Young Blood - Men’s Mental Health Cal MacPherson

Have you ever been to a psychologist? I'm seeing one at the moment, and by last count, around 2 million Aussies have seen a health professional for their mental health in the past 12 months.

As a society we're becoming much more open talking about mental health and going to therapy, but what actually happens when you go for your first appointment and how does it all go down?

My guest today on the Young Blood Experts Series is, Dr Ian Zajac, a clinical psychologist specialising in men's mental health and the Director of MensPsych Psychology Services in Adelaide.

He also does a lot of work on the research side of things and is just all around bloody good to chat to.

Our conversation covers everything from what to expect when you're sitting in a psychs office, to the common struggles young men are facing, the root causes beneath the bad behaviours we want to change, how to have better communication with your partner, how childhood abuse and neglect impacts us later in life, what we can do to build self-respect and much more.

This is Dr Ian Zajac...

Over the next six months we’ll be releasing the first 'Young Blood - Experts Series', 10 episodes of interviews with researchers, psychologists, psychiatrists and authors who can give us the facts and insight we’ve never had before. 

If you listen to Young Blood for the stories of every-day blokes, don’t worry! We’ll still be bringing you a new one of those each fortnight, and every week in between we’ll hear from an expert to teach us something new.

It’s a strange thing to lose someone close to you to suicide and to have that tragedy put you on a path to finding purpose. It’s what happened to me, and it’s also what happened to Varad, whose life has been shaped by the suicide of his friend Michael in university; something he still feels guilty about.

Varad’s a youth mentor who facilitates mental health workshops for students through Western Australian not for profit, Man Up and has contributed his insight to the creation of new mental health resource website, RightByYou.


RightByYou is a straight-forward, easy to navigate tool that serves as a great starting point if you need help with your own mental health, or if you're looking for guidance in how to support someone. Go to rightbyyou.org.au


This podcast is about mateship, grief, guilt, meaning, hope and how you can spot the signs someone you care about might be struggling much more than you think.


This is Varad Mukhedkar’s story…

In the aftermath of suicide, there’s questions that will never be answered and things that don’t make sense.Those left behind often blame themselves for something that ultimately wasn’t in their control, a feeling that can endure for years after.

Imagine one minute you're sitting down chatting to your mates, and the next you're knocked unconscious by someone you've never met... That's what happened to Blake on a night out in 2012, and it's had a life-changing impact on the now 32 year old. 



Blake's ordeal put him through the ringer physically and mentally, and recently becoming a father himself has given him another perspective on just how devastating that attack could've been for his family and community. 

His desire to be a role model for other coward punch survivors and young men is the motivation behind his current attempt to break the world record for Most Consecutive Days completing an indoor triathlon; which stands at 77. 

This isn't just a story about a senseless assault, it's about valuing your life and making the most of it. 

This is Blake Manwaring's story. 

A comedian, turned artist, turned comedic artist; this guy's story is truly out of the box…

He quit stand-up comedy after a decade on the local circuit and unsure what to do with himself, made the unusual decision to hire out a warehouse and start painting…

Living on three hours sleep for 6 months, letting his imagination run wild and trying to make his dreams manifest on canvas, Sam Kissajukian had no idea he was living in an extended manic episode...

Diagnosed with bi-polar disorder soon after, Sam went from never having painted before, to completing 300 paintings illustrating the lens through which he was seeing the world. 

He went on to create a unique mental health comedy show built around trying to explain those paintings to the audience, literally putting all his flawed thinking on display to show the funny side and connect.

Sam lives with a mental illness, but his story is proof that it's not all bad; and that you don't have to be afraid to share who you really are with the world. In fact, people might just love you for it. 


This is Sam Kissajukian's story.