Waking Up Bipolar with Chris Cole | Bipolar disorder, spiritual awakening, and everything in between.
Chris Cole hosts the Waking Up Bipolar podcast, focused on the intersection of bipolar disorder and spiritual awakening. He is the author of The Body of Chris: A Memoir of Obsession, Addiction, and Madness, inspired by his own journey of spiritual unfolding and mental health challenges. Chris Cole offers life coaching for any number of mental health conditions, specializing in bipolar disorder and spiritual emergence. Chris’s experience with addiction, disordered eating, body dysmorphia, psychosis, and spiritual emergency allows him to relate to a wide range of clients. He utilizes a holistic approach to mental health which views wellness in physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual domains. Learn more about Chris and his work at colecoaching.com.
Aubrey Good: International Bipolar Foundation, World Bipolar Day, and #BIPOLARSTRONG
Mar 23, 2018
Show notes
In this episode of Waking Up Bipolar, Chris Cole speaks with Aubrey Good—Program Coordinator for the International Bipolar Foundation. Aubrey was diagnosed with bipolar disorder at 18, and she hopes to use her experiences and knowledge to help bring awareness and education about bipolar disorder. Aubrey is particularly passionate about mental health reform in the criminal justice system and underserved communities. Her background in the United States military also motivates her to break down the stigma of mental illness and advocate for better care within the armed forces and veteran communities.
As you’ll hear, Aubrey Good has a big heart for bipolar advocacy, as well as a great deal of compassion for the whole of humanity. She is #BIPOLARSTRONG, and I am stronger knowing she is doing good in this world of ours in need of so much goodness.
Chris Cole hosts the Waking Up Bipolar podcast, focused on the intersection of bipolar disorder and spiritual awakening. He is the author of The Body of Chris: A Memoir of Obsession, Addiction, and Madness, inspired by his own journey of spiritual unfolding and mental health challenges. Chris Cole offers life coaching for any number of mental health conditions, specializing in bipolar disorder and spiritual emergence. Chris’s experience with addiction, disordered eating, body dysmorphia, psychosis, and spiritual emergency allows him to relate to a wide range of clients. He utilizes a holistic approach to mental health which views wellness in physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual domains. Learn more about Chris and his work at colecoaching.com.
The Waking Up Bipolar podcast in now available on the following platforms:
Dr. Emma Bragdon: Spiritual Emergency, Spiritual Crisis, and Holding Complexity
Mar 15, 2018
Show notes
In this episode of Waking Up Bipolar, Chris Cole speaks with Dr. Emma Bragdon—author, psychologist, and integrative mental health expert. Dr. Bragdon is the Founder and Executive Director of Integrative Mental Health for You. She has written extensively on topics of spirituality and mental health, including seven books. Dr. Bragdon provides lectures and trainings internationally, and is one of the preeminent leaders in the area of spiritual emergency and spiritual crisis.
As you’ll hear now, Dr. Emma Bragdon delivers an accessible message of healing and transformation, while holding—with great care—the complexity and nuance needed to meet the myriad experiences of spiritual and psychological growth. I read Dr. Bragdon’s book, The Call of Spiritual Emergency, at a critical time in my own journey.
I am thrilled to present to you, Dr. Emma Bragdon. Thanks for joining us.
Chris Cole hosts the Waking Up Bipolar podcast, focused on the intersection of bipolar disorder and spiritual awakening. He is the author of The Body of Chris: A Memoir of Obsession, Addiction, and Madness, inspired by his own journey of spiritual unfolding and mental health challenges. Chris Cole offers life coaching for any number of mental health conditions, specializing in bipolar disorder and spiritual emergence. Chris’s experience with addiction, disordered eating, body dysmorphia, psychosis, and spiritual emergency allows him to relate to a wide range of clients. He utilizes a holistic approach to mental health which views wellness in physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual domains. Learn more about Chris and his work at colecoaching.com.
The Waking Up Bipolar podcast in now available on the following platforms:
As you’ll hear in our conversation, Jeff Warren has an uncanny ability to both dive deep into mystical waters and also articulate the many practical benefits of taking up a meditation practice. I most appreciate his willingness to speak candidly about his experiences with ADHD, and as fate would have it, a recent bipolar diagnosis.
It is my great honor to introduce to you, Jeff Warren. Thanks for joining us.
Chris Cole hosts the Waking Up Bipolar podcast, focused on the intersection of bipolar disorder and spiritual awakening. He is the author of The Body of Chris: A Memoir of Obsession, Addiction, and Madness, inspired by his own journey of spiritual unfolding and mental health challenges. Chris Cole offers life coaching for any number of mental health conditions, specializing in bipolar disorder and spiritual emergence. Chris’s experience with addiction, disordered eating, body dysmorphia, psychosis, and spiritual emergency allows him to relate to a wide range of clients. He utilizes a holistic approach to mental health which views wellness in physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual domains. Learn more about Chris and his work at colecoaching.com.
