot as well. I'm. In this phase where I'm trying to understand if there's any other physical wellness practices that I can use to get out of my head right now because basketball is too hard on my knees. Mm-hmm. Obviously. Do you have anything other than soccer that you do for physical wellness? Mm-hmm.

Angelica: 15:07

Um, so running used to be a big thing for me, but like you said, my knees can no longer handle it. Um, so I think especially through covid, I found myself like just really loving going for a walk. And that has been such like a mental shift for me too, because I think growing up a high level athlete, like you wouldn't consider a walk a workout or anything that's like, good for your body cuz it's, it's just a walk. But I think it's like that intentionality piece behind it. If you. Tell yourself like, you're going for a walk, you're going to get some movement today. You can like speed walk if you want. Um, but I, I really do enjoy walking. Cause I think it gets a good mix of like that movement, that fresh air put on a good song. Like you can feed your soul and really just enjoy yourself. But then on the other side of things, I've really gotten into yoga. Um, which is funny because as we were just talking about how like I always wanted to get out of my head and like keep myself busy. So, That was one of the first things that was like, prescribed to me was like, you know, try yoga, try meditation. But at that time in my life, I could not be still for a second. Like, I went to a yoga class and literally had a panic attack and had to leave. Like I could not be still. But now it's one of my favorite things to do and I honestly like put on shorts for this recording. Cause I'm like, after this recording, I need to do yoga tonight because I, I like feel that. Anxiety and like, I need to move my body in like a calm way. So I think that just highlights that like it really depends on where you're at in your life and what's serving you, because it absolutely did not serve me back when my anxiety was at an all time high, but now it is like a really good way for me to tap into myself, practice that self-awareness and still move my body in that way that like, Fuels my athletic background.

Jon: 16:59

Right. And you're honestly answering that call to yourself, which is why you put the shorts on today. I thought that was interesting cuz you know, you've been talking about kind of in a rutt right now, I'm in a rut as well. But you told yourself like, I I'm gonna do it anyway tonight. I'm gonna do this frigging yoga. Right. And you have to the i it's on your have to list honestly, isn't it? And canned lists. Honestly, it's on both lists. That's how important it is. Um, so I think answering that call to yourself and doing it no matter what, having that energy is really important. And now hearing you say that, so I, I was doing Tai Chi for a couple weeks. I was trying to do, Like moving meditation cuz when I'm too frantic, also the meditation is very difficult for me. And, uh, all the things I do are very fast, you know? Mm-hmm. So trying to slow down is very difficult, but I, I'm probably gonna take your word for it and try to go to a couple yoga classes. I have friends who are yoga teachers. They tell me to come all the time, you know, but we always make excuses for everything when we're in ruts. Like, I'm too tired, uh, I don't have enough money, or, you know, I'm just, I just don't feel like it. But, uh, I think you gotta outsmart yourself when you're in a rut, right?

Angelica: 18:12

Trial and error too. Like if you go to that yoga class and you hate it, then check it off your list and try something else. Like, you don't have to punish yourself if something doesn't work. Even sometimes, like if I'm just cleaning, doing household chores, you can tell yourself like, this is for movement. You can like squat every time you go to pick something up. Like you can really make it your own. And it. I think that phrase of like, I started calling it movement rather than exercise or working out because that really helps my like body image side of life. So that's been a good switch.

Jon: 18:45

I actually glossed over that. The body image thing. Was that linked to your depression? Did those things work in tandem

Angelica: 18:54

in a short, no, but I can see how there was, um, intertwined in this, um, the body image. Started, it was kind of a mix of like social media and social comparison and editing pictures and seeing other people online and all of that that I am now super, super passionate about because of how much that did affect me. Um, but then also the entry piece as well, which I think I started to realize a little bit later because. If you know, like when you tear an ACL, for example, you like lose your whole quad, like all your muscle just disappears within the first couple weeks cuz you can't use it. And that was so hard for me to like, I think it was a lot of the back, back and forth. Like I would lose it, build it up again, then it would disappear. And I was like, okay, back in the gym, build it up. And it was a lot of like trying to get used to the way that my body looks and it just kept changing against my will. Like I didn't have control over it, which really stressed me out. So, I think those were like the two biggest pieces that played

Jon: 19:56

into that. That's, I was actually going to ask you about the social media part. Uh, so. On a lot of my episodes, I talk about the dangers of social media and you know, if I didn't have this podcast or write a book, I probably wouldn't have social media for those obvious reasons. So that's, that's great that you're an advocate about it to help people understand that. And yeah, that's a crazy thing to worry about too, the whole body image thing. Now, I've had people come on to talk about body dysmorphia, and that was mostly like working out stuff. It was crazy because the guy was in super good shape, you know, but he was dealing with this body dysmorphia because of seeing people on social media or seeing other people out in public. So I can, I can understand how that can destroy you, you know? Um, and this was all probably recently, like dealing with your injuries and stuff like that. So you don't deal with any of the body image stuff right now, right?

