Dysregulated Daily is a daily check-in video series designed to capture what the big episodes often miss, the reality of mental health day to day in all its chaotic forms. Instead of focusing only on mood, I introduce capacity as the core signal: how much usable emotional, cognitive, nervous-system, and functional bandwidth I actually have to engage with life. My reality is of a dysregulated headspace, everyday. And this series will offer you access into my life living with complex mental health disorders, the difficult moments but also the wins on the board.

Join me in tracking mood and capacity scores, not to compare but to gain insight and awareness into our own journeys.

This is as real as it gets. There are no secrets here and I will be showing you everything I can about the day-to-day experience of living with mental illness. If you are battling yourself, know that I'm in the trenches with you. And now for the first time Dysregulated Daily takes you into the warzone that is my life everyday.

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Follow The Dysregulated Podcast:
Instagram – @elliot.t.waters
Facebook – The Dysregulated Podcast
YouTube – The Dysregulated Podcast (Official Channel)

Created by Elliot Waters — Inspired by lived experience.
Mental health insights, real stories, real conversations.

This episode is about a hard reframe: stepping back from the dream of marriage and family, not out of bitterness, but honesty. Instead, I am investing my energy where growth is actually possible (I hope).

I talk about the grief that brings up for my inner child, the relief that comes with clarity of direction, and why focusing on career and purpose isn’t avoidance but a sign of maturity of the self. I discuss my nervous system limits (more on that soon), my mental health reality, and the cost of chasing dreams that perhaps aren't possible after all.

I also introduce Dysregulated Daily, a new YouTube series of short, honest check-ins coming soon.

Alright, time to launch!

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Follow The Dysregulated Podcast:
Instagram – @elliot.t.waters
Facebook – The Dysregulated Podcast
YouTube – The Dysregulated Podcast (Official Channel)

Created by Elliot Waters — Inspired by lived experience.
Mental health insights, real stories, real conversations.

A sunrise over Newcastle, a phone balanced in my car, and a decision to stop waiting for bloody perfection. In the next fortnightly check-in, I talk about the creative bottleneck that’s stalled a head full of episodes, how expectations kill momentum (again), and why pressing record is so important (as it uploading). It’s about choosing ANYTHING and focusing on consistency over polish, and naming the self-talk that gets in the way. That inner critic just won’t quit.

I also share some good news, a shift in perspective from becoming an uncle again, and where things for the podcast are heading next. That includes returning to the road transport industry, building mental health advocacy inside a culture that often rewards silence, and what retaking a load restraint course taught me about neurodivergence under pressure. The Dysregulated Podcast is expanding onto YouTube and laying the groundwork for short daily check-ins—honest, simple entries tracking mood, stress, and coping in real time. The goal stays the same: reduce stigma, build mental health literacy, and show the whole picture as it actually is.

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Follow The Dysregulated Podcast:
Instagram – @elliot.t.waters
Facebook – The Dysregulated Podcast
YouTube – The Dysregulated Podcast (Official Channel)

Created by Elliot Waters — Inspired by lived experience.
Mental health insights, real stories, real conversations.

What if your best ideas arrive amongst a wave of dysregulation and mania?

This episode dives into that blurry space where genuine inspiration mixes with bipolar highs, BPD intensity and ADHD momentum. The hard work of figuring out what’s real before it costs you dearly.

I share the checks I use when ideas start firing: grounded excitement, steady thinking, intact sleep, the 24-hour rule. I talk about the times I completely misread the moment, like the night I tried to “cure depression” at 3 a.m. and the ideas I held back on that later proved solid. That tension creates doubt, grief and second-guessing, and is part of the reason why mental illness is so fractured.

If you’ve ever wondered, “Is this momentum real, or am I kidding myself?” then I reckon this one’s gonna sound familiar!

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Follow my journey through the chaos of mental illness and the hard-fought lessons learned along the way.
Lived experience is at the heart of this podcast — every episode told through my own lens, with raw honesty and zero filter.

This is a genuine and vulnerable account of how multiple psychological disorders have shaped my past and continue to influence my future.

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Follow The Dysregulated Podcast:
Instagram – @elliot.t.waters
Facebook – The Dysregulated Podcast
YouTube – The Dysregulated Podcast (Official Channel)

Created by Elliot Waters — Inspired by lived experience.
Mental health insights, real stories, real conversations.

