Beyond Well with Sheila Hamilton

The Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung once said: “People will do anything, no matter how absurd, to avoid facing their own souls.” Perhaps that is why therapy is often seen as a last stitch effort to reclaim something people feel that they’ve lost—their health, their happiness, or their relationships. In this interview, Dr. Jenna LeJeune and Dr. Brian Goff discuss the reasons behind therapy, and their ardent belief that most people wait far too long (or until they are in crisis), to face their souls, their problems, and their habituated patterns in life.

Coronavirus is scary. How we respond to it can be even scarier. According to the Economist, more than two thirds of American report being very concerned about the U.S. pandemic. How do we calmly prepare for disruptions to our lives without panicking? What are some of the evidence-based techniques for helping people with anxiety and panic disorders? How do we cope with the likelihood of temporary financial and social stress? This episode is for anyone who wants a centered, calm approach to getting through the Coronavirus pandemic.

Episode two. Dr. Brian Pilecki combs the findings of science with compassion and curiosity. He is research the efficacy of psychedelics and studying harm reduction for people who want to use psychedelics to help with trauma, ptsd, anxiety disorders, and depression. In recent years, psychedelics have drawn interest for their unique ability to create a mind shift and lasting relief for clients who have otherwise battled intractable suffering.

Episode One. Dr. Brian Pilecki combs the findings of science with compassion and curiosity. He is research the efficacy of psychedelics and studying harm reduction for people who want to use psychedelics to help with trauma, ptsd, anxiety disorders, and depression. In recent years, psychedelics have drawn interest for their unique ability to create a mind shift and lasting relief for clients who have otherwise battled intractable suffering.

Mitchell Jackson is an American author. His critically acclaimed book, Survival Math earned its title as Mitchell recalled calculating what it would take to survive the poverty stricken neighborhood of North Portland and the friends and family members who had become thugs, murderers, and drug dealers. Mitchell’s ascent from drug runner to prison inmate to a literary phenom is a reflection of his deep study and thinking on topics ranging from black history to Kobe’s lasting legacy on young black men in America.   We invite Mitchell to @BeyondWell to regularly discuss race, rage, and how to stay sane in some of the craziest times in American history.

Scott the Painter (Scott Erickson) is one of Beyond Well’s favorite guests, both for his refreshing candor regarding his personal suffering but also because his visual art, stories and his performance art resonate with tens of thousands of young people who are tired of staring at their phones and want to find deeper connection. In this episode, we talk with Scott about loneliness versus spending time alone, connecting during the darkest days of winter, and Scott’s personal wellness routine.

We talk with three employees about the experience of being gay, trans, and queer in the workplace. For many people who are considered “different,” the question of whether they are being passed over for Lunch invitations and promotions is the biggest mystery of all. “Is it because I’m gay? Or because I’m fat? Because it’s not because I’m not a good worker.” This is a painful, illuminating, and wonderful reaffirming interview with three people who have found their voices and plan to continue to hold businesses accountable until diversity and inclusion is not just a goal—it’s a value.

Dr. Brian Goff and Dr. Angela Izmirian (sitting in for Dr. Jenna LeJeune), talk about what it  takes to make a great relationship. If you want to give something sexy to your partner but  cringe at the idea of a hallmark cards or flowers, share this episode. It will spur the kind of communication that even Cupid would approve of.

Lindy West is a contributing opinion writer for the New York Times and the author of the New York Times bestselling memoir Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman (2016, Hachette Books) as well as the brand new essay collection The Witches are Coming (2019, Hachette Books). In 2018 she wrote and executive produced Shrill as a half-hour comedy for Hulu, which just wrapped its second season. With frequent collaborators Ahamefule J. Oluo and Charles Mudede, she wrote and executive produced Thin Skin, an independent feature film, currently in post-production, and she and Oluo are writing a script for Shonda Rhimes’s upcoming Netflix anthology series Notes on Love.

We are starting 2020 by taking a look back at a few of our favorite shows from 2019. This show was originally released in November of 2019. It features special guest Israel Nebeker. He is the founder of Blind Pilot and a singer/songwriter whose music now reaches millions of fans. In this episode, Israel talks about confronting one of the darkest periods of his life by wandering into the Black Forest in Germany—with no path to follow and not sure if he would ever find his way out. It was only by confronting his loneliness, his fear, and his belief that he was powerless to change the dynamic that he experienced a significant awakening.  This interview was voted one of our favorites by the Beyond Well Team because of how open, authentic and vulnerable  Israel and his music is. Don’t miss it.

