Sad Times

Sad Times is a podcast*.

Each week, we feature kind, generous, empathetic guests who share stories of some of the most difficult times of their lives. 

It is our firm belief that if we could just talk a bit more about these things, we might be able to better understand each other, and perhaps feel more content in day to day life.

*Podcasts are like FDR fireside chats, but with mattress ads.

Recent Episodes

May 14, 2024

Will: Vulnerability and Normalizing the Conversation | 89

Please join us this week as we talk with Will about his mental health journey. During the conversation, we discuss Will’s embrace of vulnerability, his struggles with self image, and the difficult topic of suicidal ideation.…
May 7, 2024

Kim: Teaching and the Unconventional Path | 88

This week we speak with Kim, the host of the “One of a Kind You” podcast. Kim talks about her early life, a difficult relationship she endured, and her determination to follow her dream to teach. She discusses how her experi…
April 30, 2024

Jess: Don’t Push the Panic Button | 87

This week we speak with Jess, the host of the “Panic Button Podcast”. Jess talks about when, as a senior in college, she first realized she had mental health struggles. She also relates difficult losses in her family, how sh…
April 23, 2024

Justin: Righteous Rage and Self Discovery | 86

Join us this week as we speak with Justin, the author of the book “The Righteous Rage of a Ten Year Old Boy: A Journey of Self Discovery”. Justin shares the difficulties he had growing up, the long shadow his father cast ove…

Recent Blog Posts

Guest Blog Post | Carol “Stratospheric Proportions”

Stratospheric Proportions by Carol   As soon as I put a Cheeto's Cheese Puff into my mouth, my mood instantly soars. Oh, and, if followed by a beer chug, it reaches stratospheric proportions.

Guest Blog Post | John “I Am Simply Me”

I Am Simply Me By John   One day, in late September, I found myself sitting on the edge of my bed for 30 minutes wondering why I couldn’t put my clothes on. I had been depressed before. But I had never in my life found myself so unabl…

Guest Blog Post | Lisa “Believing in Brighter Days”

Believing in Brighter Days by Lisa Like Kevin, I’ve come to believe that stories are powerful. When we share our story, it gives others permission to share theirs. My story has been a bit of a rollercoaster. It includes a lot of darkness, bu…

About the Hosts

Kevin CrispinProfile Photo

Kevin Crispin

Chief Sad Officer / Host

Years ago, I wrote and performed a one man show called “Invisible Now”. I had the idea for the show when I had gone through a particularly dark period. My anxiety was overwhelming. I was exhausted at all hours of the day. I was feeling as though I was losing hope and I just wanted it to end. Luckily, we realized that the issue was something was interfering with my medication. Once this was righted, I started to think about all the things I had worried about in that period, and for my whole life. I had a thought: Wouldn’t it be funny if I did a show where I just talked about all the weird shit I’ve been afraid of?

Sad Times springs from this same well. When I did that show, I hoped that by sharing my weird shit, people would feel less alone; hoped, even, that they might feel comfortable sharing with someone close to them their own weird shit.

Here’s some more of my weird shit.

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Katie

Guest/Blog Contributor

I'm a GenX survivor. I was born in small-town Wisconsin but currently live in Northern Virginia with a husband, 17 birds, and 3 dogs, and zero quiet. I'm a beginning potter, working on a Masters in Adult Education, knitter, runner, and formerly known as an alcoholic. I strive to never become a phony - (yes, Catcher in the Rye is one of my favorite books).

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Jeremy

Guest/Blog Contributor

Jeremy is a Minister.

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Bill

Guest/Blog Contributor

Bill Kincaid is a freelance theatre director based in southwestern Ohio. His most recent directing projects have been at the Cortland Repertory Theatre in New York, Florida Repertory Theatre (education tour), Iowa’s Clinton Area Showboat Theatre, and Southern Illinois University Carbondale. He is the author of Performing Shakespeare Unrehearsed, published by Routledge, and recently retired from Western Illinois University, where he ran the MFA acting program for 17 years. (Profile photo courtesy of: Todd Joyce of Joyce Photography)

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Lisa

Guest/Blog Contributor

Podcaster | Speaker | Mental Health advocate

Lisa has walked with mental health for decades and has survived the unthinkable loss of a child. Now, she is a public speaker, podcast host, and founder of the Hope & Healing Community for grieving mothers. Lisa believes in hope and she believes that it is possible to carry hardship in one hand and happiness in the other.

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John

Guest/Writer

John works as a learning consultant for a medical technologies company just outside Chicago. He is also an actor, sometimes writer, husband, and father of two.

Carol

Blog Contributor

Carol LaChapelle is a writer, teacher and the author of Finding Your Voice, Telling Your Stories. She can be reached at writingworkshops@msn.com.