If you're the one everyone relies on, this one's for you.

Poornima Peri knows what it's like to look like you've got it all together while running on empty. In her late 20s she was working full-time, raising two young children and pushing for the next step up, doing for her manager, her colleagues, her family, her newborn, everyone except herself. By 30 she had hormonal imbalances, significant weight gain, hypothyroidism and autoimmune conditions. Then her mum, who did everything "right", was diagnosed with stage four cancer.

In this conversation with Anthony Hartcher, Poornima shares what actually shifted things for her and her mum, and it wasn't a supplement or a specialist. It was stepping back long enough to see the pattern.

We talk about why high performers are the least likely to recognise burnout in themselves, the difference between waiting for a crisis to force a pause and choosing five minutes a day to reflect, and the simple daily ritual Poornima now lives by: ten minutes for yourself, a short intention-setting each morning, a weekly check-in with your partner, and a to-do list of no more than ten things. She also shares the "listen, pause, assess, reflect, step back" process she uses every day, and why stepping back to let others find their own way is a gift, not a failure.

None of it takes much time. It takes intention.

Connect with Poornima:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/poornima-peri
Instagram: @Poornima Hormone Coach

Joyful Mate™: https://joyfulmate.com

If this resonated, share it with someone who needs to hear it, and until next time, continue to experience more joy, fulfilment and happiness.

This podcast is for general information only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice.

"Are you okay?" "Yeah, I'm fine."

If that exchange sounds familiar, this episode is for you.

R U OK? Day falls on Thursday 10 September 2026, and asking the question is only half of it. Most people say they're fine because they don't feel safe, they're worried about being judged, or they don't want to be a burden. Whether they open up depends far more on the state you're in than on the words you use.

In this solo episode, Anthony Hartcher — clinical nutritionist and lifestyle medicine specialist — walks through how to hold a genuine mental health conversation with someone you're worried about.

What we cover:

- Why "yeah, I'm fine" is usually a read on you, not an honest answer

- Getting into a receptive state before you ask — calm, grounded, unhurried

- Naming the change in behaviour you've noticed, so they know they've been seen

- Why you are not there to solve the problem (and why jumping to solutions shuts people down)

- Listening with the single intent to understand

- Suppressed emotion, disconnection, and the fight/flight/freeze response

- Getting to a next step they choose themselves — and following up

- Looking after yourself when the conversation triggers something in you

Chapters:

00:00 R U OK? Day and why the question matters

02:26 Connection, meaning, and why sharing helps us process

04:53 Being in a receptive state

07:18 Staying present without reaching for solutions

09:41 Letting them find their own next step

12:06 How these conversations deepen a relationship

14:34 What not to say, and caring for yourself afterwards

If this one lands, share it with someone who's about to have a hard conversation, and leave a comment with your questions.

Support: this episode is general education, not a substitute for professional care. In Australia, Lifeline is available 24/7 on 13 11 14, and Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636.

Continue to work on yourself, support yourself, and grow.

The Joyful Mate Podcast

Ever notice how one particular person's behavior gets under your skin way more than it should? In this episode of the Joyful Mate Podcast, Anthony Hartcher breaks down why that intense, disproportionate annoyance is almost never actually about the other person.

Anthony explains the real mechanism at work: mirror neurons (first discovered in monkeys in the 1990s) that fire when we observe someone else's behavior, and Carl Jung's theory of projection, which shows how the traits that irritate us most in others are often ones we've judged in ourselves and never resolved. If you did something as a kid and felt guilt or shame around it, seeing someone else do the same thing as an adult can reactivate that old, unsettled feeling — except now it looks like it's their fault.

Anthony walks through a practical way to actually dissolve this: going back to the specific moment or behavior tied to the feeling, and finding the benefit in it rather than only the judgment, so the charge neutralizes for good.

If you've got a person in your life who constantly frustrates you and you can't avoid them — a colleague, a family member, a partner — this episode gives you a real starting point.

Free consultation link here.