Clear the air

• 38 - Chronic Pain Management: Beyond Pills with Dr Claire Ashton James

  For most of us, pain subsides fairly quickly as we recover from injury. For some, however, pain persists, making it challenging to return to our normal, full-functioning capacity. In some cases, chronic pain may develop due to stress, or even for unexplained reasons. However, due to the stigma and unconscious bias, individuals can feel too ashamed to ask for support or when they do, made to feel invalidated in their experience of chronic pain. The research shows that recovery and resilience are deeply social processes, and meaningful support can change someone’s ability to cope with pain.Claire's biography:Our guest today is Dr. Claire Ashton-James a social psychologist and Associate Professor of Pain Management at The University of Sydney Medical School. Her work uncovers how social relationships influence the experience of pain and vice versa. Her research advocates for the integration of social “treatments” into the management of chronic pain, so that people have the best chance of returning to full capacity and avoid relying solely on pain medications or therapy. 00:00 - Intro02:10 - How Claire became a social psychologist focused on pain management04:20 - Definitions of chronic pain and acute pain09:00 - Common misconceptions about people with chronic pain12:30 - What Claire did differently after learning about these misconceptions14:25 - How to support people in your life with chronic pain16:45 - What workplaces can do to support employees with chronic pain21:10 - Why social support is a key part of chronic pain management22:25 - What someone with chronic pain can do if they don’t have a supportive social circle29:15 - Are peer support groups helpful or harmful for pain management?33:20 - When social connection can have a negative impact34:25 - The unconscious biases health professionals may have against chronic pain patients39:25 - What chronic pain patients can do when they experience invalidation from health professionals41:55 - How to approach supporting someone struggling with chronic pain44:05 - Acknowledging that chronic pain can cause social withdrawal45:05 - What to do if pain prevents you from maintaining social connections46:10 - Claire’s one wellbeing practiceLearn more about Clairehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/claire-ashton-james-b271368a/Learn more about Clearheadhttps://www.myclearhead.com/

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• 37: Relational Leadership: How to Lead Beyond Yourself with Moira Mallon

  What if leadership wasn’t just about authority, decisions, or overseeing tasks done, but about developing powerful interpersonal relationships to inspire and influence?In this episode, we will explore how Relational Leadership focuses on cultivating trust and connection. We’ll share practical tips on how to build meaningful relationships and navigate complexity, thus transforming our effectiveness as leaders. Learn how to cultivate leadership that is both empathetic while maintaining a standard of high performance and accountability in your team.Moira's biography:Moira Mallon is an expert in seeing beneath the surface and getting to the heart of the problem, which often in organisations is all about people and the dynamics they have with each other. Moira is a certified coach with the International Coaching Federation and for over 20 years has coached hundreds of leaders, including those leading the Christchurch’s post-earthquake rebuild. Her coaching is informed by systemic thinking, emotional development, and transformative tools like The Leadership Circle and a practice in Gestalt Psychotherapy. Whether she’s coaching CEOs, senior executives or rising leaders, Moira brings a fierce belief in the power of human potential.In this episode, we dive deep into answering the following thorny questions:00:00 - Intro02:25 - How Moira became a leadership coach focused on leadership development04:00 - What the emotional experience of leadership means05:35 - Defining relational leadership07:55 - How leaders can prioritise connection over control to create psychological safety10:15 - The physiology behind helpful and unhelpful coping strategies during times of change13:50 - How leaders can develop presence within an organisation16:35 - The two key questions to ask when building connections with your team18:25 - The importance of emotional control and consistency20:35 - Managing the tension between employee performance and connection23:10 - What separates leaders who build trust from those who don’t26:10 - Modelling authentic leadership and resilience in high-pressure environments29:10 - Influencing up - creating positive change when a leader lacks self-awareness32:50 - How to intentionally build connection and trust in hybrid or remote teams36:15 - How leaders can explore the emotional needs behind employee performance issues39:00 - What defines a great workplace culture42:00 - Is it bad culture if you’re clear about high workloads and long hours?45:30 - How often leaders should communicate during periods of change48:45 - The influence of indigenous practices on relational leadership51:00 - How to respect boundaries when building deeper connections52:45 - Why empathetic conversation is the first step toward relational leadership55:10 - Moira’s one wellbeing practice

