Conversations with Sydney is a solutions-oriented podcast series exploring effective ways for parents, teens, schools, and communities to respond to the ongoing crises of teen mental health and suicide. Each episode is framed as an intimate conversation between a father (Micah) and his non-binary teenager (Sydney) as they search for real-world solutions by speaking with parents, doctors, and national leaders in the field of teen suicide prevention. Some of the questions we raise include: Should parents talk to their kids about suicide? How can parents begin to talk about mental health and suicide with their kids?
What do we know about the signs of suicide and how can it be prevented? What is self-injury and how can parents help their kids find healthier ways to cope with their feeling? What role can schools and teachers play in addressing this unfolding national crisis? What role can teens play? Our hope is that these intimate and open-ended conversations will engage everyone who has a stake in helping young people lead healthy, happier lives – and encourage them to discuss these issues within their own families, schools and communities.
Micah, a journalist and filmmaker, and Sydney, a musician and artist, live in New Jersey.
The program is distributed by WBGO Studios, the podcasting arm of WBGO, the Public Radio Station in Newark, New Jersey, and is available for free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, the NPR app, Amazon Music and Overcast.
CONVERSATIONS WITH SYDNEY (SEASON 2) was produced by WBGO Studios with support from The Horizon Foundation for New Jersey.
CONVERSATIONS WITH SYDNEY (SEASON 1) was produced with support from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, The Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism, and produced in association with WBGO Studios. Listening guides for K-12 educators is available on at: www.pulitzercenter.org/conversationswithsydney.
CONVERSATIONS WITH SYDNEY is a 2023 Signal Award Winner
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org
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In this Season 2 conclusion, CWS talks with three young college students about their use of personal pronouns, and how these terms relate to their sense of their own gender and place in the world. -
CWS speaks with two transgender people,Benjamin and Juliette, about their lives and how they have navigated the complex social, psychological, and familial consequences of living transgender lives.
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CWS explores resilience in the face of racial terror by speaking with Dr. Terry Roberts, a member of the Little Rock Nine, who at fifteen years old volunteered to help desegregate Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1957.
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CWS explores the connections between music, mania, and the creative process with Sparni, a talented young musician who lives with Bipolar Disorder.
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This inaugural episode of Season 2 explores the social and psychological costs of being outed in middle school by school officials for being queer.
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CONVERSATIONS WITH SYDNEY is a solutions-oriented podcast series exploring effective ways for parents, teens, schools, and communities to respond to the ongoing crises of teen mental health and suicide.
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CONVERSATIONS WITH SYDNEY is a solutions-oriented podcast series exploring effective ways for parents, teens, schools, and communities to respond to the ongoing crises of teen mental health and suicide.