There is a reported increase in the number of people seeing psychologists and psychiatrists for politically based fear, anxiety, and depression. In this episode, Dr. Goff and Dr. LeJeune discuss ways to stay healthy, engaged and positive during times of political stress. One of the hallmarks of politically induced anxiety is hyper-vigilance. Learn how to recognize it, calm your nervous system, and get busy applying your energy to something positive.

We are starting 2020 by taking a look back at a few of our favorite shows from 2019. This show was originally released in June of 2019.  Storm Large: musician, actor, playwright, author, awesome. She shot to national prominence in 2006 as a finalist on the CBS show Rock Star: Supernova, where despite having been eliminated in the week before the finale, Storm built a fan base that follows her around the world to this day. Storm joins us to talk about growing up with a severely mentally disturbed mother and the message she received from her mother's doctor, "Oh yeah, you will absolutely end up like your Mother. It's hereditary." But, this conversation is not about Storm's efforts to outrun a diagnosis, it's an artist's journey back to herself. Storm's autobiographical musical memoir, Crazy Enough, played to packed houses in 2009 during its unprecedented 21-week sold-out run in Portland. She's back for the ten-year reunion stronger, wiser, and larger in spirit than ever before. (Don't miss the after the show conversation about cancel culture and what really goes on in therapy.)

In October of 2019 we spoke to pop Superstar Lauv. He was on top of the world with the kickoff of his How I’m Feeling Tour, and using his global platform to promote mental health. In every show, Lauv takes a few minutes to describe his descent into depression and severe OCD, and why he credits therapy and medication with allowing him to regain his creativity and confidence.  Lauv has partnered with Microsoft to create a worldwide mental health platform that connects people all over the globe. “No Matter where people are in the world, they can see that someone else is experiencing something really similar.”    Check out MyBlueThoughts.World and our blog of the concert at TheAnthem in D.C.@BeyondWellWithSheilaHamilton.com

This show was originally released in March of 2019. We're thrilled to Re-visit Lidia Yuknavitch. The author of nine books, including The Chronology of Water, The Small Backs of Children, The book of Joan, and the Misfits Manifesto. Lidia's Ted Talk, The Beauty of Being a Misfit has been viewed 2,862,000 times. We think she has something to share about how telling and retelling your story can help re-frame traumatic experience.

Dave Dahl speaks openly about his ongoing management of depression and bipolar disorder and the excruciating climb back from a manic episode that nearly ended his life. Dahl’s entrepreneurial journey began in prison. In 1987, Dave was addicted to drugs and incarcerated for home burglary. Dave returned to his family bakery in the mid 2000’s and quickly developed a marketing juggernaut, Dave’s Killer Bread. In 2015, the Dahl family sold the business for $275 million dollars. In this interview, Dave talks with Sheila about the crucial necessity of management of his mental health symptoms.

We are starting 2020 by taking a look back at a few of our favorite shows from 2019. This show was originally released in March of 2019. It features special guest Cheryl Strayed. The message of Cheryl Strayed's memoir Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Trail has helped millions of people process grief in a new and profound way. In this episode of Beyond Well, Sheila Hamilton and Dr's Brian Goff and Jenna LeJeune talk about the potential of bouncing forward after loss, and of grieving from a place of honesty and self-compassion.

Mike Schmidt is running for Multnomah county district attorney with one of the most multi-dimensional views toward the criminalization of the mentally ill we’ve ever heard. Mike’s experience as an inner city school teacher informs his sense of justice and rehabilitation.

Dr. Brian Goff and Dr. Jenna LeJeune debate the nature of #self-care and whether the notion of self care has a negative impact on  people’s lives because it singles out your “self” from all the other selves you love (people, pets, work partners, etc.)  Jenna argues to  be sure to include you always in the group of people you are caring well for, using the skills of LovingKindness Meditation, Brian is more  open to the notion of #selfcare as it can help people who might otherwise have restricted or denied themselves love and compassion a gateway to care.

Do “Trigger warnings” and “Safe Spaces” really keep us safe? Dr Jenna LeJeune and Dr. Brian Goff discuss the dangerous trend toward identifying feelings as painful and thoughts as dangerous and harmful.  But what are meant to be “safe-spaces” turn into echo chambers, shutting down any diversity of perspective or thought. New research suggests that trigger warnings may actually result in increased anxiety and Increased stigmatizing beliefs.

