Ready To Be Real by Síle Seoige

Topics covered: Childhood, family, fear and safety, motherhood, relationships, depression, psychiatric care, medication, ADHD, breast cancer, ​mental health​, identity​, vulnerability, recovery, love, marriage and life with Daniel.

My guest in this episode is mental health advocate and TV personality Majella O’Donnell, in what is her very first podcast conversation.

Majella is a mother of two and grandmother of four, and she has been married to singer Daniel O’Donnell for almost 24 years.

In this conversation, Majella speaks with extraordinary honesty about her life and, in particular, her experience of living with depression.
She reflects on her childhood and ​in particular her relationship with her father, describing an upbringing in which she lived with fear and, as she now understands it, in an almost constant state of fight or flight.

We talk about motherhood and the times she struggled, relationships, her cancer diagnosis, and the love, humour and independence at the heart of her marriage to Daniel.

At the centre of our conversation is the severe depression Majella experienced and the ten weeks she spent as an inpatient in St John of God Hospital​ in 2024.
She describes what it felt like when depression took away her ability to function and make even the simplest decisions and what led her to seek professional help.
Majella also speaks openly about medication and the process, under medical care, of changing treatment and eventually finding a combination that worked for her.
One of the striking things about her experience is that depression didn't only appear when life was difficult. She talks about becoming unwell at a time when she was happy, loved and grateful for the life she had​...a powerful reminder that mental illness doesn't always have an obvious explanation.

Today, Majella is in a much better place. She has a greater understanding of herself and what she needs to protect her mental health, and she is using her own experience to encourage more honest conversations about depression.

This is a deeply personal conversation about childhood, fear, love, illness, identity, getting help and finding your way back to yourself.
And above all, it's Majella​...completely herself.

A note on this episode​ :
Majella discusses her personal experience of antidepressant medication. This is one person's lived experience and should not be taken as medical advice. If you have questions or concerns about your own medication or treatment, please speak to your GP, psychiatrist or another appropriately qualified healthcare professional. Do not stop or change prescribed medication without medical guidance.

Support and resources​ :

If anything discussed in this episode affects you, support is available.

Samaritans Ireland
Freephone 116 123, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Email: jo@samaritans.ie
Confidential, non-judgemental emotional support for anyone who is struggling to cope.

Text About It
Free-text HELLO to 50808, 24 hours a day.
A free, anonymous text service for anyone experiencing a mental health or emotional crisis.

Pieta
Freephone 1800 247 247, 24 hours a day.
Text HELP to 51444. Standard message rates may apply.
Support for people experiencing suicidal thoughts or self-harm, and for those bereaved by suicide.

Aware
Freephone 1800 80 48 48, seven days a week, 10am-10pm.
Information and support for people experiencing depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder and other mood-related difficulties, as well as family and friends.

HSE ​- Your Mental Health
For information on mental health services and supports in Ireland, contact the Your Mental Health information line on 1800 111 888 or speak to your GP.

If you or someone else is in immediate danger or needs emergency medical assistance, call 112 or 999 or go to your nearest Emergency Department.

Please reach out. You don't have to struggle alone.
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In this short extract from my conversation with eco-builder and author Harrison Gardner, he talks about the systems we rely on every day, why convenience so often wins, and the value of having a backup when the systems we take for granted, don't work as expected.

The full conversation,​ Harrison Gardner: How Prepared Are You?, is available now wherever you get your podcasts.
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Topics covered : Housing, shelter, self-building, self-sufficiency, security, agency, sustainability, consumerism, capitalism, convenience, our reliance on systems, power cuts, extreme weather, energy, practical skills, DIY, community, climate change, preparedness​ and taking back control.

Harrison Gardner is an eco-builder, author and broadcaster who lives in Co. Clare with his wife Erin and their two daughters, Inari (6) and Islita (3).
Having spent more than 15 years designing and building conventional, sustainable and off-grid homes around the world, Harrison's work now centre​s on helping people develop the skills and confidence to become more capable and self-sufficient.
He is the co-founder of Common Knowledge, a non-profit social enterprise based in the Burren that teaches practical skills for sustainable living, from building and DIY to growing food, making furniture and mending clothes.

His latest book, ​Heat, Shelter, Water, Food: How to Be Ready for the Unexpected, looks at the basic systems we rely on every day and asks a simple but increasingly important question: what happens when those systems stop working?

From storms and power cuts to food and water security, this conversation is ultimately about knowledge, skills and agency, and why becoming a little more capable can help us feel a lot more secure.
Harrison also authored ​Build Your Own and ​Our Homes and presents ​RTÉ's Build Your Own Home.

Find out more about Harrison and his work:
​HARRISON GARDNER

And if this conversation resonated with you, you might also enjoy these episodes from the Ready to Be Real archive:

Mark Boyle: The Moneyless Man
Kenneth Keavey of Green Earth Organics: The True Cost of Cheap Food
Raeeka Yassaie: Climate in Crisis

You'll find all three in the Ready to Be Real archive wherever you get your podcasts.
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If you enjoy this snippet, check out the full conversation with Kyla, anytime now! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Topics covered : Gratitude, self-belief, dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia, mother-daughter bond, coercive control, patriarchy, beauty standards, ageing, women’s cycles, strength training, healthy love, taking up space.

This week’s guest is comedian and now author Kyla Cobbler.
Kyla and I sat down in Galway just as her first book, 'Happy, Thank You, More, Please' was released. We talk about the five-word mantra that has stayed with her since she was 21, her difficult experience of school, the unwavering support of her ​Mom, and her journey towards trusting herself and taking up space.
We also talk about coercive control, finding healthy love with her husband Simon, life under the patriarchy, beauty standards, ageing, honouring women’s cycles, strength training, and learning to appreciate the life you have while still being brave enough to ask for more.

'Happy, Thank You, More, Please' is out now, available in all good bookshops and as an audiobook and it is brilliant!
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