Even Tacos Fall Apart

MommaFoxFire
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The "Even Tacos Fall Apart" talk show includes interviews with actual mental health professionals and conversations where real people talk about the messy side of mental illness, disabilities, wellness and life in general. My goal is to normalize mental health conversations and reduce the stigma around illnesses. We all struggle at different times in our lives, but that doesn't mean we're unlovable - after all, Tacos Fall Apart and WE STILL LOVE THOSE! mommafoxfire is a MH advocate and variety gaming streamer on Twitch: twitch.tv/mommafoxfire tacosfallapart.com

  1. Raising Kids with Special Needs with Josh Henry

    قبل ٤ أيام

    Raising Kids with Special Needs with Josh Henry

    Whether you're a parent navigating IEPs, a teacher searching for better ways to reach struggling students or anyone who wants to understand what it really takes to support kids with special needs, this conversation will give you practical tools and a hefty dose of reality without the sugar coating. More info, resources & ways to connect - https://www.tacosfallapart.com/podcast-live-show/podcast-guests/josh-henry Josh Henry didn't set out to work with special needs kids. At 14, he was just helping out at a church event when a five-year-old girl with cerebral palsy latched onto him and wouldn't let go. That moment changed everything. Now Josh coaches adaptive sports through an organization called Magic while working full-time at Amazon. He spent five years in the school system as a special ed aide and he gets it in a way most people don't. He was a special ed kid himself. Growing up with dyslexia and severe ADHD meant Josh knew what it felt like to watch classmates finish tests while he was still on question three. He knew the panic of thinking he looked dumb. He also knew what it felt like when a teacher finally said "You're not behind them. You just learn differently." That's the mentality he brings to every kid he works with now whether they're in wheelchairs learning hockey or struggling through reading assignments two grade levels behind. The challenges haven't changed much since Josh was in school but the resources have gotten better. Weighted lap bands. Yoga balls instead of chairs. Fidget tools. Speech-to-text software that turns a failing writer into an A student. The key is knowing your kids well enough to know what they need and when to push versus when to pull out a board game and just let them breathe. Remote learning has made everything harder. Josh predicts we're going to see a surge in kids qualifying for IEPs simply because they fell so far behind during the pandemic chaos. When every teacher had a different system and parents were trying to work full-time jobs while monitoring Zoom calls, it was a perfect storm for kids who were already struggling. His advice for parents is NOT to try to be Superman or Superwoman. Find resources. Ask for help. Google is your friend. Organizations like Educational Parents Unlimited exist in every state to help parents understand IEPs and advocate for their kids. The best part of working with special needs kids according to Josh is the attitude. A kid with Down syndrome giving you an unexpected hug and saying "I love you Mr. Henry" makes every frustrating tantrum worth it. Hearing a friend's autistic son making happy sounds in the background of a Fortnite session reminds him that life's really not that bad. The worst part, though... Also the attitude. Some days kids come in ready to work. Other days they're throwing themselves on the ground because their dad didn't come home last night and no amount of patience is going to make them learn their multiplication tables. What Josh hopes every kid takes away from working with him isn't math or reading skills. It's knowing how to use the tools available to them. Because not everyone's going to college and that's okay. But everyone needs to know how to ask for help and where to find it when they need it.

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  2. Students, Schools & Mental Health with Iuri Melo

