The Smoke Break

Written by: Zane Thomas Zoë Schwartz & Taylor Barrett
  • Summary

  • The Smoke Break, hosted by Zane Thomas, Zoe Schwartz, and Taylor Barrett, is a mental health and comedy podcast recorded in Portland, Oregon. Since 2020, they’ve been having candid conversations with comedians, musicians, performers, and other community members that help to make things like medication, psychosis, trauma, diagnoses, recovery, and loss feel normal. With their personal lived experience, working in the mental health field, and being comedians/creatives themselves, they balance the vulnerability of personal stories with some ridiculous jokes and wild laughter.

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Episodes
  • Episode 123: “Relaxation & Legacy” (ft. Khalil)
    Jan 14 2025

    On this week’s episode of “The Smoke Break”, we finally got to spend time with Khalil, who runs the artist collective Immutable Pdx as well as doing amazing and impactful work with homeless youth.

    We started out talking about the importance of relaxation and how challenging it is to allow ourselves to check out and take care of ourselves when we’re so used to having to grind all the time and be productive to have self worth.

    Then we moved on to discussing the importance of culturally specific services, and how folks miss out on opportunities when supports aren’t put in place that are intentionally meant to make them feel seen, included, and important.

    We close out the episode by talking about the idea of legacy—what do we want to leave behind, how temporary everything is, and how much control do we have over it in the end.

    Episodes drop every Monday @ 6pm on ALL platforms! Thanks for listening.

    Link in comments…

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    46 mins
  • Episode 122: “Hopelessness & Conflict Resolution” (ft. Lori Van Deman)
    Jan 7 2025

    On this week’s episode of “The Smoke Break”, we hung out with Portland comedian and librarian Lori Van Deman.

    We started out with perfectionism, and how we can convince ourselves to try new things even when it’s scary. Then we moved on to hopelessness—and most importantly, the ways we’ve found to pull ourselves out of it, primarily by connecting with others.

    Lastly, we tackled conflict resolution…. what's worked, what hasn’t, and how rupture and repair in a relationship can strengthen it if you’re able to get through the tough parts.

    Episodes drop every Monday @ 6pm on ALL platforms! Thanks for listening.

    Link in comments…

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    45 mins
  • Episode 121: "Self Perception & Storytelling" (ft. Aleah Liebenau)
    Dec 31 2024

    On this week’s episode of “The Smoke Break”, we speak with Portland comedian and storyteller Aleah Liebenau about our experiences with overthinking and how it impacts us.

    Next we discuss self-perception, how it influences how we interact with others, and if it’s possible to have an accurate self-perception.

    Lastly, we talk about the power of storytelling and how it’s such an important part of expressing ourselves, feeling seen, and making people feel a little less alone in their experiences.

    Episodes drop every Monday @ 6pm on ALL platforms! Link in comments…

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    46 mins

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