Therapist Stella Ladikos breaks down how we can most effectively navigate conversations about our mental health with our loved ones, and why these discussions are a valuable opportunity for growth in any relationship.

Mental Health First Aid Crises Training Facilitator Stella Ladikos tells New Idea that positively, more and more Australians are enrolling in Mental Health First Aid courses, designed to equip participants with the skills to treat the mind, and not the body.

Forget being a realist – looking at life through rose-tinted glasses has never been more in vogue. But is being ‘delulu’ a good thing or bad?Viewing the glass half full used to be the general approach to optimism, but these days that’s not cutting it. Instead, TikTok is inspiring people to romanticise various facets of their life to the point of being unrealistic – or “delulu” as the Gen Z kids are calling it.

Travelling with friends is an exciting prospect, promising unforgettable adventures and shared memories. However, the dynamics of travel can sometimes stir unexpected tensions, putting friendships to the test. To ensure that your travel experience is filled with laughter and joy rather than disputes and disagreements, it's essential to navigate the potential pitfalls wisely.

We’re more interconnected than ever before, but does such instant and far-reaching communication come with a hefty emotional price tag? Here’s how overactive group chats can leave us feeling overwhelmed, isolated, and downright exhausted.

According to TikTok, and most of my twenty-something peers, we are well and truly in the era of recognising the quarter-life crisis. Here’s why your twenties are likely to bring up feelings of loneliness, confusion and downright overwhelm, and what to do about it.

“One of the benefits of platforms like TikTok, is that it provides a platform for people to discuss mental health issues and talk about strategies of how to manage mental health,” therapist Stella Ladikos tells Mamamia. The downside though, is there’s no one-size-fits-all strategy when it comes to mental health.

If any of your relationships are stressing you out, the Let Them theory may help. Here’s how this mindset hack works, and how to put it into practice. The mindset hack promotes the idea of accepting and letting go of things that are beyond your control in order to find peace and contentment, and better relationships.

After centuries of toxic masculinity and the notion that manliness means boys can’t cry and grown men don’t talk about their feelings, a therapist’s client list has taken a giant gendered swing. “In my own private practice I’ve been seeing a lot more guys come to therapy and at the moment most of my regular clients are actually men, which is really, really promising to see.”

Struggling to master the art of friendships as an adult? Here’s how to use the new year’s optimistic potential to your advantage, forging meaningful connections to last a lifetime. As Stella Ladikos, therapist and founder of Meraki Mental Health Training, says, our renewed perspective and sense of purpose that accompanies us into the new year creates the ideal backdrop for broadening our circle of friends.

As a single looking to mingle, the advice heaped on by couples hoping to help is overwhelming at best. “It’ll happen when you’re not looking,” they tell you with that gleeful look in their eye, as if your one true love is just around the corner, before launching into a tirade of instructions that’ll lead you to happily ever after.

But are they right?

Social media can be a great way to raise awareness. But when it comes to medical advice, health experts warn we should scroll with caution. If you’ve ever stumbled across a social media post that looks like the answer to your health concerns, you wouldn’t be the first person to dabble in a bit of online self-diagnosis. But is it sensible – or even safe – to trust your wellbeing to an algorithm?

In this podcast episode, learn what to say to help your loved ones, how to approach a loved one who appears to be struggling with their mental health, the importance of holding space, and understand the stigmas around mental health in 2024 and so much more.

In this podcast episode, we opened up about mental health and the importance of speaking up before it gets to breaking point. We speak openly about our experiences and what brought us to the point in our lives now in the hope that it will show listeners that it is okay to talk about.

In this podcast episode, learn what mental health first aid is and how culture and language shape our understanding of mental health. I draw from my personal experiences within the Greek Community to share strategies to challenge the cultural stigma around mental health.