The Dysregulated Podcast

Elliot Waters | Lived Experience Mental Health
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  • MENTAL HEALTH
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

I live with anxiety, depression, ADHD, autism, OCD & BPD — and this podcast shares the hard-fought lessons I’ve learned along the way. This is lived-experience mental health, told with complete honesty and zero filter, including the vulnerable and significant moments that continue to shape my life today. Through personal reflections, therapy insights, interviews, nervous system regulation, and real-world struggles, I explore what it means to live with complex mental illness — grounded in psychological science and research.

  1. APR 28

    Highway Confessions: Facing Our Mortality

    The highway is supposed to be quiet, but my mind never is. On a 9pm drive from Newcastle down the Hume Highway (M31) toward Wodonga, I record another Highway Confessions and let you sit in the passenger seat that is usually empty. What starts as my favourite coping strategy for complex mental health quickly turns into the kind of deep thinking that can feel like standing too close to a fire, warm at first, then painful when you cannot pull away. I talk honestly about loneliness, being single, and the fear that life will end with a list of regrets. From there I go straight into mortality and death anxiety, the stuff many people can filter out but I cannot. I share what it is like to carry those thoughts while trying to live a normal life, and why stress and mood can make the same themes feel heavier on some nights than others. There is light in it too. I push back against the spiral with something real: meaning and purpose. I am going for my dream in trucking, and even when the job scares me, it is proof that I am not sitting still. Along the way I reflect on gratitude, mindfulness, positive psychology, and the spiritual questions that show up under the stars, including memories of my grandparents and thoughts about my dad. If you have ever felt stuck in your head, this one will feel uncomfortably familiar in the best way. Subscribe to “The Dysregulated Podcast”, share it with a mate who needs it, and leave a review so more people who live with mental illness can find honest stories like this. -- Follow The Dysregulated Podcast: Instagram – @elliot.t.waters Facebook – The Dysregulated Podcast YouTube – The Dysregulated Podcast (Official Channel) Created by Elliot Waters — Inspired by lived experience. Mental health insights, real stories, real conversations.

    31 min

  2. APR 26

    Six Weeks Of Panic: Chasing Purpose While Battling An Anxious Firestorm

    Six weeks into my new job and it’s been one long stretch of anxiety. I’m recording this on the Hume Highway, driving between Newcastle and Wodonga, finally explaining why I’ve gone quiet. I’ve thrown myself into learning truckin’ properly—Road Ranger gearboxes, reversing semi trailers, using the dogs annd chains. And the pressure? Relentless. This episode dives into what it’s like starting from zero while your head is working against you. Perfectionism, imposter syndrome, and an inner critic that turns small corrections into “proof” you’re failing. I break down the two anxiety streams driving it all—performance anxiety, and the fear of not belonging. Underneath it all is my meaning and purpose. This isn’t just a job, it’s tied to Resilient Roadways and something bigger. My vision. And it’s that meaning and purpose that keeps me going. But, it also raises the stakes. If I can pull this off? My legacy is assured. But if I fail, my very existence could be on the line once again.  -- Follow The Dysregulated Podcast: Instagram – @elliot.t.waters Facebook – The Dysregulated Podcast YouTube – The Dysregulated Podcast (Official Channel) Created by Elliot Waters — Inspired by lived experience. Mental health insights, real stories, real conversations.

    52 min

  3. APR 6

    From Mental Health to Road Transport: My Return to the Freight Game

    After years focused on mental health, I’ve made the call to return to the transport industry. To try and live out my dream, but with a new sense of purpose.   In this episode, I unpack why; the pull of the highway, the reality of stepping back into an environment that still makes me anxious, and what it means to start again from the ground up. There’s no polished blueprint here yet, just an honest look at where I’m at and what I’m stepping into. More importantly, this is the beginning of something bigger. I’m not leaving mental health advocacy and research behind — I’m bringing it with me, with the goal of connecting lived experience, psychology, and the realities of life on the road in a way that actually makes sense for the people doing the job. And if I can do that? Then hopefully the mental health of those in the industry will may be lifted.  -- Follow The Dysregulated Podcast: Instagram – @elliot.t.waters Facebook – The Dysregulated Podcast YouTube – The Dysregulated Podcast (Official Channel) Created by Elliot Waters — Inspired by lived experience. Mental health insights, real stories, real conversations.

