Over 5 months ago, Eric and I took a walk down a gravel road past my church. We talked of life, God, psych hospitals, Faithful Friends, smoothies. Somewhere between the dust of our steps and the breeze around us, the Spirit stirred us and an idea was conceived. A podcast.
5 months later. Last night. January 25, 2018. We birthed a 5 minute 30 second trailer for Revealing Voices. It goes something like this:
Today we recorded our first interview! April (Tony’s sister) and Jen (my wife) joined Tony and me in our new studio- made official with the addition of a new IKEA conference table. The recording sounds excellent. We had a scare after taking an intermission, but thanks to power of the “Undo”, recovered the recording.
Earlier in the week, Tony and I decided that the standard question we will ask all guests is “What does healing mean to you?” The question worked really well today and generated great discussion that rippled throughout the interview. I’m really satisfied with that question because it is a strong connecting point between faith and mental healthcare communities. From my perspective, the faith and mental healthcare communities are the primary healing elements of society. A goal of the podcast is to help bridge the conflict and misunderstanding that exists between these two areas. Read More
Last night was a tense, yet overall productive evening. Eric came over to the studio and we tried to evaluate which was a better podcast host – Blubrry or Libsyn. While Libsyn seemed to be a little cheaper, it did not appear to have the same flexibility or quality of service. So, we purchased a package with Blubrry (2 years, I think).
The next thing to do was find a web hosting service. Mike from Blubrry recommended several possibilities. PC Magazine ranked HostGator as one of their Editor’s Choice. It seemed to be the best bang for our buck, so we called them with the intent on purchasing a plan, setting it up with WordPress, then migrating our Blogger site to our new website. We got a 3-year plan.
That’s when things got complicated. Read More
I want Lynda. I’ve heard her name mentioned before, but never taken a keen interest in getting to know her. But after doing a quick search yesterday, I found her and instantly fell in love. The video preview spoke to me. It’s been a tough couple weeks and I needed relief. I’ll get back to Lynda later… Read More
My sister Suzanne came over this morning to do a recording of a StoryCorps interview. The focus was on discussing my mental health journey. We touched on faith, advocacy, self stigma, and building trusting relationships. This is something that I’ve been talking about recording for over a year. It was good to dig into the StoryCorps app and understand how it works. It was basically one hour of preparation to understand the app and create questions, then 45 minutes to record (45 minute recording is the max!)
Some things that I learned:
We are halfway between the day we committed to starting Revealing Voices and our launch date of March 1. Some days it feels overwhelming, other days it feels like we’re almost there. In reality, we are making slow but steady progress.
On “The Show Runner” podcast, there are over 100 episodes that are essentially dedicated to the business of podcasting. A quick review of the episodes (e.g. “Podcasting Lessons from a Psychotherapist”, “How to Create a MVP (Minimum Viable Podcast)”, “How to Execute Engaging Podcast Interviews”, etc.) demonstrates how much there is to consider in developing a successful show.
Side Note: For anyone interested in Indiana University basketball, the co-host Jerod Morris is also the host of “The Assembly Call” podcast about Hoosiers basketball!
We are lining up a local photographer and music producer who are friends of mine to help with our logo and show opening/closing. These are key branding details which we need others to provide their expertise. Read More
Several podcasts touch on mental health. Others bring up topics of faith. None of these offer a faith-based, peer-led perspectives we need and believe others need to maintain wellness. Revealing Voices (RV) will dig deep and share honest stories of ways faith and mental healthcare can work together to promote healing. RV also offers humor. We don’t take ourselves too seriously. Like the Apostle Paul on lithium or Sigmund Freund at a week-end revival.
We are two men with vibrant faith who live with bipolar disorder.
Eric earned a B.A. in History and an M.B.A. in Entrepreneurship from Indiana University. His life took an unexpected turn in 2008 when a devastating flood led him to become a community case manager. After the experience, he wrote a book called Watershed: Service in the Wake of Disaster. In preparation for the 10-year anniversary of flood recovery, Eric has been asked to co-lead the “Pleasant Grove Project” to turn a flood plain into fertiled land for building community. Eric supports mental health peer recovery as a member of the Stability Network, and Vice-President of the local chapter of National Alliance for Mental Illness (NAMI). He co-founded and now co-leads (with Tony) the weekly faith-based, peer led mental health and ministry group, “Faithful Friends”.
Tony received a B.A. in English & theology from Hanover College and a Master’s of Divinity from Louisville Presbyterian Seminary. He served 20 years in pastoral ministry, specializing in addiction and substance abuse recovery and ministry with those who have mental illness. He has published work in a number of periodicals, including Christianity Today (CT) Pastors, Presbyterians Today, Upper Room, These Days, devozine, and Stand Firm. His published spiritual memoir: Delight in Disorder: Ministry, Madness, Mission led him to become a keynote speaker at the first “Shattering Stigma with Stories,” a mental health and faith conference in Lake Oswego, OR. He is now at work on his second publication, sharing the story of his life in faith both inside and outside of psychiatric hospitals. His current work can be found on Delight in Disorder.
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Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. (Ephesians 4:15)
I discussed The MouseDriver Chronicles with Tony. It is a fun account of two MBA graduates leaving school to start a company that imported computer mice from China that were shaped like the head of a golf club driver. Move over Narnia. Read More
This post marks the unveiling of a new mission. In March of 2018, a podcast will debut called, Revealing Voices: The Mental Health Podcast That Raises Unanswered Questions and Shares Unanswered Prayers. My co-host Eric Riddle and I share a firm faith in Christ and we both wrestle with a bipolar disorder.
Our show will include stories related to faith and mental illness, news and views in the media, podcast reviews, inspiring quotes and Scripture verses, as well as interviews with folks who have a mental illness, families and loved ones, church leaders, and mental health professionals.
Our goal in “Revealing Voices” is to offer hope and break down stigma. It is to reveal the voices of those often silenced. To give voice to revelations often hidden for fear of judgment. And to face honestly what is yet to be revealed to us.
Embarking on this mission has required much soul-searching and devotion on our part and we still wonder if we are up to the task. One thing is clear, we are not. But with God’s help and your prayers, Revealing Voices will move from our heads into a world where faith and mental illness have too long been divided at the expense of wounded souls like us.