    ٢ ديسمبر

    Students, Schools & Mental Health with Iuri Melo

    If you're a parent, teacher, school administrator or anyone who gives a damn about helping young people navigate the chaos of growing up, this episode is for you. More info, resources & ways to connect - https://www.tacosfallapart.com/podcast-live-show/podcast-guests/iuri-melo Licensed clinical social worker Iuri Melo joined me for a Mental Health Monday conversation that challenged a lot of assumptions about student mental health. With 20 years of experience and five kids of his own, Iuri knows what he's talking about when it comes to supporting young people. When students reach out to School Pulse (the text-based support service Iuri co-founded), two themes dominate the conversation: pressure to perform and relationship struggles. Not vague anxiety or mysterious depression but concrete worries about grades, parents, friends and fitting in. Iuri's take is that we're focusing too much on teaching people to identify mental health problems and not enough on building protective factors. Schools don't need teachers to become amateur diagnosticians. They need teachers to be friendly, approachable and genuinely connected with their students. School Pulse takes a proactive approach rather than waiting for crisis. They text students directly with encouragement, growth mindset tools and practical advice. About 75-80% of their interactions with students are positive. When crisis does happen, their goal is simple: connect kids back to their parents and their school community. The service isn't trying to replace therapy or become the ultimate solution, but it is filling a gap by being accessible (just a text message away), immediate and less intimidating than walking into a counselor's office. Iuri's advice for educators is to be friends with your students. Not in an inappropriate way but in a genuine, fist-bump-at-the-door kind of way. When teachers invest in relationships, students do better academically and emotionally. When students are friends with their teachers, they're more likely to ask for help when they need it. He also pushed back against the SEL (social-emotional learning) controversy. School Pulse makes all their content completely transparent to parents and proactively includes them in email campaigns. Their focus isn't on clinical diagnoses but on practical skills that help kids succeed academically and socially. If Iuri could wave a magic wand, he'd start what he calls a "humility movement." In a world where everyone seems absolutely certain about everything, he wishes people (especially those influencing young minds) would approach conversations with a beginner's mindset. Just because we think or feel something doesn't make it capital-T True. Throughout our conversation, Iuri kept coming back to simple practices that actually work. His personal life hack is to start the day with movement. His advice for managing emotions is to not overthink your thinking. His favorite way to boost mood is to practice gratitude but add "because" to go one layer deeper. For parents, his message was clear: don't send your kids into the world with fear. Send them with confidence. Model approachability. Make yourself a safe place to land. The conversation reminded me that supporting student mental health doesn't have to be complicated. Sometimes it's as simple as showing up, being kind and helping kids connect with the people who care about them most.

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  3. Living with ADHD, Depression, Anxiety & Tourette Syndrome with Sebbzzy

    ٢٥ نوفمبر

    Living with ADHD, Depression, Anxiety & Tourette Syndrome with Sebbzzy

    This episode is for anyone who's ever felt like their brain is working against them, who's tired of pretending everything is fine when it's not, or who needs to hear that surviving the day is enough. Most people don't understand what it's like when your brain is wired differently. They don't get the exhaustion of fighting yourself every single day just to do basic things. Sebbzzy knows that fight intimately. Diagnosed with ADHD and Tourette syndrome at six years old, Sebbzzy spent his childhood being medicated and told something was wrong with him. His stepfather constantly corrected his tics, giving him negative attention that destroyed his self-confidence. The result was that he learned to camouflage his tics by mimicking normal behaviors like coughing when others coughed. He described Tourette's as an itch in your whole body that you have to release through movement or sound. The compulsive thinking that came with it meant doing things in specific patterns or numbers. Then depression hit five years before our interview. Not the kind of sadness people think of when they hear the word depression. The kind that steals your ability to feel anything genuine. Sebbzzy talked about laughing as a reflex rather than a real emotion. About smiling at the "right" times to appear normal. About the complete disconnect from positive emotions while negative thought patterns run on repeat. The fatigue is what he hates most. Not physical tiredness but the mental wall between him and everything he wants to do. He compared it to having a barrier between himself and his goals even though nothing is physically stopping him. He loves being active, playing guitar, working out and improving himself. But depression doesn't care what you love. Some days you just can't do it. Add anxiety to that mix and you get physical symptoms that mimic serious illness. Sebbzzy described waking up after barely sleeping, feeling aches all over his body and having trouble breathing. He thought he had COVID. It was anxiety. The conditions feed each other in a brutal cycle. Anxiety triggers his Tourette's tics. Depression makes his ADHD worse. The ADHD makes it harder to maintain routines that help with depression. He refused professional help for years because he wanted to fix his own problems. He's an overthinker who can usually figure out what he needs to do. The problem was, he couldn't stay consistent. When things crashed again after years of barely functioning, his mother encouraged him to get help. He finally agreed, partly because Norway's healthcare system provides free treatment for serious depression and anxiety. Having a diagnosis on paper also gives you certain rights and protections. His advice for getting unstuck is brutally practical - take small steps. Get a haircut. Take a shower. Do something that makes you feel like you're taking care of yourself. It won't cure anything but it creates momentum. He uses a rubber band on his wrist to snap himself out of negative thinking. He forces himself to do physical activity even when depression makes everything feel impossible. The biggest misconception he wants to destroy is that you can just think yourself healthy. ..That depression is a choice or a mindset problem. You can use positive thinking and good habits to manage symptoms but you can't think away chemical changes in your brain. You can't willpower your way out of neurological conditions. https://www.tacosfallapart.com/podcast-live-show/podcast-guests/sebbzzy Sebbzzy was 19 when we talked. He'd been fighting these conditions for most of his life. He wasn't cured. He wasn't "better." He was surviving and that's enough.

