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Story PreviewImagine living only one good week out of every month, feeling misunderstood, and struggling with extreme mood swings that disrupt your entire life. This episode sheds light on PMDD, a condition often mislabeled as PMS, offering validation and practical ways to reclaim those lost weeks.00:00 Introduction to PMDD02:37 PMS vs. PMDD: Key Differences06:00 Debilitating Symptoms & Misdiagnosis09:38 Understanding PMDD Mechanism & Endometriosis12:55 Treatment & Nutritional Support17:46 Support Systems & Technology's Role22:53 Future Outlook and Living with PMDD25:52 AI in Medicine: Opportunities & Fears31:42 Final Thoughts & Finding Support“PMS is kind of like the annoying friend or the annoying cousin that comes and visits you once a month… versus PMDD who is perhaps a very, very toxic friend.” “PMS is uncomfortable. PMDD is debilitating.” “Doctor, I only get one good week out of every month. That's 25% on average, right?” This episode marks a significant milestone for 2DocsToc, reaching its 50th episode with the return of Dr. Hariri. The discussion highlights the historical lack of awareness for women's health issues like PMDD, comparing it to past dialogues around breast cancer awareness. Rob notes the common dismissal of these symptoms by medical professionals, underscoring the importance of increased understanding and empathy.Get In Touch!rob@2docstocpodcast.com
Womb wisdom. Ancestral healing. Emotional liberation.In this powerful, womb-erful episode, we are joined by Dr. Irene Sanchez Celis - a Mexican-born medical doctor, Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner, acupuncturist, womb healer, and multidisciplinary feminine-wisdom teacher with over 20 years of experience guiding women back into their bodies.Together, we explore the real medicine women aren't taught:✨ How your womb holds ancestral memory✨ The emotional + spiritual roots of painful periods, PMS, endometriosis & PCOS✨ Why numbness is actually too much feeling✨ How to complete the stress cycle & stop emotional spirals✨ The truth about womb power, inner seasons, and feminine archetypes✨ How to clear old partners' energy & reconnect with your sexual aliveness✨ The science + spirituality behind womb healing, somatic release & subconscious rewiring✨ The ancient art of Yoni Steaming (how it works… and how to do it safely)If you've ever felt disconnected from your body, struggled with menstrual pain, or sensed that your womb holds wisdom you haven't yet accessed - this conversation is for you.Meet Our Guest: Dr. Irene Sánchez-Celis is a Doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine, acupuncturist, and womb-centered mentor who weaves Chinese medicine, Taoist–Tantric practices, and depth-psychology into modern healing. Through her signature work in womb healing, sacred sexuality, and the Seven Gates practice, she guides women to regulate their nervous system, unlock their sexual energy as a source of vitality, and reclaim their sovereign power.Born and raised in Mexico City, Irene carries a lineage of mysticism, medicine, and embodied spirituality. Her teachings integrate ancient frameworks with grounded clinical experience in women's health, fertility, hormones, and trauma repair.She is the creator of Radiance the podcast. the Womb Quiz, the Womb Medicine Bundle, and her signature program Womb Awakening, designed to help modern women reconnect with their true nature through the intelligence of their womb and the awakening of their sexual life force.
Hormonelle Dysbalancen wie PMS, Erschöpfung oder Gewichtszunahme entstehen nicht „einfach so“.Ein oft übersehener Faktor sind endokrine Disruptoren, chemische Substanzen, die wie falsche Hormone wirken. Sie stecken in Plastik, Kosmetik, Putzmitteln und unserer Nahrung und bringen dein hormonelles Gleichgewicht langfristig durcheinander.In diesem Video erkläre ich dir: – was endokrine Disruptoren wirklich sind, – wie sie auf deinen Körper wirken, – und was du im Alltag tun kannst, um dich zu schützen, ohne in Panik zu verfallen.Ich bin Laura Kohler, studierte Neurobiologin & Health Coach, und ich zeige dir, wie du deinen Körper verstehst, statt ihn zu bekämpfen.✨Unverbindliche Sprechstunde
From Broadway to brilliant hosting. In this Host Planet Playbook episode, Sarah Karakaian, Co-Founder of Thanks for Visiting, shares how she swapped the stage for short-term rentals and built brands that wow guests and keep owners smiling. We dig into the nuts and bolts of five-star guest experience, why boundaries matter, standing out in Columbus, Ohio, and the most common questions new hosts ask. Sarah closes with practical advice for getting started – and the mindset that turns hosting into a meaningful, scalable business.1:42 Sarah's journey in the STR space2:25 From Broadway to vacation rentals5:29 Thanks for Visiting has replaced the acting bug6:05 How to deliver an outstanding guest experience 7:40 Boundaries are a good thing8:54 How to keep owners happy10:12 Challenges and opportunities in Columbus, Ohio 11:50 How Sarah's brands stand out14:09 What Sarah loves about hosting 15:33 Thanks for Visiting19:58 The common questions new hosts ask21:38 Advice to people starting out25:16 Quickfire questions27:28 Shout-out: Justin Ford28:16 Ultimate goalSarah Karakaian: https://www.linkedin.com/in/skarakaian/Thanks for Visiting: https://thanksforvisiting.com/The Host Planet Playbook was created in collaboration with Hospitable. Interested in using a PMS which will help you manage your rentals on autopilot? Get 25% off Hospitable for the first three months: https://hospitable.com/partners/hostplanetDownload a free copy of the Host Planet Playbook: https://www.hostplanet.club/host-planet-playbookThe Host Planet Playbook series is presented by James Varley, Founder and CEO of Host Planet. Connect with James on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jdsvarley/Host Planet: https://www.hostplanet.club/
Could the birth control pill be shaping women's moods, desires, and even same-sex attraction — and what men should know about PMS?Dr. Sarah Hill, award-winning researcher and author of This Is Your Brain on Birth Control and The Period Brain, has spent years exploring these questions — and the answers are wild. She explains how hormonal birth control can impact mood, stress, and even the partners women are drawn to — plus why PMS is so misunderstood.Thank you to our sponsors!TAYLOR DUKES WELLNESS: Use code ALEXCLARK for 10% off your purchaseBLDG ACTIVE SKIN REPAIR: Use code ALEX for 20% off your orderGARNUU: Use code ALEX to get 15% off your one-time subscription or purchaseCOZY EARTH: Use code ALEX for 40% offZEBRA: Use code ALEX for 10% off any orderJOOVV: Get an exclusive discount on your first red light therapy orderOur Guest:Sarah Hill, PHDSarah's Links:Website: sarahehill.comInstagram: @sarahehillphd“This Is Your Brain On Birth Control” Book: Amazon Link“The Period Brain” Book: Amazon Link
In this episode, Carlos Gonzalez de Villaumbrosia interviews Dheerja Kaur, Chief Product Officer at Hims & Hers, the publicly traded health and wellness platform with a market cap of over $10 billion and more than 3 million active users across its Hims and Hers consumer brands.At Hims & Hers, Dheerja is building the future of preventative care by combining diagnostics, clinical guidance, and personalized treatments—all delivered through a consumer-grade digital experience. From healthcare to fintech, Dheerja breaks down how PMs can master regulatory nuance without sacrificing speed or UX, why pairing product with clinical and compliance experts is a superpower, and how to turn constraints into differentiation through org design, platform thinking, and data. What you'll learn: – Why product leadership in regulated industries requires a different kind of PM muscle. – How Hims & Hers is expanding from transactional treatments to full-stack preventative care. – The rationale behind maintaining two separate apps—and how that unlocks personalization at scale. – How AI is powering internal tools, treatment plans, and personalized health journeys.Key Takeaways :point_down: – Building for Impact, Not Just Efficiency: Why Dheerja prefers mission-driven industries that improve lives over “fun” products. – Product Meets Clinical: How Hims & Hers pairs PMs with in-house physicians to co-create treatment and diagnostic experiences. – From Health Stack to Health Loop: Why continuous testing, personalized treatments, and AI-powered insights are the future of digital health.Social Links:- Follow our Podcast on Tik Tok here- Follow Product School on LinkedIn here- Join Product School's free events here- Find out more about Product School hereCredits:Host: Carlos Gonzalez de VillaumbrosiaGuest: Dheerja Kaur
What if your histamine reactions, skin rashes, and perfume sensitivities aren't allergies at all — but signs of bile backup? In this deep-dive episode of The Coach Debbie Potts Show, Debbie unpacks the powerful yet overlooked connection between choline, bile flow, and histamine balance — and how restoring this triad can transform your energy, digestion, and hormone harmony.
Send us a textIn this week's Life of Love, Julie welcomes integrative health practitioner and high-achieving-woman, Chelsea McLeod. Together they pull back the curtain on the divine feminine, hormone health, and how to listen when your body is whispering (or screaming) for a different way.Chelsea shares her personal story of overachieving, chronic stress, a traumatic family event, and finally being diagnosed with PCOS and type 2 diabetes in her 20s — then choosing a path of true healing instead of numbing. She and Julie explore how our culture trains women to hang their worth on output, ignore their cycles, and normalize symptoms that are actually big hormonal red flags. :contentReference[oaicite:1]{index=1}You'll hear about:- Chelsea's journey from competitive athlete and corporate hustler to hormone healer- Why 4 out of 5 women may be dealing with hormonal imbalance without realizing it- Symptoms that are common **but not normal**: night waking, crazy PMS, bloating, hair loss, constipation, anxiety, feeling “fluffy,” infertility diagnoses, and more- How our industrial food system, chemicals, and seed oils quietly disrupt your hormones- The simple practice of becoming a “package turner” and reading labels with discernment- Easy daily tracking to understand your hormones: - energy check-ins through the day - mood swings - sleep quality and 2–3 a.m. wakeups - menstrual cycle patterns- How heart rate variability and resting heart rate can reflect your stress resilience- Using the phases of your cycle to guide workouts, social plans, and productivity (instead of fighting yourself)- Honoring your bleed, seeing menstruation as sacred, and bringing ritual back into everyday life- What it looks like to claim your divinity and step out of survival mode as a sovereign woman**Key Takeaways**- It's not you being “lazy” or “dramatic” — it's often your hormones trying to get your attention. - Common symptoms are not the same as *normal*. Your body is designed to feel good. - Healing hormones is a skill set, not a quick fix. You can learn it over time. - Your cycle is one of your greatest superpowers once you know how to work with it. - Resting, especially around your bleed and in your luteal phase, is not weakness — it's strategy. - You don't have to burn yourself out to be valuable. Your divinity doesn't depend on your productivity.**Favorite Quotes**- “Women don't need more hacks, we need habits and skills.” – Chelsea - “No, you don't ‘fix' your hormones. You *heal* your hormones.” – Julie - “Sometimes we need to ritualize the mundane to reconnect with our feminine energy.” – Chelsea - “No one else is going to crown you. Your divinity is yours to claim.” – Julie If this conversation lands in your heart, that's your sign. Share it with a friend, revisit it around your next cycle, and let it be a loving reminder that you are not broken — you are divine, and your body is always speaking with you.Support the showLink to Support this Channel: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2153284/supporters/newJulie's Book: https://amzn.to/3K2ZS05Julie's Website for more information, comments or requests: https://lifeofloveandjoy.comI receive a small commission when you purchase from these links.
In this episode of the Fleet Success Show: Fleet Management 101 Series, Fleet Success Ambassador Facundo Tassara sits down with Bill Griffiths, Fleet Administrator for the District of Columbia, to unpack the essentials every fleet professional needs to succeed. With over 30 years in the game, managing fleets from the Smithsonian to Montgomery County to the nation's capital, Bill reveals how he transformed underperforming fleets with one radical principle: get the fundamentals right.From crafting a killer elevator pitch to navigating NTSB investigations, from PM compliance to creating scorecards that drive accountability—this episode is an unfiltered masterclass in fleet management done right. Whether you're a rookie or a seasoned veteran, this conversation will challenge your thinking and upgrade your strategy. Key Takeaways:Fleet Fundamentals: Why missing the basics—like asset classifications, accounting codes, or PMs—can cripple your operation.The Power of Metrics: How to choose the right KPIs (and what 5 Bill thinks are non-negotiable).Elevator Pitch Mastery: Why every fleet leader should be ready to present fleet value in 30 seconds or less.Customer Service as a Fleet Strategy: How proactive service communication builds internal trust and budget support.Scorecards That Drive Culture: How Bill uses shop-level scorecards to increase ownership, technician efficiency, and fleet availability.Working On the Business: The difference between reacting to problems and planning for a future with EVs, telematics, and shifting tech. Speaker Bios:Facundo TassaraFleet Success Ambassador, RTAWith 25 years of experience across government and private fleets, Facundo is a champion of operational excellence. As RTA's Fleet Success Ambassador, he brings a unique blend of hands-on experience and tech innovation to help fleets run smarter, leaner, and more effectively.Bill GriffithsFleet Administrator, District of ColumbiaA fleet industry veteran with 34 years of experience, Bill has led transformative fleet initiatives at Montgomery County, the Smithsonian Institution, the MBTA, and now Washington D.C. He's known for his strategic mindset, obsession with data-driven decisions, and no-BS approach to leadership and fleet accountability.
