Glen Tonkin, highland entrepreneur, family man and sporty Shinty lad set up a local community organisation pre-Covid called ‘Hello There’ with the aim of destigmatising mental health issues and getting people talking honestly about their challenges and how they feel.

It started when Glen found the courage to stand up on his own in front of a large crowd in Newtonmore Village Hall and tell his story of anxiety depression.

This Loony Dookers podcast is a way to build on what Glen started with Hello There and, as we come out of the pandemic, coming together more as a community. To create this podcast Glen has joined forces with local Big Juicy Creative podcast host and writer Suzy Bashford.

We plan to use this podcast to foster a stronger sense of community and support, sharing what works to make life better, with the intention to run regular events face to face, too.

We are always looking for volunteers to help, as currently it’s just the two of us (Suzy and Glen) and we’re doing it around our kids, jobs, hobbies and puppies! We’re also always looking for people keen to tell their honest stories and open up the mental health conversation.

Details of how to contact us below.

In this podcast, Suzy interviews Glen - he elaborates further on his story, and how he’s learnt to cope, what the illness has taught him and how he’s found a sense of humour over the years, too.

*Please note we've marked this episode as 'explicit' because it covers themes around mental health that some may find distressing, such as suicidal thoughts.

To see Feet and Away’s video of Glen opening up about his mental health story, that he mentions see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaKxHpnQ_ig

To see our Hello There Facebook page where you’ll see updates on our events and content: https://www.facebook.com/hellotherebadenochandstrathspey

Update and events etc will also be posted on Suzy’s Instagram page:

https://www.instagram.com/bigjuicycreativeliving

or Suzy's Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/bigjuicycreativeliving

To see the coach that Glen talks about, see Paul Mort’s website here:

https://www.paulmort.uk/