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  4. Music & Mental Health with Justin Paul

    ١٨ نوفمبر

    Music & Mental Health with Justin Paul

    This episode is for anyone who has ever put on headphones to escape a bad day, danced alone in their kitchen to shake off stress or wondered why certain songs hit them right in the chest and make them feel something they can't quite explain. More info, resources & ways to connect - https://www.tacosfallapart.com/podcast-live-show/podcast-guests/justin-paul Justin Paul didn't set out to become a college professor. The international DJ and record producer stumbled into teaching almost by accident when a colleague suggested he'd be good at it. Three decades later he's still balancing life in the DJ booth with life in the classroom at UCLA, and he's learned a thing or two about how music shapes our mental and emotional wellbeing. Paul's relationship with music started early. His grandmother and mother both had killer vinyl collections and his mom sang in a cover band. By 14 he was helping his cousin haul equipment and learning the craft of DJ-ing. Music became his escape during a turbulent childhood. "When there was trauma or weirdness going on I would be able to go into my room and play records and escape through music," he explains. That escapist power isn't just personal. Paul talks about watching the dance floor from above at packed venues and seeing people literally dance their problems away. Some were dancers from strip clubs coming to cleanse themselves of weird energy. Others were students dealing with stress. The common thread was that music gave them permission to leave their troubles behind, even temporarily. But here's where it gets really interesting. Paul dove deep into the science of sound frequencies during his graduate studies and discovered that certain frequencies can actually heal. The 40Hz frequency found in house and techno music's bass and kick drums? Research shows it can slow or even reverse dementia and other mental health issues. These lower frequencies hit us in the chest and abdomen almost like a physical cleansing. Different genres create different emotional states too. Jazz makes people reflective. House and techno bring diverse groups together without the aggression that rock or hip hop can sometimes trigger (especially when alcohol is involved). Paul learned this firsthand by watching which songs sparked fights and which ones created unity on the dance floor. His advice to young artists struggling with self-doubt and perfectionism is simple: Keep going. Persistence beats talent every time. He's a big believer in Malcolm Gladwell's 10,000 hours of deliberate practice and tells his students it's okay to have a day job while pursuing their art. Financial stability actually protects mental health and creative freedom. During the pandemic Paul created "Tropical Stardust Meditations," an ambient soundscape project designed for meditation. He made the first track intentionally short because busy people don't always have 30 minutes to meditate. Even three minutes of intentional sound can help reset your nervous system. Paul protects his own mental health through exercise, meditation, naps and a solid eight hours of sleep. He tries to meditate before every performance to clear his mind. And he's learned to create an imaginary force field around himself when he steps into events because hundreds or thousands of people are beaming their energy at him. His final wisdom is that you can't just "get over" mental health struggles. Healing is a lifelong process and anyone who tells you to rub some dirt on it and get back in the game doesn't understand how trauma actually works. Music isn't just entertainment. It's medicine, community and sometimes the best therapist money can't buy.

