Guess what… we’ve gone international! Okay, maybe not quite viral (yet 😄), but we have reached listeners all the way in the USA - which led to this brilliant conversation.

In this episode, Alison chats with Lisa Richer, a Neurodiversity Consultant based in Maryland, USA. Together, they explore what can happen when we connect, share experiences, and really listen to one another - no matter where we are in the world.

They also don’t shy away from the challenges, talking honestly about how systems can sometimes get in the way when people’s voices aren’t truly heard. Lisa brings both her professional insight and her lived experience as a parent of two neurodiverse children, as well as her own journey with ADHD. She shares her reflections on supporting people to find their “why” and the importance of meeting people right in the “messy middle”.

It’s a warm, thoughtful conversation where Alison and Lisa discover a shared passion for language, kindness, understanding, and curiosity.

We’ll be honest - recording across the ocean came with a few sound glitches here and there - but we promise they are minimal and definitely don’t take away from the heart of the conversation.

Have a listen - we think you’ll really enjoy this one, and if you want to learn more about Lisa, please click here Home - Journey2bloom

Warning message: This podcast includes conversations about suicide and features people with lived experience sharing their personal stories. While these perspectives are important and meaningful, some listeners may find the content distressing or triggering. Please take care while listening and consider your wellbeing. Support resources are available if you need them

In this powerful and deeply moving podcast, Alison is joined by Adrian Ellis, who shares his lived experience of losing his son George to suicide just over five years ago, and how that loss has driven him to make a difference.

Adrian speaks with honesty and courage about his journey, using his experience to support children and young people in schools. His sessions are shaping how the next generation understands mental health, encouraging them to talk more openly about their feelings and, crucially, to listen to one another.

As part of Lincolnshire’s Suicide Prevention Lived Experience Forum, Adrian works alongside others who have been personally affected by suicide, as well as Kate Cooper and Ellie Gallacher from Lincolnshire County Council’s Public Health team (find out more about Kate and Ellie's work in Podcast 92). Together, they are helping to influence real change, from raising awareness to developing initiatives that encourage people to reach out for support.

Adrian’s hope is ambitious but clear: to help build a Zero Suicide Society. This podcast brings that vision to life through real experience, compassion, and a belief that change is possible.

Take time to listen. You’ll come away with a deeper understanding, and a renewed sense of how we can all play a part.

More information

Find out more by visiting Adrian’s website: ACE Lived Experience

and Adrian's LinkedIn page.

Warning: This podcast includes conversations about suicide and features people with lived experience sharing their personal stories. While these perspectives are important and meaningful, some listeners may find the content distressing or triggering. Please take care while listening and consider your wellbeing. Support resources are available if you need them.

Joining Alison are Kate Cooper and Ellie Gallacher, who work for Lincolnshire County Council’s Public Health team, alongside Kev and Di Brown, who share their lived experience as survivors of bereavement by suicide.

Kev and Di speak passionately about why they got involved with the Lived Experience Forum alongside Kate and Ellie, the meaningful changes they have been able to influence, and how they provide support for others in Lincolnshire so that they don’t have to go through it alone.

This podcast shines a light on how co-production and listening to people with lived experience can make a real difference, but also includes useful tips and resources for anyone who wants to be able to support people who may have suicidal thoughts: How Are You Lincolnshire | Suicide Prevention.

If you want to learn more about any of the resources or groups mentioned in the podcast, please contact Kate and Ellie via the Preventing Suicide email address preventingsuicideinlincolnshire@lincolnshire.gov.uk

Find out more about the Speak Their Name quilt workshops - you can also contact lincsstn@mail.uk for more information.

For information about the local SOBS group please visit Local Support

Join Alison as she chats with Katie Oates, Community Nurse with the Children in Care team at Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust.

Katie shares how attending a Tommy Whitelaw session in 2024 inspired her to start asking one simple but powerful question in her health check conversations with children and young people in care: “What matters to you?”

One year on, Katie reflects on what she’s learned and shares some of the heartfelt and honest things young people told her really matter to them. Together, Alison and Katie explore why asking this question - and truly listening to the answer - can make such a difference.

This is an insightful and thoughtful conversation, with lessons we can all take away.

DISCOVER MORE

To find out more about Katie's work, visit Listening to what matters to children in care

To download Katie's report about this work, visit Asking "What matters to you?" with Children in Care

Living with pain doesn’t have to mean living alone. In this episode, we explore the power of Pain Cafés, a compassionate, community-based approach that is helping people manage chronic pain in practical, holistic ways.

Alison is joined by Emma Farrington, Wellbeing Team Lead, First Coastal Primary Care Network (PCN), Anna Chapman, Personalised Care Lead at K2 PCN, and Lauren Boon, Health and Wellbeing Coach, Thrive Tribe, K2 PCN.

Together, they share how Pain Cafés support people to live well with pain, reduce reliance on medication, and build confidence through peer support, pacing, mindfulness, and other self-management skills.

You’ll hear real insights from the first groups of Pain Café users, learn why collaboration across communities matters, and discover how small, low-cost ideas can make a big difference to people’s lives.

Listen now to hear how Pain Cafés are changing the way we support people living with pain across Lincolnshire and consider what you could do in your area.

Carl shares his journey from alcohol addiction to becoming a volunteer, driven by a deep desire to repay the health and care system that supported him. In his own words, “A leopard can change its spots!”

Along the way, Carl reflects on the people who made a difference in his life, including Clare and Karen, Assistant Managers at De Wint Court, an Extra Care housing scheme in Lincoln, where he now lives. Both Clare and Karen join the conversation to share their perspectives.

We also hear from Mary Nel, Lead Practitioner at Lincolnshire County Council, who highlights the real impact of Carl sharing his story, and how it can inspire meaningful change for others.

Recorded at De Wint Court, this podcast captures his honest, powerful reflections on where he has been, how he has transformed his life, and what he hopes to do next.

Join Alison as she chats to Tricia Nicoll and Bryony Shannon about all things Gloriously Ordinary Language.

They discuss why Tricia felt the need to create ‘Test 2’ of Gloriously Ordinary Lives, the words and phrases that make Bryony go ‘Hmmm’, and how the two of them came together to explore the powerful impact that language has on people, practice, and purpose.

Tricia and Bryony then make the mistake of asking Alison about the work happening in Lincolnshire to spread the learning from the Gloriously Ordinary Language session she attended, and about the ripples this is creating. Alison completely takes over the podcast, but no-one seems to mind as they all agree that we need to ‘be more curious, be more kind, and be more human!’

How Social Prescriber Link Workers, Community Connectors, and primary care are working together with village and church halls in rural areas around Grantham.

To celebrate Village Halls Week (16 - 22 March) and Social Prescribing Day (26 March), Jo Taylor (Community Connector), Anna Chapman (Community Coordinator), and Stephen Frankland (Social Prescriber Link Worker) talk to Caty about the importance of listening to people and working together to help shape preventative healthcare.

By working with people, village halls, and other community partners, they've developed a thriving network of easily accessible wellbeing groups, particularly in rural areas.

Their story is an example of the power of collaboration at neighbourhood and village level, enabling each partner to do what they’re good at to achieve health outcomes that no-one could do alone.

It’s also Our Shared Agreement in action - a demonstration of what can happen when we ‘work together for the wellbeing of everyone’ and ‘make the most of what’s available to us’!

As Jo says, “Without the village halls and church halls, we wouldn’t be able to do what we do!”

Listen to our other podcasts exploring Social Prescribing:

Ep 9. Social Prescribing and Care Coordination

Ep 77. Apex PCN - What difference does social prescribing really make?