You probably have heard of your female hormones estrogen and progesterone, but do you know what they do and how they shift?I'm a firm believer that when you learn more about your body, you can step deeper into your feminine, connect with your body more, and feel more at home in your skin.So, let's learn about what's actually going on at each phase (and every day!) of your cycle.We'll talk about:Estrogen's role and how it shiftsProgesterone's role and how it shiftsLH and FSH shiftsHow we can confirm ovulationAny questions? Leave a comment or DM me on instagram!--------------------------------------------------------Find me on instagram: @jfaye_rdWork with me! More info hereFREE RESOURCE! Balancing hormones and banishing PMS
Hey, Heal Squad! We're back with Part 2 of our conversation with Anthony DiSalvo, Maria's personal acupuncturist and California Board-Certified Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner, and this one's all about real-life healing tools you can use daily. In this episode, Anthony breaks down how to naturally relieve constipation, allergies, and hormonal imbalances through simple acupressure points, herbal support, and daily habits. He also shares how hot water therapy can transform digestion, what your cravings reveal about your body, and how Chinese medicine helps with fertility, postpartum recovery, and UTIs. Maria and Anthony dive into how consistency and self-discipline are the secret ingredients for healing, and why you don't need to rely only on external treatments to feel better. You'll learn how to reconnect with your body, support your organs, and build harmony from the inside out! HEALERS & HEAL-LINERS: Consistency creates healing. Acupressure isn't a one-time fix, it's a daily dialogue with your body. The more you show up, the faster your system learns to rebalance on its own. Hot water is medicine. Swapping cold drinks for warm or hot water soothes digestion, boosts circulation, and relaxes your body from the inside out. Healing allergies starts with strengthening your organs. Instead of masking symptoms, support your lungs, liver, and spleen so your immune system can finally calm and reset. Your hormones want harmony, not control. Chinese medicine works with your natural cycles to ease PMS, improve fertility, and make transitions like perimenopause smoother. -- HEAL SQUAD SOCIALS IG: https://www.instagram.com/healsquad/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@healsquadxmaria HEAL SQUAD RESOURCES: Heal Squad Website:https://www.healsquad.com/ Heal Squad x Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/HealSquad/membership Maria Menounos Website: https://www.mariamenounos.com My Curated Macy's Page: Shop My Macy's Storefront EMR-Tek Red Light: https://emr-tek.com/discount/Maria30 for 30% off Airbnb: https://www.airbnb.com/ Thrive Causemetics: https://thrivecausemetics.com/healsquad Get 20% OFF with this link! Briotech: https://shopbriotech.com/ Use Code: HEALSQUAD for 20% off GUEST RESOURCES: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tlcholisticlife/?hl=en Website: https://www.yudayimedicine.com/about-anthony-disalvo You can check out his courses here! https://courses.yudayimedicine.com/tlc-holistic-life ABOUT MARIA MENOUNOS: Emmy Award-winning journalist, TV personality, actress, 2x NYT best-selling author, former pro-wrestler and brain tumor survivor, Maria Menounos' passion is to see others heal and to get better in all areas of life. ABOUT HEAL SQUAD x MARIA MENOUNOS: A daily digital talk-show that brings you the world's leading healers, experts, and celebrities to share groundbreaking secrets and tips to getting better in all areas of life. DISCLAIMER: This Podcast and all related content (published or distributed by or on behalf of Maria Menounos or http://Mariamenounos.com and http://healsquad.com) is for informational purposes only and may include information that is general in nature and that is not specific to you. Any information or opinions provided by guest experts or hosts featured within website or on Company's Podcast are their own; not those of Maria Menounos or the Company. Accordingly, Maria Menounos and the Company cannot be responsible for any results or consequences or actions you may take based on such information or opinions. This podcast is presented for exploratory purposes only. Published content is not intended to be used for preventing, diagnosing, or treating a specific illness. If you have, or suspect you may have, a health-care emergency, please contact a qualified health care professional for treatment.
How do you decide between a best-in-class tech stack and an all-in-one platform?I caught up with Bill Fanning, CRO of Stayntouch, and Klaus Kohlmayr, Chief Evangelist at IDeaS Revenue Solutions, to discuss the new NYU SPS Tisch Center of Hospitality Technology Report, where 300+ hoteliers shared how they're making those crucial tech decisions. On hashtag#NoVacancyNews, we look at what's driving those hashtag#hoteltechnology choices, the cultural and operational challenges behind switching systems, and why more hotels than ever plan to replace their tech stack within the next 24 months. Key Insights:
In this episode, we're live from the trade show floor at The Hospitality Show in Denver, Colorado! Steve and David are joined by Gabriella Forss, Hospitality Engagement Leader of North America for SALTO Systems — one of the leading providers of electronic access control in hotels around the world.Gabriella shares her journey from Cornell's Hotel School to over eight years with SALTO, and explains how the company is helping hotels modernize access control while keeping the guest experience seamless. She breaks down how SALTO's connected ecosystem reaches far beyond guestroom locks — spanning back-of-house access, lockers, padlocks, parking gates, and more, all within one scalable platform.We dive into major topics shaping the future of hotel technology:Mobile keys & how SALTO balances frictionless access with high-level encryptionIntegrations with PMS, POS, and guest apps to create a cohesive hotel tech ecosystemThe expansion into facial recognition and smart energy solutionsSALTO's commitment to sustainability, carbon neutrality, and eco-friendly credentialWatch the FULL EPISODE on YouTube: https://youtu.be/Kr1_Javur7YLinks:Gabriella on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabriellaforss/SALTO Systems: https://saltosystems.com/en/For full show notes head to: https://themodernhotelier.com/episode/231Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-...Join the conversation on today's episode on The Modern Hotelier LinkedIn pageConnect with Steve and David:Steve: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%8E...David: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-mil.
We're excited to launch a brand-new series on the Product for Product Podcast, with Matt and Moshe diving deep into the world of AI tools for product managers. In this special episode, we set the stage for upcoming conversations by exploring how AI is becoming an indispensable partner in every stage of the product management journey.Join us as Matt and Moshe discuss:The rapidly evolving role of AI throughout the product management workflow, from idea generation and discovery to strategy, prioritization, delivery, launch, and ongoing monitoringThe importance of using AI as a tool for knowledge and insight, rather than replacing critical thinking and understandingHow product managers can leverage Large Language Models (LLMs) for research, writing, and scenario planningThe realities and limitations of today's AI tools, including the challenges of ensuring accuracy and context in product workExploring the promise of AI platforms for rapid prototyping and MVP testingHow AI can help bridge the gap between prototyping and actually building production-ready productsUsing AI to inform strategic decisions, pricing, packaging, prioritization, and risk assessmentIntegrating AI into your board and backlog systems for smarter feedback synthesis and decision-makingEnhancing sprint-based development with AI-generated user stories, acceptance criteria, and moreUpcoming content around data consolidation, go-to-market strategies, and ways AI is changing the PM disciplineAnd much more!Whether you're just starting to experiment with AI or looking to deepen how you use it in your product practice, this series is for you. Stay tuned for practical examples, case studies, and discussions that will help you harness the latest AI tools, while remembering that the best PMs know how to balance tech innovation with human judgment.Connect with us and follow the rest of the series:Product for Product Podcast http://linkedin.com/company/product-for-product-podcast Matt Green https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattgreenproduct Moshe Mikanovsky http://www.linkedin.com/in/mikanovsky Note: Any views mentioned in the podcast are the sole views of our hosts and guests, and do not represent the products mentioned in any way.Please leave us a review and feedback ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Doc Jones, private activist resource investor and influencer on Ceo.ca and X/Twitter, joins us for his outlook on the precious metals, base metals, and energy sector and how he is positioned in select stocks within his portfolio. We start off getting the key macroeconomic factors that him more muted on outsized upside in both gold and silver, after such a big run in the precious metals related stocks so far this year, and really over the last few years. He points out that over the last 3 years that many of the quality PM producers are up 5x-10x or more, and that he had some developers up as much as 15x, so it was prudent to start harvesting gains and raising cash to deploy in other commodities and opportunities that hadn't run as much. With regards to the base metals companies, Doc Jones points out that a lot of the polymetallic deposits still have considerable exposure to gold, silver, platinum, and palladium as valuable co-credits. He mentions the rationale for his long-standing interest and key portfolio positions in Emerita Resources (TSX.V: EMO) (OTCQB: EMOTF) and Magna Mining (TSX.V: NICU) (OTCQB: MGMNF); which both have exposure and leverage to a blend of critical minerals and precious metals. He also highlights a new portfolio position, Canadian Copper (CSE: CCI), which also has a solid mix of exposure to both industrial metals and PMs. Wrapping up we shifted over to traditional energy getting his outlook on both oil and natural gas, but why he is favoring investing in Canadian heavy oil sands projects and natural gas projects. He goes on to extol the benefits of picking up quality energy stocks that pay investors good dividends while they are waiting for fundamental company catalysts and higher future energy prices. Doc Jones highlights Cardinal Energy Ltd. (TSX: CJ) as one example of such a company that he is positioned in. *In full disclosure, Doc Jones holds a position in these companies discussed at the time of this recording, but is not compensated by any company to market them. These are simply his views and opinions as to why he likes investing in them, but this is not investment advice. Click here to follow Doc Jones on Ceo.ca Click here to follow Doc Jones on X/Twitter For more market commentary & interview summaries, subscribe to our Substacks: The KE Report: https://kereport.substack.com/ Shad's resource market commentary: https://excelsiorprosperity.substack.com/ Investment disclaimer: This content is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice, an offer, or a solicitation to buy or sell any security. Investing in equities and commodities involves risk, including the possible loss of principal. Do your own research and consult a licensed financial advisor before making any investment decision
Passando a Limpo: Nesta quarta-feira (12), Igor Maciel e a bancada do programa conversam com o Cientista Político e Diretor de Inteligência da Quaest, Guilherme Russo, sobre a nova rodada de pesquisa sobre avaliação do presidente Lula. O Coronel veterano e ex-comandante da PMSC, ex-secretário de Segurança Pública de Santa Catarina e ex-presidente do Conselho Geral dos Comandantes das PMs, Araújo Gomes, conversa sobre o projeto Antifacção. O programa também conta a participação do correspondente em Portugal, Antônio Martins.