Angelica: 20:55

Not as much. I definitely still do. I think there's always gonna be a little hint to that once it's like taken up so much of your brain space and if you're always on social media. I think that's just an unfortunate side effect. Um, but it's definitely gotten a lot better than it was.

Jon: 21:11

That's good. So you, you've been doing your healing work for that. That's awesome. Um, slowly, slowly. But you know, it's, I think, uh, Todd told me one day it's all about progress, not perfection. And I'm like, damn, you're totally right man. That's some good shit right there. Um, which also brings me to my next point. So what do you do for mental health practices then? So I remember in your TED Talk you talked about, uh, affirmations. Do you do journaling? I know you do yoga. Yoga. I'd considered to be a mental health and a physical practice too. Mm-hmm. Um, so are there any like specific mental health practices that you do?

Angelica: 21:49

Yeah. Um, this is wild that we're like referencing so much of the TED Talk, but um, I say in there, like, I also break it down as like mind, body, and soul. So I try to be really intentional and aware about like what coping strategy I'm choosing. So I know it. I think just like when you tell yourself that, you trick yourself into thinking it's doing more than it is. Um, work harder or, sorry, worse, harder, not harder. Um, So a big thing for me is reading for sure. I am not a big journaler. I've tried to get into it several times. Not for me, but like I'll have random bursts where I just feel like writing stuff down or do a brain dump, and those really help, but not my go-to. Um, so reading is good for me because I do kind of view that as a distraction. It's like getting out of your head and into another world, or a new idea, new story. So I'm all about that. Um, physical, like my body portion of that is like anything movement related, like walking, yoga for sure, playing sports, playing with my dog, like literally anything. Um, and then that soul piece is like doing things that really fill you up. So whether that's like hanging out with friends or watching a funny TV show, just laughing my butt off by myself, like really just, I think it's how I tell myself what I'm doing and you can make anything so. Like you can call ordering McDonald's, sitting in bed, like your soul portion. It's, and then that just like changes the way that it affects you,

Jon: 23:24

I think. I think you mentioned it as, uh, that intent, right? That intentionality for doing things right. Yeah. So you can make anything about the soul, right? Yeah, like I said, I actually re-watched the TED Talks, so that's why I'm referencing it a lot because it was awesome. Um, thank you. I appreciate it. Yeah, I'll be dropping links for it as well. Um, so I also noticed that you went to a concert the other weekend too, so I just had. Was it? Was it a good concert

Angelica: 23:53

though? It was. My aunt actually won tickets on the radio and she couldn't go, so we found out like the day of and we're like, oh crap, let's go.

Jon: 24:01

Oh, nice. Did you like the artist? At least it was

Angelica: 24:05

Charlie Poth. Do you know who that

Jon: 24:06

is? I know Charlie Po. Yeah. Yeah,

Angelica: 24:08

so I only really know, sorry, this isn't awkward to say, but I only know a couple of his songs. So some of it was a little not super fun, but we still had a good time.

Jon: 24:19

Well, that's good. I mean, it was a free show too, right? Mm-hmm. Yeah. So, uh, last week I just had some buddies on, uh, they're in a band, uh, my buddy's from Detroit, Michigan, and they're talking about the importance of music as hobbies and also like seeing live music. So I would definitely put seeing live music on a part for your soul as well. Mm-hmm. Absolutely. Or just doing something impulsive and fun, right? Mm-hmm. Um, which is exactly what

Angelica: 24:45

that was.

Jon: 24:47

It's a free show too. Gotta love it. So what are your thoughts on mental health in general? I know we're in different countries right now, so although we're only separated by an imaginary line that really important people came up with like a border. Um, we're on the same continent and I think mental health is taken differently in, in a lot of countries, actually, all of them. Right. Do you notice that it's been taken more seriously in Canada than it has been previously? It's a

