Journalist Rachel Kelly was working in a stressful job when she had her first serious attack of anxiety and depression which put her in hospital; later, her second episode lasted for two years. Rachel found that her love of words and poetry helped her recovery. She built up from reciting one line at a time […]
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Head Talks aims to inform, inspire and engage those interested in mental health and wellbeing.
Find people speaking from the heart and from their own experience, as well as a wide range of experts and healers sharing their tips and insights to help us work towards better mental health and wellbeing.
Video highlights
My strength is made perfect in weakness, Rachel Kelly
In hard times you can achieve great things, Jada Sezer
Jada Sezer found career success at a difficult time for her family, but learned to thrive in a challenging industry as a plus-size model. Since then she has run the London Marathon in her underwear and taken on a swimming challenge. She aims to inspire other women to be proud of their bodies. Social media, […]
Own your breath, own your peace, Leon Taylor
Three-time Olympic diver and silver medallist Leon Taylor trained hard for his success but his body paid the price. ‘If you were a horse,’ he was told when he retired from the sport, ‘we’d have to shoot you.’ As with many athletes, it took him a while to recover both physically and mentally from the […]
Doctor, heal thyself, Dr Reena Kotecha
While Dr Reena Kotecha was working in the health service, she began to realise she was burnt out. She learned that she had to look after herself in order to help her patients. When Dr Reena took time out with anxiety and depression, she studied meditation, mindfulness and the traditional Indian medicine, Ayurveda. Now she […]
The hurting places of life, John Sutherland
John Sutherland was a police officer for more than 20 years, rising to become a Borough Commander in London. He was overcome by exhaustion, anxiety and then depression that ‘broke him into a thousand tiny pieces’. The stress of a job that brought him constantly into ‘the hurting places of life’ such as crime scenes and […]
Not all champagne and skittles, Simon Webbe
Singer and songwriter Simon Webbe — former member of Blue and Strictly contestant — broke down on TV and realised that he had to open up about his depression. He had lost close friends to suicide and now tells others the importance of talking to someone about your feelings. Simon finds talking, exercise, and creating […]
Making real connections, Jamie Jewitt
Model and former Love Island contestant Jamie Jewitt realised that he was trying to live up to an image of success that was created by the industry he worked in. He worries that social media makes that image pervasive: there’s pressure to make your whole life look perfect. Now he tries to project a more […]
Being brave is beautiful, Petra Velzeboer
Petra Velzeboer was brought up in a cult, the Children of God. Lacking education but feeling that she was meant to save the world, she used alcohol and drugs to try to cope. Lonely after the birth of her children, she reached rock bottom but realised she had a choice. Petra chose to pursue happiness. […]
MASTERCLASSES
Dive even deeper into the world of mental health and wellbeing by signing up to our Masterclasses. Delivered by today’s leading voices, HeadTalks’ Masterclasses will give you exclusive access to insight, exercises and lifestyle tips – taking you deeper into the beautiful realm of what it means to be human.
Dr Rangan Chatterjee,
Pioneer of Progressive Medicine
New Medicine
see video and read more
Bruce Daisley,
European Vice President of Twitter & Champion of Wellbeing at Work
Mental Sense
see video and read more
Headtalks blog
Tips for managing your mental health in current times
Struggle & success
Psychologist Charlotte Armitage has some suggestions for us during periods of staying home. Seek support, and make contact with people on a daily basis on video calls or telephone. Write a journal and document your feelings at this strange and unsettling time. Make plans for the future with friends. Try and live day […]
Start and end the day with meditation
Struggle & success
Head Talks ambassador Jonny Benjamin (and his pal Geoffrey) talks about how he has changed his morning routine. Instead of starting the day by looking at the news, he takes an hour to meditate, have his breakfast, and ease his way into the day. He does the same thing before bed, to stop […]
How to cope with your family’s isolation
Struggle & success
We are all finding ourselves in unknown territory as a result of the coronavirus. Each of us is struggling to find a way to manage the situation: to take care of our families and to take care of ourselves. We have launched a free online course, designed to help with settling into this new routine, and covers seven […]
Podcast highlights
The Value of Happiness, Lord Layard
Richard Layard is an Emeritus Professor at the London School of Economics where he is also Director of the Wellbeing Programme, as well as a member of the House of Lords and the co-founder of Action for Happiness. His books include Happiness: Lessons from a New Science, and Thrive. Lord Layard began his career as […]
Dream Yourself Better, Charlie Morley
Lucid dreaming is a state where you’re asleep, but aware that you’re dreaming. Charlie Morley says that almost anyone can learn how to do it. He’s a teacher of lucid dreaming and a student of Buddhism. Charlie says that not only is lucid dreaming fun — like a virtual reality simulation — but it has […]
The Science of Mind Over Body, Jo Marchant
Science Journalist Science journalist Jo Marchant set out in her book Cure: a journey into the science of mind over body, to find out more about the evidence for how our minds can influence our bodies. She tells us about some of the fascinating experiments that researchers are conducting into phenomena such as the placebo […]
A Bridge to the Future, Jonny Benjamin MBE
Mental Health Campaigner Ten years ago, Jonny Benjamin was at a low point. He was talked out of a suicide attempt on Waterloo Bridge. His quest to find the man who rescued him, Neil Laybourn, became famous. Jonny’s now written a book about his story, his illness and his progress towards recovery. Jonny talks to […]
No Longer Living a Half Life, Mark and Maddy Austin
News Presenter & Daughter When Maddy Austin began to suffer from anorexia as a teenager, her father Mark didn’t know at first how to react. Mealtimes became a battle zone and the stress on the whole family was very difficult. It wasn’t until Maddy was able to get appropriate treatment that she began to recover. […]
The Proven Power of Being Kind, Dr. Kristin Neff
The Self-Compassion Pioneer Having compassion for oneself is really no different than having compassion for others, says Dr. Kristin Neff. Yet we turn out not to be very good at the first. Neff, a leading expert on self-compassion, is an associate professor at the University of Texas in Austin. She is a professor, bestselling author […]