Bala was born in Sri Lanka. Tragically, his mother took her own life when he was an infant and he was raised in the loving homes of his aunts. His childhood saw the outbreak of a civil war and as a result, Bala had very little schooling beyond the early years and followed the path of many young men at the time and joined the army at the age of 14.

David interviewed Jessie Mae. Jessie is one of nine siblings in her family and she tells her story of how she experienced many traumatic events in her childhood. She was the victim of verbal abuse and was repeatedly told by her father that she would never achieve anything in life and was not worthy of the love and security that she needed in her early years.

Professional magician and mental health advocate, David Burgess is also qualified in neurolinguistic programming; is a hypnosis practitioner, coaching expert and mental health first aider. His mission is to bring the magic back into people’s lives, giving them the tools to gain confidence in their own abilities.

Joseph Costello, founder of Joseph Costello Mentoring, found himself unfulfilled. Having worked in a coal yard and then as a civil servant, he realised that the traditional work-life of a “9-to-5” job was not working for him, and that he was following in the footsteps of his elder generations rather than designing his own life. He found himself depressed and needed long periods of sick leave from his job, mostly due to mental illness, which he and others did not recognise.

On this week’s Wedotalk, Laura Duff is joined by Maliha Shoaib, Editorial Intern at Vogue Business.