C. Lamar Frizzell, CEO of Cedar Hills Hospital, has worked in the field of behavioral healthcare for over 20 years. Most recently, Frizzell held a similar role at Willow Creek Behavioral Health located in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Frizzell brings practical experience as a line-staff member and is educated in the fields of both Mental Health and Divinity In this interview, Sheila talks with Frizzell about the enormous pressure facing psychiatric hospitals because of an explosion of people in crisis. There are never enough beds, care is complicated, and psychiatric doctors and nurses are in short supply. Frizzell’s personal history growing up in a home where mental health problems were abundant informs his compassion and empathy for people in crisis.

What makes a meaningful life? How Can we all live lives of purpose, focusing on who and what matters most to us regardless of whatever difficulties we are facing? These are the questions at the heart of Beyond Well cohost Jenna LeJeune, Ph.D. and her partner Jason Luoma, Ph.D.'s new book Values in Therapy" A Clinician's Guide to Helping Clients Explore Values, Increase Psychological Flexibility, and Live a More Meaningful Life. In this very personal episode of Beyond Well, Jenna and Jason offer some of their ideas on what it means to live a value based life and how doing so can bring a sense of meaning, purpose, and vitality to our everyday lives.

Nastashia Minto is an author, poet, and spoken word artist with the Soul of a Southern Pastor. In this interview, Nastashia talks about finding faith while abandoning her religion and delivers two of her stunning spoken word performances.

This is one of the most relevant conversations you’ll hear if you hunker down from late November until the New Year. The holiday blues are often a barometer of the stories we tell ourselves about what we should have, and compare those narratives to stories about what others seem to have. We invite you to a discussion on what some view as the hardest time of the year.

Cassidy Quinn is one of the most beloved Northwest news and entertainment personalities. As host of a tv news program, Tonight with Cassidy, a radio show and a popular Youtube channel, Cassidy barely has time to sleep. In this episode, Cassidy talks about what it took to finally admit that she was suffering from depression and anxiety, and how she lives well despite her diagnosis.

Israel Nebeker is the founder of Blind Pilot and a singer/songwriter whose music now reaches millions of fans. In this episode, Israel talks about confronting one of the darkest periods of his life by wandering into the Black Forest in Germany—with no path to follow and not sure if he would ever find his way out. It was only by confronting his loneliness, his fear, and his belief that he was powerless to change the dynamic that he experienced a significant awakening.    This interview was voted one of our favorites by the Beyond Well Team because of how open, authentic and vulnerable  Israel and his music is. Don’t miss it.

As an actor on the hit series American Vandal and someone who is constantly in the public eye, Kiah Stern has no plan B. She’s working plan A with an intensity and focus rarely talked about when people dream of becoming a star. We talk with Kiah about how best to deal with a barrage of “feedback,” solicited or not. From her body to her hair to her various film and tv roles, Kiah (who played Jenna Hawthorne in Season Two of American Vandal) has developed specific techniques for how to deal with solicited and unsolicited feedback. In this episode, Kiah explains her love/hate relationship with social media, how she incorporates audition like techniques in her everyday life, and when she says no to external feedback.

People are increasingly unsure about kids, and the US and European fertility rate is at an all time low. According to Pew Research, 1 in 5 people will remain childless. This week, the Beyond Well Team talk about the growing number of people who are intentionally childless. If you are attempting to decide whether to have children, this episode is for you. As a farm girl raised in eastern Oregon, Jackie ShannonHollis expected to become another someday. But, after several failed relationships, Jackie met the love of her life, a man who did not want children. In direct and intimate language, Hollis talks about her consideration of what to keep and what to abandon to make space for love. Her debut memoir, This Particular Happiness is receiving critical acclaim for its honesty, its poetry, and one woman’s ability to tell the truth about our most intimate desires.

Ron Artis II is growing into a newly accessible and emotionally acute period of his life. His new album, Love is Love, is a departure from the funk and soul fans are accustomed to from his wildly popular band, Ron Artis II and the Truth, but its stunning lyrics and melodic sound reveal a growth Ron himself says he nearly missed, “From the age of thirteen to eighteen, while I was concentrating on becoming the best guitar player I could be, I thought emotions were something to be dispensed with, a distraction. I didn’t realize how much potential for creativity I was missing.”

