is a pediatrician and public health leader who has lived with bipolar disorder for the last 13 years. She has served on Stanford’s faculty and trained at Harvard Medical School and Johns Hopkins. She's a firm believer that life’s trials and tribulations not only improve our self-awareness, they help us flourish. While serving as California’s Acting Surgeon General last year, Dr. Bhushan publicly revealed her diagnosis in an effort to reduce stigma and spread hope for people suffering with mental illness:I believe that our struggles can be the source of our superpowers. They can show us our capacity for vulnerability and strength, and that we can endure and overcome hard things.Through her popular newsletter, Spread the Light, she is growing a community to help break down the stigma associated with mental illness. As she says, "Stigma festers in the dark and scatters in the light.”On this episode of Beyond the Prescription, Dr. Bhushan shares her advice for mental wellbeing. The two doctors also discuss the complex roots of emotional distress; the shame around mental health diagnoses; and the possibility of post-traumatic growth.Join Dr. McBride every other Monday for a new episode of Beyond the Prescription.You can subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on her Substack at https://lucymcbride.substack.com/podcast. You can sign up for her free weekly newsletter at lucymcbride.substack.com/welcome.Please be sure to like, rate, and review the show! Get full access to Are You Okay? at lucymcbride.substack.com/subscribe