The Period Paradox: Why We're Still in the Dark About Sex and Menstruation Let's face it: periods and sex are still major taboos in our society. But why? Join us as we dive into the fascinating world of menstrual cycles, hormones, and sex with the incredible Dr. Sarah E. Hill, author of the groundbreaking book "The Period Brain." We're about to shed some much-needed light on the secrets our bodies have been keeping from us. Here's what you'll learn from this unapologetic conversation: • The real reason we call it a "period" (and why it's not just about bleeding) • The shocking truth about why the luteal phase has been ignored by science and medicine (and how it affects your sex life) • How menstrual cycles impact your sexual desire (it's not just about being "hormonal") • Tips for having mind-blowing sex during the luteal phase (yes, it's possible, even when you're feeling meh) • How to navigate PMS like a pro (no more excuses for bad moods or bad sex) • Advice for partners who want to be more supportive (we've got you, boo) By tuning in, you'll gain a deeper understanding of the complex relationships between periods, hormones, and sex. You'll also learn how to break free from the shame and stigma surrounding menstrual cycles and tap into your full sexual potential. So, what are you waiting for? Join the conversation and get ready to unleash your inner period power! As Dr. Hill says, "The problem isn't that women are hormonal; the problem is that we've been ignoring the second half of the menstrual cycle for far too long." It's time to change that. Dr. Sarah E. Hill is an award-winning researcher, professor, speaker, and consultant who's on a mission to uncover the hidden truths about women's sex hormones. With two paradigm-shattering books under her belt, "This is Your Brain on Birth Control" and "The Period Brain," she's the perfect guide to help you navigate the wild world of periods and sex. To learn more, visit her website at http://sarahehill.com. Tune in now and get ready to have your mind blown by the period paradox. And, as a special treat, stick around until the end for a sneak peek into Dr. Hill's latest book and find out how you can get your hands on a copy. Learn more about the Intimacy Rewired program on episode #458 or click here: https://www.intimacyrewired.com Do you love us? Do you REALLY love us? Then order our book now! Go to shamelesssex.com to snag your copy Support Shameless Sex by sending us gifts via our Amazon Wish List Other links: Get 45% off our favorite (super hot) ethical porn with code FALL45 at https://erikalust.com Get 30% off your new dream mattress with code Shameless at https://brooklynbedding.com Get 10% off + free shipping with code SHAMELESS on Uberlube AKA our favorite lubricant at http://uberlube.com Get 10% off while learning the art of pleasure at http://OMGyes.com/shameless Get 15% off all of your sex toys with code SHAMELESSSEX at http://purepleasureshop.com
The guys are LIVE at BJ's in Cerritos. Should USC have been penalized for a fake punt attempt vs Northwestern? FOX Sports Rules Analyst Dean Blandino says what Lincoln Riley did with the fake punt was illegal. The Mayor of Cerritos welcomes PMS!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Kate didn't plan to measure their burnout by the number of bags of pink-and-purple Mother's animal cookies consumed at their desk…but here we are. Kim's clue was a rotating cycle of stomach aches and "maybe these aren't panic attacks but the room is definitely spinning." And our guest, Norlander Wilson, talks about showing up to work without showering or brushing her teeth for days because she literally couldn't. This one is about burnout at work — not the "I need a weekend off" kind, but the kind that rewires your nervous system and convinces you you're the problem. About our guest: Norlander Wilson is an experimental psychologist and an orbit disruptor by calling. She is the founder and CEO of Becoma, an operational strategy firm that helps leaders, creatives, and organizations move from survival mode into clearer systems and healthier energy. Through her work, Norlander blends psychology, strategy, and system design to challenge the patterns that keep people stuck and to create ways of working that don't require self-sacrifice. She's also the host of the podcast "She Don't Work Like That, No More," where she unpacks wounded leadership patterns and reimagines what it means to build, lead, and live without breaking yourself in the process. The theme today: burnout at work, and how project managers — the people everyone counts on — get trapped in it. Norlander doesn't sugarcoat it: "Burnout is a collective conversation, especially in an organization." She calls out how burnout starts at the top. If leadership pushes 100 hours, teams assume they should push 150. If leaders are exhausted, their teams are exhausted. Burnout isn't a personal failing; it's a system failure — and PMs often absorb the blast radius. Kate opens up about their 2024 breakdown: crying daily, losing appetite except for cookies, medical leave, and the creeping belief that if they just tried harder, they could fix everything. Kim shares his own burnout and the helpless feeling of watching teammates slide into it — seeing that "day-five-I-haven't-showered look" on Zoom and wanting to save them. And then there's the half-million-dollar moment. Kate negotiated nearly $500,000/year in compensation and turned it down because walking into the building made them feel sick. Not metaphorically — physically. "I'm not getting on that wheel unless I want to." Norlander validates it: "If it's profound burnout and everything triggers you at that job, yes, it's time to leave." She gives language PMs desperately need: Capacity check-ins, not productivity interrogations Systems that hold boundaries so you don't have to Stop parenting grown adults at work — "You are not an emotional container." Let people fail so they learn the consequence, not you Kim connects it to the "mouse on the wheel" experiment — the difference between choosing to run and being forced to run. The stress chemicals — literally — are not the same. Norlander's tools for burnout prevention and burnout recovery: Audit your systems quarterly Build boundaries into SOPs Protect scheduled joy like you protect deadlines Delegate to the system, not your nervous system Kate shares how protecting Tuesday riding lessons became non-negotiable. Not because horseback riding is magic (although…it kind of is), but because no one else will protect your time but you. Norlander's toast at the end is the line we're all putting on sticky notes: "When you do find your boundary… don't compromise it for anyone." If burnout at work is starting to feel familiar — if you're living on cookies, caffeine, and dread — pull up a chair. You're not lazy. You're not failing. The system is failing you. And if you're tired of carrying the emotional labor for your entire project team, come get some backup and community. Join us at: https://pmhappyhour.com/membership © Project Management Happy Hour
Neil Levin, Senior Nutrition Education Manager and product formulator for Now Foods and Protocol for Life Balance, discusses the importance of targeted nutrients for women's health. They delve into various supplements such as magnesium, myo-inositol, progesterone cream, D-Mannose, and biotin, explaining their benefits for conditions like PCOS, blood sugar regulation, menstrual migraines, urinary tract infections, and overall skin, hair, and nail health. The conversation also touches on the importance of tailoring nutrients to individual needs and the role of personalized nutrition in supporting women's health amidst modern stresses.
Dr. Hoffman continues his conversation with Neil Levin, Senior Nutrition Education Manager and product formulator for Now Foods and Protocol for Life Balance.
The old PM career playbook doesn't work in the AI era. In this episode of The Skip, we lay out a new career framework for product managers, and it's a lot more “choose your door” than “climb the ladder.” If you're wondering whether to stay in big tech, jump to an AI startup, double down as a builder, or rethink your whole path, this one's for you. We talk about why your hard-won product intuition is quietly becoming obsolete, why some ex-VPs are happily taking senior IC roles, and how to prepare for what's coming next.Key topics• Why your product intuition is outdated — and how to “go back to school” without quitting your job• Why company quality now matters more than your title, comp band, or level• What elite AI companies are actually looking for in PMs• The builder vs factory mindset: are you obsessed with the product, or with the machine that ships it?• How to choose between Big Tech, hot AI startups, healthy growth companies, or founding• A three-part reality check on constraints: compensation, location, and pace• The truth about 9–9–6 and AI startups: when extreme pace is worth it, and when it's just branding• Why “coasting” in big tech is mostly a myth• Remote vs hub tradeoffs: what you gain and lose by moving to SF or NYC• Why this is Part 1 — and what we'll go deeper on next in the PM Career Framework for AI seriesWhere to find Nikhyl:• Twitter/X• LinkedInWhere to find Carly:• LinkedIn• She Leads Podcast• Twitter/XJoin The Skip:• Skip Coach• Skip CommunityFind The Skip:• Website• Substack• YouTube• Spotify• Apple PodcastsTimestamps(00:53) Why the PM career framework needs to be rewritten for AI(03:35) Why ex-VPs are happily taking senior IC roles(06:07) Why your current product intuition is becoming obsolete(11:46) Why AI-first companies only want hands-on PMs(14:40) How to choose between Big Tech, AI startups, growth companies, or founding(18:06) How to actually upgrade your product intuition on the job(25:13) What's really happening with PM compensation in 2025(33:46) Why true AI startups are rarely remote-first(42:42) What 9–9–6 culture at AI companies actually looks like(50:52) The myth of work–life balance in growth environments(55:40) The builder vs factory mindset(60:29) Are you obsessed with the product or the factory that ships it?(67:11) The key takeaway for PMs making career moves in 2025Don't forget to subscribe to The Skip to hear me coach you through timely career lessons. If you're interested in joining me on a future call, send me a note on LinkedIn, Threads, or Twitter. You can also email me at nikhyl@skip.community This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theskip.substack.com
In this insightful episode of Product Voices, JJ Rorie talks with Gopikrishnan Anilkumar, Principal Product Manager at Amazon and member of the Forbes Technology Council, about how artificial intelligence is transforming the craft of product management.Gopikrishnan shares his journey from traditional software product management to leading AI-driven teams at major companies like Amazon, Walmart, and Goldman Sachs. Together, JJ and Gopikrishnan explore what remains constant in great product management—customer empathy, communication, structured thinking, and stakeholder alignment—and what's changing fast as AI becomes central to how products are built, learned from, and improved.Listeners will learn how AI product managers differ from traditional ones, not because they code or build models, but because they design experiences that learn and evolve. Gopikrishnan explains how metrics shift (from satisfaction and revenue to latency, model performance, and hallucination rates), how teams expand to include machine learning scientists and evaluators, and why “being AI-aware” is now an essential product skill.Topics Covered:The evolution from traditional to AI product managementWhy PM fundamentals—empathy, communication, alignment—never go out of styleHow AI changes metrics, responsibility, and stakeholder complexityDesigning for trust, safety, and explainability in AI experiencesThe mindset shift from building features to architecting experiencesThe experimental nature of AI product work (build, test, learn, repeat)Why you don't need to be a machine learning expert to be an AI PMHow every PM will soon interact with AI in some formAdvice for PMs transitioning into AI and for new PMs entering the fieldKey Quotes:“AI product managers are not building a feature. You are building experiences — you're an experience architect.” “Being AI-aware will soon be one of the key strengths of a product manager.”“You don't need to be a machine learning expert. You need curiosity, learning agility, and strong PM fundamentals.”Takeaways:Trust and responsibility are the new pillars of AI-driven product management.Product management is evolving from control to influence — guiding systems that learn and adapt.Continuous experimentation and iteration are essential in AI environments.AI literacy is becoming as foundational as digital or mobile literacy once was.
From Best Buy to Oldcastle: How Jennifer Sabetti Built a Career on Customer-Centric Leadership Early in her career, Jennifer Sabetti learned a simple truth at Best Buy: “Have fun while being the best.” Today, as VP of Product Strategy at Oldcastle Infrastructure, that mindset shapes how she leads teams, hires talent, and mentors the next generation of PMs. In this episode of Trailblazing Women in Product Management, Jennifer joins host Nicole Tieche to share how retail taught her to love the customer, embrace change, and build teams that thrive on curiosity and culture. Key Topics Discussed in This Episode Core values that never expire How “learning from challenge and change” became Jennifer's lifelong leadership principle.Key topic #2 Transitioning across industries Why focusing on customer value makes any career pivot possible. Mentorship and team growth The overlooked art of spotting (and becoming) a great mentor at work. Why Listen to This Episode? In this refreshing and candid conversation, you'll learn: Why your first job might teach you your most important leadership lessons. How to build resilient, high-performing teams in complex product environments. What hiring for passion (not just skills) really looks like. How to find mentorship moments in everyday interactions. Jennifer's story is proof that customer-centric leadership transcends industries — and that positivity is a powerful career strategy. Related Resources Check out these additional tools and resources to add to your PM belt: Productside Resource Library More Productside Stories Podcast Episodes Explore Productside Courses
Wednesday Headlines: Liberal party to hash out net zero plans, Victoria and NSW announce new protest laws, man survives shark attack in WA, we've spent $1.4m on our former PMs this year and the staggering amount Aussies are dropping on hens' parties revealed. Deep Dive: New research shows two key groups of Australians are losing faith in democracy - young people and those living outside major cities. In this episode of The Briefing, Helen Smith chats with Australia’s new high commissioner to the UK and McKinnon’s executive director Jay Weatherill about what’s behind this growing distrust and what it would take to win it back. Follow The Briefing: TikTok: @thebriefingpodInstagram: @thebriefingpodcast YouTube: @TheBriefingPodcastFacebook: @LiSTNR Newsroom See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
