Jake O’Brien: surviving against the odds

Mitch Wallis Podcast

Jake grew up with a single mum, and even as a child, he took on the role of “the man’ in the house. When his stepdad came along, things were ok for a while, but later Jake would have to endure the fear and anger of living with an unstable parent figure. Jake escaped to pursue his own life of travel and adventure and became qualified as a chef. Later, in his mid-twenties, when he was just starting to thrive in his new career as a personal trainer, a tragic motorcycle accident nearly claimed his life. Toward the end of his months of recovery, he was told he had throat cancer.

Mitch and Jake talk openly about how he survived through it all and how he is continually challenging himself to improve and pursue physical and mental health.

Topics covered:

• Feeling unsafe at home in a household where there is drugs and violence
• A sense of masculinity. How we grasp at it, lean into it and adapt to threats to it.
• Surviving a motorcycle accident, which left him in recovery for months
• Receiving a cancer diagnosis while still in rehabilitation from the accident

The music Jake mentions at the end is by @lukasmac and has been a guiding light for his recovery.