“Mental Health Rockstar Optimizes on What?!” with Johnny Crowder
summary
Johnny is a survivor: he’s endured multiple forms of abuse, suicide attempts, and has found a way to move from his greatest wounds to a wisdom that rocks our world with messages of hope, tenacity, and levity. Johnny talks candidly in his two TED talks about his journey, and his tagline is: “the real miracle is that he lived to tell the tale”. In our REAL Eyes Realize podcast, we are lucky to dive into the levers Johnny looks at as important to play with in life, and those that simply don’t matter. In his light-hearted and witty approach, he shares a range of personal experiences and the ways in which he has navigated his way through mental health challenges ranging from OCD, bipolar disorder, PTSD and more. He’s gone from not being able to touch food or hug people to fully engaging in life, on his terms. We are thrilled to introduce you to the “Mental Health Rockstar” of our times, Johnny Crowder.
bio
Johnny Crowder: Founder and CEO, Cope Notes and Lead Singer, Prison. Johnny Crowder is a suicide/abuse survivor, TEDx speaker, Billboard-charting musician, Certified Recovery Peer Specialist, and the Founder & CEO of Cope Notes, the text-based mental health platform that provides daily support to users in nearly 100 countries around the world. In the years leading up to these steps in advocacy, every day was a battle against schizophrenic hallucinations and suicidal ideation. After a lifetime of resisting professional care and shying away from sharing his story, Johnny’s curiosity flowered, and the healing slowly began. Armed with 10 years of clinical treatment, a psychology degree from the University of Central Florida, and a decade of peer support and public advocacy through the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), Johnny’s youthful vigor for mental health has impacted millions of lives across the globe.
Since his first keynote TED talk in 2011, Johnny's refreshingly vulnerable and candid perspective has attracted praise from hundreds of outlets, including Upworthy, CNN, and Forbes. Whether commanding a keynote stage or touring with his heavy metal band, Prison, his infectious positivity and firsthand experience with multiple mental illnesses uniquely equip him to provide realistic, yet hopeful insight into the pains of hardship with authenticity, levity, and unconventional wit.
Gift from Our Guest:
COPE Notes Primer
Connect with Johnny:
JohnnyCrowder.com
Instagram
Facebook/Meta
Johnny’s 1st TED Talk:
“Why I Don’t Want to Die Anymore”
Johnny’s 2nd TED Talk:
“How to Grow as a Person (and Why it Sucks)”
