Subj : Renowned Kiwis open up about their personal mental health in new serie To : All From : News Date : Mon Apr 15 2024 12:21 pm Well-known New Zealanders open up on their own mental health challenges in a newly launched interview series with broadcaster Scotty Stevenson. In partnership with TVNZ, AIA NZ has produced The Upside, a six-part series following NZ personalities who have gone through mentally-tough times. Life and health insurer AIA NZ says it is strongly aware of the struggles many face, and in response has produced the series of interviews it hopes will inspire Kiwis to reflect and have honest conversations about their own health and mental wellbeing. In each episode, Stevenson sits down one-on-one and holds open-hearted conversations with renowned Kiwis, including Dame Valerie Adams, Sir Graham Henry, Jason Gunn, Hayley Sprout, Awa Puna, and Detective Inspector Scott Beard. AIA NZ says mental health accounts for a quarter of all its income protection claims so it understands "first-hand the importance of mental wellness for overall health and wellbeing". "We felt this series would offer Kiwis a glimpse into the struggles of some well-known New Zealanders and offer insights or connections with their own personal journeys," the insurer says. "We partnered with TVNZ on the series as a way to share these powerful and unique stories, delivering on our purpose of helping New Zealanders live Healthier, Longer, Better Lives." `A unique and intense experience' for Stevenson A broadcaster, writer and sports fanatic, Stevenson says he often found both his interviewees and himself in tears as they talked, sometimes after arriving at unexpected yet relatable topics. "One of the great privileges in life is to be able to sit with someone in a really quiet space and just to have a conversation, I think we limit ourselves so much now," he says. "It just felt like there was a genuine connection [with the interviewees], to have the privilege and the honour to sit down and just to listen to someone. I just thought it was such a unique and intense experience." Stevenson says the interviews cover a wide range of personal subjects and stories, such as Gunn's grief following the loss of his mentor, Puna's battles as a transgender actor, and the internal struggles Beard faces in a police career surrounded by death and tragedy. "It's more than just talking about the fact they've had mental health issues, but more importantly sharing their knowledge of how they've dealt with those issues, and perhaps how they've overcome them," he says. While those he sat down with are prominent "successful" Kiwis, Stevenson says there's a greater takeaway to the series than each person having a hero's journey. "The bigger message that comes out is that all of these people have needed people around them," he says. "You need other people around you in your life if you want to be personally successful, and if you seek to overcome mental challenges or professional challenges, having those people around you is a really powerful tool to help you move forward." Ultimately, he hopes the series provides powerful messages and inspires those who needed to hear them to take steps to improve their own health, and to ask for help along the way. "The message here is, no matter where you are in life, no matter what challenges you face, there are ways you can come through the other side." This content was sponsored by AIA Vitality. Watch all six episodes of The Upside on TVNZ+. --- Mystic BBS v1.12 A44 2020/02/04 (Windows/64) * Origin: S.W.A.T.S BBS Telnet swatsbbs.ddns.net:2323 (63:10/102) .