Are You Okay? - The Ryan Leak Podcast

Summary4 min read

The Ryan Leak Podcast – Episode Summary

Episode Title: Are You Okay?
Host: Ryan Leak
Date: June 8, 2026
Theme: Mental health challenges—recognizing, empathizing, and supporting ourselves and others

Episode Overview

In this heartfelt episode, Ryan Leak opens up about the often unseen battles many face with mental health. His message is not from the stance of an expert but rather from genuine observation and concern for those suffering in silence. Ryan urges listeners to acknowledge their struggles, reach out for help without shame, and extend compassionate support to people in their circle who may be struggling—emphasizing that sometimes, simply asking "Are you okay?" can make all the difference.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Recognizing Unseen Mental Health Struggles

Ryan’s motivation for the episode comes from seeing loved ones quietly carrying heavy burdens ([00:10]).
- "I'm sorry that you are vastly misunderstood. You've already got the regular pressure to perform… then on top of all that pressure, you start carrying something that the people around you can't even see." ([01:26])
Acknowledges how simple daily tasks can become monumental achievements for those struggling.
- "The fight it took just to get dressed and brush their teeth, the 45 minutes they sat in the parking lot before they walked into the building..." ([02:26])
Emphasizes that many of these daily victories are invisible to others.

2. The Importance of Asking for Help

Ryan dismantles the stigma around seeking help for mental health, highlighting that it’s wisdom, not weakness ([03:10]).
- "Needing help is some sort of sign of weakness instead of a sign of wisdom... I need all the help I can get." ([04:10])
Shares his personal reliance on therapy, mentors, honest friends, and a supportive spouse.
Urges that being whole is more important than appearing always impressive.
- "If asking for help makes me look less impressive, then I would rather be less impressive and whole than more impressive and broken every single time." ([04:45])
Notes the prevalence: "Research tells us that one in five adults... in this country, lives with a mental health condition in any given year." ([03:45])

3. Supporting Others with Mental Health Challenges

Advises listeners not to act as a doctor unless qualified:
- "Don't be their doctor. Mostly because you're not their doctor. Unless you're a doctor. But I'm willing to bet you're probably not a doctor, right?" ([06:02])
The most valuable action is low-pressure, consistent caring:
- "The most powerful thing you can do for somebody navigating a mental health issue at work is not a diagnosis. It's a text on a Tuesday that says, 'I'm thinking about you. No need to reply, I'm here.'" ([06:26])
Explains how small gestures—a text, a quiet check-in—have a greater impact than grand programs.
- "Researchers who study workplace mental health keep finding the same thing: that the small, consistent gestures from co-workers and managers move the needle more than any program." ([07:19])
Stresses the importance of curiosity, presence, and giving loved ones the space to express their real emotions.

4. Shifting Perspectives Through Personal Experience

Ryan shares his evolution after seeing close ones deal with mental health issues ([08:05]):
- "The moment a person you love walks into your life carrying [mental health challenges], it stops being a concept and it becomes a person. And that happened to me only recently..." ([08:25])
Owning up to previous lack of empathy and now encouraging more sensitivity and grace.

5. The Power of Grace & the Simple Question

Encourages listeners to give both themselves and others grace in the journey toward mental health ([09:16]).
- "The most underrated form of care in any workplace or any family is the courage to ask one more time, 'Are you okay?' And actually mean it." ([09:30])
Recommends pausing, making eye contact, and allowing space for honest answers—without rushing to fix things.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On unseen struggles:
"We quietly, low key would never know what it cost them just to get out of bed that morning..." – Ryan Leak ([01:54])
On seeking help:
"If asking for help makes me look less impressive, then I would rather be less impressive and whole than more impressive and broken every single time." – Ryan Leak ([04:45])
On supporting others:
"You don't have a degree, you have ChatGPT. There is a massive difference." – Ryan Leak ([06:17])
"A text, a door left open, a quiet 'Hey, I noticed you've been a little quieter this week. I'm not going anywhere. I see you.'" – Ryan Leak ([07:46])
On asking the question and holding space:
"Are you okay? And give them the space to say no and not have to fix it and just be present in their not Okayness." – Ryan Leak ([10:02])

Action Step & Audience Challenge

Ryan’s Simple Call to Action:

"If there’s somebody in your life... maybe a co-worker that’s been a little quieter than usual. I just want you to send them a text… you can just say, 'Hey, thinking about you,' 'no need to reply,' and just check on them…" ([10:48])
Suggests sharing the episode and letting those people know they are cared for.

This episode strikes a compassionate tone, destigmatizes seeking help, and offers practical, genuine steps—reminding us that being present and reaching out can change a person’s day, or even their life.

