Inside Mental Health

Are menopause and mental health issues related? For some, the transition can bring significant changes in mood, anxiety, sleep, cognition, and overall mental well-being. But how can you tell what’s menopause, what’s a mental health condition, and when it’s time to seek help?

In this episode, Gabe Howard talks with psychiatrist Dr. C. Neill Epperson, chair of the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and ADAA Member expert, about the complicated connection between menopause and mental health.

Dr. Epperson explains the kinds of cognitive changes that can occur during menopause, why anxiety and cognitive overload can make symptoms worse, and what signs deserve further evaluation. The conversation also offers practical guidance for anyone who feels dismissed by a healthcare professional. 

Listeners will learn:


why brain fog can happen during menopause

when cognitive changes may need evaluation

questions to ask your healthcare professional about menopause

why you don't have to suffer in silence


If you've noticed changes in your mood, anxiety, sleep, memory, or concentration during perimenopause or menopause, this conversation can help you understand what may be happening and what to discuss with your healthcare professional. Listen now!Special thanks to Vistagen for providing educational support for this episode. 

“Sister, you're not alone [...] Three million women go through menopause each year in the U.S. alone.” ~Dr. C. Neill Epperson, ADAA Member Expert



Our guest, C. Neill Epperson, MD, is Professor and Robert Freedman Endowed Chair of Psychiatry at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Prior to this, she founded and directed the Penn Center for Women’s Behavioral Wellness and Penn PROMOTES at the University of Pennsylvania, where she was a tenured Professor of Psychiatry and Obstetrics/Gynecology. Dr. Epperson earned her medical degree at the University of North Carolina and completed her psychiatry training at Yale University School of Medicine.

An expert in women’s reproductive and behavioral health, Dr. Epperson’s research has advanced understanding of the effects of gonadal steroids on brain function, reproductive status, and sex in biomedical research. She has also explored the impact of childhood adversity on hormonal responses and brain behavior. With over 250 peer-reviewed publications, her NIH-funded research spans more than two decades.



Our host, Gabe Howard, is an award-winning writer and speaker who lives with bipolar disorder. He is the author of the popular book, "Mental Illness is an Asshole and other Observations," available from Amazon; signed copies are also available directly from the author. Gabe is also the host of the "Inside Bipolar" podcast with Dr. Nicole Washington.

Gabe makes his home in the suburbs of Columbus, Ohio. He lives with his supportive wife, Kendall, and a Miniature Schnauzer dog that he never wanted, but now can’t imagine life without. To book Gabe for your next event or learn more about him, please visit gabehoward.com.

What happens after the traumatic event is over, but your brain and body still don't feel safe?

Kari Wells, known for Bravo's Married to Medicine, opens up about the severe PTSD she experienced after surviving a violent armed robbery. For months, she struggled to feel safe in everyday places like supermarkets and movie theaters, in her neighborhood, and even at home.

Wells is now sharing what came next in her new book, From Attitude to Gratitude: 15 Practices for Transforming Pain Into Power. Today she sits down with host Gabe Howard about what it really means to heal from trauma when you're nowhere near ready to “move on.”

Listeners Will Learn:

·      The difference between healing and toxic positivity

·      Why forgiveness can be an act of self-care

·      What it means to reclaim agency after trauma

This conversation challenges the idea that healing means immediately finding the positive. Wells explains why acknowledging pain has to come before transforming it, why there is no universal timeline for recovery, and how she learned to see pain as something that could teach her without allowing it to define her.

If you've experienced trauma—or love someone who has—this conversation offers a candid look at what healing can actually look like: not pretending everything is fine, but slowly learning how to move forward.



Pull Quote

“You cannot deny your pain. You cannot just quickly put a smile on your face and say, this never happened.”  ~Kari Wells from Bravo's Married to Medicine



Our guest is the elegant, articulate, and effortlessly charming, Kari Wells who is a British author, television personality, actress, and entrepreneur celebrated for her poise both on and off the screen. Best known as the breakout star and fan favorite of Bravo’s Married to Medicine, Kari was famously dubbed “The Queen of Class” by host Andy Cohen—a title she embraces with a touch of wit, often adding “and a bit of sass.”

Kari’s extensive experience spans continents and industries. With formal training in film and television from both the UK and the US, she has starred in numerous films, national commercials, and television productions, including Tyler Perry’s The Haves and the Have Nots, the Ghostbusters web series, and a host of independent projects. From playing comedic characters to delivering heartfelt dramatic performances, Kari commands every stage with confidence and grace.