In dieser Folge spreche ich darüber, warum PMS, Stimmungsschwankungen und Heißhunger nicht nur hormonell bedingt sind, sondern wie stark dein Darm dabei mitmischt. Ich erkläre, wie dein Mikrobiom Einfluss auf Östrogen und Progesteron nimmt, warum du kurz vor der Periode plötzlich Lust auf Süßes bekommst und was du tun kannst, um deinen Körper in dieser Phase besser zu unterstützen. Außerdem erzähle ich, welche Nahrungsergänzungen mir persönlich helfen und warum es so wichtig ist, Darm und Hormone gemeinsam zu betrachten, wenn du dich endlich wieder im Gleichgewicht fühlen möchtest.———————————————————Im Podcast erwähnt:Buch: Zyklus BalanceFemblends SuplementsCycle Sync Your Life Warteliste———————————————————Du möchtest keine Folge verpassen und zusätzliche Tipps direkt in dein Email Postfach bekommen? Dann melde Dich für meinen Newsletter an und erhalte meine 5 Tipps für ein gesünderes Leben in einem kleinem eBook.Newsletter & FreebieDeine Gedanken zu meinem Podcastfolge kannst Du mir diese gerne auf Instagram @ernaehrungscoach.hannah mitteilen.Ich freue mich über jede Anregung und jeden Kommentar zu meinem Podcast. Schicke mir deine Gedanken gerne als email an info@hannah-willemsen.com, hinterlasse mir hier oder auf Instagram einen Kommentar.Du würdest mir einen riesen Gefallen tun, wenn Du meinen Podcast auf iTunes mit 5 Sternen bewertest. So finden andere diesen Podcast auch und erhalten ebenfalls wertvolle Tipps zum Thema gesunde Ernährung.Alles LiebeDeine Hannah
In this Ask Me Anything episode, Vanessa breaks down your most common questions about the Protein-Sparing Modified Fast (PSMF) — one of the most powerful evidence-based tools for rapid fat loss and muscle preservation. NEW! Support your strength and muscle goals with PUORI Creatine+ — a clean, effective creatine monohydrate supplement enhanced with taurine. Get 20% off at puori.com/VANESSA You'll learn exactly how to calculate your macros, when to schedule refeeds, how to adapt PSMF for your menstrual cycle or menopause, and what recent human clinical studies reveal about high-protein, very-low-carb diets for fat loss, hormonal balance, and metabolic health. Vanessa also explains how ketosis is achieved even on a high-protein plan and how to track your fat-burning progress with Breath Ketones. OneSkin is powered by the breakthrough peptide OS-01, the first ingredient proven to reduce skin's biological age. I use the OS-01 Face and Eye formulas daily—they've transformed my skin's smoothness, firmness, and glow. Visit oneskin.co/VANESSA and use code VANESSA for 15% off your first purchase
Lately, every time I talk to a client (or honestly, a friend), the same thing comes up: “I'm so tired. I'm taking electrolytes, eating clean, supplementing magnesium… doing everything right, but I still feel off.”And I get it because I've been feeling that too.So, I sat down with my friend Dr. Heather Rhodes, and we started comparing notes - our clients' labs, our own tests, and all the little things women are saying right now.What we discovered finally made a lot of sense when we truly took the time to understand it.Here's what we got into:How your minerals might be running on empty, even if you're taking electrolytes every dayWhy low potassium, sodium, and magnesium might mean your body is begging for rest, not another supplement And yes, parasites - the weird, uncomfortable topic that's showing up in way more women than you'd thinkThis one's a mix of science, real-life stories, and the kind of honest chat you'd have with a friend who gets it. So, grab your drink, get comfy, and let's talk through this together.NEW Private Podcast - 3 Steps to Making Hormones WellBook a FREE Hormone Strategy Call with meCONNECT WITH Dr. HEATHER RHODES:WebsiteIG: @drheatherrhodesNEED HELP FIXING YOUR HORMONES? CHECK OUT MY RESOURCES:Hormone Imbalance Quiz - Find out which of the top 3 hormone imbalances affects you most!Join Nourish Your Hormones Coaching for the step-by-step and my eyes on YOUR hormones for the next 4 months.Send us a text with episode feedback or ideas! (We can't respond to texts unless you include contact info but always read them)To get the Restored Mini-Course for free leave a rating & review on the show OR share this podcast in your IG story (tag me @leishadrews) or send it to 3 friends - DM or email me a screenshot and I'll send the course your way!Email: support@abundant-lifewellness.comDon't forget to subscribe, share this episode, and leave a review. Your support helps us reach more women looking for answers.Disclaimer: Nothing in this podcast is to be taken as medical advice, please take informed accountability and speak to your provider before making changes to your health routine.This podcast is for women and moms to learn how to balance hormones naturally in motherhood, to have pain-free periods, increased fertility, to decrease PMS mood swings, and to increase energy without restrictive diet plans. You'll learn how to balance blood sugar, increase progesterone naturally, understand the root cause of estrogen dominance, irregular periods, PCOS, insulin resistance, hormonal acne, post birth-control syndrome, and conceive naturally. We use a pro-metabolic, whole food, root cause approach to functional women's health and focus on truly holistic health and mind-body connection.If you listen to any of the following shows, we're sure you'll like ours too! Pursuit of Wellness with Mari Llewellyn, Culture Apothecary with Alex Clark, Found My Fitness with Rhonda Patrick, Just Ingredients Podcast, Wellness Mama, The Dr Josh Axe Show, Are You Menstrual Podcast, The Model Health Show, Grounded Wellness By Primally Pure, Be Well By Kelly Leveque, The Freely Rooted Podcast with Kori Meloy, Simple Farmhouse Life with Lisa Bass
Send us a textWe trace how modern period products can hide toxins that disrupt hormones, and we map a practical path toward non-toxic swaps that actually fit daily life. Arielle shares the product development journey behind safer period underwear and how “getting back in flow” starts with listening to the body.• late studies uncovering heavy metals, PFAS, and fragrance in pads and tampons• why label literacy matters for menstrual care, skincare, and laundry• the shift from e‑commerce to building safer, durable period underwear• cycle as a monthly health report card and what “flow” means• endocrine disruptors linked to PMS, fertility, and inflammation• high‑impact swaps: fragrance‑free skin products, toxin‑free candles, PFAS‑free materials• simple rituals to calm cortisol and tune into hunger, cravings, and rest• reducing stigma and normalizing open conversation about cyclesCheck out Flower Girl at flowergirl. Follow on Instagram at @flowergirl.co_ and DM with questions Thank you for listening. Please subscribe to this podcast and share with a friend. If you would like to know more about my services, please message at fueledbyleo@gmail.comMy YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0SqBP44jMNYSzlcJjOKJdg
If you've ever felt like a totally different person two weeks of every month-this episode is for you.Joining us for round 3 we have Dr. Annaleeza Caputi, naturopathic doctor on to break down PMDD, the misunderstood, hormone-sensitive mood disorder that way too many women are told to “just deal with.”We talk about what's really happening in your brain, why hormone tests don't tell the full story, and how to actually feel like yourself again. In this episode we talk about:The difference between PMDD and PMSConventional treatments for PMDDSupplements, diet and lifestyle tipsMindset shifts and so much more!Something we talked allot about during this episode is that two bad weeks every month equates to half your life. You deserve to feel good the whole time and thats why if you have PMDD or suspect you do, we are so happy you are here to listen to this weeks episode!For more information & to join the Confident Clinician check it out here! Be sure to DM us on Instagram once you become a member for your special gift! Don't forget to follow us on Instagram @girlsgonewellnesspodcast for updates and more wellness tips. You can also subscribe to our Youtube Channel @Girlsgonewellnesspodcast to watch our episodes! Please subscribe to our podcast and leave a review—we truly appreciate your support. Let's embark on this journey to wellness together!DISCLAIMER: Nothing mentioned in this episode is medical advice and should not be taken as so. If you have any health concerns, please discuss these with your doctor or a licensed healthcare professional.
If some weeks you feel like you're smashing life in God Mode and the next you're crying on the kitchen floor, wondering what the hell happened, if your mood, focus, or motivation swing from one extreme to the next, and you're left questioning your sanity... you are not crazy.This week, we're going back in time to the ADHD Untangled Live Event to talk about something that could change everything: your relationships, your energy, your health, your life.We're untangling hormones with the incredible Adele Wimsett, women's health practitioner, hormone expert and fellow ADHDer. Adele is on a mission to help us understand the powerful link between hormones and ADHD, and trust me, after this chat, you'll never roll your eyes at the word hormones again.And guys, don't skip this one. Hormones aren't just a woman's issue. They're a human issue.
A great day for 4 hours of Great Sports Talk! A new song for a local sports team. Hall of Famer James Worthy on the Lakers. Can we get Game 7 of the World Series on the TVs at the next PMS remote?
Live from the RTA Connect 2025 conference in Las Vegas, Marc Canton interviews Drew Morrow, a seasoned fleet manager from Cambridge, Massachusetts, who operates a private ambulance fleet. With just one and a half techs to maintain 34 vehicles, Drew is living proof of the technician shortage crisis. But instead of giving in to chaos, he shares how he uses structured calendar blocks and smart prioritization to manage both strategic planning and daily shop operations.This candid conversation dives deep into the balancing act of wrench time vs. leadership, the challenge of telling your fleet's story to executives, and why you need to be your fleet's biggest advocate. Drew also opens up about the emotional toll of trying to do it all, the importance of industry collaboration, and how to make a compelling case for hiring help or replacing aging vehicles.Whether you're running an EMS fleet or a government operation, this episode delivers actionable insights for any fleet leader struggling with time, staffing, or executive buy-in. Key Takeaways:You can't lead strategically if you're buried in the shop.Structured calendar time (like blocking hours in Outlook) helps combat chaos.Telling your story through the lens of risk and mission execution resonates with leadership.You must track KPIs like missed PMs due to poor communication.Early vehicle replacement can reduce wrench time and total cost of ownership.Peer collaboration is critical—even in competitive industries like private EMS. Speakers: Marc Canton – VP of Product & Consulting at RTA: The Fleet Success Company. With decades of fleet experience, Marc helps fleets turn performance data into action and leads RTA's consulting arm to drive meaningful success across operations.Drew Morrow – Fleet Manager for a private ambulance company in Cambridge, MA. With over 25 years in the industry, Drew brings a technician's expertise and a leader's mindset to one of the most mission-critical fleet sectors: EMS.
One of the questions that comes up again and again in the Red School community is this: how can I free up my voice and share my truth? So many of us, particularly women and those socialised as female feel stuck, silenced or disconnected from our true expression, so today we're exploring how the practice of checking in every day with your menstrual cycle and how it's influencing your energy and mood can support you on this quest. Through our personal stories as well as stories from the community, we explore how menstrual cycle awareness is a discipline that keeps you close to yourself, and how this practice organically awakens an inner warmth, connection and confidence which lines you up to receive inspiration about what it is that you're here to express and share with the world. We explore:How menstruation cocoons you so that you can step away from the noise of the world and rest into a sanctuary of connection with your voice - the inner winter silences the world so that you can finally hear yourself. Tools for working with your inner critic and self expression - such as containing the critic in the premenstrual phase of the cycle - so that you can practice experimenting and paying with sharing your voice in the preovulatory phase, your inner spring.How to support ourselves when the holding back of our voice comes out as premenstrual rage or implodes inside as depressive cycles. ---Receive our free video training: Love Your Cycle, Discover the Power of Menstrual Cycle Awareness to Revolutionise Your Life - www.redschool.net/love---The Menstruality Podcast is hosted by Red School. We love hearing from you. To contact us, email info@redschool.net---Social media:Red School: @redschool - https://www.instagram.com/red.schoolSophie Jane Hardy: @sophie.jane.hardy - https://www.instagram.com/sophie.jane.hardy
What happens when your body forces you to stop ignoring the signs? Mary Tibbetts joins me for a raw, honest conversation about her journey with Multiple Sclerosis—from dismissing extreme fatigue and seizures to finally getting diagnosed and completely transforming how she lives.This isn't your typical health story. Mary brings humor, heart, and zero apologies as we talk about the reality of autoimmune disease, the crushing weight of stress and trauma on women's bodies, and why being diagnosed with MS became the permission slip she needed to finally set boundaries. We're diving into vitamin D deficiency, the gut-health connection, why Alberta has some of the highest MS rates in the world, and how Mary's family (all boys, including the cat) learned to support her through the hardest days.If you've ever pushed through exhaustion, ignored your body's whispers, or felt guilty for taking care of yourself... this one's for you.In this episode we explore:How autoimmune disorders like MS are deeply connected to stress, trauma, and nervous system dysregulationWhy women are 75% of MS diagnoses and how caregiving roles, worry, and the mental load play into chronic illnessThe vitamin D deficiency connection and why Canada (especially Alberta) has some of the highest MS rates globallyThe power of anti-inflammatory eating, gut health, and lifestyle shifts in managing symptomsWhy advocacy matters: pushing for answers when doctors say you're "fine" but your body says otherwiseAbout Mary TibbettsMary Tibbetts is a motivational speaker and Multiple Sclerosis advocate who inspires others to find strength, humor, and purpose in life's hardest moments. After being diagnosed with MS, she turned her journey into a platform for hope and empowerment through her brand, Fearless with Mary. Mary shares raw, relatable stories that remind people they are stronger than they think and never alone in their struggles. Whether on stage, her podcast, or in the MS community, she brings honesty, laughter, and heart to every conversation—encouraging others to live fearlessly, even when life takes an unexpected turn.Resources:Fearless with Mary podcastFearless With Mary websiteYoutube: Fearless With MaryFollow On Instagram @fearlesswithmaryLinkedIn: Mary C TibbettsMy free guide: Maybe It's Not You — The Truth About PMS & How to Take Back Control of Your CycleLearn more about the Hormone R.E.S.T. MethodJoin my Hormone Unfiltered NewsletterAbout KateKate Nguy is the founder of Shee Revival and a Certified Hormone Health Practitioner and Cycle-Syncing Strategist who helps busy women in their 30s and 40s balance their hormones and reclaim their energy. Specializing in the hormonal ups and downs of midlife—from PMS and perimenopause to burnout and cortisol overload—Kate guides women to feel at home in their bodies and live in sync with their natural cycles.. Through cycle syncing, hormone hacks, and nervous system regulation, Kate empowers women to rebalance their hormones, reconnect to their bodies, and revive the vibrant, grounded version of themselves underneath the overwhelm.Tune in now and join the movement toward better hormone health!Follow me @hormoneswithkate on Instagram for more insights, tips, and support!