    34 min

  4. APR 2

    Highway Confessions: The Thoughts I Can’t Outrun

    It’s 2:40am on the highway, driving home to Newcastle. No planning or preparation with this one — just the road and all my mind has been contending with. The same obsessions, the same questions. But tonight? It’s gone up a gear. I get into the deep stuff, the thoughts that have followed me for years — why do bad things happen to good people? — and where that leads: loneliness, relationships, and life back in transport. The fact that we all are carrying our own burdens, fighting our own battles. While I grapple in real time the injustice of it all. When it seems the world is asleep, my mind goes to work. Trying to solve the why, even though I know the answers are beyond my reach…. -- Follow The Dysregulated Podcast: Instagram – @elliot.t.waters Facebook – The Dysregulated Podcast YouTube – The Dysregulated Podcast (Official Channel) Created by Elliot Waters — Inspired by lived experience. Mental health insights, real stories, real conversations.

    47 min

  5. MAR 3

    Translating Mental Health: Supporting Each Other When the System Falters

    Some days are flat. The milestones drift. The questions feel heavier than they should. In this episode, I talk honestly about pressing pause on romance and pouring that energy into purpose — advocacy, community, and building work that actually fits the season I’m in. We unpack life with multiple diagnoses — generalised anxiety, social anxiety, OCD, ADHD, autism, BPD, bipolar II — without turning identity into a checklist. Dysregulated Daily is my way of showing the real picture: the wins, the losses, and the long grey in between. Because when crisis hits, people don’t need perfect answers. They need someone to sit beside them. Go to ED. Wait the hours. Support beats speeches every time. Trust me. I dig into stigma — especially around Borderline Personality Disorder, Schizophrenia, and Schizoaffective disorder — and why research needs to be translated into something human, usable, and real. With one in five Australians facing a diagnosable mental health condition, making care clearer and more navigable isn’t optional. It’s urgent. And it's in the public best interest. I don’t have everything figured out. God, I am trying hard to figure it out though, But I’m steady on the mission. If this episode resonates, follow Dysregulated Daily, on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube share it with someone who needs it, and leave a rating so these conversations can reach further. And best of all? I got that little dopamine hit. So thank you! -- Follow The Dysregulated Podcast: Instagram – @elliot.t.waters Facebook – The Dysregulated Podcast YouTube – The Dysregulated Podcast (Official Channel) Created by Elliot Waters — Inspired by lived experience. Mental health insights, real stories, real conversations.

    29 min

  6. FEB 24

    Crowds, Panic and Rising Above: Autism, Social Anxiety and the Newcastle Knights

    Ever felt calmer in a roaring stadium than a quiet supermarket? In this episode, I unpack the strange maths of social anxiety and autism — and why a packed night at McDonald Jones Stadium can feel safer than a fluorescent aisle at Coles. I walk you through hyper-vigilance, sensory overload, and the stories my brain spins when I’m late, lost, or convinced someone’s in “my” seat. And underneath it all? Love. Love for the Newcastle Knights, for red and blue, and for the city that built me. We talk social batteries — how sleep and solitude recharge them, but not always in time for kickoff. When that battery’s low, catastrophising creeps in fast. Small unknowns become full-blown internal conflict scenes. But there’s a second battery too: passion. Identity. Ritual. Loyalty. The chants, the banter, the stubborn belief the ref needs a reminder about the offside rule. Sometimes it’s magic. Sometimes I’m completely cooked by halftime. Both are true. I also share the story behind my Pride of the Hunter banner — why it fires me up, why people look for it on TV, and why part of me still worries I’m in the way. If you live with anxiety or sensory sensitivity, you’ll recognise the push-pull of doing what you love while your nervous system screams no. The takeaways? Anchor to values. Accept the nerves. Convert adrenaline into purpose. And plan recovery like it matters — because it absolutely does. -- Follow The Dysregulated Podcast: Instagram – @elliot.t.waters Facebook – The Dysregulated Podcast YouTube – The Dysregulated Podcast (Official Channel) Created by Elliot Waters — Inspired by lived experience. Mental health insights, real stories, real conversations.

