Unmasking Sobriety and Mental Health

Louise Barnett
  • 4.8 (65)
  • Mental Health
  • Updated Semiweekly

Welcome to The Unmasking Sobriety and Mental Health Podcast, where we are all “Completely Fine.” I’m your host, Louise Barnett—author of Tainted Love: A Bipolar Memoir and a Jay Shetty Certified Life Coach. I live with Bipolar I and found sobriety in 2021. Since then, I’ve been trying to figure out this whole thing called life—honestly, imperfectly, and out loud. Join me for candid conversations with people willing to go beyond the mask. Together, we explore mental health, sobriety, identity, and what it really means to survive. Not being ok, may just be "completely fine."

  1. Jun 15

    123. When the Diagnosis is Wrong with Ginger Smith

    In this powerful episode, Louise sits down with Ginger Smith, author of Dementia Denied, to explore a story that challenges everything we think we know about mental health, diagnosis, and recovery. A retired speech-language pathologist who worked alongside neurologists at Stanford and UCSF, Ginger spent her professional life helping others understand the brain. But her most profound lesson came when her own mind was called into question. Diagnosed with dementia and placed on hospice, Ginger was never expected to recover. But she did. In this conversation, Ginger opens up about surviving an abusive childhood, living with bipolar disorder and complex PTSD, and finding her way through addiction to 35 years of sobriety. She shares what it was like to be misdiagnosed, to lose everything—including relationships and stability—and to slowly rebuild a life grounded in truth. Together, Louise and Ginger explore trauma, resilience, neuroplasticity, and the possibility of healing—even when the odds say otherwise. This is a conversation about questioning assumptions, reclaiming your story, and discovering what’s still possible when everything seems lost. Dementia Denied: https://www.amazon.com/DEMENTIA-DENIED-Surviving-Diagnosis-Reclaiming-ebook/dp/B0F2WGRV6C Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/trek1937 IG: @Gingersmith104

    46 min

  2. Jun 1

    122. Parental Alienation, Narcissistic Abuse, and the Path to Sobriety with Alicia

    Is it possible that anyone else is living this insane double life? 💔 For years, Alicia was living a reality that many women secretly recognize: A Master’s degree and a career on the outside, but a "war zone" of a divorce on the inside. To cope with the narcissistic abuse, financial intimidation, and the agony of parental alienation, Alicia turned to wine as a sedative. It wasn’t a choice; it was survival. But as the "mommy wine culture" took hold, she found herself losing the very things she was fighting for—including her kids and her sense of self. Today, Alicia is 6 years sober, a She Recovers® Professional, and a light for women trapped in the same cycle. In our latest episode, she shares:  ✨ Surviving high-conflict divorce and legal abuse.  ✨ The truth about "drinking AT" your pain.  ✨ How she rebuilt her life from rock bottom to a successful coaching practice. 🎧 Tap the link in bio to hear Alicia’s incredible story of reclamation. Parental Alienation, Narcissistic Abuse, Substance Use Disorder, She Recovers, High-Conflict Divorce, Mommy Wine Culture, Recovery Coaching, Financial Abuse.

    55 min

  3. May 18

    121. The High-Achiever’s Mask: Radical Awareness with Ellen Frazier

    What happens when you’re #1 on the leaderboard but #0 in your own heart? Ellen Frazier spent over 20 years perfecting the role of the "Powerhouse." As a top-tier mortgage professional and entrepreneur, she knew exactly how to perform, how to excel, and how to win. But for decades, that success was fueled by a "forced confidence" and a sophisticated relationship with alcohol that allowed her to stay in the race while ignoring her own soul. In this episode, the founder of Booze Free Babes pulls the mask off the high-achieving lifestyle. We explore the dangerous intersection of "Success" and "Survival," and how Ellen finally chose radical self-awareness over social performance. Inside the conversation: The "Star" Program: How being programmed for excellence at a young age created a lifelong need to "excel" even in rehab. Sophisticated Lies: The specific ways high-performing women use status, diet, and busy-ness to deny their addiction. The Gender Gap in Power: Moving away from being "directed" by men in recovery to finding your own agency within a female sisterhood. Self-Parenting: The moment Ellen stopped looking for external validation and started believing she was worthy of her own protection. The ROI of Sobriety: Why quitting drinking was the ultimate business move for her clarity, her relationships, and her bank account. This is a deep dive into who you actually are when you stop performing and start living. Connect with Ellen Frazier: Website: EllenFrazier.com Instagram: @boozefreebabeschs Facebook: ecfrazier LinkedIn: ellen-frazier TikTok: @theellenfrazier

