In episode 190 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with journalist Matt Graveling.
Matt currently works freelance for a range of outlets including the BBC, predominantly on sports stories.
In this episode we discuss how and why Matt got into journalism, his previous lives as a dogwalker, an NHS worker and packing boxes in a factory before he broke into journalism, fighting tooth and nail to get to where he is today but yet still not feeling stable and the anxiety of being a freelance journalist when it comes to getting work.
We also talk about the competitive and brutal nature of the industry and how the constant news cycle can affect a journalist’s mental health.
For Matt’s mental health, Matt went through two big life events in his late teens which had a huge impact on him and his family; the first was when his mums’ friends’ son took his own life. The second was when a teenager was hit by a bus outside of the school his dad was headteacher at and died.
Both these events rocked his family’s world for a significant period of time and Matt spiralled into a depressive state. He got to the point where he realised if he didn’t get help, he could have felt suicidal. He sought out his family GP and was eventually put on medication.
We finish by discussing the death of his father from blood cancer on 19th February 2022. We explore that grief, why he felt he had to step up in his family as a man, how his family has changed since his dad’s death and how he used running, specifically running the London Marathon in October 2022 as a way to channel his grief.
As always, #itsokaytovent
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