Let's get ahead on our 2026 goals! I want you to envision who you want to be and what changes you want to make in the new year.But let's go beyond just setting new year's resolutions.I have a better method to make sure your goals are actually achieved!It's called habit stacking. This is a more streamlined way to make sure you reach your goals!In this episode, I go over the specific formula that's helped me and tons of others create their dream life.--------------------------------------------------------Find me on IG: @jfaye_rdWork with me! More info hereFREE RESOURCE! Balancing hormones & supporting PMS
If you've been struggling with fatigue, mood swings, cravings, or PMS, your blood sugar might be the missing link. In this short episode, I explain how blood sugar balance underpins every aspect of hormonal health, from cortisol and thyroid to oestrogen and progesterone. You'll learn what's really happening inside your body, why those symptoms appear, and the simple nutrition habits that can help you feel calmer, more energised, and more in control again.THE ENERGY LAB: https://www.sarah-elisabeth.co.uk/theenergylabCONNECT WITH ME: Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahelisabethhealthWork with me 1:1: https://www.sarah-elisabeth.co.uk/11-coaching
Tiff and Kristy provide guidance on how to assess your practice's financial health as 2025 begins to wrap up (and what to start thinking about for 2026). They touch on… Reviewing those P&Ls monthly Aligning spending habits Keeping emotions in check And more! Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review The Dental A Team (00:01) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. I am so excited to be here with you today. I truly love this portion of what we get to do in our worlds and getting to get you so much valuable information out to the masses is something that Dental A Team has worked and strived just so hard to achieve in our. consulting world of just getting you all this information and I have with me today one of my faves. I seriously, I have the most amazing consulting team and if you guys haven't heard from all of them yet, you soon will and if you don't know them personally yet, they're not your consultants. I hope that you get to meet every single one of us even if you're just coming to the events, however it is, but I... have a personal favorite here for recording podcasts with. She calms me, she just keeps the energy light and fresh and I love any time that we get together. Kristy, thank you so much for being here today. How are you doing? The weather is like weird today. I always tell everybody about the Arizona weather and it's so much fun to have everybody here in the same place. We all live in Arizona in the Phoenix area. Jane is down in the Tucson area, but. We really love it. And Kristy, how's your world over there? You're just in the beautiful little pocket of Phoenix. And how is it? DAT Kristy (01:23) Yeah, it's awesome. I love that you say that because we do pride ourselves on the weather here, right? But even with that, this weekend we got a lot of rain, what they say the most in like seven years. Yet all of us, even as close as we are, we experience it so different, right? Like some places flooded. I didn't get flooding, thank goodness, but it downpoured. It was fun and it's made it for cool mornings. So we're taking it. The Dental A Team (01:42) Yeah. I agree. I agree that humidity is hitting us hard. So we're not super used to that, but it is making for some, some really beautiful mornings. totally agree. And yes, Britt and I were actually in Reno at our quarterly in-person traction event where we have a, implementer who comes in and leads it for us. And he helps us to build out the company structure and, teaches and trains us on how to run large meetings like that. So it's always super cool. But we were up in Reno with Britt and or with Kiera Shelbi and Britt and I actually got stuck. Jenna got out. She got back to Denver, which is crazy because Denver always shuts down. And so she got back to Denver. But ⁓ we got stuck until Saturday because the airport was shut down. And then there was a storm in Vegas because we thought, OK, well, we'll fly to Vegas because it's only a five and a half hour drive from there and we'll still get home. And then ⁓ that flight got canceled too. So it was wild. was meant to be, got more time in Reno and got to spend a little bit more time with Kiera. So that was great, but it was kind of crazy. It's not usually Phoenix that disrupts the flight patterns. And it was a hundred percent Phoenix. There were so many flights canceled because so many planes were stuck here and other planes couldn't get in. So it was wild, Kristy. It was wild to watch it from afar. We just got like TikTok notifications and you know, news articles are like, my gosh, all the Waymo's stuck in the puddles and things like that. So. DAT Kristy (03:15) Yeah, they just stopped in the middle of the road like what the heck. The Dental A Team (03:18) Yeah, that's why whenever somebody says, you use the way most? I'm like, heck no, I have seen them stuck in the middle of intersections far too many times. I'm sure one day it's going to be fantastic, but I haven't built that trust muscle just yet. DAT Kristy (03:30) Yeah, agree. Well, I'm glad you made it home safe. And ⁓ yeah, the humidity is odd for us too. The Dental A Team (03:34) Thank you. Yeah, yeah, it totally is. And my son was like, Oh, you go to the East Coast enough, Mom, you're fine. Stop complaining. And I was like, Yeah, that's fair. That's fair. But but in the spirit of planning, we we truly had an amazing time really just one getting the time together as a leadership team and then to really looking and projecting like where are we at? What's Q4 going to look like? And then also kind of prepping and planning for 2026. So super relevant in this conversation here. today and really looking at ⁓ practice health from a financial standpoint. And this is something that your CPAs and your financial advisors and all of those professionals should be looking at with you as well. This is the time of the year that we're really looking at what is this last year? Because we get to Q4 and it's like, well, it's kind of like the end of your senior year, right? You get to the end of your senior year of high school or college and you're like, well, everything's kind of basically submitted. So from here, It's really just like, let's do our best and make sure that we really cross that finish line strong, but there's not a ton of pivots to be made to really change the game. So kind of prepping and planning. And I think looking ahead at 2026, putting in some really solid ways of checking in on that financial health, something that I've seen that, Kristy, I know you do this as well, but something I've seen a lot of clients really ramp up is a monthly pulse and even like, weekly sometimes pulse on what the financials of a practice actually look like has really been beneficial in helping them to really reach those goals. And Kristy, you are really fantastic at figuring those financial goals out and then like backtracking them to see, okay, well, what do we need to do to get there? And how do you help practices really keep that financial pulse top of mind and that running that way so that they're constantly looking at those numbers without feeling overwhelmed and also without losing sight of it. Because you know sometimes you do something too often, you start glazing over it. What's that fine balance that some some tactical tips that you have that you and your practices are working on right now? DAT Kristy (05:52) Yeah, well, first and foremost, I believe that you have to be getting your P &Ls from your accountant monthly, right? We can't be waiting. I have seen some clients where they're begging for them for three months ago, you know, and it makes it really hard to stay on top of it if we're not getting them monthly. So first and foremost, make sure you're getting them from them monthly so that we can take a look at them and evaluate. And I like what you said, Tiff. ⁓ you can be, you can go over the top. It's a fine line, right? So I love looking at them every month and I'm not going to freak out if something's out of whack one month, but certainly let's look at the quarter, right? And make sure that those metrics are in alignment for the quarter. And to your point, I always like to speak in terms of like, we're going to crawl before we walk and we're going to walk before we run. Like, In the crawling stage, let's just make sure where's your overhead, right? What percentage are we at there and what is our profit or EBITDA, so to speak, right? Where are we ranging there? That would be my first little steps to take and start looking at it. The Dental A Team (07:10) Yeah, yeah, I totally agree. And I think what time of the month do you usually push for those PNLs to be received? I have my judgments, but what are yours? DAT Kristy (07:21) like to say by the 15th. I'll give you a little grace and give you by the 20th, but the 15th is my ideal target. The Dental A Team (07:28) Yeah, yeah. I think I'm a little stricter. If I don't have those CPAs reaching out to us by like the eighth to the 10th, I'm like, my gosh, how are we supposed to work with this? There's a lot of, and I ask that because there's a lot of clients out there that are getting them like the first week of the next, next month. And so maybe December, we're finally looking at October. DAT Kristy (07:35) Thank The Dental A Team (07:53) And that is like, gosh, such a lag that we've got these questions floating around of like, where's my cashflow TIF and how do I fix this, Kristy? And it's like, I don't know, because I don't have eyes on what's happening. The P &Ls should be much quicker and much cleaner than that. And realistically, it's just it's the bookkeeper going in and allocating the certain expenses to the category that they should be in. So it's time consuming. but it shouldn't be too crazy. And if yours is too crazy, then we probably need to look at your spending. Do we need to dial back the number of orders that you're placing every month? Do we need to make sure that things are a little bit more simple on that side, that it can be done quicker? Because we wanna be able to make real-time adjustments as quickly as we can. If we're on a two-month lag. then we're adjusting for two months ago, it could look totally different. And then next month we get two months ago and it's like, it was totally different. We didn't need to change it. And so we're just constantly spinning our wheels in that way if we're not getting the data fast enough. And that is, in my opinion, one of the easiest ways to ensure that you're financially healthy is really just ensuring, like you said, Kristy, that on an overtime basis, things are consistent and they're clear, that they make sense. DAT Kristy (09:08) 100%. I like that you said push to the 10th, because obviously if, you know, in the walk or crawling stage, we're just learning, right? We have a little bit of buffer, but as we get to the top of our game, it should be more. And if everything is electronically done, it really is in there already. It's just a matter of organizing it, right? The Dental A Team (09:30) Yeah, and I like to give myself the grace because I know or give them the grace. I typically know if we ask for it by the 10th, we're getting it by the 15th to the 20th. If I give them that leeway, they'll take it. And we know that's just how it works in that world. That's fine. We work with what we've got and figure it out. And I think it's a massive place to start, Kristy, is those P &Ls. And I think the P &Ls really outline DAT Kristy (09:39) Thank The Dental A Team (09:56) the financial health in so many different areas because it gives us insight to what is actually happening. Having those categories split out, we've talked about that a ton, we've done a ton of webinars on it and if you need help with that, reach out. We've got really simple sheets and documents that you can even send over to your bookkeepers and your CPAs that kind of outlines what we like it to look like so that it's simple to review. But being able to see those over time is huge. I know I have a client that like one month was 48 % overhead and that's before Dr. Pay, that's before loans, right? And it's like, holy cow, we killed it. But then it's like, okay, but hold on, because the next month was 64%. So taking an average there because likely something got shifted, payments got posted, or I don't know, I've had some clients that's like, my gosh, I forgot to pay Henry Schein for two months. So then it's like that third month had this massive Henry Schein payment. but over the quarter, it wasn't that bad. So making sure that we're looking at it month by month and over the quarter is huge. ⁓ Something that we've done, that we've ramped up ourselves and that we do ramp up with a lot of clients is really looking at our bank accounts constantly. And I know that Kiera and our financial team, they look at our bank accounts weekly on a weekly basis to make sure that everything makes sense, that things are. where they're supposed to be that, you know, that we're not getting charged for things we shouldn't have been, et cetera, but then also that we're staying in alignment with the budget that we had set. And those budgets come from those P &Ls and those total numbers. Kristy, something I've realized recently in the recent years is while I was in practice, I would build our budgets for our spending. like our... you know, five to 8 % for supplies or what have you or ortho budget, things like that. I would build it based off of our collections, air quotes on that word, and it would be our collections from Dendrix. I'd pull the collections for the last month. I'd build that budget based on the collections. And then Doc would be like, where's all the money? Like, well, I don't know, it should be there. But there's such caveats to what's been posted in Dendrix or your operating software. compared to what's actually in QuickBooks, I found that I was running this like ragged race of trying to play catch up all the time with like even just the percentages for credit card fees and third party financing being taken out of our payments, just those simple tweaks make a massive difference. So building those budgets, Kristy, off of our actual P &L numbers, our actual QuickBooks collections has... made a massive difference, I know, for a lot of my clients. How do you see that working for clients? And also, how do you see that working with a leadership team that maybe doesn't have access to or not looking at those P &Ls together? How do you suggest for financial stability and health in the practice, they really get that information down to the people that need it? DAT Kristy (13:08) Yeah, absolutely. One of the things, ⁓ well, there's a couple things. We at Dental A Team keep scorecards for our clients and it could be as simple as adding that line in there and having the doctor put that dollar amount and having the budget calculate right there. Everybody can see it. They know what to spend. The other thing to that point Tiff is, You know, a lot of times we look at the practice management, we see our collections, but how many times do we reconcile it with our QuickBooks? Like, really look at that and see. And obviously, just like you said, it could be a matter of when something was posted or when it came in, right, to the bank account. But I think that's an area that sometimes is overlooked. You know, there can be variance in there, obviously, for when things post, but... what is that variance and how consistent are we having that variance? again, depending on which method you're using, if you're using the collections from your PMS or the collections that are posted in the P &L, we better be clear what that difference is and ⁓ account for it for sure. Right. The Dental A Team (14:25) Totally agree. And you actually reminded me just last week, I was in an office and I was like, what is happening here? I was going through their P and L and I'm like, okay, we've got, we've had some changes in the office. We've got some places that it was decreasing. Some places we spent more, some places we actively spent more on purpose. Like, but things just weren't adding up with what was coming through from the software. And I realized after an hour and a half of digging, I'm like, why is... I put a line items, I updated the scorecard and I put a line item for like QuickBooks collections and then the PMS collections. And in comparison, I had it subtract and like tell me the difference in numbers. And there were months that were coming up $30,000 different that it looked like we collected $30,000 more in their software than what