Month: May 2018

Rippy Berry Delight Recipe

May 27, 2018 Eric Riddle Behind the Scenes Comments Off on Rippy Berry Delight Recipe

Mother’s Day Recipe from Mollie Katzen’s Moosewood Cookbook.  Described in episode 7…

Serves 6

Ingredients

3 Cups Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice

3 Cups Plain Yogurt

2 Tbs Fresh Lemon and/or Lime Juice

2 Tbs Honey

4 Cups Fresh Berries (leave small berries whole, slice larger berries)

Dash of Cinnamon

Sprigs of Mint

Instructions

  1. Whisk together orange juice and yogurt
  2. Add lemon/lime juice and honey and whisk
  3. Cover and chill until serving time
  4. When ready to serve, place about ¾ cup berries in bowl
  5. Ladle the chilled mixture on top (will not be very thick)
  6. If desired, dust with cinnamon and add a few small sprigs of mint
  7. Enjoy!

Episode 7 – Eric Riddle Revealed

May 24, 2018 Eric Riddle Podcast Episodes, Season 1 45:02 Comments Off on Episode 7 – Eric Riddle Revealed

On this episode, Tony interviews co-host, Eric Riddle.  In this interview, Eric and Tony discuss unconditional love, haiku, “bipolar order”, wearing a banana suit, Faithful Friends ministry, and many other topics.

Some of the questions include:

What is peer recovery?

How did you disclose your diagnosis to your children?

What does it mean to have a mood disorder?

Why did you wear a banana suit?

What does healing mean to you?

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As always, you can find much more at www.revealingvoices.com.

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Eric is currently participating in #the100dayproject on Instagram. During the project, he is writing daily haikus that can be found at #hundredhaiku

Author of Watershed: Service in the Wake of Disaster, a book about the 2008 flood in his hometown of Columbus, IN.

Member of The Stability Network: www.thestabilitynetwork.org

LinkedIn Profile link

 

Does Awareness Really Shatter Stigma?

May 19, 2018 Tony Roberts Behind the Scenes Comments Off on Does Awareness Really Shatter Stigma?

Some weeks back, Eric asked me to write a piece for Mental Health Awareness Month (May). I thought I would wait for inspiration. It’s now May 18 and inspiration has not arrived. In the words of Jack London, “You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.” So I sit here banging on the letters of my keyboard, intent on making you aware of mental health.

Recently, many celebrities are touting mental health as they share their personal history with mental illness and/or mental health issues. Action movie star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. Singer Mariah Carey. Even Prince Harry. Mental health struggles are shared by the homeless immigrant and the Hollywood idol.

I’ve wondered for some time what happens when mental illness assumes the spotlight. When famous persons talk about their anxiety, their depression, their mania, does it serve to reduce stigma or does it increase the demanding expectations on those with severe mental illness?

If Prince Harry can get through his grief and still smile at royal functions, why can’t you get out of bed and take a shower?

If Kay Redfield Jamison can channel her manic depression to become one of the world’s leading experts on bipolar disorder, why can’t you finish a simple assignment?

The benefit of high achievers opening up about their emotional struggles is that we can be reassured that we are not alone, that we are not any less a human being for having a mental health diagnosis. The danger is that we berate ourselves for not being more like them.

As a writer, I have a plethora of role models who exhibited inordinate disordered behaviors. But I can’t expect I will compose epic tales like Tolstoy, plot like Poe, or poetic verse like Plath. Still, I do find comfort we are following the voice of a related muse.

Mental Health awareness month is not about competing for who has the most debilitating condition or who is conquering it the best. It’s about recognizing that no matter who we are, no matter what we do, we are of one common stock. The more we stand up, the less others have to fall.

Mark Teike profile pic

Episode 6 – Mark Teike, Lutheran Leader

May 10, 2018 Eric Riddle Podcast Episodes, Season 1 45:54 Comments Off on Episode 6 – Mark Teike, Lutheran Leader

Mark Teike has served as senior pastor at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in Columbus, IN since 1992. Mark and his wife Debbie, a licensed clinical social worker who is the author of The Art of Invitation, have three grown children and one granddaughter.

Mark and Debbie grew up in Decatur, IL. Recently, Mark has become much more aware of the struggles related to mental illness and is passionate about helping individuals and congregations walk alongside those who live with a mental illness, as well as their families.

Some of the questions include:

Who inspired you to pursue pastoral ministry?

How can the faith community work with local ASAP partners to address the local opioid crisis?

How do you respond to people who spiritualize struggles with mental health?

How can the church reach out to individuals who feel isolated?

What does healing mean to you?

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Click here to learn more about the Alliance for Substance Abuse Progress (ASAP) in Bartholomew County

 

 

Bipolar Too

May 1, 2018 Eric Riddle Behind the Scenes Comments Off on Bipolar Too

At age 17, I was given a clinical depression diagnosis. At age 22, it changed to hypomania.  At age 27, it changed to Bipolar II.  Over the course of the last 20 years, I have been hospitalized 4 times. The first time for mania and the last three for depression. For 13 years, I was in talk therapy 1x/month.  My most recent hospitalization was Spring 2013. I currently take one medicine for sleeping and one for mood stabilization.  Those are the facts of my psychiatric care.

Tony did flippantly call me “bipolar lite” on a recent show. The facts above indicate that the level of treatment I have received is substantial.  His statement was meant as a comparison to the reality of his tumultuous cycles to my relatively less turbulent experience since meeting him in 2014. He has never seen me in a period leading to an inpatient stay.

I am thankful that a listener sent us a comment about Tony’s use of the word “lite”.  The listener pointed out that “its not accurate or helpful to think of Bipolar II as begin a less severe bipolar sub-type.”  This is correct.

Tony and I need to be held accountable to our language. Receiving feedback is precisely what we encourage from our listeners as we reveal our voices and our guests on the podcast.

I am currently in the best period of health since being diagnosed with Bipolar II in 2007.  I thank God, my family, my church, my friends, and my community for the support, encouragement, and love they provide on a daily basis.  My relationship with Tony is a part of that stabilization.  He knows that my diagnosis can lead to serious symptoms, but he also knows that sharing the burden together can lighten the load.

We will be releasing an episode on May 24 with Tony interviewing me about my mental health history and ministry.  Knowing my darkness has helped me know the light.  I hope to share this with you through Revealing Voices.