By Jack Brittle, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Michael Paletta first met Ted Michaels at the St. Joseph’s Hospital Mental Health Morning two years ago.
Now Michaels, a former radio host and mental health advocate, and Paletta, a philanthropist and business leader, are joining forces to create a new video podcast series about mental health called “Rise and Thrive.”
According to a press release, “It focuses on critical mental health challenges such as anxiety, depression, suicide prevention, and stress management while showcasing real-life stories of resilience and recovery.”
Each episode will total about 30 minutes in length and will be part of a six-part series, with every installment showcasing a different true story about someone’s mental health journey as well as sharing tips and tricks for dealing with mental health challenges.
Themes will include physical activity, art, music, photography, spirituality, and pets.
Paletta spoke about his involvement with mental health efforts.
“Mental health is, as I call it, the new pandemic,” Paletta said. “Of what? Of this generation. It affects one in five people and that’s supposed to go to one in four by the time 2030 rolls around.”
Paletta said that the topic hits home for him as people in his family have experienced mental health issues in the past. He and his wife also donated to Joseph Brant Hospital’s For All Mind fundraising campaign and were honoured with the naming of the new “Michael and Laura Paletta Mental Health and Addictions Unit.”
“I wanted to do more,” Paletta said. “So when Ted reached out to me and said ‘Hey, Michael, this is what I’m thinking about doing. Are you interested in getting involved?’ And I said ‘Yeah, let’s go.’”
Michaels spoke about some of the different episode topics.
“One will be dealing with stress relief,” Michaels said. “I’m fascinated by how people like Michael deal with [high] pressure situations on a daily basis. So we’re going to follow a couple of business people and be a fly on the wall.”
“We’re working on a segment with the Hamilton Burlington SPCA about pet therapy,” Michaels continued. “We’ve seen the stories of dogs going into nursing homes and how the patients perk up right away.”
Michaels said another episode will focus on art therapy, specifically painting and pottery.
While the series is focused on telling stories rather than medical treatment, Michaels said that professionals will appear on the podcast.
“We will be having experts join us at some point to talk about the latest therapies that they have and things that people think they should be doing, that maybe they shouldn’t be doing,” Michaels said. “So experts will be a part of the show. But the bigger part of the show is the real people’s stories.”
Michaels also said that the pair is working to get the show broadcast on local TV stations like YourTV and Cable 14.
Any charity or business featured on the show will also have their respective episodes available to view on their website.
“I can tell you that I’m already having charities and people reaching out to me who want to be a part of this asking ‘What can we do,’” Michaels said. “So on the curiosity factor alone, this has already turned into something really successful.”
Michaels said that his producer Moe Masoudi came up with the name but that it was his wife who picked it out of a long list.
“What do people do in the morning,” Michaels said. “They rise, and hopefully they thrive and have a good day. So that’s kind of how the whole thing came together.”
The duo will also be interviewing the band Lighthouse for a future episode focusing on the healing power of music.
Brenda Hoffert, the band’s manager, spoke about the collaboration.
“I was thinking of it in terms of the healing powers of music, but also the healing power in general of the arts, of any artistic or creative endeavour,” Hoffert said. “And of course, there are so many ways to be creative. It’s honey for the soul.”
Hoffert is married to band member Paul Hoffert and has served as their manager since 1990.
Details for broadcast times and online launches for Rise and Thrive will be announced soon.