The Waking Up Bipolar podcast in now available on the following platforms:
Chris Cole: Bipolar Order, Getting to the Heart of Sanity
Jan 23, 2018
Show notes
SparkTalks, dynamic presentations that share the wisdom of Naropa University’s alumni, will open your heart, broaden your perspective, and enliven your spirit. At age 18, Chris experienced what he thought was a spiritual awakening, only to be diagnosed with acute manic psychosis. After struggling for years amid an affinity for spiritual material and an aversion to psychopathology, he now finds refuge in Love, which holds space for it all.
Big thanks to Naropa University and Kelly Watt, for putting on the inaugural SparkTalks event. Learn more about Naropa here: http://www.naropa.edu/
Thank you ALOC Media and John March for the incredible production. Learn more about ALOC Media's Colorado-based, cost-effective, professional media services here: https://alocmedia.com/
Chris Cole hosts the Waking Up Bipolar podcast, focused on the intersection of bipolar disorder and spiritual awakening. He is the author of The Body of Chris: A Memoir of Obsession, Addiction, and Madness, inspired by his own journey of spiritual unfolding and mental health challenges. Chris Cole offers life coaching for any number of mental health conditions, specializing in bipolar disorder and spiritual emergence. Chris’s experience with addiction, disordered eating, body dysmorphia, psychosis, and spiritual emergency allows him to relate to a wide range of clients. He utilizes a holistic approach to mental health which views wellness in physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual domains. Learn more about Chris and his work at colecoaching.com.
The Waking Up Bipolar podcast in now available on the following platforms:
Katie Mottram: Training Peers, Emerging Proud, and Mending the Gap
Jan 08, 2018
Show notes
In this episode of Waking Up Bipolar, Chris Cole speaks with Katie Mottram— author, speaker and producer, but most importantly, a peer experiencer. Having worked in the mental health system for 15 years, she experienced a spiritual awakening in 2012 which completely changed her view of “mental illness.”
She is the author of Mend the Gap: A Transformative Journey from Deep Despair to Spiritual Awakening, and her personal story is featured in the 2016 publication by the Royal College of Psychiatrists, Spirituality and Narrative in Psychiatric Practice: Stories of Mind and Soul.
Katie was one of the Founding Directors of the International Spiritual Emergence Network, providing a collaborative platform for the global networks that exist to support people going through the spiritual emergence process. (www.spiritualemergencenetwork.org)
Katie's latest projects are the anti-stigma campaign in support of those experiencing spiritual phenomena, #EmergingProud: www.emergingproud.com and the Emerging Kind; a project training Peers to hold 'Safe Space' support groups for those going through a difficult spiritual emergence process.
As you’ll hear in our conversation, Katie Mottram is someone who has seen the current biomedical paradigm of mental health from all angles and is filled with passion to empower others, as we all move toward a more compassionate approach to crisis and transformation. It is with great pride and honor that I present to you the incomparable Katie Mottram. Thanks so much for joining us!
Find Katie's book here: https://emergingproud.com/mend-the-gap-book/ or https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mend-Gap-transformative-spiritual-awakening/dp/1781331111/
Access Katie's #EmergingProud film here: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/emergingproud or get the DVD via: www.emergingproud.com
Support Katie's crowdfunding campaign here: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/the-emerging-kind
JOIN THE DISCUSSION at https://www.facebook.com/groups/wakingupbipolar
Chris Cole hosts the Waking Up Bipolar podcast, focused on the intersection of bipolar disorder and spiritual awakening. He is the author of The Body of Chris: A Memoir of Obsession, Addiction, and Madness, inspired by his own journey of spiritual unfolding and mental health challenges. Chris Cole offers life coaching for any number of mental health conditions, specializing in bipolar disorder and spiritual emergence. Chris’s experience with addiction, disordered eating, body dysmorphia, psychosis, and spiritual emergency allows him to relate to a wide range of clients. He utilizes a holistic approach to mental health which views wellness in physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual domains. Learn more about Chris and his work at colecoaching.com.
The Waking Up Bipolar podcast in now available on the following platforms:
Apple Podcasts | apple.wakingupbipolar.com
Google Play | google.wakingupbipolar.com
Stitcher | stitcher.wakingupbipolar.com
TuneIn | tunein.wakingupbipolar.com
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Mike Veny: Transforming Stigma, Minority Mental Health, and Difficult Conversations
Dec 13, 2017
Show notes
In this episode of Waking Up Bipolar, Chris Cole speaks with Mike Veny—America’s leading mental health speaker and a high-energy drum circle facilitator. Hear Mike talk about how he fights stigma in himself and throughout the country.
