072: Getting Honest About Mental Health with Melissa Boyle

Hello Couragemakers and welcome to episode 72 of The Couragemakers Podcast!

This week I’m chatting to the wonderful mental health blogger Melissa Boyle. Melissa, or Mel as she likes to be known, is a social media executive, the blogger behind Geek Magnifique and the creator of Honey Bee cards - a card range specifically designed to give comfort and reassurance to people who struggle with their mental health. Mel is based in Bournemouth UK and is an unstoppable cat-cuddler who is also partial to the occasional dog.

Mel strongly believes that mental health needs to be an honest and open conversation. She is all about breaking down those walls and stamping out stigma, which is why Mel blogs about her own struggles and the experiences she’s had. Mel hope that by sharing her journey she can help others to feel less alone.

In this episode, Mel and I really dive headfirst into our own mental health experiences. We have a really open discussion about what it’s like to struggle with OCD from a young age and Mel shares her journey of seeking support and how it has helped her.

Mel shares fantastic advice about reaching out and asking for help, how to maintain friendships when you struggle with your mental health and how to share your struggles and your experiences with others.

We talk about the importance of mental health online communities, sharing your good and your bad days honestly and authentically online and and how being a passive observe in supportive online communities can make you feel less alone.

We also dive into the importance of looking after ourselves and re-fuelling, setting boundaries and how it only takes one person to open up and create a safe environment.

One of the many things I love about this episode, is hearing all about how Mel started sharing about her mental health. The idea of sharing our experiences with others can feel terrifying and overwhelming and we really dive into how you don’t need to go from zero to a hundred, how you get to choose who you share with and who to walk away from, and how to make mental health part of the conversation.

If you struggle with your mental health, I know you’re going to get so much out of this conversation. There aren’t enough really honest conversations about mental health and I love what Mel is doing to end the stigma and create an environment where we feel safe to share instead of ashamed and like we have to keep our experiences hidden.

Here’s to doing things our own way, looking after ourselves and knowing that we’re not alone.

Enjoy the show!

About Mel

Melissa Boyle or Mel as she likes to be known, is a social media executive, the blogger behind Geek Magnifique and the creator of Honey Bee cards - a card range specifically designed to give comfort and reassurance to people who struggle with their mental health. Mel is based in Bournemouth UK and is an unstoppable cat-cuddler who is also partial to the occasional dog.

Mel strongly believes that mental health needs to be an honest and open conversation. She is all about breaking down those walls and stamping out stigma, which is why Mel blogs about her own struggles and the experiences she’s had. Mel hope that by sharing her journey she can help others to feel less alone.

Blog | Twitter | Honey Bee Cards |

Things We Talked About

Our shared experience of struggling with OCD from a young age

Sharing openly about mental health - going against the grain and being public about it

Advice for people who struggle with their mental health and maintaining friendships

Resources

Mental Health First Aid

Samaritans

About Meg & That Hummingbird Life

I’m Meg and I’m the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I’m an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.

I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.

When I’m not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life...