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Transcript1 lines

[00:01]
A
What's going on, my friends? Welcome back to the Ryan Week podcast, where we love to keep things short and sweet for you each and every week. Today I wanted to take a few moments to talk about something I've been thinking about for a while. Not because I'm an expert in this subject, I'm definitely not. But mostly because I've watched too many people I love quietly carry things, and I don't want to keep moving past that without encouraging my audience with something. And that something that we're going to talk about today is mental health challenges. If you are navigating a mental health issue yourself right now, the first thing that I want to say is I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry that you are dealing with what you're dealing with. I'm sorry that you are vastly misunderstood. You've already got the regular pressure to perform, the pressure to show up, the pressure to answer the email, the pressure to pick up the kids, to be perhaps the person you were before. So you've already got regular life pressure, money pressure, marital pressure, pressure, dating pressure, body image pressure. And then on top of all of that pressure, you start carrying something that the people around you can't even see. I honestly don't even know how some of you do it. Some of the heroes in my life are the people who consistently show up for their teams, their families, their children, their spouses, their loved ones, and the rest of us, well, we quietly, low key would never know what it cost them just to get out of bed that morning, the fight it took just to get dressed and brush their teeth, the 45 minutes they sat in the parking lot before they walked into the building, the smile they put on for the meeting that took everything they had. And so if that's you listening right now, I just want to say I see you and I am sorry. The second thing I want to encourage you with is to please, please, please ask for help. Research tells us that one in five adults, I believe it is, in this country, lives with a mental health condition in any given year. That means if you see 10 people today, two of them have some sort of mental health condition. If you went to the gym and you saw 50 people, 10 of them are going through a storm that you cannot see one in five. So I want to encourage you today, if you're one of those five, you're not alone. You're not alone. And yet a lot of people who could use support never go get it. They suffer in silence. A lot of that comes down to stigma this strange idea that we've all bought into, that needing help is some sort of sign of weakness instead of a sign of wisdom. And I think a lot of us still carry that like it's a badge of honor to white knuckle our way through life on our own. I don't need anybody is this badge of honor that we just love to carry. And, and let me just throw this out there. Listen, I need all the help I can get. Yep, I need all the help I can get. I have a therapist, I have mentors, I have friends who will tell me the truth when I don't want to hear it. I have a beautiful wife who can read me in about 15 second. And I get help from all of the aforementioned. If asking for help makes me look less impressive, then I would rather be less impressive and whole than more impressive and broken every single time. And what I can tell you that I just noticed in my travels all around the world is that the strongest people I know are not the ones who never need anything. They're the ones who learned early that pretending they didn't need anything was its own kind of prison. The ones who let somebody in, the ones who said the hard sentence out loud. There is a version of you on the other side of that conversation that you cannot get to alone. Now, if you're on the other side of the conversation, if you're working with somebody that you can tell is really navigating something, let me encourage you with a few things as well. Number one, don't be their doctor. Mostly because you're not their doctor. Unless you're a doctor. But I'm willing to bet you're probably not a doctor, right? And I know that AI has empowered a lot of well meaning people in our lives to believe they have medical training. You don't have a degree, you have ChatGPT. There is a massive difference. So don't try to fix them. Remain curious. Check on them. The most powerful thing you can do for somebody navigating a mental health issue at work is not a diagnosis. It's a text on a Tuesday that says, I'm thinking about you. No need to reply, I'm here. Like, there's actually a reason that that little phrase matters. Because when somebody is in the middle of something heavy, the pressure of having to respond, having to explain themselves, having to perform okayness, it's exhausting. And a nice no strings attached check in lifts the cost being cared for. Researchers who study workplace mental health keep finding the same thing that the small consistent gestures from co Workers and managers move the needle more than any program. A text, a door left open, a quiet Hey, I noticed you've been a little quieter this week. I'm not going anywhere. I see you tan. I want to be honest with you about something. If you've never struggled with mental health yourself, it can be difficult to genuinely empathize with somebody who has. It can feel like a concept, something you've read about, something other people have, something other people have made fun of. But the moment your kid has it, the moment your spouse has it, the moment a person you love walks into your life, carrying stops being a concept and it becomes a person. And that happened to me only recently. Some of the people closest to me started navigating things I had never personally walked through. And it changed me. It softened me. It made me realize how casually I had treated something that for them was the daily weather of their life. So wherever you are in this, whether you're carrying it yourself or whether you're learning how to love somebody who is, give yourself grace. Give them grace. And remember that the most underrated form of care in any workplace or any family is the courage to ask one more time, are you okay? And actually mean it. Are you okay? Like that you would pause in your world and genuinely look somebody in the eyes and just make sure they're good. Are you okay? And give them the space to say no and not have to fix it and just be present and they're not Okayness. Before we conclude today's episode, I want to ask you one thing. If there's somebody in your life that maybe is a friend or family member that you've been a little worried about, maybe a co worker that's been a little quieter than usual. I just want you to send them a text. You don't have to send them anything heavy. Just, you can just say, hey, thinking about you, thinking about you and no need to reply and just check on them if it's helpful. Maybe even share this episode with them and say, hey, I was just thinking about you and I care. I care about you and just was listening to this and made me think of you. Just wanted you to know I'm here for you. I think that might be the most important thing you do all week long. My friends, thank you so much for listening to the Ryan Leak podcast. If today's episode was just what you needed, I would encourage you to share with a friend. And as always, don't forget to rate, review and subscribe and do all the things that all podcasts ask you to do. Hey, I hope you have a phenomenal week. Catch you next time.