Mike delivers educational, engaging, and entertaining presentations to meetings and conferences throughout the world. As a 2017 PM360 ELITE Award Winner, he is recognized as one of the 100 most influential people in the healthcare industry. Mike has also starred in several OC87 Recovery Diaries documentary films, two of which were featured at the 2017 Reel Minds Film series.
As you’ll hear in our conversation, Mike Veny has been challenged with mental illness for much of his life. By speaking about his childhood suicide attempt, the benefits of therapy, meditation, and creative outlets for his mental health, and a willingness to engage the difficult conversations, Mike shines as beacon of hope for others, reminding us all to keep up the good fight.
Chris Cole hosts the Waking Up Bipolar podcast, focused on the intersection of bipolar disorder and spiritual awakening. He is the author of The Body of Chris: A Memoir of Obsession, Addiction, and Madness, inspired by his own journey of spiritual unfolding and mental health challenges. Chris Cole offers life coaching for any number of mental health conditions, specializing in bipolar disorder and spiritual emergence. Chris’s experience with addiction, disordered eating, body dysmorphia, psychosis, and spiritual emergency allows him to relate to a wide range of clients. He utilizes a holistic approach to mental health which views wellness in physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual domains. Learn more about Chris and his work at colecoaching.com.
The Waking Up Bipolar podcast in now available on the following platforms:
Phil Borges: CRAZYWISE Film, Discovering Wisdom, and Making Meaning
Nov 15, 2017
Show notes
In this episode of Waking Up Bipolar, Chris Cole speaks with Phil Borges—esteemed human rights photographer and documentarian, and recent Director & Executive Producer of the film CRAZYWISE, which explores what can be learned from people around the world who have turned their psychological crisis into a positive transformative experience.
For over twenty-five years, Phil Borges has been documenting indigenous and tribal cultures, striving to create an understanding of the challenges they face. His work is exhibited in museums and galleries worldwide, and his award winning books, which have been published in four languages, include Tibetan Portrait, Enduring Spirit, Women Empowered and Tibet: Culture on the Edge. He has hosted television documentaries on indigenous cultures for Discovery and National Geographic channels. Phil also lectures and teaches internationally.
Phil’s recent project, CRAZYWISE, explores the relevance of Shamanic traditional practices and beliefs to those of us living in the modern world. CRAZYWISE centers around a young man struggling with his sanity, world renowned mental health professionals, and a gutsy survivor-led movement...all challenging a mental health system in crisis.
As you’ll hear (or watch) in our conversation, Phil Borges has been thrusted into a profound curiosity for non-ordinary states of consciousness that touches on the experiences of many folks with bipolar. I am so inspired and grateful for this film, CRAZYWISE, which illuminates the spiritual nature and transformative potential of altered states so often associated with ideas of mental illness.
Chris Cole hosts the Waking Up Bipolar podcast, focused on the intersection of bipolar disorder and spiritual awakening. He is the author of The Body of Chris: A Memoir of Obsession, Addiction, and Madness, inspired by his own journey of spiritual unfolding and mental health challenges. Chris Cole offers life coaching for any number of mental health conditions, specializing in bipolar disorder and spiritual emergence. Chris’s experience with addiction, disordered eating, body dysmorphia, psychosis, and spiritual emergency allows him to relate to a wide range of clients. He utilizes a holistic approach to mental health which views wellness in physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual domains. Learn more about Chris and his work at colecoaching.com.
The Waking Up Bipolar podcast in now available on the following platforms:
Dr. Elyn Saks: Psychiatric Law, Criminal Justice, and Mental Health Reform
Nov 06, 2017
Show notes
In this episode of Waking Up Bipolar, Chris Cole speaks with Dr. Elyn Saks—acclaimed scholar, mental health advocate, cancer survivor, psychiatric thriver, and best-selling author of The Center Cannot Hold: My Journey Through Madness.
Elyn Saks is Orrin B. Evans Professor of Law, Psychology, Psychiatry and the Behavioral Sciences at the USC Gould School of Law; Director of the Saks Institute for Mental Health Law, Policy, and Ethics; Adjunct Professor of Psychiatry at the UC San Diego, School of Medicine; and Faculty at the New Center for Psychoanalysis. She served as USC Gould's associate dean for research from 2005-2010 and also teaches at the Keck School of Medicine. Saks received her JD from Yale Law School, and a PhD in Psychoanalytic Science from the New Center for Psychoanalysis. She was also awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Pepperdine University.
Saks writes extensively in the area of law and mental health, having published five books and more than fifty articles and book chapters. Her research has included the ethical dimensions of psychiatric research and forced treatment of people with mental illness. Her memoir, The Center Cannot Hold: My Journey Through Madness, describes her struggles with schizophrenia and her managing to craft a good life for herself in the face of a dire prognosis.