Bestselling-Author Cheryl Strayed met her husband nine days after she’d finished her now famous journey along the Pacific Crest Trail. “The woman I was before that hike would not have been ready to meet and fall in love with Brian.” Brian Lindstrom and Cheryl speak candidly with the Beyond Well Team about the intention and communication necessary to maintain a purposeful, values-oriented relationship, and the sheer luck there is in finding someone who sees and supports your dreams.  Lindstrom and Strayed just combined creative forces to shoot their critically acclaimed documentary “We are Forbidden” about young women in Nepal who are ostracized during menstruation.

Pop Superstar Lauv is on top of the world with the kickoff of his How I’m Feeling Tour, and he’s using his global platform to promote mental health. In every show, Lauv takes a few minutes to describe his descent into depression and severe OCD, and why he credits therapy and medication with allowing him to regain his creativity and confidence.   Lauv has partnered with Microsoft to create a worldwide mental health platform that connects people all over the globe. “No Matter where people are in the world, they can see that someone else is experiencing something really similar.”     Check out MyBlueThoughts.World and our blog of the concert at TheAnthem in D.C. @BeyondWellWithSheilaHamilton.com

Kathleen Lane is the author of The Best Worst Thing, a young reader’s book for anxious kids and the founder of  www.createmorefearless.org a program that uses creativity to explore, express, and connect. This episode includes tips for anxious children and pre-teens as well as brilliant takeaways for parents who cope with adult-sized worries.

Lyme Disease is the fastest growing infectious disease in the world, eclipsing the HIV/Aids crisis by over 10X. It is now reported in all 50 states and 79 countries. The CDC estimates 400,000 new cases per year, but even that number is thought to be on the low end of the problem. Lyme has been reported to be associated with various psychiatric presentations because Borreliaburgdorferi can present with symptoms similar to schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Because Lyme patients are so often misdiagnosed and mistreated, a higher level of risk to self and others is associated with multiple symptoms developing after acquiring LAD.

Liz Prato is the author of several award-winning books and story collections. She talks with Beyond Well about the challenge of a creative life while living with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.  Liz says, “Chronic Fatigue Syndrome has forced me to get very quiet with myself, and ask who am I, apart from this body?” Liz’s insight into the psychological and physical toll of Chronic Fatigue is both illuminating and sobering. People who suffer from Chronic Fatigue syndrome are often dismissed by both the medical community and too often, their friends and family.  Chronic Fatigue is a medication condition of unknown cause, with fever, aching, and prolonged tiredness and depression.

If you’ve ever passed a homeless teen on the street and wondered, “How did they get there?” or “How can I help?” this interview with Rei Scozylakas is worthy of your time. Rei Scozylakas wasn’t dealt an easy hand in this life. But, as you can hear in our conversation, Rei’s story isn’t just one of struggle. In fact, that’s not even the most compelling part of their story “Nobody is born wanting to be an outcast. It wasn’t until I was really seen by the volunteers at Outside Inn, that I realized there was a different path than the one I was on.”

In honor of Suicide Prevention Week, we are bringing you multiple stories of hope, resilience, and healing. Lois Chauncey lost her husband to suicide in May, and like many other suicide loss survivors, she feared she would also lose her job due to her complicated grief. Paul Sale, her Supervisor, provided a textbook-like example of how a company should appropriately respond to a suicide loss survivor in the workplace.   From the humbling way in which Paul responded to the initial news of suicide, to the steps Lois and Paul took to inform others in the workplace, the empathy, compassion, and kindness one team took to welcome back in a suicide loss survivor is a hopeful study in how a workplace can help heal a co-worker's grief, and win a valued employee's respect and loyalty.

Twenty-two veterans die by suicide every day in America, outpacing deaths in combat or war supporting activities. Despite the military’s best efforts to contain a public health crisis, the numbers of deaths continue to rise. The Beyond Well team had extraordinary insight into the causes and potential remedies of military suicides in our conversation with New York Times bestselling author and former Special Tactics Officer, Dan Schilling.   Schilling spent more than 30 years in the military, primarily as a Combat Controller and Special Tactics Officer, though he proudly started his career as an infantry grunt. His numerous combat and clandestine deployments have taken him around the world and include Operation Gothic Serpent, popularly known as Black Hawk Down from the movie and book bearing the same name, where he is credited with saving the lives of a Ranger and SEAL Team Six SEAL while under fire. He later founded and then served as the first commander of two special operations squadrons, one of which’s name and purpose remains classified.  A purveyor of adrenaline-fueled endeavors, he holds the Guinness World Record for most BASE jumps in 24 hours (201), a feat he conducted to benefit children who’ve lost a parent in special operations through the Special Operations Warrior Foundation. He is also a pro-rated demonstration skydiver, speedwing flyer and expert skier and volunteer instructor with Wasatch Adaptive Sports, helping those with disabilities to experience the thrill of downhill skiing.   Beyond Well talks with Dan about the mental health crisis in America’s military.