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  5. Living with Depression, Anxiety & Self Harm with Ian McGuckin

    ١١ نوفمبر

    Living with Depression, Anxiety & Self Harm with Ian McGuckin

    This episode is essential listening for anyone who's ever struggled with their mental health, loved someone who has, or wants to understand what depression and self-harm actually look like beyond the sanitized awareness campaigns. More info, resources & ways to connect - https://www.tacosfallapart.com/podcast-live-show/podcast-guests/ian-mcguckin Sometimes the most powerful voices come from unexpected places. When Ian McGuckin reached out on Reddit willing to share his story, I knew we had something special. This high school senior from Michigan isn't your typical guest, but his insights into mental health run deeper than many people twice his age. Ian was diagnosed with depression and anxiety during his freshman year of high school. What followed was a difficult journey through self-harm that lasted until October of last year. But this story goes beyond the struggle. He talks about finding what actually works when the standard answers fall short. Ian describes his depression as pervasive loneliness and disconnection. "I felt like I was in my own world and I was very alone," he explains. "Like I was just an avatar walking through all the stuff and the real world was in my mind." Moving frequently as a kid left him feeling like a perpetual outsider, always one step removed from the deep connections his peers shared. His anxiety manifested mostly as social anxiety. Simple things like throwing away trash in class became overwhelming. The weight of worrying about how others perceived him was constant and exhausting. When Ian talks about overcoming self-harm, he's refreshingly honest about what worked and what didn't. Ice in his hands, rubber bands on his wrists, running until the urge passed. He emphasizes that no single tactic solved everything. It was the combination of many strategies that finally broke through. Exercise became particularly important, offering a triple benefit: distraction, physical sensation and that crucial endorphin rush. Running gave him the added advantage of getting away from whatever he might use to harm himself. Now Ian volunteers with Teens Thriving Together, a nonprofit run entirely by teenagers focused on mental health support and education. They're building a website to serve as a hub for struggling teens and working to incorporate mental health education into school curriculums nationwide. His motivation is clear: he wants to break down the stigma that kept him isolated for so long. "It happens to everybody," he says about mental health struggles. "Everybody has those times when their emotions and their brain takes hold of them." Perhaps the most important thing Ian shares is about support systems. He had caring family and friends, but often didn't reach out when he needed them most. When he finally did open up, the reactions were overwhelmingly positive. The stigma he feared existed more in his head than in reality. For anyone struggling now, Ian's advice is practical: find your community, even if it's online. Keep your hands and mind busy. Don't underestimate how many people actually care about you, even when your brain insists otherwise. Ian McGuckin is proof that teenagers aren't just the future. They're changing things right now. And we should all be paying attention.

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  6. Death Positivity, Grief & Funerals with Barbara Bowman