QuickBooks was showing us. Luckily, I know this office manager very well personally, like familiarly. And I'm like, I know there's no conclusion to jump to here. Like something is not reporting correctly. And what I realized is they specifically use Dentrix. Dentrix will allocate any positive write-off or adjustment. if there's an adjustment that's adding money, it'll allocate it to production. If there's an adjustment that's removing money, it automatically adds it to collections. So when you pull up the adjustment space in Dentrix, it'll show all positive production, all negative collections. So it was showing drastic differences. And so I was like, gosh, I totally forgot about this space in Dentrix that it does this. It's just, I call them the Dentrix-isms. It's just a Dentrix thing. It's very frustrating, but it just is what it is. So when I went through, I reallocated where the write-offs should be coming from. Now, caveat, messes up. production collections for forever because it's now correcting it. So what you thought you had done, you didn't, and it fixes it. So the new numbers are more accurate, but you're going to be frustrated because it's different. But what it did when I did that and re-put in the collections numbers is that it brought that $30,000 difference down to a more manageable $1,200 to $3,000 difference, which is what we tend to see with the care credit fees and all those different credit card processing fees, we typically see, I say like 5,000 or less, I'm not going to freak out about too much as long as it's inconsistent. I don't want to see consistency. I want to see really low numbers. And then again, sometimes some of that money is going to be pushed over to the next month. So quarterly, it made sense. Quarterly, it was beautiful. Month by month, it was a little wonky, but just making that change because we were checking the financial health of the practice because things didn't feel like they were making sense. So we, the office manager and I pulled the full year's PNL and we did line item by line item comparison 2024 to 2025 percentage change on each space, went through and figured out where the spending was, went through and line itemed everything and then added it like you said to the scorecard to see those differences, massive. massive improvements where the docs were feeling like cashflow was like, ⁓ we were freaking out. And it was like, well, these are the areas where you intentionally spent money and were actually only a 16 % difference overall year to year. And they were like, ⁓ so we didn't increase enough, but their spending was purposeful for taxes. We just didn't look that way yet on paper. Regarding financial health of the practice, that was exactly what we did, but adding it, like you said, to the scorecard and looking at, I think the scorecard's just really cool because it allows you to see over time. Whereas a new sheet is I'm only dealing with today. So I'm only looking at today. I might look at it and say, oh my gosh, my employee percentage was 42%. That's real life, I've seen that in an office. It was 42 % this month, and you're like, cut hours. But over the quarter, it was, 30 % or 31%. We had a spike because we had a collections dip or whatever. So I think adding it where you're seeing that kind of comparison allows you to see what is the trend here or is this an abnormality? Does this level itself out? Am I on track for over time or do I need to jump and hot fire? And Kristy with that said, like, you think, as I'm saying that I'm thinking, Is that a space where we could even tame our emotions around finances? Because we're seeing so much data in a bigger spectrum where we can see trends, uptrends or downtrends, rather than this like, my gosh, payroll was so high, I've got to tackle that. It's allowing us to see a broader picture. Do you think that helps reduce some of the emotional, like just quick fixes? DAT Kristy (19:34) Absolutely. And we don't want to react, right? Many times we go to that mindset of cut, cut, cut. you, and you know, one of the things that I learned a long time ago is you can't focus on the opposite. So if we're focused on cutting, then we're not focused on producing, right? And so yeah, you're 100 % right, Tiff. I think it does calm the reactionary, right? It's good to know, notice, but then look at the bigger picture. The Dental A Team (19:48) Yeah. Mmm. Yeah, gorgeous. As I was talking like, my gosh, Kristy, that's why you do so well with coaching in my opinion, because you are very, very good at being data and results driven, acknowledging the emotional aspect and not discrediting that by any means, but being able to focus back to what the drivers are and then being able to acknowledge and address any emotions that are still present. But you do well removing that because we're looking at data and data is non-emotional. You can come up with something and there's been so many times where I could think of so many offhand where I've data-drivenly discussed something with a client and they're like, ⁓ and the emotion kind of disintegrates, it dissipates because it was attached to what they thought to be true. And when they saw the reality, there was no need for that emotion anymore. DAT Kristy (20:59) Exactly. Well, and to be honest with you, it goes both ways, right? It's the same thing as if we're only looking at the practice numbers, sometimes they think they're doing very well or not doing well, either one. And then once we look at the overhead numbers, it's like, actually, you're here, you know? So ⁓ it goes hand in hand both ways. I always like to say, you know, if I had a pizza business and I was going to sell pizzas, The Dental A Team (21:18) Yeah. Yeah. I love that. DAT Kristy (21:29) I need to break it down and figure out what it cost me to make the pizza, then I can go sell the pizza. But so many times we don't do that and we just put it out in front of us, right? And then on the back end of it, we do have to measure how many pizzas did we sell and how much did we actually spend. Sometimes we forget to go back and look at the cost too. The Dental A Team (21:34) Yup. Yeah, wow, that's a very good point. Very good point, which is where the P &Ls come in handy and the line items. And I think the P &Ls will group it and lump it into categories, but every now and again, maybe like once a quarter or so, really looking at what are they putting in those categories so that one, you're making sure they're still super accurate from the bookkeeper and two, that you're not like Amazon spending. There was a couple clients that I saw. DAT Kristy (21:56) Mm-hmm. The Dental A Team (22:19) I'm like, what is going on? Why is this category so jumpy? One month it's massive, another month it's not, and they get lumped into office supplies and front office supplies, and all of a sudden it's $3,000 when realistically budgeting-wise it should be $1,200. I'm like, what is in here? And they're like, Amazon goes in there. Every time we want something or Doc says something, we just press the order. And I was like, ⁓ Got it, we need some systems around Amazon or Walmart. I've seen like, I just run to Walmart and I grab what we need every week. And I'm like, my gosh, there's weekly ordering will hurt you every single time. Any kind of weekly ordering. If you can't budget the ordering in a monthly fashion or maybe twice a month, I'll give leniency on twice a month, then we need to talk. Cause that weekly ordering will hurt you every single time. I think this is all really good, Kristy. I love this. I love this. And I go ahead. DAT Kristy (23:16) Yeah. I was to say, I agree with you. mean, we can liken it to our own space if we go to the grocery store with a list or without a list. What is our end result when we pay? You know, so I'm with you. I'm with you. I'm like for dental supplies, we can go to twice a month, but have it fixed and then make sure you're staying within the confines of the budget. The Dental A Team (23:27) Yeah. Yes, yeah, that's actually brilliant. Yeah. Yeah, I agree. And I think that was that was a super great thought process there. Because if you're not planning even your dinners, right, I'll plan my dinners for the week. So then I know what ingredients I need and what ingredients if I know what ingredients I need for specific dinners, I know what I can reuse as well. Otherwise, I'm going to the grocery store just kind of getting random things that I think I can make into something. And I'm ending up at the grocery store a couple times a week to replenish or, you know, supply those missing pieces. And so if you know what your schedule is, if you know on average how many crowns you're doing, how many fillings you're doing, how many implants you're doing, you can have an average guesstimate of how much of each supply you need to keep on hand, which is then going into your budget for your ordering. So that was beautiful. Yeah, good job. All right, guys, financial health is massive. And it's something that I think all of us, Kristy, Trish, Monica, Dana, myself, we all just work really, really hard to ensure that it's top of mind for all of our clients. But if you're here listening and you're not yet a client of ours and you're a Dental A Team podcast listener for life, we love you and we wanna make sure you have this information too. please, by all means, somewhere around the 10th of the month, because we know it's probably gonna go longer, make sure you've got those panels in there. Talk to your bookkeeper. If you are the bookkeeper, I have a couple clients like that. Put it your calendar, you guys. If you are your own bookkeeper, that's fine. I'm not gonna judge you. I think it is a task that you can easily pay for, but I'm not here for that. If you are your bookkeeper, put it in your calendar and you should have that sucker done by like the fifth or the eighth of the month because everything should be closed out. Review your PNLs monthly and quarterly and yearly. Review your spending habits constantly. I have a lot of practices that'll look weekly. I have a lot of practices that'll look monthly, whichever works best for you. Just make sure you're reviewing those spending habits and then budget for your team. So your supplies ordering, your front office, those are the easiest places to budget. Make sure that you've got an ortho budget added in there. If you have ortho fees and ortho costs that are outside of like Invisalign, things like that. I have a lot of practices that do bracket style ortho and they need a lot of supplies that has to be separated out. Those are your pieces, you guys. Those are the easiest ways that you can tackle real life, real life, in time, financial health. And we want you to go do that. Kristy, thank you so much for your insight. You truly do so well with your clients and we get to see their progress constantly and those needles are always moving. And I know that it's because you can take that black and white results driven perspective. So thank you for everything you do for your clients and everything that you bring to Dental A Team every day. DAT Kristy (26:33) Thank you, it's fun. The Dental A Team (26:35) I know, I know, I love watching you do it. You really do love it. And it makes me really happy. All right, guys, that's a wrap for today. Go leave us a five star review. Let us know what was super helpful. Maybe there's some tips and tricks you've got that you can share with the world. I'm telling you, people really do go read those. So if you have things in there, they will see them. You can drop us an email, Hello@TheDentalATeam.com. We'll be happy to get you over any documents that might help. We do have some. budgeting information, we do have some overhead spreadsheets, things like that. If you need help with that, just reach out and we'll catch you next time on the Dental A Team podcast. Thanks guys!
Front desks are evolving fast. Search behavior is changing even faster. Hospitality is staring at a major technology turning point — and those who move now will own the next era of bookings. I connected with Bill Ryan, Chief Technology Officer at BWH Hotels, to talk about how the company is modernizing its tech stack, reducing training time, simplifying payments, and preparing for a future where travelers begin planning inside AI platforms like ChatGPT and Perplexity. We break it all down on #NoVacancyNews, including how intuitive systems free staff to focus on guests, why one-day onboarding matters for retention, and what it takes for hotel brands to become discoverable in AI-driven search. This is a moment to use technology to amplify hospitality, not replace it.
You can listen wherever you get your podcasts, OR— BRAND NEW: we've included a fully edited transcript of our interview at the bottom of this post.In this episode of The Peaceful Parenting Podcast, I do a coaching call with Joanna who has a 2-year-old and a 7-year-old. We cover how to make mindset shifts so you can better show up for your kids, as well as get into specifics around night weaning, bedtime battles, handling meltdowns, playful parenting and increasing our connection to our kids.**If you'd like an ad-free version of the podcast, consider becoming a supporter on Substack! > > If you already ARE a supporter, the ad-free version is waiting for you in the Substack app or you can enter the private feed URL in the podcast player of your choice.Know someone who might appreciate this post? Share it with them!We talk about:* 6:40 how to manage meltdowns* 9:00 Night weaning and bedtime challenges* 20:00 Emptying a full emotional backpack* 26:00 Kids who always want more attention* 28:00 Understanding blame and anger* 38:00 Games to play when a child is looking for more power* 44:00 How our mindset makes such a big difference when parenting* 47:30 Two keys to peaceful parenting!* 55:00 Playful approaches to bedtimeResources mentioned in this episode:* Yoto Player-Screen Free Audio Book Player* The Peaceful Parenting Membership* How to Help Our Little Ones Sleep with Kim Hawley * Episode 100: When Your Child Has a Preferred Parent (or Not) with Sarah and Corey * Episode 103: Playful Parenting with Lawrence Cohen * Playful Heart Parenting with Mia Wisinski: Episode 186 xx Sarah and CoreyYour peaceful parenting team- click here for a free short consult or a coaching sessionVisit our website for free resources, podcast, coaching, membership and more!