Having conversations is his job, but the format is new. “I don't even listen to podcasts myself,” says Harald Schmidt. That didn't stop the former late-night talker from taking on the role of host and presenter for the first season of "Raus aus der Depression". From this Tuesday on, seven episodes of the scientific podcast produced by NDR Info will be available at weekly intervals. The sixty-three-year-old has withdrawn from the screen and, for the most part, from the public, but remains loyal to his commitment as patron of the German Depression Aid Foundation, which has existed since 2008. In this function, he asks people with depression about their experiences and then classifies what has been said - with the support of the chairman of the foundation, the psychiatrist Ulrich Hegerl.

The episodes, which last about half an hour, want to inform and educate about depression.

The ideas that exist about depression are often misleading, says Hegerl, who for many years headed the Department of Psychiatry at the Leipzig University Hospital and now holds the Senckenberg Professorship at the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Frankfurt.

“It is not clear to many that depression is an illness in its own right and more than a reaction to difficult circumstances.

We want to encourage people to get help, show that there are good treatment options, and explain who is responsible for the treatment.

Informing is also the best way to destigmatize the disease. "

Between humor and seriousness

Harald Schmidt has no reservations about the topic and certainly not about those affected. Every two years he moderates the foundation's patient congress, which is planned for 2022 in the Alte Oper in Frankfurt. Before his voluntary work, he had no personal connection to the disease, but he felt addressed by Hegerl's request. He appreciates the entertainer and actor because of his "ingenious balancing act between humor and seriousness", which he showed again in the podcast.

“I tried to bring in my experience of how to open up conversation partners,” says Schmidt.

“From my perception, it worked out quite well.” First audio samples show: As different as the interviewees are, they are united by the openness with which they talk about their illness.

The guests of the seven episodes come from different areas and have different backgrounds, they range from the music journalist Miriam Davoudvandi to the author Jasmin Schreiber to Walter Kohl, who reports, among other things, about his suicide attempt - and about the suicide of his mother Hannelore 20 years ago.

Kohl shares this fate with the guest of the first episode, the podcaster and dating show participant Lars Tönsfeuerborn, whose mother took her own life.

Positive lockdown experiences

In the conversations he noticed the differentiated opinions of all interviewees on drug treatment with psychotropic drugs, says Schmidt. “They tend to have a critical image in the general population. But when used by professionals, they can be a very powerful part of therapy. That was determined uniformly. "

Harald Schmidt personally - in contrast to many mentally unstable people - took the corona measures.

His lockdown experiences were rather positive: "No handshakes, no hugs, no kisses left and right - finally the government has done something for me." what is now being led to me in the news as joie de vivre: Aperol Spritz in downtown Saarbrücken. "

The podcast “Raus aus der Depression” can be heard from Tuesday in the ARD audio library and on popular podcast platforms.