Ken Cervera's openness, his honesty and his path to wellness have all been informed by an immensely isolating period in his late twenties when he attempted to end his life. Ken drove his motorcycle through a Los Angeles intersection straight into an oncoming vehicle. Miraculously, both drivers escaped harm.  It is Suicide Prevention Week and we believe suicide attempt survivors can be extremely helpful in understanding the suicide epidemic, the mindset of suicidal ideation, and why relationship-centered and evidence-based treatment is essential to recovery.  Ken Cervera is the host of Own Your Truth Podcast, a personal coach, and the Director of Wellness for Mind Health Institute, Pasadena.

Edan Armas is an award-winning Spoken Word Artist and Poet and graduate of Stanford University. Armas was the 2019 Baccalaureate student speaker, and an outspoken voice on the topic of student mental Health. Edan’s undergraduate career focused on how emotion manifests in the body, mind and the  collective consciousness.  Edan encourages students to embrace both the tribulations and triumphs of the college experience, noting that the process of adulting is difficult—even painful, and how vulnerability became his superpower.

Logan Lynn is a musician, writer, producer, filmmaker, TV personality and LGBT activist. Since 1998, Logan has released nine studio albums and is the former host of Logo's "NewNowNextMusic." But, in the midst of his success, Lynn relied on self-medicating with drugs and alcohol as a response to years of childhood sexual abuse at the hands of a trusted family friend. It wasn't until a therapist asked Lynn, "What happened to you?" that Logan was able to deconstruct his own history of trauma. In this intimate interview, Lynn talks about his own unique path to recovery, why medical marijuana is part of his treatment plan, and how he consciously chooses life every day.

We hire personal trainers to help us get in shape, tutors for difficult subjects, and music instructors to learn to master musical instruments.  So, why are people reluctant to hire a therapist, a person trained to help people better manage their minds? In this episode, Jenna, Sheila and Brian talk about how therapy works and what really goes on in therapeutic sessions.

Sharma Shields wants us all to get real about the things we've done, the mistakes we've made, and the people we are hoping to become. Her writing, including her highly acclaimed novels, The Sasquatch Hunter's Almanac, and the Cassandra, along with her award-winning short story collection, challenges readers to confront the most awful aspects of our society--sexual abuse, poverty, crimes against children, bullying, and environmental injustice.  But, Sharma is equally as open with her own life story, including alcoholism and living with multiple sclerosis. Sitting down with her was sheer joy, complete honesty, and a loving openness. How can we be both things? Both dark and light? Listen in:

Is it the sex itself, or something about sexual activity that is so good for our happiness? You might argue that people who are happier are more likely to have sex more often because they’re in a good relationship and are satisfied with it.  But, why do so many couples get hung up on frequency and type of sex? And how do we begin to communicate our needs honestly, without hurting our partners? Dr. Jenna LeJeune and Dr. Brian Goff talk about the positive emotional aspects of sex, disagree on porn, and get real on what good sex is all about.

In this episode, Dr. Jenna LeJeune and Dr Brian Goff go deeper into some of the strategies they use with clients in recognizing, accepting and working with anxiety in order to continue to lead productive lives. Dr. LeJeune and Dr. Goff both practice Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), a unique empirically based psychological intervention that uses acceptance and mindfulness strategies, together with commitment and behavior change strategies, to increase psychological flexibility. Psychological flexibility means contacting the present moment fully as a conscious human being, and based on what the situation affords, changing or persisting in behavior in the service of chosen values.

