Depresh Mode with John Moe

In many ways, Christian Finnegan’s earlier career path made a lot more sense given the path he has traveled. He went to NYU, tried and then dropped acting, and then set out to be a very serious writer and artist. He worked in publishing and fancied a career where his writing would be at the center of his work, possibly as a monologist but never as a stand-in-front-of-a-brick-wall comedian. The serious path would make sense given that Christian reached he has experienced some serious stuff: the death of both his older brother and his younger brother, a mother who was unstable and dealing with some mental health issues, an alcoholic father. Whether it’s despite the difficult times he had or maybe because of them, Christian did enter the world of standup comedy where he’s been performing for many years, in specials on Amazon, on several comedy albums and on shows like Best Week Ever, Conan, and The Today Show. He has acted on Chappelle’s Show and The Good Wife. Watch Christian Finnegan's newest stand-up special, Show Your Work, on Amazon Prime.Thank you to all our listeners who support the show as monthly members of Maximum Fun.Check out our I'm Glad You're Here and Depresh Mode merchandise at the brand new merch website MaxFunStore.com!Hey, remember, you’re part of Depresh Mode and we want to hear what you want to hear about. What guests and issues would you like to have covered in a future episode? Write us at depreshmode@maximumfun.org.Help is available right away.The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 988 or 1-800-273-8255, 1-800-273-TALKCrisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741.International suicide hotline numbers available here: https://www.opencounseling.com/suicide-hotlinesThe Depresh Mode newsletter is available twice a week. Subscribe for free and stay up to date on the show and mental health issues. https://johnmoe.substack.com/John’s acclaimed memoir, The Hilarious World of Depression, is now available in paperback. https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250209566/thehilariousworldofdepressionFind the show on Twitter @depreshpod and Instagram @depreshpod.John is on Twitter @johnmoe.

Chris Walla’s life today is very different from where it has been in the past. The musician and producer isn’t in the Pacific Northwest, for instance, where he grew up and lived for many years. He’s in Trondheim, Norway, where he is putting down roots and continues to compose and produce. And while that happens, Death Cab for Cutie, the band he co-founded in the 1990s, is in the midst of a 71-stop international tour.In this interview, Chris talks about music instructors and academic experiences that didn’t quite kill his love of making music. He weighs the thrill of playing music with his friends to the painful drudgery of touring and the experience of losing connection with the songs. And he details his struggles with depression, alcohol, and, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, the nagging feeling that people don’t really want to hear what he makes.Learn more about Chris Walla and his Seattle recording studio by visiting HallOfJusticeRecording.com. Listen to Chris Walla's music on the streaming service of your choice. Follow Chris on Twitter @calculizer.Thank you to all our listeners who support the show as monthly members of Maximum Fun.Check out our I'm Glad You're Here and Depresh Mode merchandise at the brand new merch website MaxFunStore.com!Hey, remember, you’re part of Depresh Mode and we want to hear what you want to hear about. What guests and issues would you like to have covered in a future episode? Write us at depreshmode@maximumfun.org.Help is available right away.The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 988 or 1-800-273-8255, 1-800-273-TALKCrisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741.International suicide hotline numbers available here: https://www.opencounseling.com/suicide-hotlinesThe Depresh Mode newsletter is available twice a week. Subscribe for free and stay up to date on the show and mental health issues. https://johnmoe.substack.com/John’s acclaimed memoir, The Hilarious World of Depression, is now available in paperback. https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250209566/thehilariousworldofdepressionFind the show on Twitter @depreshpod and Instagram @depreshpod.John is on Twitter @johnmoe.

