How to Grapple With Asian-Australian Mental Health, Yoga Learnings in Japan & India and The Birth of Shapes & Sounds ft. Asami Koike | Ep. 62

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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.
Show Notes Links:
https://www.justshapesandsounds.com/ https://www.instagram.com/justshapesandsounds https://www.facebook.com/justshapesandsounds https://www.tiktok.com/@justshapesandsounds http://www.linkedin.com/company/justshapesandsounds

Luvut

1. Intro (00:00:00)

2. Asami’s Japanese Childhood, Educational Journey & Conforming to Westernised Living Standards (00:02:30)

3. Dropping Out of University to Become a Yoga Teacher, Living in India & Tokyo and Exploring Identity & Belonging in Japan (00:05:59)

4. Studying Music Therapy, Working for a Crisis Service & Discovering the Lack of Asian-Australian Research in the Mental Health System (00:08:01)

5. Asami’s Personal Discoveries Teaching Yoga in Japan (00:10:42)

6. Looking into the Lack of Asian-Australian Mental Health Research & Finding the Right Solutions (00:13:23)

7. Asami’s Personal Experience with Mental Health (00:22:10)

8. The Birth of Shapes & Sounds, Asian-Australian Generational Trauma, The Diaspora of Feeling a Sense of Belonging & Community (00:27:47)

9. Navigating Around The Weight of Figuring Out Your Identity, the World, & Generational Pressure to Succeed (00:33:49)

10. Taking Mental Health Seriously with The Younger Generation (00:42:08)

11. The Future of Shapes & Sounds (00:49:57)

12. Asami’s Advice For the Younger Generation Around the Mental Health Space (00:52:04)

13. Outro (00:55:25)