Gay Men Going Deeper

Guilt and shame are two of the most challenging emotions we encounter. For those who grew up with a religious or spiritual belief system, guilt and shame can have a uniquely traumatic impact on your sense of self and in your relationships. In this episode, host Michael DiIorio speaks with inter-faith community leader, Jeremy Russo, who has used his experience with spiritual abuse to become a leader in the queer community helping others overcoming their own spiritual and religious trauma. In this episode we cover: The similarities and differences between guilt and shame What is spiritual abuse and religious trauma The unique impact this has on queer people Resources and tips to help along your healing journey Regardless of your spiritual beliefs, this episode will help you better understand and navigate your way through guilt and shame. TODAY'S GUEST: Jeremy Russo of Emerge, an inter-faith and ecumenical space for the “nones and dones,” LGBTQIA+ people, women, people of color, individuals with different abilities, ex-vangelicals, and anyone who feels like their voice and spiritual journey was discouraged or silenced by institutional churches. Connect with Emerge on Facebook or Instagram TODAY'S HOST: Michael DiIorio is a certified life and wellness coach specializing in self-confidence, sexuality, and relationships. Connect with Michael on Instagram or www.wellismo.com. Watch this ep on YouTube - Connect with us - Toronto PRIDE EVENT Join the private Facebook community Take our "Building Better Relationships" course Instagram GayMenGoingDeeper.com Patreon -— Join the Gay Men Going Deeper Membership coaching community

Toxic positivity is the belief that people should maintain a positive mindset, no matter how challenging a situation may be.  This belief invalidates your authentic emotions and is a form of avoidance.  In this episode, we're sharing our own experiences and understanding of toxic positivity and we'll answer the questions: What are your thoughts on toxic positivity and the effects it has on silencing negative emotions and experiences?What’s been your experience with pushing away negative emotions and how did it affect your mental health?How have you learned to embrace all of your emotions and honour them in healthy ways?What tips or practices can someone try if they’re just learning to engage with their negative emotions? By the end of this episode, you'll have a deeper understanding of how toxic positivity may be showing up in your own life, and what you can do about it. Watch this ep on YouTube - Connect with us - Toronto PRIDE EVENT Join the private Facebook community Take our "Building Better Relationships" course Instagram GayMenGoingDeeper.com Patreon -— Join the Gay Men Going Deeper Membership coaching community

Have you ever found yourself conflicted about being top, bottom or vers? Or maybe you find yourself torn between whether or not you want monogamy or non-monogamy... Sometimes we can see pros and cons on both sides of our inner conflicts and it paralyzes us from making decisions. Being conflicted about your desires is completely normal. In this episode, Matt Landsiedel and Miguel Ezra Ramirez talk about polarity in life and how to navigate contradictions, preferences and the duality of the human experience. As human beings, we can’t have sadness without knowing happiness, and we can’t understand clarity without first knowing confusion - this is polarity. We are all navigating ourselves and this world through our minds and our souls, and the polarity of this experience can be overwhelming for some people. We created this episode to guide you towards embracing more of who you are and what this universe has to offer you through learning to let go of preferences or attachments and embrace opposites. Come on this ride with us and you might learn something new about yourself.  Together they explore concepts like: What is dualism and polarity?Matt and Miguel's personal experiences with dualism and polarityHow holding on too tightly to preferences might be inhibiting your growthHow fear prevents us from being able to embrace oppositesHow can someone begin to embrace opposites? Connect with Miguel: @miguelramirezintuitive Watch this ep on YouTube - Connect with us - Join the private Facebook community Take the "Healing Your Shame" course Take our "Building Better Relationships" course Instagram GayMenGoingDeeper.com Patreon -— Join the Gay Men Going Deeper Membership coaching community!

While emotional health falls under the overall umbrella of mental health, it deserves its own conversation because your emotions have a profound impact on how you show up in the world and your overall quality of life. This episode will answer questions such as: What does it mean to be emotionally healthy?How can you tell when your emotional health may be suffering?How do you handle challenging emotions?What are some simple things you can do to support your emotional health? By the end of this episode, you'll be equipped with loads of useful tips and skills that will support your emotional health. Watch this ep on YouTube - Connect with us - Toronto PRIDE EVENT Join the private Facebook community Take our "Building Better Relationships" course Instagram GayMenGoingDeeper.com Patreon -— Join the Gay Men Going Deeper Membership coaching community

Depression is one of the most common mental health conditions in the United States that affects an estimated 17.3 million adults and 3.2 million adolescents according to the National Institute of Mental Health. Research shows that gay and bisexual men are at a higher risk for: Major depression, Bipolar disorder, and, Generalized anxiety disorder, and are more likely than heterosexual men to attempt suicide. In today's episode, host Calan Breckon unpacks the heaviness around depression with guest and therapist, Jacob Monkarsh (LMFT & CGP). Together they explore questions like: What is depression and how does it affect a person?Is it possible for someone to be depressed without knowing it? What are the signs and symptoms someone should be aware of?What are the biggest triggers for gay men struggling with depression?How can someone currently struggling with depression work to get out of the cycle?How can people best support someone struggling with depression? During the episode, Jacob asked a very important question concerning gay men and our childhood experiences: "What happens when someone can't connect with themself?" and as children, we often can't connect with ourselves fully once we realize something is "different" about us and we begin hiding who we truly are, but is that creating disassociation within us and our community? Listen to his answer and more in today's episode. Guest: Jacob Monkarsh www.jacobmonkarsh.comLGBTQ Therapy Space Watch this ep on YouTube - Connect with us - Join the private Facebook community Take our "Building Better Relationships" course Instagram GayMenGoingDeeper.com Patreon -— Join the Gay Men Going Deeper Membership coaching community! -— - Therapy Options - Inkblot Therapy - Canada BasedMind Beacon - Free Therapy for Ontario ResidentsOpen Path - Affordable OptionsPsychology Today - search for clinicians that take insurance OR have sliding scalesGood Therapy - Sliding Scale TherapistsTry looking up local counselling centres like Southern California Counseling Center or the Los Angeles LGBT Center.