Angelica: 25:14

loaded question. It's a simple question, but it's loaded cuz I think you have to look at the mental health conversation from so many different lenses. Um, there's like the stigma piece and how, you know, podcasts like this exists and people are talking about it. There's social media pages, um, people have like mental health days at work. Mental health is listed as a resource on like school websites. So, All of that has definitely come very far. None of that was really a thing back when I was in high school, like when my struggles first started. So on that note, like yes, it has improved, has come a long way, but the stigma still exists. People are still very hesitant about the word therapy, medication, complex mental illnesses. People aren't really willing to accept things like schizophrenia or bipolar disorder because they don't understand it and. All they know is pretty much from the media or these inherited beliefs that really paint them in a negative light. So there's that side, and then there's like the actual healthcare side and receiving therapy and treatment. And that looks different, of course, where you're at in the world based on what insurance you have, what your healthcare system looks like. And in Canada, I think it's sometimes a little bit deceiving because we do have free healthcare. Um, but the free resources for counseling and things are often, like year long waits, um, pretty inaccessible to people. The ones that you will get right away are ones that you have to pay for, and not many insurances cover that, or they give you very little, um, which I know is pretty common to the states as well. So, yeah, it's. I think there's so many ways you can break it down, like public policy advocacy as well, curriculum in schools. So it, it's such a big conversation.

Jon: 27:01

So in order to not make it so loaded, do you think we're heading in the right direction then? I definitely think we are.

Angelica: 27:10

I think we are moving in a good way. Still a lot of little yellow flags along the road, I think, because sometimes it comes with that, like over awareness and over education slash like inappropriate education misinformation that's shared online and I think that really gets in people's heads and. Clouds over, like the point we're trying to get across. So yes, I think we do, but I think we are still going to, it's not gonna be like one big happy leap. There's still bumps we need to get

Jon: 27:43

over, right? But I mean, there's people like you and Todd and, and myself and other people I've met that are trying to get us in the right direction and have a stay in the right direction, I should say. I even thought it was weird, like some family members. Just thought I partied too much when I, you know, I was going through active addiction. They're just like, well, why don't you just stop? You know, and it's, I've come to notice over the years that it is a disease, you know? And the media does. And the media in both countries, in all countries portrays people with mental illness as like these lepers, you know, and, you know, everyone really just needs a, a helping hand sometimes too. So the one thing that is alarming is the conversation around men's mental health. And I've been doing a little research into that on social media as well. Um, what do you think we can do to help the men out here? You should

Angelica: 28:35

have Ryan Forsyth on your podcast.

Jon: 28:38

I was talking to him, actually. Oh, really? Okay. Yeah, I hit him up. I've

Angelica: 28:42

had him on my podcast twice. He is such an amazing men's mental health advocate, but not just that, just a person. Um, but I've learned so much from him and the few conversations I've had, and just from his posts. I think you can really understand this issue talking to any men in your life. Like I grew up, I have two brothers, I have a dad, I have lots of male role models around me. Um, and it was very clear the messaging that they received that they were not allowed to express their emotions. It's very tied into like sexuality and masculinity, that if you show any sign of weakness or ask for help, then. If you're called gay for whatever reason, and I think that just ties into a whole nother issue of sexuality in general. But, um, I think there's a lot we can do to support the men in our lives, and that's like first and foremost just giving them space. A safe space to express their emotions, whether that's with a romantic partner, a best friend, a sibling, really just showing them that it is okay to feel, to talk about feelings and that you don't have to man up all the time and be this big alpha male. Like it's okay to slow down and be a human sometimes. So I think a lot can happen just from giving young boys that messaging. Um, so that they know that what maybe you grew up with and what other men in my life have grown up with is not.

Jon: 30:08

The be all, end all right. And I, I'm definitely a part of that. Obviously, you know, I, I call it generational, uh, gender conditioning. What has happened in terms of that? I never understood that, cuz I, I went to a private school, uh, for the majority of my life and so I was a little sheltered and I didn't even hear the, uh, the word, um, Uh, faggot. I didn't, I didn't even hear that until I was like 14 and somebody called me and I was just like, I, I was like thrown back. I'm, and it was just because I was like a bubbly kid, you know, and I played Pokemon, right. And they'll, they'll just throw that word out because I'm like, happy. Right? And I never understood that. And that, that also like spiraled obviously with the drugs and stuff later on. Having that conversation with guys with vulnerability, I think sharing my story and also, um, the, the guy you mentioned too, to share that story with the younger men and boys and to tell people it's okay to talk about this stuff. I think that's gonna be a big help in reducing suicide rates in men. And, um, obviously opening the door for a better talk on that. So, but we, we got a long way to go. I know we're in the right direction. Um, mm-hmm. So what else do you have planned for your brand? What is on Angelica's plate? Are you gonna be podcasting in five years from now? Writing a book, more Ted Talks? What are you gonna be doing?