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• 36: Unpacking Common Mental Health Challenges HR & Leaders Encounter

  Historically, the unspoken organisational culture meant that your personal issues and any mental health challenges you are experiencing were expected to stay at home. Today, it is increasingly accepted for employees to be more open about their mental health and wellbeing needs in the workplace. However, with the increasing prevalence and severity of mental illness in the community, this presents new challenges for HR and managers to know how to navigate these conversations empathetically while maintaining a focus on the organisation’s performance.Barry biography:In today’s episode, we want to focus on our HR audience, and so we have invited special guest host HR professional Lisa Young, who will be interviewing Clearhead’s clinical lead and clinical psychologist Barry Kirker, together they will unpack all the complexity surrounding employee mental health. Barry has 30 years’ experience working with individual clients and organisations across New Zealand and Australia. He undertakes complex mental health assessments, including fitness for work, forensic, and compensation/mental injury assessments, with a thorough understanding of both the clinical and legal aspects involved.In this episode, we dive deep into answering the following thorny questions.00:00 – Introduction01:50 – Lisa introduction03:50 – Barry introduction05:30 – What is being covered08:40 – Definition of mental health10:00 – What to do when an employee self discloses their mental health challenges to you13:55 – What to do if you don’t feel equipped to have the conversation?14:30 – Are there things you shouldn’t say17:45 – How to assess the safety risk of someone who discloses they have suicidal thoughts22:00 – What if you can feel your own emotions taking over23:00 – When to seek professional help24:00 – How to tell if someone needs more support25:20 – What to do when you notice someone struggling with their mental health28:05 – Should you bring up performance issues in a mental health conversation29:50 – What if the person lacks insight and is dismissive of your concerns33:50 – Why it’s important to be proactive in having the mental health conversation34:25 – When an employee blames their mental health at a performance or disciplinary meeting39:20 – How do you know if a mental health disclosure is genuine42:00 – What to do when an employee says a performance improvement process negatively impacted their mental health45:00 – When should you breach the confidentiality of what an employee shared with you47:00 – How do you deal with the subsequent loss of employee trust49:40 – How do HR practice self-care and set boundaries on the mental load of supporting others54:10 – Barry and Lisa’s final takeawayLearn more about our guest host Lisa Young:https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-young-exceedhr/Helpful resources:Resource 1: Meeting Crisis with Care. How HR Can Navigate Mental Health Challenges https://www.myclearhead.com/blog/meeting-crisis-with-care-how-hr-can-navigate-mental-health-challenges/Resource 2: Mental Heatlh Conversations: Guidance for Leaders: https://www.myclearhead.com/blog/mental-health-conversations-guidance-for-leaders/Resource 3: Frameworks to Support Difficult Conversations at work: https://www.myclearhead.com/blog/frameworks-to-support-difficult-conversations-at-work/Learn more about Clearheadhttps://www.myclearhead.com/

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• 35: Beyond 'Fine': Shifting from Surviving to Thriving with Dr Suzy Green