Veteran podcaster Lauren Ober suspected something was up and that it went beyond covid stress and professional stress and all the other reasons she had been going to therapy for so long. She had been a journalist for many years and her instinct for the story led her to start piecing together that the life she had been experiencing all this time fit the profile of autism. Well spoiler alert, she tested and found out that, yeah, she’s on the autism spectrum. Then it was a matter of finding therapy that took into her account her neurodivergent brain so she could make some progress. We talk with Lauren about her mental health and her neurological condition.And we talk with Finn Gratton, a therapist who is autistic and who works with a lot of clients who are as well. They discuss the issue of masking, pretending to not be neurodivergent in a world designed for the neurotypical, and why they don’t believe autism is a disorder.Listen to Lauren Ober's podcast, The Loudest Girl in the World, wherever fine pods are cast. Learn more about Lauren by visiting OberandOut.com. Follow Lauren on Twitter @OberandOut and Instagram @oberandout.Learn more about Finn Gratton and their work by visiting GrattonPsychotherapy.com.Thank you to all our listeners who support the show as monthly members of Maximum Fun.Check out our I'm Glad You're Here and Depresh Mode merchandise at the brand new merch website MaxFunStore.com!Hey, remember, you’re part of Depresh Mode and we want to hear what you want to hear about. What guests and issues would you like to have covered in a future episode? Write us at depreshmode@maximumfun.org.Help is available right away.The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 988 or 1-800-273-8255, 1-800-273-TALKCrisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741.International suicide hotline numbers available here: https://www.opencounseling.com/suicide-hotlinesThe Depresh Mode newsletter is available twice a week. Subscribe for free and stay up to date on the show and mental health issues. https://johnmoe.substack.com/John’s acclaimed memoir, The Hilarious World of Depression, is now available in paperback. https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250209566/thehilariousworldofdepressionFind the show on Twitter @depreshpod and Instagram @depreshpod.John is on Twitter @johnmoe.

Kate Beaton’s new book, Ducks, is not about ducks. At least not really. It’s about people, specifically Kate and the people she worked with during a two-year period after finishing university, working in the remote oil sands region of northern Alberta, Canada.The camps at the oil sands housed hundreds of employees and they were not an easy place to be, filled with depression, broken marriages, and rampant substance use. Kate was one of only a handful of women working at the oil sands, a fact that introduced a number of other problems.Get your copy of Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands wherever books are sold.Thank you to all our listeners who support the show as monthly members of Maximum Fun.Check out our I'm Glad You're Here and Depresh Mode merchandise at the brand new merch website MaxFunStore.com!Hey, remember, you’re part of Depresh Mode and we want to hear what you want to hear about. What guests and issues would you like to have covered in a future episode? Write us at depreshmode@maximumfun.org.Help is available right away.The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 988 or 1-800-273-8255, 1-800-273-TALKCrisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741.International suicide hotline numbers available here: https://www.opencounseling.com/suicide-hotlinesThe Depresh Mode newsletter is available twice a week. Subscribe for free and stay up to date on the show and mental health issues. https://johnmoe.substack.com/John’s acclaimed memoir, The Hilarious World of Depression, is now available in paperback. https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250209566/thehilariousworldofdepressionFind the show on Twitter @depreshpod and Instagram @depreshpod.John is on Twitter @johnmoe.

It’s easy to assume that the life of Paulina Porizkova has always been an easy one. Most people first knew her as an internationally famous model, posing on the covers of fashion magazines and Sports Illustrated swimsuit issues. She married a rock star, Ric Ocasek of The Cars, whom she met while filming a music video for the band. Seems like the sweetest life possible, right? Well, not so fast.Paulina tells stories in this interview that show another story. She was orphaned in Czechoslovakia at age three when her parents fled to Sweden, left with her grandmother, then torn away from her grandmother at age nine to be reunited with her parents in Sweden just as their marriage was collapsing. She talks about being a teenage model in Paris, not knowing that what was happening was sexual harassment or assault. And she tells the story of her marriage to and divorce from the late Ric Ocasek, who left her out of his will.Not so glamorous, really.Get your copy of Paulina Porizkova's memoir No Filter: The Good, The Bad, and The Beautiful wherever books are sold. Follow Paulina on Instagram and Twitter @paulinaporizkova and @paulinaporizkova.Thank you to all our listeners who support the show as monthly members of Maximum Fun.Check out our I'm Glad You're Here and Depresh Mode merchandise at the brand new merch website MaxFunStore.com!Hey, remember, you’re part of Depresh Mode and we want to hear what you want to hear about. What guests and issues would you like to have covered in a future episode? Write us at depreshmode@maximumfun.org.Help is available right away.The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 988 or 1-800-273-8255, 1-800-273-TALKCrisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741.International suicide hotline numbers available here: https://www.opencounseling.com/suicide-hotlinesThe Depresh Mode newsletter is available twice a week. Subscribe for free and stay up to date on the show and mental health issues. https://johnmoe.substack.com/John’s acclaimed memoir, The Hilarious World of Depression, is now available in paperback. https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250209566/thehilariousworldofdepressionFind the show on Twitter @depreshpod and Instagram @depreshpod.John is on Twitter @johnmoe.