    ٤ نوفمبر

    Death Positivity, Grief & Funerals with Barbara Bowman

    This episode is for anyone who's ever stood awkwardly at a funeral wondering what to say, anyone supporting a grieving friend, or anyone who wants to show up better for the people they care about when life gets hard. More info, resources & ways to connect - https://www.tacosfallapart.com/podcast-live-show/podcast-guests/barbara-bowman Barbara Bowman has lived through more loss than most people can imagine. Through those experiences she's witnessed both the beautiful and the cringe-worthy ways people respond to death and grief. Her book "What Not To Do At Funerals: A Newbie's Guide To Death" tackles the awkwardness head-on with humor and practical advice. Working in a med spa gave Barbara a front-row seat to grief complaints. After hearing countless stories about funeral mishaps and people not knowing what to do, she realized there was a gap. Nothing out there offered quick, punchy guidance for navigating these situations. So she wrote a 60-page guide you could literally download on your way to a funeral. The biggest takeaway? Grief is unique to each person and each relationship. Losing a grandparent as a kid is vastly different from losing a spouse or child as an adult. The depth of grief correlates with the hopes and dreams wrapped up in that relationship. When someone tells you they understand your pain because their grandmother died, they might not realize they're minimizing something much heavier. Barbara emphasizes that funerals aren't about you. They're about honoring the deceased and supporting the grievers. Show up. Don't be late. Dress like you're going to a job interview. No selfies. No asking how they died. And for the love of everything, don't compare your grief to theirs or tell them they should have gone to your doctor. The conversation highlighted how COVID changed everything. For several years people couldn't gather for funerals and that created a new normal where not showing up became acceptable. But people remember who shows up and they definitely remember who doesn't. One of the most powerful points: never be afraid to say the name of someone who died. Grieving people want to talk about their loved ones. If mentioning someone's name makes them cry it's because they loved that person and they'll appreciate those tears. Barbara stresses that showing up is just the beginning. The real impact happens after the funeral when everyone else has moved on. Offer to drive someone to the airport at 3am. Bring food. Check in weeks later when the shock has worn off and the emotional tidal wave hits. Small gestures create lasting bonds. As for what to say? Keep it simple. Share a memory. Tell them you're thinking of them. Admit you don't know what to do but you want to help. That honesty beats awkward silence every time. The discussion also touched on balance and self-care. Barbara celebrates small progress instead of waiting for big milestones. Wrote one page instead of three? Celebrate it. Set everything up to write but didn't actually write? That's still progress. Her teaching background shines through in her approach. She wants to give people tools and confidence to handle these situations without the sweaty palms and stress. Death is universal. We're all going to experience it. Having a quick reference guide removes the guesswork and helps people show up as their best selves when life hands us one of its hardest goodbyes. Because at the end of the day grief is about connection and so is supporting someone through it.

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  7. Mental Health & Healing From Injuries with LazzzyBee

    ٢٨ أكتوبر

    Mental Health & Healing From Injuries with LazzzyBee

    This episode is for anyone who's ever felt like their body failed them, anyone supporting someone through a tough recovery, or anyone who needs to hear that struggling mentally while healing physically doesn't make you weak. More info, resources & ways to connect - https://www.tacosfallapart.com/podcast-live-show/podcast-guests/lazzzybee LazzzyBee's story starts with a simple pivot during basketball practice his sophomore year of high school. That one movement shredded his meniscus and launched him into a grueling journey through four knee surgeries, a blood clot on his birthday, and months of relearning how to walk. His coach thought he was joking around when he dropped to the ground. He wasn't. The recovery was brutal. Bee spent months bedridden with a machine moving his leg to prevent blood clots, which he got anyway. His foot swelled up and his mom insisted on getting it checked. Good call because it landed him in an ambulance to the hospital where they handed him an Apple gift card. He had a Samsung phone. What makes Bee's story compelling isn't just the physical trauma. It's how he handled it mentally with rock solid family support and a perspective shift his mom gave him: some people can handle certain things better than others. That mindset carried him through. But he admits he gave up too soon on building his strength back after he could walk again. Looking back, he wishes he'd pushed through that final phase of physical therapy. The injury changed his trajectory completely. Bee started college as a computer science major because he's good with computers and the money looked good. Math class scared him off. Then he switched to physical therapy because he wanted to help others the way his therapists helped him. That lasted until he had to pinch people's fat to measure cholesterol. Turns out he doesn't like touching people that much. Now he's studying social work with a psychology minor and it finally feels right. He's drawn to understanding how the brain works and he genuinely enjoys helping people through tough situations. His diverse friend group taught him the most important lesson: you never know what someone's dealing with behind the scenes. You can't look at a person and diagnose them or dismiss their struggles. Bee keeps busy with two jobs including one with the Cleveland Cavs, streaming, basketball, beach volleyball and collecting vinyl records. He doesn't do much formal self care because his hobbies are his stress relief. When he needs a break, he'll lay down and just listen to music. Sometimes the best self care is knowing when to step back and do nothing at all. His biggest frustration with mental health stigma? People who self diagnose others and dismiss real struggles because someone "doesn't look depressed." He's dealt with that himself. Just because someone smiled yesterday doesn't mean they're not fighting depression today. It's a chemical imbalance and most people just lack the knowledge to understand that. By the end of the episode, you'll see a young man who’s turned pain into perspective. He doesn’t sugarcoat struggle, but he radiates resilience, reminding everyone that healing (mental or physical) takes time, support and a little humor along the way.