>> Please support us!!! Please consider becoming a supporter to help support our free content, including The Peaceful Parenting Podcast, our free parenting support Facebook group, and our weekly parenting emails, “Weekend Reflections” and “Weekend Support” - plus our Flourish With Your Complex Child Summit (coming back in the spring for the 3rd year!) All of this free support for you takes a lot of time and energy from me and my team. If it has been helpful or meaningful for you, your support would help us to continue to provide support for free, for you and for others.In addition to knowing you are supporting our mission to support parents and children, you get the podcast ad free and access to a monthly ‘ask me anything' session.Our sponsors:YOTO is a screen free audio book player that lets your kids listen to audiobooks, music, podcasts and more without screens, and without being connected to the internet. No one listening or watching and they can't go where you don't want them to go and they aren't watching screens. BUT they are being entertained or kept company with audio that you can buy from YOTO or create yourself on one of their blank cards. Check them out HERETranscript:Hey everyone. Welcome back to another episode of the Peaceful Parenting Podcast. Today's episode is a coaching episode. My guest is Joanna, mom of a 7-year-old and a 2-year-old. Joanna's 7-year-old is an intense child, and she wanted to know how to handle her big feelings and find more connection with her.She also had some specific challenges around bedtime, namely that her partner works shift work and is not home at bedtime. She still breastfeeds her 2-year-old to sleep, so is unavailable to her seven-year-old for a bit, and then has trouble getting her seven-year-old to bed without a fight. Joanna also shared how low she was on resources, and we had a great discussion about how that impacts her parenting and what she might do about it.Also, meltdowns—we talked about those too and how to respond. I know Joanne is not alone. One note: after we did the follow-up call, I realized I forgot to ask her about a few things. So she kindly recorded a couple of P.S.'s that I'll include. If you're curious, like I am, you'll be glad she gave us the latest updates.If you would like to come on the podcast and be coached by me, I am looking for a few parents who are interested. You can email me at sarah@sarahrosensweet.com.As always, please give us a five-star rating and a review on your favorite podcast app, and if you know another parent or caregiver that this would be helpful for, please screenshot it and send it to them. The best way to reach more families with peaceful parenting is through word of mouth, so we really appreciate any shares that you might be able to give us.Okay. Let's meet Joanna. Okay.Sarah: Hi Joanna. Welcome to the podcast.Joanna: Hi. Thanks for having me.Sarah: Tell me a little bit about yourself.Joanna: Sure. I live up in Ottawa, Canada, with my husband and my two kids. I'm a music therapist, so right now I'm working with babies. I teach Yoga with Baby and, um, a class called Sing and Sign at a local wellness center.Sarah: Nice. How old are—Joanna: Yes, I have a 7-year-old girl who we'll call Jay.Sarah: Okay.Joanna: And then a 2-year-old boy called JR.Sarah: JJ. Okay, perfect. Okay, so how can I support you today?Joanna: Yeah, so my daughter has always been, like, a bit of a tricky one. Um. She was born premature, so at 29 weeks. And no kind of lasting effects. But as she's gotten older, we've noticed, like, she's really struggled a lot with emotional regulation. Um, and she kind of gets stuck on certain behaviors. So I feel like we've done a lot to change our parenting, in part thanks to you and your podcast and all the material. Um, I did finally read, um, Peaceful Parent, Happy Kids this past summer.Sarah: Mm-hmm.Joanna: And I feel like it also had a huge effect, just having, like, that bigger scope of understanding of, like, the peaceful parenting philosophy.Sarah: Uh-huh.Joanna: So I would say, like, even from where we were a few months ago, we've experienced tons of positive shifts with her.Sarah: Sweet.Joanna: Yeah, so we're already kind of well on our way, but there are certain behaviors that she has that still I find really perplexing. So I wondered if maybe we could go over a couple of them.Sarah: Sure. Yeah, no problem. For anyone—if, for anyone who doesn't know, Peaceful Parent, Happy Kids is the book written by my mentor, who I trained with, Dr. Laura Markham. Um, and just for my own curiosity, what do you think? Because, you know, I always worry that people are—that they don't have the fully formed idea of peaceful parenting. And that—and I'm not saying you, because you've listened to the podcast so you probably have a deeper understanding—but some people are just getting their little snippets on Instagram reels, you know, and so it is hard to understand, like, the, the sort of the core reasons why we do the approach if you don't have that deeper understanding. And also, I'm working on a book right now, so hopefully soon you'll be able to say you read my book. But what did you—what do you feel like got fleshed out for you when you read that book?Joanna: I think she really breaks a lot of things down step by step, such as, like, what to do when your child is going through a meltdown.Sarah: Mm-hmm.Joanna: And that has always been an area—like, when my daughter gets to that point where she's, like, become really explosive and aggressive and she's just, like, in it and she's kind of unreachable at that moment—like, what to do step by step at that time. I think, like, that's been the most helpful because I've been able to really settle into my own parenting and just, like, really trust myself and anchor in at that point, which is exactly really what she needs and what was missing.Sarah: Yeah. Yeah.Joanna: So—Sarah: So I think, um—like I always say, focus on regulating yourself first. Like, when someone's having a meltdown, empathize.Joanna: Yeah.Sarah: Um, you know, it—yeah, it's—it can be hard because you often feel like you need to do something. And even though you're saying step by step, it's less about doing anything than just centering yourself, staying calm yourself, trying to get in touch with the compassion and empathy even if you're not—some pe—some parents say, “Oh, well, when I try to say anything, then my kid just screams more.” So sometimes it's just empathize—like, getting connected in your own heart to the empathy and compassion, even if you're not saying anything—and that, that does something.Joanna: Absolutely it does. Yeah.Sarah: Yeah.Joanna: Yeah, so that's all been really helpful. Now, in—in terms of emotional regulation, I do definitely think that that's the biggest piece.Sarah: Okay.Joanna: Uh, it's been the biggest piece for me and sort of, like, one of the big things that I wanted to talk to you about today is we are still really not getting sleep because my 2-year-old is not a good sleeper and has never been a good sleeper. And we've gone through periods where I'm like, okay, now he's only waking up, like, twice a night, and that feels manageable. Um, but he's kind of been back to waking up, like, three to six times a night again, which is so hard. And then my husband's very supportive; however, he works afternoons, so he's gone from about 3:00 PM to 1:00 AM, so he needs to be able to sleep until about eight, which means I'm up with my son between six and seven. My daughter gets up for school around 7:30, so that's, like, a tricky time of day because she's really quite grumpy in the morning. He's not—the toddler's really, like, kind of a totally different temperament. But, like, I'm tired after struggling with, like, night wakings all night. And then I'm with the kids from the time that she gets home from school, um, and then doing both bedtimes myself.Sarah: Mm-hmm.Joanna: Um, so there's a lot of time where, like, I am solo parenting, and I'm definitely, like, the preferred parent. Um, and both my kids really want me and need me at bedtime. So he is still nursing—like, I'm nursing to sleep and then nursing during the night. And I know that that's probably contributing a lot to all the night wakings. So, I guess my question is, like, I am at the point where I am ready to night-wean. I probably should have done it already, but—Sarah: Don't say “should have.” Like, it's—if you're not ready to make that change, like, in your heart, it's really torturous to try to—try to, like, not—so say you decide you want to night-wean, but you weren't really ready to do it. It would be so painful for you to deny your son nursing in the night if you were—if you didn't feel in your heart, like, “No, this is the right thing to do. I'm totally ready. I think he's ready.” So, so I think waiting until you're really, like, actually, yes, “I'm done with this,” is a smart thing. Yeah. So don't beat yourself up for not having done it already. But you're right, it probably does contribute to him waking up in the night.Joanna: Yeah. And, um, I do feel like I—I'm ready. I just—I'm not quite sure how to make that shift. So what generally happens is, like, we have some, like, virtual babysitting going on with my mom, where, like, when I nurse my son to sleep, which generally takes, like, between maybe 30 and 45 minutes, she'll, like, sit with her and do a workbook. So we'll have, like, a video chat, and then after—Sarah: Yeah, it's great.Joanna: So then after, um, I'm with her to get her ready for bed, and that oftentimes looks like a lot of, like, dragging heels on, like, “Oh, I want another snack,” and “I wanna, like, brush my teeth,” and “Whatever—don't wanna brush my teeth.” So, um, then that ends up taking usually about an hour, but we both sort of have, like, this expiration at about 9:00 PM, where, like, she just gets so dysregulated because she's so tired.Sarah: Mm-hmm.Joanna: So if I don't have her in bed at that point and, like, already kind of with the lights out, there's often just, like, a meltdown and some—like, she'll start calling me names and start, like, you know, throwing stuff down at me and whatnot. And then I'm just really tired by that point too. Yeah. So we can kind of joke around about it now—like, nine o'clock is the time where we're, like, where we both expire. So I'm trying to figure out, like, how can I night-wean? Because I know that that is supposed to start with, like, him being able to fall asleep by himself at the beginning of the night, so—Sarah: Mm-hmm.Joanna: Slowly phasing that out and laying with him. I know it's gonna probably take a lot longer in the beginning, so I'm just a little worried that, like, maybe if it takes, like, an hour, an hour and a half, then all of a sudden she's kind of, like, left hanging and it's getting later and her bedtime's being pushed back.Sarah: Are there any—are there any nights that your partner is home at bedtime?Joanna: There's two—Sarah: nights that—Joanna: he—Sarah: is,Joanna: yeah.Sarah: Yeah. I mean, I guess I would start with those nights.Joanna: Yeah.Sarah: Yeah. Start with those nights. And—and when was your son's birthday? Like, like how—two—is he—Joanna: He just turned two, like, two weeks ago.Sarah: Okay. So, I mean, I think I would start with trying to just practice, you know, nursing him and maybe nursing him somewhere else and then bringing him back, you know, and then putting him in—are you co-sleeping?Joanna: Sleep—yeah. Well, I put him—like, I generally nurse him to sleep. He has a floor bed in his room, and then I go to bed in my own room, and then at his first wake, then I go back in, and I just stay there for the room—the rest of the night from that point.Sarah: Right, right. So I, I guess I would try just, like, nursing him and trying to, like, pat his back and sing to him and, you know, tell him that—that he can have—I, I mean, what we did was, “You can have milk in the morning,” you know, “You could have it when it's light.” I remember my oldest son—when he—it took him a couple of days—and if you wanna hear the whole story of my failed night-weaning with my second son, it was in a podcast that we did about infant and toddler sleep, uh, with Kim.Joanna: Yeah, Kim?Sarah: Yes. So you could listen to that if you haven't heard that already. But my second—my first son was super easy to night-wean, and a couple of—it was, like, a couple of nights of a little bit of crying, and he would just say, “Make it light, Mama. Make it light,” because he wanted—I said, “You can nurse when it's light.” But, you know, I, I, I don't wanna get into that whole big thing on this podcast because—mm-hmm—just because I've already talked about it. But if you wanna listen to that, and if you have any questions when we do our follow-up, you can, uh, you can ask me. But, you know, I would just try, you know, talking to him about, then, you know, “You can have Milky in the morning,” or whatever you call it, and, you know, those two—see how it goes for those two nights where your partner's around. And if it doesn't—I would say, if it still seems really hard, maybe just waiting to do it until—I don't know if you have any other support you could enlist. You mentioned your mother—maybe she could come and visit, you know, because I do think it would be hard to try and do this and do the solo bedtimes for a while. So I don't know if there's a time when your mom could come visit or if there's some other support that you could have. But yeah—Joanna: I think the tricky part with that is that, like, she—even with my husband—like, she doesn't want him to put her to bed.Sarah: Mm-hmm.Joanna: And depending on the kind of night that she's having, sometimes she'll end up, like, screaming, and their bedrooms are right beside each other. So we've had it before where, like, she'll start having a meltdown and, like, wake him up, and then he's not able to fall asleep either. And then we—Sarah: There's also—your husband could be with your son.Joanna: It's the same—same situation though. Like, he doesn't—him—Sarah: It sounds—it sounds like possibly—I mean, there—kids do have preferred parents even when, um, they do have good connection with the—with the other parent. And you could maybe still work—have some—that be something that you're working on, having your partner, you know, maybe even practicing having—before you start doing the night-weaning—practicing having your partner doing some of the bedtime stuff. When you are—when, you know, when—before you're starting to make a change so that your son doesn't associate, you know, “I'm not getting what I want,” and my dad, you know, putting me to sleep.Joanna: Yeah.Sarah: So I would maybe try to get your partner a little bit more involved in bedtime before making a change. And—and even if there's some crying—we also have a podcast about preferred parents that you could listen to. So I—you know, I think maybe you do have a little bit of pre-work to do before you start doing the night-weaning, and, in terms of when—how can you get support at bedtime?Joanna: Yeah.Sarah: Okay.Joanna: I mean, the other option is if you just kick it down the road more and—or, you know, there isn't—there's actually a third option now that I think about it—it's that you still nurse him to sleep but then don't nurse him when you wake him up—when he wakes up in the night. Get him to go back to sleep without that.Sarah: I hadn't thought about that, because I think that everything that I've heard has been, like, they have to fall asleep on their own because then they're always gonna be—Joanna: looking—Sarah: for—Joanna: Yeah. Yeah.Sarah: But I mean, you could still try it.Joanna: Hmm. Okay.Sarah: Or you could try shortening the—you know, give him a little bit of milk and then see if he'll go to sleep, um, after he has a little bit, but without nursing to sleep.Joanna: Okay. Yeah. Okay, I'll give that some thought and try some different things there.Sarah: Mm-hmm.Joanna: Okay. Thank you. But yeah, I feel like just starting to get sleep again is pretty important. So, even in terms of, like, being able to center myself to handle all of the things that goes on with my daughter during the day, that feels like a really important piece right now.Sarah: For sure. And if she's—if she's some nights not going—it sounds like quite frequently maybe she's not asleep before nine.Joanna: Yeah.Sarah: And what time does she wake up?Joanna: 7:30.Sarah: 7:30. So do you think she's getting enough sleep?Joanna: Probably not. She's really lethargic in the morning.Sarah: Mm-hmm.Joanna: But I can't really seem to figure out how to be able to get her to sleep. Like, I did talk to her about it, and she was like, “Well, maybe when I turn eight, like, I can start putting myself to bed.” And I was like, “Okay, well what—what would that look like?” And she kind of went through, like, “Okay, I'll, you know, I'll brush my teeth on the phone with Grandma, and then I'll just, like, read in bed.” And—but this is, like, in a moment where she's feeling very regulated.Sarah: Right, right, right. And when's her birthday?Joanna: Uh, in about two months.Sarah: Okay. Yeah. Um, have you had a conversation with her about how neither of you likes the fighting at night? And, you know—and does she have any, like—not in the moment, but does she have any ideas of, you know, how you can solve the problem of her not, you know, not wanting to go to bed and then getting too tired and then getting really cranky?Joanna: Yeah, we have—we have talked about it, and we can talk about it with, like, a little bit more levity now, but I don't think that she's actually—we've gone to, like, the problem-solving—Sarah: Mm-hmm.Joanna: of that.Sarah: I mean, that might be a helpful conversation to have with her and just say, “You know, I've been thinking about what often happens at night, you know, and I totally get it, that you don't wanna go to bed. Like, you know, when I was a kid, I never wanted to go to bed, and I would've stayed up all night if I could. And I'm sure you're the same because it's just—you know, when you're young, going to bed is, like, you know, not any fun at all.” And you can make—you could even make a joke, like, “When you're old like me, like, you can't wait to go to bed.” But of course when you're young, you don't wanna go to sleep, and I totally get that. So, like, lots of empathy and acknowledging, like, her perspective. And—and then you could say, “And at the same time, you know, you do—you know, why do you think it's important to sleep?” So I guess you could have that conversation with her too about, like, you know, what happens when we're sleeping that—your, you know, you could talk about how your cells, like, fix themselves. Also we grow when we're sleeping—like, we get the—like, the growth hormone gets secreted, and that's the—if we don't get enough sleep, we're not gonna grow and we're not gonna feel happy the next day. So you can, like, talk to her about the importance of sleep. And then you could say, like, “So, you know, I know you don't wanna go to sleep, and I know how important it is, and now you do too. And, you know—and I hate fighting with you at bedtime. You know, do you have any ideas for how we can solve this problem? Because I really want us both to go to