Angelica: 31:36

Uh, that's a hard question. Truthfully, I don't know. Um, I am very new in my like, professional career. I just graduated two years ago and I started working full time. Before I did that, I also, I started my master's cause I thought I wanted to be a counselor, but then I ended up dropping out because the program didn't feel right for me. Um, so I think that has been like a little shift cause I thought I was still gonna be in school at this point in my life. Um, so I think I'm trying to be more, go with the flow and less like, have a plan for everything because that's how I've been my whole life. Um, but I. Can say that I like, definitely enjoy where I'm at now. I love podcasting. I love having a community online that like allows me to show up in the way that I do. And I've gotten a lot more like speaking engagements this year. Um, just that like schools and things. And I found that like I, I genuinely love, love doing that. Just connecting with people, sharing my stories, sharing a lot about like mindsets and perspectives that I've learned through. Some of the shit that I've had to deal with and really just trying to like show a piece of myself in other people and know that like you're not alone. It is possible to get through this really tough time. So yeah, I don't have any exact plans. I would like to write a book one day. I've been told that I should. She's finding the time to do that. So yeah, we'll see what happens. But I think right now I'm continuing on. Where I'm at.

Jon: 33:11

I think you should definitely write a book and keep podcasting if that means anything.

Angelica: 33:16

It does. It's what I wanna do. Honestly, I like you said at the beginning, you work cuz you have to pay the bills, but this is like definitely what brings me the most passion

Jon: 33:26

and fulfillment, changing people's lives, helping people understand that, you know, like you said, we're not alone in this. So that, that's huge. Yeah, working a job to pay the bills and then coming back to do something like creative, like this is very inspiring. Um, do you speak at schools a lot

Angelica: 33:43

now? Not as much as I'd like to. Um, honestly, what I do for my like, professional job is like the mental health presentation, so I get to do a bit of both, which I like. So I, I do love my job. It's not just to pay the bills. I am still in like that helping role, which I really enjoy. Um, but yeah. You know what I mean?

Jon: 34:03

Right, right, right. So obviously you wanna speak at more schools then. Do you want to get out there more? I. Yeah, I think the, the key to understanding the youth right now is probably the most important thing for, for you and for, uh, myself and the people around me. We, we were at a really weird time where technology was, you know, we, we grew up a little bit without it. Then we got hit with it. But like for the generations beneath us that have literally been raised with it, I'm, I'm very concerned. Obviously we, we touched a little bit on social media, which man, even the people who are using it, we don't even understand how dangerous it is. And we're letting like 10 year olds have Instagrams. So I think. What you're doing, speaking at schools and also everything else that you're doing is, is, is awesome. Honestly, it's, it's an honor to have you on here because I, I wish that I could get out there more like you and Todd. Do you guys inspire me a lot so I can get out there and speak like you guys?

Angelica: 35:01

Well, thanks. Um, but yeah, just quickly on that social media piece, it is such a scary concept knowing that like, We don't even know how it's gonna affect us. I think we were at least a little bit older before technology became everything in our daily lives, but Right. It's gonna be an interesting transition. Um, Especially just like in a post covid world. I think that definitely impacted

Jon: 35:26

things as well. Oh, totally. Now think about this. So in the fifties, or I think it was before that they used to do ads for cigarettes, right? And they're like, yeah, doctors are like, smoke one of these a day. Okay. And now like 60, 70 years later, they're like, You're gonna die if you do this. Right? So if we're just using the social media all willy-nilly, and I'm not saying that they told like two or three year olds to have social media like a cigarette, you know, but I, I still think that at the age of 12, it's really bad to have them so enveloped in a perception of themselves that they don't even understand, you know? Mm-hmm.

Angelica: 36:06

Just like general development, like that's not normal, like Right. We don't know how it's gonna affect our brains in the way we develop socially because we're connected online and we're not actually having face-to-face interactions. Like, that's so scary

Jon: 36:20

to think about. I know. I, it's, it's pretty fucked up, honestly. Um, I, yeah, it, it scares the shit outta me, I'll be honest with you. Cuz there's nothing more dangerous than, uh, a species of. You know, intelligent beings who become extremely nihilistic. You know, in my opinion, I think that's what's happening with technology, or at least the younger kids. So it's

Angelica: 36:45

like just technology in everyday life too. Like at my sushi place, they now have a robot that serves you and it's like programmed to come to your table. You pick your food off the tray. It goes back to the next table. Like that is so scary. I don't like just thinking about, I'm like terrified that robots are gonna take over and we're all gonna die. So, oh God, that's my deepest, darkest fear.