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  8. Religion & Mental Health with Richard Tierney

    ٢١ أكتوبر

    Religion & Mental Health with Richard Tierney

    If you're questioning whether traditional therapy and religion have all the answers, or you're caught between faith and mental health frameworks that don't quite fit, this episode is for you. More info, resources & ways to connect - https://www.tacosfallapart.com/podcast-live-show/podcast-guests/richard-tierney Richard Tierney works with trauma survivors using a combination of visualization, spiritual practice and a modified 12-step program. He frames his approach around the idea that mental disorders stem from past trauma held by younger versions of ourselves, rather than being inherent mental illnesses requiring lifelong management. Tierney's core premise involves separating your current self from the person who experienced trauma. He argues that if you're 40 now and experienced abuse at 12, you're not the same person. Therefore, you shouldn't carry that trauma as your own identity. His healing process involves visualizing your younger self, mentally transferring the trauma back to them, and releasing it through ritualistic acts like burning written lists of grievances. He emphasizes three eight-hour segments daily: eight hours for sleep (given to God/your chosen higher power through prayer), eight hours for work, and eight hours for personal activities, hobbies and relationships. This framework aims to create resilience by diversifying your life rather than depending on one job or one person for identity. Tierney's spiritual approach doesn't require traditional religion. He encourages people to develop a personal relationship with God/your higher power through practices like writing out worries, burning the list as a burnt offering, and repeating affirmations starting with "I am" to reprogram unconscious thinking. He's explicit that this works regardless of church attendance or denomination. The conversation touched on how his approach relates to conventional mental health treatment. Tierney distinguishes between mental illness (which requires professional treatment) and mental disorders (which he believes stem from trauma). He's critical of treating symptoms through medication alone, arguing this ignores the root cause. He acknowledges that many clients struggle with letting go of victim identity, especially if their sense of purpose comes from advocacy around their diagnosis. Tierney shared his own history: childhood trauma at 12, decades spent in victim mentality, struggles with addiction and isolation and eventual recovery through 12-step programs and therapy work in Thailand. He moved from Catholicism to a more individualized spiritual practice after witnessing the church deny funeral rites to suicide victims. On forgiveness, he argues that wishing abusers well and leaving judgment to God removes their power over you, though this doesn't mean condoning their actions. He encourages people to share their stories but distinguish between what happened to their younger self and who they are today. The interview emphasized personal agency and spiritual reframing over diagnosis and medication. Tierney frames mental health challenges as soul wounds rather than brain disorders, presenting his methodology as an alternative path rather than a complement to conventional treatment.

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The "Even Tacos Fall Apart" talk show includes interviews with actual mental health professionals and conversations where real people talk about the messy side of mental illness, disabilities, wellness and life in general. My goal is to normalize mental health conversations and reduce the stigma around illnesses. We all struggle at different times in our lives, but that doesn't mean we're unlovable - after all, Tacos Fall Apart and WE STILL LOVE THOSE! mommafoxfire is a MH advocate and variety gaming streamer on Twitch: twitch.tv/mommafoxfire tacosfallapart.com

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    ٢٠٢٠ - ٢٠٢٥
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    Even Tacos Fall Apart