Beyond entertainment, Kari is a published author, lifestyle blogger, and accomplished entrepreneur. She has run a successful film production company, developed real estate in Aspen and Atlanta, and authored The Pink Monkey, a children’s book promoting tolerance and inclusion as well as a spiritual self help book From Attitude to Gratitude 15 ways of transforming Pain into Power through Simon and Schuster.

She lends her time and talents to causes including Doctors Without

Borders, youth mentoring programs, the Aspen arts, Best Buddies and Action in Africa. She is the producer of the new lifestyle show Aspen Unfiltered - Preserving Aspen’s Stories as a gift for future generations.

Kari’s signature blend of humor, elegance, and professionalism makes her a standout emcee. A seasoned world traveler fluent in multiple languages, Kari lives by the mantra, “You cannot have a narrow mind with a thick passport.” Her global perspective, dynamic presence, and heartfelt commitment to making a difference make her an inspiring choice for any high-profile event.



Our host, Gabe Howard, is an award-winning writer and speaker who lives with bipolar disorder. He is the author of the popular book, "Mental Illness is an Asshole and other Observations," available from Amazon; signed copies are also available directly from the author. Gabe is also the host of the "Inside Bipolar" podcast with Dr. Nicole Washington.

Gabe makes his home in the suburbs of Columbus, Ohio. He lives with his supportive wife, Kendall, and a Miniature Schnauzer dog that he never wanted, but now can’t imagine life without. To book Gabe for your next event or learn more about him, please visit gabehoward.com.

“I’m fine” can be one of the most convincing ways to hide that something is wrong. For many women, anxiety and depression can remain invisible behind careers, relationships, family responsibilities, and the expectation to simply keep going. In this episode, host Gabe Howard talks with psychiatrist Dr. Helen Blair Simpson, Professor of Psychiatry at Columbia University Irving Medical Center and Director of the Center for OCD and Related Disorders, and an ADAA member expert, about why women experience anxiety and depression at higher rates than men and why so many continue to suffer in silence.

Dr. Simpson explains why the difference cannot be reduced to hormones or biology alone. Biological changes across the life span, including pregnancy, postpartum periods, and menopause, interact with psychological and social factors in ways researchers are still working to understand. But how do you know when ordinary stress, sadness, or worry crosses the line into a mental health condition? Dr. Simpson explains why persistence, recurrence, distress, and impairment matter — and why effective treatments are available.

Listeners will learn:


how stigma keeps women from seeking help

why mental health treatment isn’t an instant fix

why asking for help is a sign of strength

how self-assessments can identify mental health concerns


Sometimes “I’m fine” means everything is fine. Sometimes it means, “I don’t know how to ask for help.” This conversation explores the difference. Listen now!



Educational funding for this episode has been provided by Lancôme. To learn more about the "I'm Fine" campaign, please visit ImFine.com.



“I would never want someone to take away all my sad feelings. That's what makes you feel love and loss. . .” ~H. Blair Simpson, MD, PhD 



Our guest, Helen Blair Simpson, MD, PhD, is a Professor of Psychiatry in the Department of Psychiatry at Columbia University Irving Medical College (CUIMC). A physician-scientist whose research has been funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) since 1999 as well as by foundations and philanthropy, Dr. Simpson uses clinical trials to identify the best treatments for anxiety disorders and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), collaborates with neuroscientists to elucidate how the brain produces anxiety, obsessions, and compulsions, and partners with implementation scientists to increase access across New York State to evidence-based care. A past advisor to the World Health Organization (WHO) on the classification of anxiety disorders and OCD, co-author of the American Psychiatric Association’s Practice Guidelines for OCD, and Past President of the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA), Dr. Simpson currently serves as Associate Editor of JAMA Psychiatry.



Our host, Gabe Howard, is an award-winning writer and speaker who lives with bipolar disorder. He is the author of the popular book, "Mental Illness is an Asshole and other Observations," available from Amazon; signed copies are also available directly from the author. Gabe is also the host of the "Inside Bipolar" podcast with Dr. Nicole Washington.

Gabe makes his home in the suburbs of Columbus, Ohio. He lives with his supportive wife, Kendall, and a Miniature Schnauzer dog that he never wanted, but now can’t imagine life without. To book Gabe for your next event or learn more about him, please visit gabehoward.com.




