In this episode of the Level Asian podcast, we're joined by Asami Koike, Founder and Director of Shapes and Sounds, a social enterprise that destigmatises and promotes mental health in Asian communities.
Asami opens up about her challenges adapting to Western culture as a Japanese immigrant, the notable gap she discovered in Asian-Australian mental health research and how dropping out of university to pursue yoga helped catalyse the growth of her identity.
She also shares the origins of "Shapes & Sounds", its role in addressing Asian-Australian generational trauma, the community she was able to build and her advice on mental health to the younger generation.
00:00 - Intro
02:30 - Asami’s Japanese Childhood, Educational Journey & Conforming to Westernised Living Standards
05:59 - Dropping Out of University to Become a Yoga Teacher, Living in India & Tokyo and Exploring Identity & Belonging in Japan
08:01 - Studying Music Therapy, Working for a Crisis Service & Discovering the Lack of Asian-Australian Research in the Mental Health System
10:42 - Asami’s Personal Discoveries Teaching Yoga in Japan
13:23 - Looking into the Lack of Asian-Australian Mental Health Research & Finding the Right Solutions
22:10 - Asami’s Personal Experience with Mental Health
27:47 - The Birth of Shapes & Sounds, Asian-Australian Generational Trauma, The Diaspora of Feeling a Sense of Belonging & Community
33:49 - Navigating Around The Weight of Figuring Out Your Identity, the World, & Generational Pressure to Succeed
42:08 - Taking Mental Health Seriously with The Younger Generation
49:57 - The Future of Shapes & Sounds
52:04 - Asami’s Advice For the Younger Generation Around the Mental Health Space
55:25 - Outro
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