Long before the death of Anthony Bourdain, Restauranteur John Gorham was addressing the issue of mental health in the kitchen. Restaurant workers have the highest rate of illicit drug use and the second-highest rate of suicide. In this episode, John talks with the Beyond Well team about the structural changes he's made to address anxiety, depression and drug use in restaurant workers. "Anthony's suicide was brutal on our industry," John says, "Because he had it all. He had the dream. He had it all. So if life wasn't good enough for him, how could it possibly be good enough for others who don't have his skills?"  John Gorham is Executive Chef/Owner of iconic Portland restaurants Toro Bravo, Tasty n Daughters, Tasty n Alder, PLAZA DEL TORO and co-owner of Mediterranean Exploration Company, Shalom Y'all, and Bless Your Heart Burgers. Gorham believes that a chef’s cuisine and style is influenced by a trade route composed of travels, past work and cities lived in.

Haley Johnsen is a singer-songwriter best characterized by her powerhouse vocals and unique lyrical perspective. Drawing inspiration from acts like Bonnie Raitt, Grace Potter, and Brandi Carlile, Haley sings with a soulful determination. Her songwriting speaks to common themes of loneliness, self-doubt and self-criticism. We talk to Haley about how she copes as a performer despite battling anxiety.  During 2017 and 2018, Haley toured as an opener for Sawyer Fredericks and as lead support for The Wind and The Wave all across the United States. She recently released her first full studio album and LP Golden Days now available everywhere. Haley talks with the Beyond Well Team about doing what she loves despite anxiety and self-doubt.

From Ari Mathae: "As I've come out, first as pansexual a couple of years ago and recently as nonbinary, I've had a lot of conversations with my friends and family and coworkers about gender and identity. For me, being nonbinary allows me to make my own rules for how I move within the world and form my own idea of feminine and masculine. But I still struggle frequently with redirecting my mind when I worry about fitting in or not fitting in enough with our culture's binary expectations." This episode is with Ari and their dad, Paul, talking about gender expectations, masculinity, and the role of the evangelical church in shaping gender expectations.

Drew Holguin was born in a predominantly black neighborhood to mixed-race family. "I was too white in my neighborhood, but not white enough at the white dominant schools I attended. Regardless of where I was, I wasn't accepted." Holguin began delivering drugs as a way of getting attention and friends.   Holguin is one of 3.45 million kids in this country who are suspended or expelled from public school, with few options for what comes next. Open School is an innovative education program for students like Drew, who needed something different than a traditional school. Open School knows which kids are most likely to drop out. Educators interested in the whole person find those students and surround them with what they need to graduate and get ahead; rigorous academics, teachers who believe in them, and a whole lot of relentless love and support.  In this conversation, Drew talks about how emotional skill-building helped him create a healthy relationship, earn his Master's degree in Social Work, and return as a program manager in the counseling department at Open School.    www.openschoolnw.org

Narcissistic Personality Disorder or NPD is a condition characterized by an overwhelming need for attention and admiration, a heightened sense of self-importance, and a lack of empathy toward others. It is difficult enough to encounter a partner or business associate with NPD, but Liz Scott grew up with narcissists as parents. Like an archaeological dig, Liz Scott’s memoir This Never Happened goes in search of the answers to the mysteries of her family. In her relentless quest to uncover the truth, she mines photographs and letters, leaving no one, including herself, unexamined.  In the end, Liz's struggle clears decades of familial pain to make room for compassion.

Storm Large: musician, actor, playwright, author, awesome. She shot to national prominence in 2006 as a finalist on the CBS show Rock Star: Supernova, where despite having been eliminated in the week before the finale, Storm built a fan base that follows her around the world to this day. Storm joins us to talk about growing up with a severely mentally disturbed mother and the message she received from her mother's doctor, "Oh yeah, you will absolutely end up like your Mother. It's hereditary." But, this conversation is not about Storm's efforts to outrun a diagnosis, it's an artist's journey back to herself. Storm's autobiographical musical memoir, Crazy Enough, played to packed houses in 2009 during its unprecedented 21-week sold-out run in Portland. She's back for the ten-year reunion stronger, wiser, and larger in spirit than ever before. (Don't miss the after the show conversation about cancel culture and what really goes on in therapy.)

Skye Fitzgerald is an Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker whose work on issues of social justice takes him to the epicenters of suffering. We talk with Skye about how he maintains his sense of self while covering brutally difficult topics.  Skye's most recent film, Lifeboat, forced this choice: "When you see someone drowning after falling or being pushed from a boat filled with refugees, do you get the shot or do you pull someone to safety? I put down the camera and grabbed people from the water. It was the decision I made so that I could live with myself."