In episode 337 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Mark Taylor.
Mark is a Director at Men Walking and Talking (MWAT), a men’s walk and talk organisation founded in 2021 by Dan Reid.
Mark is also the Kenilworth branch Walk Leader, which is how he became involved in MWAT and remains the leader to this day.
In this episode we discuss his involvement with MWAT, its growth, the services it provides and the impact it’s had on the men they support.
We also discuss Mark’s own mental health journey, which originates from a very bad car accident he had in 1997 when he was 25 years old. For a long time he didn’t see it as a long-lasting traumatic event.
However, in 2021, his mental health issues came to a head.
He started experiencing unexplained outbursts of anger in the workplace, which became so bad they almost cost him his job.
He googled anger management therapists and found someone who began helping him unlock why he was having these outbursts.
He told his therapist about some important life events which had caused him difficulty or even trauma. He listed being bullying at school, getting divorced from his wife and the loss of regular time with his children.
He then disclosed the car accident and some traits which are associated with Post-Traumatic Stress, including the anger, as well as high sensitivity to noisy environments and certain sounds.
Suddenly, things began to make sense and from there, he began to gain the self-awareness to improve his life, make adjustments to his work to avoid being triggered and recover from those traits which had previously almost derailed his life.
We discuss all of that, his recovery and how he now helps men go on that journey of self-awareness and ownership like he did.
As always, #itsokaytovent
You can find out more about MWAT and find your local walk branch here.
You can follow MWAT on social media here.
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