Dadvengers #17 - Gary Anderson

Trigger Warning - This weeks episode covers topics such as suicide attempts, child loss and child abuse. Listener discretion is advised. If you are affected by any of the topics in this podcast please visit https://dadvengers.com/getting-help/ to find support services.  Dadvengers podcast episode 17 - Gary Anderson. This weeks guest is a father, mental health advocate, counsellor and survivor. Gary has led an incredible life that has been impacted by abuse, mental health issues, and baby loss.  Against all odds, Gary has turned his life around. He is a survivor and uses his experiences and specialist training to provide counselling to men, and young people struggling with their own lives.  Gary’s story is one of survival, and he says it himself “Never give up until your time’s up”.  Gary is an inspiration, and and amazing man. We can’t thank him enough for joining us.  Time Codes 6:23 - "There was no love." - Gary opens up about how his father was physically and emotionally abusive and the impact this had on his mental health. 12:30 - Gary talks about the incident that led to him running away from home at 2am in the middle of winter. - "I took some cake out the cupboard and started walking." 15:18 - We discuss the sexual assaults Gary experienced as a child, how he survived these awful situations. 20:32 - "I changed then... I was constantly on self-destruct." - Gary tells us about his home life changing again with no warning, and how this led him to using alcohol to cope. 26:06 - At 16, Gary attempted suicide for the first time. - "I didn't give a stuff about myself, I just didn't care." 29:25- "She saved my life, she is my angel." Gary on meeting his wife, Michelle, and how she helped him turn his life around. 32:16 - "It destroyed me." - Gary starts his journey in therapy and dealing with his mental health.  35:16 - Gary tells us about Michelle becoming pregnant with twin girls, quickly finding out there were serious complications with the pregnancy. 38:42 - Gary discusses the unimaginable loss of their twin girls. Gary blamed himself for the loss, and how after 14 years, he wrote a book about his "Two Bears". 43:38 - "We can sit in pubs and talk about football. But we are still not talking about mental health." - Gary discusses how his book is a tool for talking, and how does everything for his two bears. 51:35 - Gary on becoming a parent again and coping with being a dad after losing the twins. "I have overprotected her." 54:24 - Gary delves into how he parents after the lack of positive male role model in his childhood. 56:20 - Gary tells us the importance of having a community around you as a parent to do the best we can for our kids now. 1:00:11 - "It's about asking for help." - Gary's advice to dad's struggling with fatherhood, and how he got into being a counsellor. 1:05:02 - Parenting Superpower.  Don't forget to subscribe to be first to hear new episodes. And if you want more of our parenting content make sure you're following us on Instagram & Facebook too! Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information.