Jon: 37:07

I mean, shit, if they're bringing me sushi though, uh, I love sushi, so I

Angelica: 37:13

love them. I love the robots for bringing me sushi, but the fact that they can do that and they know where to go. How to like sense different things. It's like honestly

Jon: 37:22

terrifying. Yep. Yes it is. And we're, we're pretty much right there, honestly. And with AI too. That's a whole nother conversation. Don't get me started on that. My, uh, my girlfriend comes home and tells me that they, they have tools now for putting kids' papers into a, a generator that. Basically tells them if they used an AI tool to write like a three page essay. I'm like, that's fucking crazy, dude. Like, how can you not write a little paper? Like people are being so lazy right now, you know?

Angelica: 37:54

It's a crutch. It literally becomes a crutch and then people forget how to stop, start using their brains. It's, ugh, this is a whole nother topic. It gets me So heated

Jon: 38:05

technology and, and AI and social media. Yeah. Three worst spheres. So, Honestly, those three, three things are, uh, top tier bad, honestly. So I think we touched on a lot of really good things today. Mm-hmm. Do you have any tips for anybody out there who might be struggling with some shit?

Angelica: 38:26

Yes. Um, I think it's always important to first just like acknowledge the shit if you're going through a tough time. If you've lost someone, if you're going through mental health challenges, like it's okay to just say like, Hey, I'm going through something right now. I'm not gonna be at my best. It's okay to kind of like experience these. Trials and tribulations throughout life. Um, I think that really gives you space at the beginning to feel what you need to feel, but also like not judge yourself for it, which helps you in kind of that next step of the healing journey, which is like when you're ready to take the steps. Say if you've been in bed for three days and like today, you feel ready to do yoga. Like, put on your pair of shorts, tell yourself that you're gonna do this. It's often those like small two minutes of effort, um, getting outta bed, changing your clothes, washing your face, eating something, drinking water. Like if you can just tell yourself to keep doing that, like next hard, simple, but hard thing, um, you can really just keep setting yourself up for that. Again, it's constantly that next stage and investing in like your future self, which is hard. Especially if, like for me, dealing with the depression, like when that black cloud is there, you really can't see past that current horrible moment. But if you can find like that little, little burst of energy or that little thing that makes you smile, like really hang onto that, um, and use that to your advantage when you need it, which is often like the next day or if like you're just needing some sort of inspiration. I. Um, it is there. Sometimes you just have to look a little bit harder.

Jon: 40:05

Shit, I'm honest. I think I gotta go home and actually do everything you just said, honestly.

Angelica: 40:12

Um, I think that's where I'm at today cuz like, it's been like, I, like I texted you today, I was like, I need to change outta my pa cause I was in my pajamas all day and I. My routine this week has been so bad cause I've just been in this rut. Um, and that's why today I was like, I feel like I need to move my body. I was doing this podcast, I'm like, let me shower, let me look like a human, um, and then like do something for me, which is gonna be yoga. So I'm excited

Jon: 40:37

to do it, but it was just those two minutes of effort, like you said, that you needed to do. Now you're excited to do some yoga? I actually went and hooped yesterday. Um, I hadn't hooped in like a month, and luckily no one's in the gym because if there's like five on five going on, like I'm a hundred percent. Adrenaline junkie. So I'm, I'm jumping in. Right. So it was good that nobody was there, cuz I got to like, take it slow, you know, and practice my shooting and whatnot. Um, I need, I, I'm right there with you. I need to take some effort tonight to make some really doable lists. You know, cuz sometimes I go overboard with my list, you know, I'll take a sheet of paper and make a list of things that don't all need to be done in that day, you know? Mm-hmm. But then I like worry about the future cuz I made that list, you know? So. Mm-hmm. I think honestly, try

Angelica: 41:29

the must do can do. It's a lifesaver, like it's really helpful for deadlines. Like for me, I normally get my episodes out Friday, so I know like these are the things I need to do today and these are the things that like I could do. But it really just helps you, I think, spare your mental

Jon: 41:47

energy. Right. You know what, I'm gonna give that a shot tonight. I'm gonna take your word for it. It helps me. Yeah. I, I think we all need help. I need some help. So, you know, I think it's crazy that we're both in a rut right now while we're like recording this. So hopefully we inspire some people to get up there and live a better life cuz that's what I need right now. Mm-hmm. So I really appreciate you coming out, talking tonight. This was awesome. And thank you. Yeah, I, yeah. Honestly, I'm honored to have you on here. If you haven't already, go follow her on all the social media platforms. Check out her TED Talk. I'm putting the link in the description. It's fucking awesome. So watch the Ted Talk, follow her and listen to the revolutionized mind too, cuz there's some damn good episodes out there. So thank you. No problem. I appreciate everybody coming out. Y'all have a good rest of your day, weekend. Good. Start to your week and stay up and feel free.