  “Fine” is the most frequently logged mood on the Clearhead platform, yet it often masks a deeper sense of stress, disconnection, or simply going through the motions. We often answer "I'm fine" without truly reflecting on how we're doing, especially when we're stuck in survival mode. In this episode, we explore what it really means to move beyond "fine." Unpacking the shift from surviving to thriving, drawing on the science of positive psychology to offer practical tools for building resilience and mental wellbeing, both in life and at work.Suzy biography:Dr Suzy Green is a Clinical Psychologist and Founder & CEO of The Positivity Institute, an organisation dedicated to the research and application of the science of optimal human functioning in organisations and schools. She is a leader in Coaching Psychology and Positive Psychology and published over twenty peer-reviewed journal articles. She lectures at University of Sydney and is a fellow at Australia’s Black Dog Institute and has worked with many large organisations such as ANZ, Fitbit, Nivea, Officeworks and more.In this episode, we dive deep into answering the following thorny questions:00:00 - Introduction02:20 - How Suzy is using the lessons she’s learnt to deal with recent losses in her life.04:30 - Defining thriving vs surviving when there are multiple life challenges.10:50 - What is a “normal” proportion of thriving vs surviving?15:45 - The power of therapy in helping with processing grief.17:30 - The importance of removing stigma from therapy.18:45 - What is the difference between coaching and therapy?22:45 - What should you do if someone says they are fine but you can see they are struggling?27:00 - What are the steps to take if you are struggling?31:30 - How does Acceptance and Commitment Therapy help one build the right mindset?36:20 - Why is it hard to change our mindset?39:15 - Are employers doing enough to help employees thrive at work? 44:20 - A real-world example of an organisation embedding positive psychology in the workplace. 47:45 - How we can use flow theory and self-reflection to find balance between wellbeing and performance?53:20 - What is Suzy’s one wellbeing practice?Learn more about Suzy: https://thepositivityinstitute.com.au/Helpful Resources: Steven Covey’s Circles of Control: https://positivepsychology.com/circles-of-influence/The Serenity Prayer: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serenity_Prayer Dr. Kristin Neff:https://self-compassion.org/ Clearhead’s Blog on ISO 45003: https://www.myclearhead.com/blog/what-is-iso-45003/ Social and Emotional Contagion Theory:https://positivepsychology.com/emotional-contagion/ Finding Purpose Tool:https://www.myclearhead.com/en-au/finding-purpose Jon Kabat-Zinn: https://jonkabat-zinn.com/ Learn more about Clearheadhttps://www.myclearhead.com/

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• 34: Developing Critical Thinkers with Steve Pearlman

  In an age overwhelmed by information, opinion, and polarization, the ability to think critically isn't just useful, it's essential. In this episode, we will learn how we can develop strategies to think critically and make smarter decisions, what it means to challenge assumptions, expose common thinking traps, and offer immediately usable strategies for clearer, more effective reasoning in everyday life.Steve’s biography:Steve Pearlman, Ph.D., is arguably the world’s foremost critical thinking expert. After founding the United States’ first academic department solely focused on researching critical thinking and how to teach people to do it, Steve subsequently shared his methods at educational institutions, conferences, and businesses. He is frequently featured in national and international media, and he’s the author of America’s Critical Thinking Crisis: The Failure and Promise of Education.In this episode, we dive deep into answering the following thorny questions: 00:00 – Introduction02:00 – Steve’s journey to becoming an expert in critical thinking04:00 – Critical thinking definition and how it is taught07:00 – What are default modes of how our brain functions10:00 – How to maintain critical thinking when there is an overload of information12:30 – How to assess whether a source of information is credible15:00 – How to ask the right question when you don’t know what you don’t know17:15 – Why reassessing the information and refining your initial question is key in critical thinking18:00 – Why critical thinking does not always need to take a lot of time19:30 – How to teach kids critical thinking by prioritising reasoning over authority (parenting example)25:30 – Why intellectual humility is the solution when two people are in disagreement29:30 – How to deal with someone who is rejecting reason and facts due to polarization in politics33:10 – Is it possible to maintain critical thinking in the context of time pressures35:15 – What training programs are available to develop critical thinking skills37:20 – Example of how leaders remove critical thinking at meetings39:45 – Example of how leaders can create an environment that fosters critical thinking42:35 – Can people maintain critical thinking when experiencing burnout45:30 – What resources are available to move from threat to a challenge that you can meet48:20 – How to deal with a person who is not receptive to your thinking51:10 – Why asking questions can cause someone to become defensive53:20 – Ways to foster critical thinking in virtual meetings55:15 – How to assess if someone has critical thinking skills57:45 – How to constructively handle naysayers in discussions59:50 – One tip to develop critical thinking skills01:00:55 – What is Steve’s one wellbeing practiceLearn more about the Critical Thinking Institute: https://www.thectinstitute.com/Learn more about Clearheadhttps://www.myclearhead.com/

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