Each year, over 800,000 people die from suicide and it is the 2nd leading cause of death among 10-24 year olds. The LGBTQ community has a significantly increased risk and that’s why we’re dedicating an episode to having a candid conversation about suicide. In this episode, we’ll answer questions such as: How have you been impacted by suicide?What are some of the stigmas around suicide?What is your advice to someone who is feeling suicidal?As a community, how can we best support someone who is suicidal? If you are feeling suicidal please reach out for support:  Trevor project: https://www.thetrevorproject.org/get-help/Crisis Services Canada: https://www.crisisservicescanada.ca/en/Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention: https://suicideprevention.ca/Suicide and Language: https://www.suicideinfo.ca/resource/suicideandlanguage/USA national suicide prevention hotline: 1.800.273.8255 Watch this ep on YouTube - Connect with us - Join the private Facebook community Take our "Building Better Relationships" course Instagram GayMenGoingDeeper.com Patreon -— Join the Gay Men Going Deeper Membership coaching community

Your environment plays an important role in developing a strong identity and sense of self. Everything from the people you spend time with, where you get your news, and the social media accounts you follow will influence your sense of belonging in a community. In this episode, LGBTQ+ affirmative psychotherapist Justin Oberste joins host, Michael DiIorio to discuss mirroring: how we reflect back our lived experience with the world around us. Today’s episode will answer these questions: What is mirroring? How can this strengthen our sense of self? How does this impact our relationships? How can we use this to elevate the gay community as a whole? By the end of this episode, you’ll understand how developing a more conscious approach to your environmental influences can have a positive impact on your sense of self, relationships with others, and the greater community. For more info on today's guest, Justin Oberste, visit his website or find him on instagram @justinoberste. Today's host: Michael DiIorio Michael's Instagram: @wellismo_coach Sexual Empowerment Watch this ep on YouTube - Connect with us - Join the private Facebook community Take the "Healing Your Shame" course Instagram GayMenGoingDeeper.com Patreon -— Join the Gay Men Going Deeper Membership coaching community

Relationships can be a minefield to navigate when you don't have the right tools or language to help you. Whether it's romantic or platonic ones, we all could use a little more guidance and support with it comes to creating more secure, healthy relationships. In this episode, we're giving you a sneak peek into our exciting new course, Building Better Relationships, where we guide you on how to build better relationships in your life as well as deepen the one you have with yourself. Today we're sharing our personal experiences with the course content and how it helped us improve our own relationships. Join us as we discuss… Which of the course modules we have experienced the most growth personally?Which lessons are we currently working on now in our own lives?What was our favourite lesson to teach?What are the biggest benefits for students going through the Building Better Relationships course? By the end of this episode, you'll have a better understanding of what all relationships need in order to grow and deepen as well as our outline for the Building Better Relationships course. ► Want to go through the Building Better Relationships course LIVE with Michael and practice what you learn in a safe group of men also working through the course? Then Join the Gay Men Going Deeper Membership coaching community and sign up for the group cohort with Michael on the membership hub main page by May 4th!! ► SIGN UP HERE: www.GayMenGoingDeeper.com With membership, you'll also get access to our Healing Your Shame course, monthly group Zoom's, our private members-only Facebook group as well as 35+ coaching videos ready and waiting for you to dive in! Or, take our "Building Better Relationships" course at your own pace with our self-study option here: "Building Better Relationships" course (self-study) - Watch this ep on YouTube - Connect with us - Join the private Facebook community Support the show on Patreon -—

In today’s episode, host Matt Landsiedel speaks with Nutrition Coach Scott Weisgarber about the relationship between fitness, nutrition and mental health. Together they explore questions like: What is the relationship between fitness, nutrition and mental health?How come gay men are so concerned about physical health and appearance?How does this obsession with appearance impact mental health?The difference between approaching health from feel good vs look good mentalityHow can we find more balance in our relationship between mind and body? Watch this ep on YouTube - Connect with us - Join the private Facebook community Take the "Healing Your Shame" course Instagram GayMenGoingDeeper.com Patreon -— Join the Gay Men Going Deeper Membership coaching community!

Intimacy is defined as the feeling of mutual vulnerability and closeness in personal relationships.  In this episode of Gay Men Going Deeper, we’re talking about our unique experiences with intimacy as gay men. We’ll answer questions such as: What does intimacy mean to you?What was an intimate experience you’ve had that was not sexual? What unique challenges do gay men face when it comes to intimacy?How can you nurture intimacy in any kind of relationship?  By the end of this episode, you’ll have a more in-depth understanding of the different types of intimacy and what it takes to enjoy deeper and more authentic connections with friends and loved ones. Watch this ep on YouTube - Connect with us - Join the private Facebook community Take the "Healing Your Shame" course Instagram GayMenGoingDeeper.com Patreon -— Join the Gay Men Going Deeper Membership coaching community