The 3am Thoughts - What Nobody Tells you about running a business|Mental Health Competitors & Trolls

I’m not in the studio today. Deliberately. This one’s different. No product launches, no tech talk. Just me, a phone, and something I think founders and creators don’t say out loud often enough. After 22 years building E-Stim Systems, I still have moments where my brain constructs a perfect, logical argument for why everything is about to fall apart. A competitor launches. A troll hits. The orders go quiet. And the spiral starts. In this video I talk about what actually triggers it, what helps (and what sort of does), the coping mechanisms that work for me, and why — after 22 years — there are still 34 new product ideas in my notebook. This is about male mental health, running a small business, and why the spiral is lying. This video is publishing during Mental Health Awareness Week 2026. It wasn't planned that way - but it felt like the right moment to share it. If any of this resonates, I’d love to hear from you. Find us on social media @estimsystems or come and say hello at an event. If you’re going through something harder than a bad business day — please talk to someone. Samaritans: 116 123 (UK, free, 24/7). Or just ping us on social media. We’re real people. 00:00 Introduction 00:01 The 3am panic — what it actually feels like 00:05 What triggers it — competitors, trolls, Reddit 00:08 Why we don’t compete on price 00:09 A bigger market is a better market 00:11 Having your designs copied 00:13 The cash fear — coming close 00:21 Plan A through F — when planning becomes its own spiral 00:22 The Trading Standards story 00:24 The black book 00:25 Talking to people — sort of helps 00:26 Please talk to someone 00:27 A friend I lost 00:28 Why I actually do this 00:31 We don’t have the sole right to create e-stim 00:32 The spiral is lying #estim #estimsystems For purchasing direct from us visit https://estim.store We also have a free user support forum at https://www.e-stim.net You can also follow us on Social media https://www.twitter.com/estimsystems https://ift.tt/yfqIFjk https://ift.tt/eCL6Erf https://ift.tt/uK6fWSx And we also have a Podcast "I make sex toys" available on all major players https://ift.tt/GgwAIxD