Honestly, I really expected to call this episode “Covid Sedaris” because David Sedaris had just tested positive for COVID when we taped the interview. But when we spoke, he wasn’t feeling it much at all. Had some symptoms that might have been allergies or COVID but were barely noticeable. Other people have it a lot worse, he says.David has been delighting audiences for 30 years now, ever since the broadcast of Santaland Diaries. His latest book, Happy-Go-Lucky, is deceptively titled, containing a lot of stories and memories that are pretty painful. David’s father died last year at age 98 and liberated David to share some things he hasn’t shared so openly before. He talks about how his father ridiculed him, belittled him, and just flat out didn’t like him. He shares the story of being invited to give the commencement address at Princeton and bringing along his dad, who told the university president that they should have booked his sister Amy Sedaris instead.David also shares stories of his sister Tiffany, who died by suicide in 2013. He’s caught heat over the years for writing and talking about how difficult it was for him to deal with her when she was at her most unstable. He also talks about the charges of abuse Tiffany made against David and their father before he died.There are still plenty of laughs in the interview because, come on, it’s David Sedaris, but there’s also pain and melancholy that you might not have heard from him before.Get your copy of David Sedaris’ Happy-Go-Lucky wherever books are sold.Thank you to all our listeners who support the show as monthly members of Maximum Fun.Check out our I'm Glad You're Here and Depresh Mode merchandise at the brand new merch website MaxFunStore.com!Hey, remember, you’re part of Depresh Mode and we want to hear what you want to hear about. What guests and issues would you like to have covered in a future episode? Write us at depreshmode@maximumfun.org.Help is available right away.The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 988 or 1-800-273-8255, 1-800-273-TALKCrisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741.International suicide hotline numbers available here: https://www.opencounseling.com/suicide-hotlinesThe Depresh Mode newsletter is available twice a week. Subscribe for free and stay up to date on the show and mental health issues. https://johnmoe.substack.com/John’s acclaimed memoir, The Hilarious World of Depression, is now available in paperback. https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250209566/thehilariousworldofdepressionFind the show on Twitter @depreshpod and Instagram @depreshpod.John is on Twitter @johnmoe.

In this engaging conversation, Kim-Joy, a beloved former Great British Bake-Off contestant and author, shares her journey from childhood struggles with selective mutism and a strained family dynamic to thriving in the baking world. She discusses how supportive relationships bolstered her confidence and led her to the Bake-Off stage. Kim-Joy also explores baking as a therapeutic outlet and its role in her mental health advocacy, along with her upcoming cookbook, 'Bake Me A Cat,' which promises a whimsical twist on baking.

It’s that time of year when tv commercials and store decorations implore you to feel merry and jolly (words we only use this time of year). And if you do feel that way without any complications or nuance, well, good on ya. But for people who live with depression, anxiety, problematic stress reactions, this season can be a real minefield.We’re joined this week by two therapists who are also friends of the show.Dr. Ksera Dyette talks about strategy come holiday time and how to protect yourself from toxic or problematic family members as you head into those visits. Megan Devine takes on the subject of grief and she has some notes of constructive criticism on the option of “I’ll just get super drunk and feel nothing.”Learn more about Dr. Ksera Dyette by visiting her website, www.cupofteacounselling.org. Follow Dr. Dyette on her Instagram @cteacounselling and on TikTok @drdyette.Learn more about Megan Devine and get your copy of her book, It's OK That You're Not OK by visiting her website, www.refugeingrief.com. Listen to Megan's podcast, Here After with Megan Devine, wherever fine podcasts are found.Thank you to all our listeners who support the show as monthly members of Maximum Fun.Check out our I'm Glad You're Here and Depresh Mode merchandise at the brand new merch website MaxFunStore.com!Hey, remember, you’re part of Depresh Mode and we want to hear what you want to hear about. What guests and issues would you like to have covered in a future episode? Write us at depreshmode@maximumfun.org.Help is available right away.The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 988 or 1-800-273-8255, 1-800-273-TALKCrisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741.International suicide hotline numbers available here: https://www.opencounseling.com/suicide-hotlinesThe Depresh Mode newsletter is available twice a week. Subscribe for free and stay up to date on the show and mental health issues. https://johnmoe.substack.com/John’s acclaimed memoir, The Hilarious World of Depression, is now available in paperback. https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250209566/thehilariousworldofdepressionFind the show on Twitter @depreshpod and Instagram @depreshpod.John is on Twitter @johnmoe.