    1 hr

  4. May 4

    120. Manic About Healing: Rewriting the Bipolar Narrative with Ana

    "I am not going to end up like this." In 2006, Ana sat in a psychiatric ward, clouded by the haze of medication and the weight of a Bipolar 1 diagnosis. As she looked at the walls around her, she didn't just see a hospital; she saw her mother’s life—decades of suicidal ideation, depression, and a future dictated by a "permanent" chemical imbalance. In that moment, Ana made a choice that defied medical convention: She refused to accept that her diagnosis was a life sentence. In this episode, we sit down with Ana, a Bipolar Healing Coach who has moved from the trauma of 10 hospitalizations to a life of stability and self-mastery. We dive deep into the parts of bipolar disorder people rarely talk about: the hallucinations, the grandiosity, and the terrifying reality of setting a bedroom on fire during a manic episode. The Root Cause: Why bipolar is often a symptom of a severely dysregulated nervous system and unresolved childhood trauma. The Myth of the "Cure": What Ana tried (energy healing, homeopathy, yoga) and why she eventually looked toward neuroscience and polyvagal theory. The Power of Partnership: How finding a secure attachment helped her stabilize and heal her abandonment wounds. The "Nervous System" Shift: How understanding neuroplasticity allowed her to catch mania and depression before they took over. Medication & Tapering: A candid look at her experience with Lithium and the journey of training the brain to stay on the tracks. Ana is now dismantling the belief that you can only "manage" bipolar. She is living proof that through somatic experiencing and shadow work, you can rebuild your relationship with yourself and find true peace. Facebook: Bipolar Healing Coach Ana Instagram: @bipolar.healing.coach "Healing isn't just about fixing what's broken; it's about grieving the stories we were told so we can finally write our own."

    57 min

  5. Apr 27

    119. Anonymous' Story: Two Ways Out: Breaking the Silence Around Suicide

    She shares her lived experience with PTSD, dissociation, and suicidal thinking — and the moment she realized there were only two ways out. Today’s guest is the founder of My Truth Memoir Writing Services, where she helps others tell their stories with honesty, compassion, and courage. But her work didn’t begin as a profession. It began as survival. After a tragic loss in childhood and years of silently carrying trauma, she was later diagnosed with PTSD and panic disorder — conditions that shaped her inner world while she continued to build a life on the outside. For more than twenty years, she worked as a special education teacher, raised three children, and did what so many people do: she kept going. Until she couldn’t anymore. In this deeply personal conversation, she shares the lived reality of dissociation, panic, generational trauma, and the moment she realized she believed there were only two ways out. Her memoir, Two Ways Out: A Memoir of Then and Now, was written to break the silence around suicide and normalize the conversations so many people are afraid to have. We talk about what it means to lose yourself — and how you begin to find your way back. This episode is about survival. About truth. And about choosing to stay. If you’ve ever struggled in silence, or loved someone who has, this conversation will remind you that you are not alone.

    1h 2m

  6. Apr 20

    118. A Parent Took My 12-Year-Old to a Dive Bar—What Would You Do?

    My 12-year-old daughter ended up at a dive bar—and I didn’t know until it was too late. In this episode, I share what happened, how I handled it, and the bigger questions it raises about parenting, trust, and letting go. No judgment. No perfect answers. Just the reality of navigating moments that don’t come with a playbook.

    19 min

  7. Apr 13

    117. Palliative Care: When the Outcome is Decided

    Palliative Care: When the Outcome Is Already Decided What happens when healing is no longer the goal? In this episode, I sit down with Anne, a licensed psychotherapist and palliative care social worker, to explore the emotional and psychological realities of end-of-life care—where addiction, mental health, and dignity intersect in ways we rarely talk about. Through powerful real-life stories, we unpack what it means to support someone when the outcome is already known… when sobriety isn’t always possible… and when the focus shifts from fighting to acceptance. This conversation challenges everything we think we know about recovery, control, and what it means to truly care for someone. If you’ve ever struggled with letting go, with needing to “fix,” or with redefining what healing looks like—this episode will stay with you. Get in Touch with Anne: TikTok: Annefrontlmft Website: www.annefront.com Substack: Annefrontlmft.substack.com

    56 min

  8. Mar 30

    116. The Other Side of Bipolar: The war inside a “stable” mind

    Today, on World Bipolar Awareness Day, Tainted Love: A Bipoplar Memoir has a cover. It captures something I don’t even fully have words for yet. Presale is live. 🤍 100% of presale revenue is being donated to the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA)—and I’m personally matching it. Link to Amazon www.louisebarnett.com March 30 is International Bipolar Awareness Day, a day dedicated to increasing understanding of a condition that is often misunderstood. When people think of bipolar disorder, they tend to imagine dramatic extremes—manic highs or devastating lows. But there is another side that people rarely talk about. In this episode, Louise reads a powerful excerpt from her memoir about the quieter, more complicated reality of living with bipolar while medicated and seemingly stable. Three years into treatment, standing beside the steadiest partner she has ever known, she finds herself confronting a difficult truth: sometimes the hardest battle isn’t surviving the storm—it’s learning how to live in the calm without destroying it. This episode explores the internal war many people with bipolar disorder experience, even when everything on the outside appears steady.

    24 min
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4.8
out of 5
65 Ratings

About

Welcome to The Unmasking Sobriety and Mental Health Podcast, where we are all “Completely Fine.” I’m your host, Louise Barnett—author of Tainted Love: A Bipolar Memoir and a Jay Shetty Certified Life Coach. I live with Bipolar I and found sobriety in 2021. Since then, I’ve been trying to figure out this whole thing called life—honestly, imperfectly, and out loud. Join me for candid conversations with people willing to go beyond the mask. Together, we explore mental health, sobriety, identity, and what it really means to survive. Not being ok, may just be "completely fine."

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