Ryan Dusick, once best known as the drummer who helped launch Maroon 5 to global fame, is now speaking out in a very different way. On May 15, 2025, he’ll appear in a new episode of CHECK YOUR HEAD: Mental Help for Musicians, just in time for the fifth annual Mental Health Action Day. But this isn’t just another interview or awareness push, it’s personal.
In the episode, Ryan Dusick sits down with singer-songwriter Jewel for a wide-ranging conversation that blends stories, struggles, and tools both have picked up along the way. They don’t sugarcoat anything. From anxiety to burnout, the conversation touches on what it really means to manage mental health while trying to stay creative and stay afloat.
Mental Health Action Day, now in its fifth year, has steadily grown into something more than just a date on the calendar. It brings together people from all over: nonprofits, artists, advocates, to talk not only about mental health but what to actually do about it. That’s part of what makes this episode feel different. It’s not focused on big ideas, it’s grounded in real experience, and it’s meant to give listeners something they can hold on to.
For Dusick, that experience runs deep. He was with the band from the very beginning, back when they were still called Kara’s Flowers. But years of relentless touring, pressure, and untreated physical and emotional pain eventually forced him out. What followed was, in his own words, one of the hardest stretches of his life.
He didn’t vanish, though. Instead, he started over. Ryan Dusick went back to school, became a licensed therapist, and slowly began to share his story, first in private, then in public. His memoir, Harder to Breathe, lays out his journey in full detail. It’s not polished or glamorous. It’s raw and often uncomfortable, but that’s the point. Through his podcast, The Harder to Breathe Podcast, he continues those conversations, drawing on both his background in music and his training as a therapist.
One idea that keeps coming up in his work is what he calls the “Get Curious” approach. Rather than judging your emotions or trying to bury them, Dusick encourages people to lean in, to explore, to question, to listen. It’s a simple idea, but one that can shift everything.
Jewel, no stranger to emotional depth herself, brings a thoughtful presence to the episode. Together, the two reflect not only on the challenges artists face but also on the moments that offer hope. It’s not all answers, far from it, but there’s comfort in the honesty.
Mental health in the music world is still tricky to talk about. Success can mask suffering, and the spotlight doesn’t always show what’s really going on. That’s what makes episodes like this one feel important. Not in a promotional sense, but in a real, human way.
As Mental Health Action Day rolls around again, the hope isn’t just for more talk, but for more listening, more connection, and maybe, for some, a little more courage to ask for help. Dusick’s journey, and the way he’s choosing to share it now, reminds us that recovery isn’t linear, and healing doesn’t have to be loud.
This episode might not solve anything overnight. But for someone tuning in at the right moment, it could help them feel a little less alone. And that’s a start.