What happens when social anxiety crashes the recording session?
Finally, I return to the mic after a short break, battling a new swallowing issue (anxiety?), performance nerves, and that familiar inner critic. It’s an honest look at showing up imperfectly and refusing to let anxiety call the shots. No way bucko!

In this episode, I reflect on what’s been happening lately in my world: winning the University of Newcastle Young Alumni Award, two life-changing (and affirming) concerts (Oasis & AC/DC), overheating scares, plus the decision to return to full-time work for some financial breathing room.

There’s also a preview of what’s coming next — Manchester Madness, new The Psych Ward stories, Weaponised Autism, Q&A Sessions, Retroactive Jealousy, and bringing The Dysregulated Podcast to YouTube.

Sometimes you just have to press submit. Even if it's not perfect.

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Follow my journey through the chaos of mental illness and the hard-fought lessons learned along the way.
Lived experience is at the heart of this podcast — every episode told through my own lens, with raw honesty and zero filter.

This is a genuine and vulnerable account of how multiple psychological disorders have shaped my past and continue to influence my future.

--

Follow The Dysregulated Podcast:
Instagram – @elliot.t.waters
Facebook – The Dysregulated Podcast
YouTube – The Dysregulated Podcast (Official Channel)

Created by Elliot Waters — Inspired by lived experience.
Mental health insights, real stories, real conversations.

Good days don’t last forever which is why they need to be used wisely. In this episode, I talk about using the times when mood, energy and motivation finally line up to take full advantage by being action-orientated and not just sitting back relaxing. How it's important to prepare for the eventual drop that's coming. Because it's true that as humans we have to endure both the good and the bad days.

When my mood is elevated, I find even the most mundane of tasks bearable. Having the motivation and inspiration to clean my room, send the resume, apply for the job, book the appointment, set things in motion. Because when the clouds roll back in, it’s a lot easier to cope if you’ve already taken steps forward. Progress makes the darkness less heavy. Stagnation makes it brutal.

This episode is about momentum, not perfection. Action over comfort. Not letting the good days go to waste, so when the tough ones come, the work has been done to ensure the rewards are coming. And then the sun comes back again and sticks around for a bit longer than before.

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Follow my journey through the chaos of mental illness and the hard-fought lessons learned along the way.
Lived experience is at the heart of this podcast — every episode told through my own lens, with raw honesty and zero filter.

This is a genuine and vulnerable account of how multiple psychological disorders have shaped my past and continue to influence my future.

--

Follow The Dysregulated Podcast:
Instagram – @elliot.t.waters
Facebook – The Dysregulated Podcast
YouTube – The Dysregulated Podcast (Official Channel)

Created by Elliot Waters — Inspired by lived experience.
Mental health insights, real stories, real conversations.

This episode looks at what happens when perfectionism gets in the way of creating anything at all. Over the past month, I've been stuck in the repetitive obsessive-cycle of record, doubt, delete, repeat. Each recording felt...off. And my inner critic made sure I knew about it.

I talk through what it feels like, the hesitation before pressing record, the pressure to get it exactly right, and how easily the delete button stalled any progress I was making. Thankfully I am able to share the small shifts that enabled me to get this one across the line. Recording in a different space, lowering my expectations, and letting the stumbles stay in. After all, this is the most honest, real, vulnerable, raw, genuine and fair dinkum podcast on the internet. It doesn't need to be polished and "perfect"!

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Follow The Dysregulated Podcast:
Instagram – @elliot.t.waters
Facebook – The Dysregulated Podcast
YouTube – The Dysregulated Podcast (Official Channel)

Created by Elliot Waters — Inspired by lived experience.
Mental health insights, real stories, real conversations.

**To watch both the audio and video from this webinar please follow https://youtu.be/4Lb1NzFK5XY?si=N6-pJuM1wPwMjqB_ **

Join Black Dog Institute’s clinical psychologist Pam Withey and lived experience advocate Elliot Waters as they explore how to support teen mental health during one of life’s most challenging stages.

From recognising the signs of distress to building healthy habits around sleep, screen time and social connection, this webinar offers practical advice for parents, carers, and educators.

Visit Black Dog Institute’s range of evidence-based resources and tools to support young people and those who care for them:
🔗 https://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au/resources-support/

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Follow The Dysregulated Podcast:
Instagram – @elliot.t.waters
Facebook – The Dysregulated Podcast
YouTube – The Dysregulated Podcast (Official Channel)

Created by Elliot Waters — Inspired by lived experience.
Mental health insights, real stories, real conversations.