【confessions: eroticism in media】

We are confessions: eroticism in medialiving through challenging times.

And with many of us physically separated from family, friends, therapists, and support systems, maintaining our mental health is particularly difficult right now.

There is no substitute for those invaluable support systems, of course, but it can be really helpful to hear the lived experiences of other people who are going through the same thing you are.

As someone with anxiety who's relied heavily on virtual talk therapy during lockdown, I have found it so helpful to listen to podcasts where people speak honestly and openly about their mental health. In my experience, it helps to know you're not alone.

During this time of unparalleled loneliness, podcasts are also a great way to make your home feel less quiet. Here are a few chatty ones that will bring some welcome noise — and good, honest conversation about mental health — into your home.

1. Mentally Yours

Hosted by Metrojournalists Ellen Scott and Yvette Caster, Mentally Yours tackles a wide-ranging number of topics, including abusive relationships, living with alcoholism, body dysmorphia, and bipolar disorder, to name a few. Seeking information on a specific issue? Mentally Yoursepisodes are helpfully titled with specific topics to make it easier to find what you're looking for. Right now, Scott and Caster are focusing on mental wellbeing during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

2. Therapy for Black Girls

This podcast focuses on Black women and girls' mental wellbeing and is hosted by Dr. Joy Harden Bradford, a licensed psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia. Harden Bradford suggests practical tips and strategies for working on mental health, answers questions from listeners, and discusses what happens in therapy sessions.

3. The Melanated Social Work Podcast

Hosted by four men of colour who work in social work — Josh McNeil, Marvin Toliver, Michael Grinnell, and Jesse Wiltey — the Melanated Social Work Podcast dives into topics like white supremacy at work, toxic masculinity, mass shootings and mental health, and racist microaggressions.

4. Bryony Gordon's Mad World

Journalist and author Bryony Gordon gets up close and personal about mental health with a whole host of A-list guests. The very first episode of the podcast is with none other than Prince Harry. Other guests include actor, comedian, and writer Stephen Fry; singer Will Young; and Bake Offwinner Nadiya Hussain.

5. Griefcast

If you've experienced loss and are coping with grief, the Griefcast is well worth a listen. As host Cariad Lloyd writes on her website: "Griefcastis a podcast that examines the human experience of grief and death — but with comedians, so it’s cheerier than it sounds." Comedians Robert Webb, Nish Kumar, Deborah Frances White, and Aisling Bea are just a few names on the stellar line-up of this award-winning pod.

Related Video: Maria Menounos has turned her podcast into her own form of self-care

6. The Confidence Chronicles

Are you prone to self-comparison? Do you lack confidence? Hosted by Erika Cramer, AKA, the Queen of Confidence, The Confidence Chroniclesexplores methods for regaining confidence and tackles the unrealistic expectations we place on ourselves as well as sex and body image. Cramer is a mother of two children and often discusses motherhood and confidence.

7. When Someone Great Is Gone

This is not a podcast about LCD Soundsystem as the name might suggest. Instead, the podcast tackles grief and creativity in a really sensitive way by someone whose childhood was shaped by bereavement. Told through the first-hand experiences of host Izzy Lee-Poulton, who lost her mother to cancer when she was four years old, this podcast explores self-expression, inspiration, and creativity that comes from loss.

8. Mental

Refreshing in its honesty, this podcast aims to break down mental health stigma and discrimination. Brought to you by hosts Bobby Temps, Danielle Hogan, and Annie Harris, each episode features an interview with a special guest, dealing with a variety of issues, including loneliness, addiction, eating disorders, PTSD, abuse, shame, and imposter syndrome.

Happy listening!