Who gets access to the outdoors, mental health care, and the experiences that can help people feel more alive? In Part 2 of this conversation, licensed professional counselor Josh Korac continues speaking with professional rock climber and outdoor guide Cody Bradford about access, privilege, social media, mental health education, and the responsibility professionals have to remain within the limits of their expertise. Josh and Cody compare barriers within mental health care and outdoor recreation. Therapy, climbing, guiding, and wilderness experiences can all be meaningful, but they may also require money, transportation, time, equipment, insurance, or access to trained professionals. These barriers can make healing and recreation less available to people who might benefit from them. They discuss the privilege involved in outdoor spaces and why the climbing community is not equally accessible or welcoming to everyone. Cody reflects on the responsibility guides and outdoor professionals have to consider cost, culture, identity, safety, and the assumptions they bring into their work. The conversation also examines social media as a tool for education. Online platforms can make information about mental health, climbing, and safety more widely available, but short-form content can also oversimplify complex subjects. Josh and Cody discuss the difference between sharing helpful information and presenting yourself as an expert in areas where you lack appropriate training. They explore professional boundaries and the importance of knowing what you do not know. Therapists should not present themselves as outdoor guides without proper experience, and outdoor professionals should not attempt to provide therapy without clinical training. Collaboration and referral can better protect the people seeking support. Josh and Cody also discuss popular culture, including the film Joker, and how media portrays mental illness, trauma, violence, and social isolation. They consider how entertainment can encourage meaningful conversations while also reinforcing misleading or harmful ideas. In this episode, you will learn about: • Barriers to mental health care and outdoor recreation • How cost, location, equipment, and transportation affect access • Privilege and inclusion within outdoor communities • Why outdoor experiences are not equally available to everyone • The benefits and limitations of mental health education on social media • How short-form content can oversimplify complex issues • Staying within your professional scope of practice • The importance of consultation, collaboration, and referral • Ethical responsibility in therapy and outdoor guiding • How films and media portray mental illness • The relationship between trauma, isolation, and community • Creating safer and more accessible helping spaces Cody Bradford was a professional rock climber, outdoor guide, and educator. He was an AMGA Certified Rock Guide, AMGA Certified Single Pitch Instructor, and AMGA Single Pitch Instructor Assistant Provider. His work centered on climbing, mentorship, access, education, and helping people build confidence through meaningful experiences outdoors. This episode was recorded before Cody’s death and is shared in appreciation of his honesty, insight, and commitment to helping others. Josh Korac is a licensed professional counselor in Colorado who specializes in trauma, family estrangement, loneliness, and complex relationship concerns. He is also the Lead Moderator of Estrangement.com. Learn more about Josh at joshuakorac.com. Content note: This episode includes discussion of suicide, mental illness, violence in media, and barriers to care. This podcast is for educational purposes and does not constitute mental health treatment, diagnosis, outdoor instruction, crisis intervention, or an established therapeutic relationship.