    32 min

  7. FEB 20

    Panic On The Motorway: Driving Through Anxiety

    Right, picture this. It’s 2:30am. I’ve been bounced off half of Sydney’s motorways on the way back from Albury-Wodonga, the NSW/VIC border, and I’m talking myself through a full-blown panic attack because, well, everyone else is asleep. Zzzz Today started as a quick meet and greet and hit top gear — strapping freight, riding in an Kenworth and remembering why I love the transport industry so much. I’m trying to build something that brings trucking and mental health together… and for most of the day, I felt real purpose and inspired. Then, I hit Sydney.  First, the M7 shuts. No biggie, I keep on truckin’. Then, NorthConnex shuts. Just my luck.  Roadworks everywhere. Detours through the back roads of the big smoke. Sleep? Not likely tonight.   Now I’m picturing myself fronting up to an 8:30am meeting at the University, then a filmed interview I’ve been looking forward to all week, and an advisory group meeting (yep, big day) running on fumes — and the inner critic is LOUD. The anxiety is like THUNDER. Here comes the wave of dread. I just need to get back to Newcastle.  Perfection or nothing. Don’t stumble. You can’t afford it. The stakes are too high   So I go back to basics: name what I can see, breathe longer out than in, loosen the grip, label the task instead of the monster. The goal isn’t to get rid of fear at 3am — it’s to keep pointing northwards while it’s yelling at you. By the time I get home, the panic’s still there… but it’s smaller. And it’s not driving anymore. Thank God, neither am I. Now to sleep, I’ve got a big day coming up!  -- Follow The Dysregulated Podcast: Instagram – @elliot.t.waters Facebook – The Dysregulated Podcast YouTube – The Dysregulated Podcast (Official Channel) Created by Elliot Waters — Inspired by lived experience. Mental health insights, real stories, real conversations.

    28 min

  8. FEB 5

    When Love Meets BPD: Guilt, Growth & A Way Forward

    Borderline Personality Disorder has a habit of sending me down to the beach, to ask the big questions about life. To try and think my way through its distortion of my reality. Just like the waves in front of me, this time the memories have come flooding in. In this episode I’m sitting on the sand at Bar Beach, where I revisit some of the hardest truths that I can only now accept, about love and relationships. Newcastle holds some very difficult memories of my battle with BPD (and the rest) but now I can look back from a much healthier and resilient standpoint. In this episode I talk about the “switch” that flipped so often, from idealisation to complete distrust. The damage caused  when my system was overloaded with obsessive intrusive thoughts, uncontrollable ruminations, and the guilt that followed when I finally saw everything clearly again. This isn’t a redemption arc. Not yet anyway. It’s a completely honest and very real look at how relationships (and people) get caught in destructive BPD tornadoes — and what it took for me to break the pattern. I share thoughts on what helped me slow the spiral, repair my heart and soul after complete emotional rupture, and forge a version of myself that doesn’t need to test every bond to feel safe. That can trust, and be the partner I am meant to be. Even if I haven’t yet had the chance to be in a relationship and be that person since… The good news? BPD has been proven to be at the mercy of therapy and treatment, and it can be silenced and rendered unable to continue its destructive ways. Progress is certainly possible, as shown in the research consistently— even if it’s messy, non-linear, and at times painful and uncomfortable (but worth it, trust me). If you’ve ever felt love drown under a surging wave of negative emotion, this one will feel familiar. Borderline Personality Disorder is complex and often overwhelming. It distorts reality and pretends to be your friend. But it can be managed effectively. Unfortunately, it can be too late to save what should have been an amazing future with somebody special. And that’s the reality I now try to understand and accept. And I find myself again, sitting at the beach, late at night, with just my thoughts and memories… -- Follow The Dysregulated Podcast: Instagram – @elliot.t.waters Facebook – The Dysregulated Podcast YouTube – The Dysregulated Podcast (Official Channel) Created by Elliot Waters — Inspired by lived experience. Mental health insights, real stories, real conversations.

    32 min
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About

I live with anxiety, depression, ADHD, autism, OCD & BPD — and this podcast shares the hard-fought lessons I’ve learned along the way. This is lived-experience mental health, told with complete honesty and zero filter, including the vulnerable and significant moments that continue to shape my life today. Through personal reflections, therapy insights, interviews, nervous system regulation, and real-world struggles, I explore what it means to live with complex mental illness — grounded in psychological science and research.

Information

  • Creator
    Elliot Waters | Lived Experience Mental Health
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2026
  • Episodes
    237
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The Dysregulated Podcast
  • Show Website
    The Dysregulated Podcast

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