The Saks Institute for Mental Health Law, Policy, and Ethics at USC is a think tank that studies issues at the intersection of law, mental health, and ethics. The Institute spotlights one important mental health issue per academic year and is a collaborative effort that has included faculty and graduate students from several USC departments: law, psychiatry, psychology, social work, philosophy, neuroscience, gerontology, and engineering.
As you’ll hear in our conversation, Dr. Elyn Saks brings a wealth of insight and expertise, both through the highest levels of academia and the depth of her own experience with schizophrenia. I am tremendously honored and humbled to present to you now, the incomparable Elyn Saks.
Chris Cole hosts the Waking Up Bipolar podcast, focused on the intersection of bipolar disorder and spiritual awakening. He is the author of The Body of Chris: A Memoir of Obsession, Addiction, and Madness, inspired by his own journey of spiritual unfolding and mental health challenges. Chris Cole offers life coaching for any number of mental health conditions, specializing in bipolar disorder and spiritual emergence. Chris’s experience with addiction, disordered eating, body dysmorphia, psychosis, and spiritual emergency allows him to relate to a wide range of clients. He utilizes a holistic approach to mental health which views wellness in physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual domains. Learn more about Chris and his work at colecoaching.com.
The Waking Up Bipolar podcast in now available on the following platforms:
Valerie Gangas has often been called “a force of Nature.” After her first Transcendental Meditation experience in the winter of 2011, Valerie's spiritual awakening inspired a non-stop outpouring of creativity, insight, and empowerment—especially targeted for women—thus, Enlightenment Is Sexy was born.
Standing firmly in her belief that “life is best lived from the inside out,” Valerie shares her illuminating discoveries so others may find the inspiration and guidance to reclaim their lives and make their dreams of happiness, peace, and abundance come true. “Consciousness, freedom, purpose, and love are what it’s all about,” and this provocative 21st-century mantra is the focus of Valerie’s multi-dimensional approach to helping others find the best of it all in their daily lives.
As you’ll hear in our conversation, Valerie brings a practical mysticism to everyday life that honors and values the brilliance of sensitivity. May we all come closer to the power of surrender for having heard her words. Thanks so much for joining us!
Chris Cole hosts the Waking Up Bipolar podcast, focused on the intersection of bipolar disorder and spiritual awakening. He is the author of The Body of Chris: A Memoir of Obsession, Addiction, and Madness, inspired by his own journey of spiritual unfolding and mental health challenges. Chris Cole offers life coaching for any number of mental health conditions, specializing in bipolar disorder and spiritual emergence. Chris’s experience with addiction, disordered eating, body dysmorphia, psychosis, and spiritual emergency allows him to relate to a wide range of clients. He utilizes a holistic approach to mental health which views wellness in physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual domains. Learn more about Chris and his work at colecoaching.com.
The Waking Up Bipolar podcast in now available on the following platforms:
Marya Hornbacher: Radical Advocacy, Nontheistic Spirituality, and Bipolar Badassery
Oct 22, 2017
Show notes
In this episode of the Waking Up Bipolar podcast, Chris Cole speaks with Marya Hornbacher—award-winning essayist, journalist, and The New York Times bestselling author of five books covering memoir, fiction, and self-help. Marya Hornbacher's work has been published in eighteen languages, and her writing across genres appears regularly in literary and journalistic publications around the world, most recently in AGNI, Gulf Coast, The Normal School, Fourth Genre, DIAGRAM, Broad Street, and The Bellingham Review. Her sixth book, a work of long-form journalism, will be published in 2018, and her seventh, a collection of essays, is underway. She was recently honored with the Annie Dillard Award in Creative Nonfiction. Find out more about her work at www.maryahornbacher.com.
As you’ll hear in the interview, Marya is a brilliant mind and radical advocate that challenges the status quo both in our heads and in society at large. I have been inspired by her work for years, and I'm certain that you will be moved here in our discussion.
Chris Cole hosts the Waking Up Bipolar podcast, focused on the intersection of bipolar disorder and spiritual awakening. He is the author of The Body of Chris: A Memoir of Obsession, Addiction, and Madness, inspired by his own journey of spiritual unfolding and mental health challenges. Chris Cole offers life coaching for any number of mental health conditions, specializing in bipolar disorder and spiritual emergence. Chris’s experience with addiction, disordered eating, body dysmorphia, psychosis, and spiritual emergency allows him to relate to a wide range of clients. He utilizes a holistic approach to mental health which views wellness in physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual domains. Learn more about Chris and his work at colecoaching.com.
The Waking Up Bipolar podcast in now available on the following platforms:
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