To learn more about the "I'm Fine" campaign, please visit ImFine.com.

What if the person everyone thinks has it all together is actually struggling with depression, and they don’t even know how to express it? What if that person is you?

Clinical psychologist Dr. Margaret Rutherford joins host Gabe Howard to explore perfectly hidden depression, a pattern in which perfectionism, achievement, responsibility, and constant productivity can conceal serious emotional pain. These aren’t necessarily people pretending to be happy or deliberately creating a perfect life. They may genuinely believe that continually striving, helping others, solving problems, and staying “on” is simply who they are, which can make depression incredibly difficult to recognize.

Listeners will learn:


why success doesn’t necessarily mean someone isn’t depressed

why “fake it till you make it” can miss the real problem

how being “the responsible one” can become a trap

where to begin when perfectionism is causing emotional pain


Most importantly, this conversation isn’t about eliminating ambition, responsibility, or gratitude. It’s about having choices. Dr. Rutherford explains how recognizing destructive patterns can help people decide what they want to keep, what they want to change, and where they need to give themselves permission to be something other than “perfect.”

If you or someone you love always seems fine, successful, responsible, and endlessly capable, this conversation may give you a different way to look beneath the surface.



“Perfectionism can actually become its own prison where you feel trapped in this life of, ‘but everybody looks up to me.’” ~Dr. Margaret Rutherford



Our guest, Dr. Margaret Rutherford, is a clinical psychologist whose TEDx Talk on Perfectly Hidden Depression has reached 2+ million viewers. Her work has been translated into dozens of languages and offers life changing insights for sufferers, families, and friends.

Our host, Gabe Howard, is an award-winning writer and speaker who lives with bipolar disorder. He is the author of the popular book, "Mental Illness is an Asshole and other Observations," available from Amazon; signed copies are also available directly from the author. Gabe is also the host of the "Inside Bipolar" podcast with Dr. Nicole Washington.

Gabe makes his home in the suburbs of Columbus, Ohio. He lives with his supportive wife, Kendall, and a Miniature Schnauzer dog that he never wanted, but now can’t imagine life without. To book Gabe for your next event or learn more about him, please visit gabehoward.com.



Thank You and Please Share the Show With EVERYONE You Know!

Psychedelics are having a moment in mental health care. Research is showing promising results for conditions including depression, treatment-resistant depression, anxiety, and PTSD. But how much do we actually know — and how much is hype?

ADAA member expert and licensed psychologist Jonathan Schettino, PhD, explains how psychedelics went from being viewed primarily as illegal drugs to becoming the subject of serious clinical research. He breaks down what happens during psychedelic-assisted therapy, why standardized dosing matters, and why treatment involves much more than simply taking a psychedelic and “tripping.”

Listeners will learn:


how researchers control psychedelic doses in clinical trials

why psychedelics aren't yet FDA-approved treatments

whether psychotherapy makes psychedelic treatment more effective


The research is promising, but the science isn't settled. This conversation explains what we know, what we don't know, and why the next few years could be critical for understanding the future of psychedelic-assisted mental health treatment. Listen now!

This episode has been sponsored by the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA).



Our guest, Dr. Jonathan Schettino, is a licensed psychologist specializing in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for anxiety disorders and OCD as well as research on approaches to psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. He received his AB in psychology from Princeton University in 2004 and his Ph.D. in clinical psychology from UCLA in 2012. He completed his predoctoral psychology internship at St. Elizabeths forensic psychiatric hospital in Washington DC and postdoctoral training in personality assessment research at Otto-Friedrich Universität in Bamberg, Germany. He owns a small private psychology practice in Baltimore and has an appointment as a research psychologist at the Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research at Johns Hopkins University. 

Our host, Gabe Howard, is an award-winning writer and speaker who lives with bipolar disorder. He is the author of the popular book, "Mental Illness is an Asshole and other Observations," available from Amazon; signed copies are also available directly from the author. Gabe is also the host of the "Inside Bipolar" podcast with Dr. Nicole Washington.

Gabe makes his home in the suburbs of Columbus, Ohio. He lives with his supportive wife, Kendall, and a Miniature Schnauzer dog that he never wanted, but now can’t imagine life without. To book Gabe for your next event or learn more about him, please visit gabehoward.com.




This episode has been sponsored by the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA).