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This special episode of Middle Man marks Mental Health Awareness Week. It covers the story of father and son Steve and Dan Shrigley, who share the deeply personal story of Steve’s severe depression, paranoia and suicidal ideation, which led to him being sectioned and spending six months in hospital.
Speaking with remarkable honesty, Steve describes the slow erosion of purpose that came from feeling trapped in corporate life, losing meaning in his work, stepping away from football coaching and adjusting to his children leaving home. Dan reflects on what it was like to watch his dad disappear emotionally, without fully understanding the severity of what was happening at the time.
Paul talks to Steve and Dan about why men often struggle not because they cannot talk, but because they lack the right environments for honest conversation. Steve shares how rebuilding his life through self-employment, practical work, vulnerability and helping others has given him a new sense of freedom and energy, while Dan explains how small moments of connection can lead to deeper belonging and renewed purpose.
This is an incredibly powerful conversation about depression, fatherhood, retirement, work, friendship and the vital importance of purpose, community and connection in midlife.
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