It wasn’t until her late twenties that Ellen Forney noticed that her friends couldn’t really keep up with her. Ellen had boundless energy that took the form of dancing for long stretches at home, smoking a lot of pot, vibrating with intense sexuality, and latching on to new friends who were just as unrelentingly intense as she was. But to Ellen, this was just her living her best life. It wasn’t until these episodes were followed by intense, debilitating crashes of depression that she thought something might be wrong here. A psychiatrist walked her through the various symptoms of bipolar disorder and, despite a heap of early denial, Ellen arrived at an understanding that this was a condition she had. From there, it was a long road of treatments to get her stable.Ellen Forney tells her story and the plan she developed for herself and others to take care of mental health. It involves a monster named Smedmerts (she is a cartoonist so of course she drew Smedmerts), whose name is a helpful acronym.Get your copy of Rock Steady: Brilliant Advice From My Bipolar Life, as well as Marbles and Ellen's other books, by visiting her website, EllenForney.com. Follow Ellen on Twitter @ellen_forney and on Instagram @ellen_forney.Thank you to all our listeners who support the show as monthly members of Maximum Fun.Check out our I'm Glad You're Here and Depresh Mode merchandise at the brand new merch website MaxFunStore.com!Hey, remember, you’re part of Depresh Mode and we want to hear what you want to hear about. What guests and issues would you like to have covered in a future episode? Write us at depreshmode@maximumfun.org.Help is available right away.The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 988 or 1-800-273-8255, 1-800-273-TALKCrisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741.International suicide hotline numbers available here: https://www.opencounseling.com/suicide-hotlinesThe Depresh Mode newsletter is available twice a week. Subscribe for free and stay up to date on the show and mental health issues. https://johnmoe.substack.com/John’s acclaimed memoir, The Hilarious World of Depression, is now available in paperback. https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250209566/thehilariousworldofdepressionFind the show on Twitter @depreshpod and Instagram @depreshpod.John is on Twitter @johnmoe.

There is no shortage of self-help books in the world positing that the human mind can be explained, that there is a tidy order to things and a discernible reason why everything happens. These are books that claim to have answers. Rachel Aviv’s new book, Strangers to Ourselves, goes in the opposite direction. Through a series of profiles, she presents people and their behavior that defy easy explanations and who produce more questions than answers. Does Ray represent the triumph of medication over talk therapy or is his story more complex? Is Bapu experiencing religious ecstasy or schizophrenia? Ultimately, Rachel Aviv shows how any understanding of a person with a mental disorder shouldn’t begin and end with a one-word diagnosis because there are so many stories to be told.Get your copy of Strangers to Ourselves: Unsettled Minds and the Stories That Make Us wherever books are sold. Follow Rachel on Twitter @RachelAviv.Read Rachel's most recent pieces for The New Yorker by going to: https://www.newyorker.com/contributors/rachel-avivThank you to all our listeners who support the show as monthly members of Maximum Fun.Check out our I'm Glad You're Here and Depresh Mode merchandise at the brand new merch website MaxFunStore.com!Hey, remember, you’re part of Depresh Mode and we want to hear what you want to hear about. What guests and issues would you like to have covered in a future episode? Write us at depreshmode@maximumfun.org.Help is available right away.The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 988 or 1-800-273-8255, 1-800-273-TALKCrisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741.International suicide hotline numbers available here: https://www.opencounseling.com/suicide-hotlinesThe Depresh Mode newsletter is available twice a week. Subscribe for free and stay up to date on the show and mental health issues. https://johnmoe.substack.com/John’s acclaimed memoir, The Hilarious World of Depression, is now available in paperback. https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250209566/thehilariousworldofdepressionFind the show on Twitter @depreshpod and Instagram @depreshpod.John is on Twitter @johnmoe.