The Angsty Pod

Yoda Olinyk

For more than 2 decades, I have written in a diary almost every single day. And guess what? I saved them ALL. Each week, I will be reading from these archives and getting to know myself from the lens of my 10, 16, 25, and 36-year-old self. We'll explore big topics such as body image, queerness, divorce, addiction, mental health, and friendship. I'll read cringy poems and attempt to find compassion for the painful tenderness of my younger self. Join the drama of me and my guests as we explore our boy-crazy, closeted, angsty selves... one stupid page at a time.

  1. 5d ago

    Episode 41 - The Shame Spiral & A Pro-Ana Forum

    Mike and Mark and Matt... oh my!  First semester is over, and I'm home for the holidays. And, you guessed it, drama ensues!  I finally hook up with my friend Mark but it doesn't go the way either of us planned.  I have an unplanned hookup with a guy named "Jeff" who is nice enough, but we just don't click. I pretend I don't know why but, spoiler alert: it's because I've started sleeping with women!  But also because I feel completely ashamed of how I look and feel. I start a nasty binge-and-purge cycle which became hard for me to talk about in this episode so I'm saving it for later. 3 Basically, I can almost pinpoint the moment my ED is lit ablaze -- I find a pro-ana community and the spiral begins. "I was so tired today. Not just tired but woozy, slow, inhibited." 3 Breaks my heart!!! ------ If you're struggling with ED, the CMHA has resources that can (and do!) help 3 https://ontario.cmha.ca/documents/understanding-and-finding-help-for-eating-disorders/ ------ For more info on my work as a writing coach or to sign up for workshops, head to www.doulaofwords.com Follow on IG & threads @doulaofwords To sign up to be a guest, please email Yoda at yoda@thedoulaofwords.com - we'd love to have you! Find my books here 3 ------------ Kid's Help Phone: You can reach a professional counsellor at Kids Help Phone in English or French 24/7 by calling 1-800-668-6868 9-8-8: Call or text from anywhere in Canada or the U.S., anytime CMHA: Call Reach Out at 1-866-933-2023 to receive mental health and/or addictions support

  2. Sep 15

    Episode 40 - Somehow Shocked That "Jerkboy" Was a Jerk

    This episode covers most of my first semester of college and is a total whirlwind. One minute, I'm quoting Buddha. The next minute, I'm making out with everyone's girlfriend at the bar. I'm blacking out every Monday and will flirt with anything that has a pulse.  I spend most of my time apologizing to my friends for how I treated them the night before. I can't keep my crushes straight. The only guys I am romantically interested in are the ones who are the meanest to me.  It gets dark. Like, really dark. But there's some beauty in this one, too. I reminisce about my friend Mark and how close we came to a different outcome. My friendships with the girls in my dorm bloom into something real. I get over Bob and Rhonda and do well in my first semester, despite showing up to class drunk or hungover most of the time. My memories from this time are not totally accurate and although it was hard to reflect on them, it's been good to go back to some of these moments too. 3 For more info on my work as a writing coach or to sign up for workshops, head to www.doulaofwords.com Follow on IG & threads @doulaofwords To sign up to be a guest, please email Yoda at yoda@thedoulaofwords.com - we'd love to have you! Find my books here 3 ------------ Kid's Help Phone: You can reach a professional counsellor at Kids Help Phone in English or French 24/7 by calling 1-800-668-6868 9-8-8: Call or text from anywhere in Canada or the U.S., anytime CMHA: Call Reach Out at 1-866-933-2023 to receive mental health and/or addictions support

  3. Aug 11

    Episode 39 - The Hook Up That Ruined All Future Hook Ups (WWBD)

    In this episode, I have just landed in college. Let the shame spiral begin! My first night, I am drowning in loneliness until I make friends with my roommate Rhonda. We start drinking together and party our first weeks of college away.  I make friends... a lot of friends. Just like my high school days, I start making out with girls in secret corners of our dormitory and the bars I am calling my second home.  I have a hookup that is so bad I can't even write the details down. I say, "It's fine..." and then, "I guess what was fine about it was that I wasn't alone..." /3 The night after my hookup, my roommate doesn't come home, and I find out that she has also hooked up with him. I'm furious (and hurt) and my college experience almost implodes. I also, for the first (and only?) time, ask myself: What Would BUDDAH Do? lolololol but it's more like What Would Bob Marley Do? (???) I don't know. Things are weird. Get ready for a bumpy ride.  P.S. I thought I would get through college in one episode, but I only made it to mid-October in the first hour... so we'll see what happens. For more info on my work as a writing coach or to sign up for workshops, head to www.doulaofwords.com Follow on IG & threads @doulaofwords To sign up to be a guest, please email Yoda at yoda@thedoulaofwords.com - we'd love to have you! Find my books here 3 ------------ Kid's Help Phone: You can reach a professional counsellor at Kids Help Phone in English or French 24/7 by calling 1-800-668-6868 9-8-8: Call or text from anywhere in Canada or the U.S., anytime CMHA: Call Reach Out at 1-866-933-2023 to receive mental health and/or addictions support

  4. Jun 20

    Episode 37 - You're Not Looking for a Boyfriend, You're Looking for a Wife

    What goes up and down more than a yo-yo? My feelings towards my high school boyfriend!!! Things are getting even MORE unhinged over here.  It's 2007 and I've just gotten accepted into college. I've taken a year off to save for college and am working two jobs. The only thing standing in the way of my ambition is the fact that I am getting blackout drunk almost every single night. Oh, and then there's the super nice guy I'm dating but can't wait to get away from. 3  "I hate him thinking that I hate him," is a line I repeat again and again and also can't seem to stop. Also, "I was having a really good time until my boyfriend showed up," is a common theme.  This episode shows my state of mind and how rocky things are following my parents' separation. The on-again/off-again relationship with Corey is so hard on on us both and I feel like I have no one to talk to about it. /3  Although nothing catastrophic happens in this episode, I can hear what a hard time I am having, and it hurts my heart.  I end this episode with the very early seedlings of forgiveness work (Ugh.) and also a HUGE cliffhanger. WHAT HAPPENED WITH DAVE?!?! SORRY! For more info on my work as a writing coach or to sign up for workshops, head to www.doulaofwords.com Follow on IG & threads @doulaofwords To sign up to be a guest, please email Yoda at yoda@thedoulaofwords.com - we'd love to have you! Find my books here 3 ------------ Kid's Help Phone: You can reach a professional counsellor at Kids Help Phone in English or French 24/7 by calling 1-800-668-6868 9-8-8: Call or text from anywhere in Canada or the U.S., anytime CMHA: Call Reach Out at 1-866-933-2023 to receive mental health and/or addictions support

About

For more than 2 decades, I have written in a diary almost every single day. And guess what? I saved them ALL. Each week, I will be reading from these archives and getting to know myself from the lens of my 10, 16, 25, and 36-year-old self. We'll explore big topics such as body image, queerness, divorce, addiction, mental health, and friendship. I'll read cringy poems and attempt to find compassion for the painful tenderness of my younger self. Join the drama of me and my guests as we explore our boy-crazy, closeted, angsty selves... one stupid page at a time.