Team Talk by Milestone Milestone

In this, our third episode of Team Talk, Milestone founder, Chris Paget and clinical psychologist and Milestone trustee, Dr Ilan Ben-Zion sit down and chat with Patrick Foster (or Foz as he’s pretty much universally known), about his experiences of living for nearly a decade with a secret gambling addiction that took him right to the brink of taking his own life.

Foz is incredibly honest about his experience of battling (and inspiringly) overcoming his addiction.

With the prevalence of gambling in today’s society, and especially in the world of sport, gambling has become this unescapable but widely accepted social norm and Foz’s message about how easily it can infiltrate every part of your life is pretty sobering.

We of course chat around the impact that his gambling addiction had on all parts of life, from his relationships with family and friends, his mental and physical health, his work self-esteem and of course his finances! But the real takeaway is the importance that Foz places on communication and setting aside the fear that we all understandably have about being judged, or worrying what people may think of us, to allow our support networks to be exactly that, a source of support to us when we need it.

In Foz’s case it was the call he made to his brother, Sam, moments before he was about to take his own life that literally saved his life and set him on the track to recovery and to living his best life (which in lockdown has incredibly involved running over 1000km in under 100 days, 94 to be precise).

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If you are affected by anything in this episode then there are so many resources out there that can help in a discrete and confidential way including the National Gambling Helpline (0808 8020 133) and the CALM Helpline (0800 58 58 58). Similarly, if there are experiences you have had that you think you’d benefit from speaking about, Foz is very open and approachable and has confirmed he is more than happy for people to reach out directly to him via Twitter (@patrickfoster02).

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The Team Talk podcast is just one of the many initiatives and pieces of content by Milestone, a mental health charity which uses the power of sport to help normalise the conversation around mental health, to remove the stigmas that still exist in today’s society and to act as a catalyst for others to engage with and tackle whatever it is that they are facing in the knowledge that they are not alone.

To find out more about Milestone and all of the stuff that we have got going on give us a follow on Instagram @milestone.uk, Twitter @milestone_uk or through our website www.teammilestone.co.uk. Come and join the team!

In this, our second episode of Team Talk, Milestone founder, Chris Paget and clinical psychologist and Milestone trustee, Dr Ilan Ben-Zion chat with with Tom Poynton, the former Derbyshire wicketkeeper about his experiences of dealing with tragedy and grief following the death of his Dad, Keith, in a car accident in which Tom was a passenger.

Tom’s story is incredibly harrowing but also incredibly inspiring. Not only did the accident take his Dad’s life but the injuries that Tom suffered would also force him into early retirement from the game that he loved. At times it’s a pretty raw and emotional conversation but also an uplifting one. Uplifting in the sense that Tom’s story is one of self discovery, growth and emotional connection through the most tragic of situations.

We chat about the accident, the impact of it, how he coped (and continues to cope) with grief (including the challenges of trying to do so while not only fighting for his career but also having it played out in the media). We discuss the impact of having a win at all costs mentality, the need for balance in life and the importance of empathy and kindness in how we deal with ourselves and others.

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The Team Talk podcast is just one of the many initiatives and pieces of content by Milestone, a mental health charity which uses the power of sport to help normalise the conversation around mental health, to remove the stigmas that still exist in today’s society and to act as a catalyst for others to engage with and tackle whatever it is that they are facing in the knowledge that they are not alone.

To find out more about Milestone and all of the stuff that we have got going on give us a follow on Instagram @milestone.uk, Twitter @milestone_uk or through our website www.teammilestone.co.uk. Come and join the team!

In this, our first episode of Team Talk, Milestone founder, Chris Paget and clinical psychologist and Milestone trustee, Dr Ilan Ben-Zion chat with Luke Sutton, the former professional cricketer, turned talent manager, author and all round great guy, about his story dealing with his mental health difficulties, addiction, how therapy and time at rehab helped him reset and the lessons he learnt along the way.

The Team Talk podcast is just one of the many initiatives and pieces of content by Milestone, a mental health charity which uses the power of sport to help normalise the conversation around mental health, to remove the stigmas that still exist in today’s society and to act as a catalyst for others to engage with and tackle whatever it is that they are facing in the knowledge that they are not alone.

To find out more about Milestone and all of the stuff that we have got going on give us a follow on Instagram @milestone.uk, Twitter @milestone_uk or through our website www.teammilestone.co.uk. Come and join the team!