bed feeling happy and connected.”Joanna: Yeah. Yeah, that's a great suggestion. Thank you. I think the biggest barrier to her getting to bed on time is she is finally feeling, like, a bit more calm and relaxed at night. Like, she comes home after school with a lot—she's holding a lot from school. They have, like, a point system for good behavior at school.Sarah: Oh.Joanna: And you should see how she racks up the points. She has great behavior at school. The teacher's, like—would never believe what goes on at home.Sarah: Of course, yeah.Joanna: So then she comes home, and it's, like, a lot of unloading. So I feel like by that time of night she's, like, ready to pursue her hobbies. Like, she's like, “Oh, I just wanna do this one more little”—you know, she's drawing something, and it's always like, “I just need to finish this,” because once she gets started on something, she can't seem to break her focus on—We're very much suspecting ADHD. That's gonna be probably in the next year we pursue a diagnosis, but—Sarah: Typically—do have a lot of trouble falling asleep—that's with ADHD. What about—you know, so two outta three of my kids had a lot of trouble falling asleep, and they're both my ADHD kids, and what really helped them was something to listen to at night. You know—Joanna: Yeah, she does listen to podcasts falling asleep—Sarah: Does listen to stuff.Joanna: Yeah, she's always listened—listened to, like, a story falling asleep. I think part of it too is we don't get a lot of one-on-one time throughout the day.Sarah: Mm-hmm.Joanna: Because my son's around in the morning.Sarah: Mm-hmm.Joanna: And it's usually just the three of us until my husband wakes up, which is shortly before she goes to school. And then it's again the three of us from after school till bedtime most days, except for the two days a week that he's off.Sarah: Well, I mean, that's something to explore too, like, in—are there, you know—I don't know if you live in a neighborhood that has some, like, tweens that could come over and play with your son for an hour—you know, just someone really fun that he would like to play with—and then you and your daughter could have some time together. Because what I was gonna say when you said that she comes home with what we call the “full backpack” in Peaceful Parenting—which is, she's been carrying around, for anyone who's listening who doesn't know what that is, it's a concept that my mentor, Dr. Laura, came up with—where you're holding on to all of the stresses, big feelings, tensions from the day, and then when you come home, it's too much to, you know, to keep holding onto it. And so that's what you were just referring to, is just that she's got a lot to unpack after the day at school. And so I'm wondering—so when you mentioned that, I was gonna say, like, what could you do to try to proactively get some of that emptied out? Couple of ideas: do you do any roughhousing with her?Joanna: We actually just started doing that, and I couldn't believe how much she was into it. Yeah, I was super surprised. But I also think that it's taken just a lot of, like, repair with our relationship to get to the point that I've even been able to try some of this stuff. Like, because at first, like, when I first started hearing about some of these, like, peaceful—I, I don't know if you'd call them techniques—but, like, being playful and, um, roughhousing and things like that—she was so not open to anything at all because she was just so serious and so edgy and like, “Get away from me,” like, so irritable. So now I think that we've just—I've poured a lot of time in on weekends just to, like, spend time together that's enjoyable, and I'm noticing a huge shift. So now we are able to do some of these things, and it—it is turning out more positively.Sarah: Good. I mean, as you're speaking, I'm thinking that it sounds like there was maybe, um, quite a—a breach when your son was born, like, the last two years. Or, or do you feel like your relationship has always been a little strained even before that?Joanna: I feel like maybe it's always been a little fraught. I don't know if his birth had, like, a huge impact on that. Um, it has always been pretty strained.Sarah: Okay, okay.Joanna: Just because she's the more challenging kid?Sarah: I think so. And, you know, when she was two there was the pandemic. I think, like, I was carrying a lot of trauma after the whole NICU experience with her. And then we had the pandemic, and then we moved, and then I got pregnant, and then I had my son. So it's like there's sort of been these, like, things along the way where—yeah, I don't know.Sarah: Yeah. Okay. Well, I mean, that's good that you brought that up because I think that, you know, maybe that's gonna be the pre-work—that even before bedtime starts to feel better is really working on—you know, if you can get some support in, because it is really hard to have one-on-one time with a 2-year-old who probably doesn't wanna leave you alone. But even if—you know, continue with your sort of bulking up on the weekends with that time with her and do some, like, roughhousing and special time with her. Do you guys do special time?Joanna: Yeah. And that's something I wanted to talk about because special time has been sort of a big fail when I call it special time and when we set a timer for special time, because it really tends to dysregulate her, I think, because she's like, “Oh my God, I only have you for 15 minutes.” Mm-hmm. She gets really stressed out, and then she's like—oftentimes she likes to do these, like, elaborate pretend plays—things which need, like, a lot, a lot of setup time. Yeah. So she'll be like, “Pause the timer so I can set this up,” and then it just becomes, like, more tension between us. Like, it's not enjoyable.Sarah: It's one of those things where, like, you really have to adjust it to how it works for your particular family. Um, so, you know, maybe you just have, like, a couple hours with her on the weekend and you're—and it would be good for your—your partner and your son too. Maybe he could take him to the park or go and—you know, for them to work on their connection, which might make him a little bit more willing to go to bed with his dad, you know, on the nights that your partner is home. So, you know, I would really work on that connection with her and do those pretend play things with her. And even—you know, and this is maybe obvious, which is why I didn't say it before—but, you know, partly she's dragging her heels because that's the only time she has you to herself—at bedtime, right?Joanna: Yeah.Sarah: And so she doesn't want that to end because that's the only time that it—her brother's asleep—she has you all to herself. So if you can increase the time where she has you all to herself, she might be more willing to, um, to go to bed. Yeah. The other thing I was gonna say is, do you have anything that you do together at bedtime that would be, like—it sounds like she's dragging her heels to actually get in bed. Is there anything that you can do to entice her to get in bed, like a chapter book that you're reading her, that you read a chapter every night or something like that?Joanna: Yeah, and that has worked in the past, but it can—it can also kind of cause tension because I find, like, then I am a lot more apt to kind of hold it as, like, a bargaining chip instead of, like, “Oh, let's get to that.” Right. But lately we've been playing cards, and she's really motivated to, like, play a game of cards when we're in bed. So that seems to be working right now, but it's always kind of like—it changes all the time.Sarah: Right, right. Well, just keeping—thinking of something that you can use to make getting in bed seem more attractive? Um, maybe—I mean, my kids used to love hearing stories about me when I was little or about them when they were little. So it could even just be, like, a talk time. I know Corey, who works with me, does—she started doing a 10-minute talk time with one of her sons, who's a little bit older than—than your daughter, but where they just have, you know, this time where they just get in bed and he tells her stuff and they—they talk. So that could be something too—just really pure, straight-up connection.Joanna: Yeah. Okay, I like that. Maybe I can just ask you a couple more things about some of the things I—She's kind of a person that really wants constant connection too. Like, it does feel like I could spend, like, all day with her, and then she—once it's over, she would still be like, “Well, why are we not still—” like, it—we've always kind of—my husband and I will joke that she's got, like, a leaky cup because it's, like, “Just fill up their cup,” but it doesn't seem to matter. He used to play with her for, like, two to three hours when she was younger, and then at the end she would just, like, not be satisfied. Like, it didn't seem like anything was going to, like, fill her cup.Sarah: And that—you know what, there are kids like that. I remember I had this client once whose son actually said to her, “Mama, all the—all the hours in the world are not enough time with you.” And there are some kids that are really just like that. And, you know, I'm not sure how you respond when she says, like, you know, “But we hardly even got to play,” after you play for three hours. I mean, that playful—like, “Oh my gosh, like, what if we could just play all day?” You know, either, like, playful response of, like, “We could play for 27 hours,” you know, “and—and—and we would still have so much fun together.” Or just pure empathy, you know, like, “Oh no, it just feels like it's never enough time, is it?”Joanna: And it almost seems like sometimes when I am empathetic, it almost, like, fuels her anger. I don't know if you've ever heard that before from anybody else, but—eh, I don't know. Like, we had a situation with—like, she was looking for a specific bear last weekend—a teddy bear that she's missing—because she wanted to bring it to a teddy bear picnic. And so we were sort of, like, you know, we had to get out the door to go to this party. She couldn't find this bear, and I was, like, you know, offering a lot of empathy, and just, like—the more that I was like, “I know, like, you're so frustrated; you're so disappointed that you can't find your bear,” it was like the more that she was like, “Yeah, and you took it, you hid it, you put it somewhere.” Like, it just—the more empathy I gave, it seemed like the more that she was using it as almost, like, fuel to be upset. Does that make sense? Right.Sarah: Yeah. No, that's pretty common. And the thing is, you have to remember that blame is trying to offload difficult feelings. It's like, “I don't wanna feel this way, so I'm gonna blame you.” And then—you know, it's anger—have you ever seen the image of the anger iceberg?Joanna: Yes.Sarah: Yeah. So the anger iceberg is, like, the anger is the only thing you see coming out of the water. But underneath the iceberg are all of the more tender feelings, right? And anger is actually a secondary emotion. So you don't start out by feeling angry. You feel—like, like for her, she maybe was feeling frustrated and disappointed that she couldn't find her bear. And those are the first feelings. But those more tender feelings are harder to feel, and so anger is often protective. And the tender feelings also set off that—you know, that overwhelm of our emotions registers as a threat to the nervous system, which sets off that fight, flight, or freeze. So there's all those things going on, right? Like, the blame of, like, trying to offload the feelings; the anger of feeling like it's easier to go on the offensive than to feel those tender feelings; and then the nervous system getting set off by that overwhelm that registers as a threat, right? It sets off the fight, flight, or freeze. And they're—they're kind of all different ways of saying the same thing. And yes, empathy often will help a child—that they get more in touch with those feelings. And I'm not saying that you don't wanna empathize, um, but just recognize that, you know, the feelings are happening, and when you empathize, they—you know, you're welcoming the feelings, which sometimes can have that fight, flight, or freeze effect.Joanna: And would you recommend that I continue to really lean into empathy more and just stay with all of that emotion until it passes?Sarah: So—totally depends. The other thing I was gonna say is it's possible—like the situation you just gave me—it's possible—like, how—were you actually feeling empathetic, or were you trying to just get out the door?Joanna: I think I was, but at a certain point I was like, “I think, you know, we have two options from here. Like, we can continue to be upset about the bear and it—it will make us late for the party, or at a certain point we can move on and make a new plan,” and, like, “get our—make our way over there.” So, um, is that effective? Yeah, I—I mean, she eventually was able to change gears. But, I mean, it doesn't feel like real life to just be able to, like, sit in your negative emotions all the time. And I think, like, maybe I struggle with doing that for, like, a long enough period of time to actually let her—let them out.Sarah: Well, I don't know—yeah. So, I mean, there's a difference between welcoming feelings and wallowing in emo—in emotion, I think.Joanna: Yeah. And she definitely is a wallower, and she almost has really, like, attached so much sadness and frustration and anger to this bear. Like, now she'll just, like, think about the bear and be like, “Oh, I still can't find that bear.” Like, she was just, like, you know, exploding about it again this past weekend. So it almost feels like she's just latching onto it to, like, feel bad there.Sarah: I mean, some kids—she's probably not choosing to latch onto it to feel bad, but she probably just has. So, so what I was gonna say is sometimes when kids seem to be wallowing, it's just that there's so much there that they haven't been able to get out on a regular basis. So I think it is just like a full backpack, and there's just a lot there. And it's not—it's probably not just about the bear. It's probably just like she's—it's, you know, processing other older things too. And you don't have to know what's in the backpack or try and figure it out. But you might find that if you had more opportunities for her to process feelings, then she might not get so stuck when they do start to come out.That's one thing that I would think of. Like—and more laughter should help with that. Like, more laughter and roughhousing to help her sort of process stuff. And also sometimes—so the bear thing reminds me of—some kids will just feel bad, you know, like feel bad sometimes from, like, a full backpack, or maybe they don't even know what it is, they can't connect. Or maybe they're just tired and low-resourced and their brain is kind of like, “Why do I feel bad? Why do I feel bad?” And she's like, “Oh, the bear.” You know, she remembers, like, the bear. Like, I've had clients tell me, my kid will say, like, “I miss Grandpa,” who they never met, who died before they were born—like, just kind of casting around for, like, “Why could I be feeling this way right now? Oh, I know—it's 'cause I can't find that bear.”Or maybe the bear is so important to her that it really is—that she thinks about it and it just makes her feel bad. But I think what you wanna remember when it seems like she's wallowing is that, you know, getting—like, having empathy. And I actually also did a podcast about this too, with another coaching call, where I talked about, you know, cultivating a certain amount of nonchalance after you feel like you've been pretty empathetic and welcomed the feelings. Because I think if we're too empathetic sometimes—and I do wanna be very careful with this because I don't want anyone to take this as, like, “Don't be empathetic”—but, you know, there is a time where you just say, like, “You know what? I hear how upset you are about this, and I get it. And I would be really bummed if I couldn't find the bear I wanted also. And we have to decide, like, are we gonna stay here and just keep feeling sad about the bear, or should we figure out another plan?” Like what you said, right.Joanna: Yeah, I have heard you say that before, and that's been so helpful for her. Mm-hmm. It seems like if I'm not so reactive to her emotions, she realizes that they're not an emergency either.Sarah: Yeah, yeah. Yeah. I mean—and that's a good point too, because I didn't even ask you, like, how's your regulation when this is happening? Like, are you getting, like, annoyed, frustrated, upset for her, kind of drawn in? Are you able to, like, kind of center yourself and stay calm?Joanna: It varies. I would say I currently am the most resourced that I've ever been—good with, like, the emotional regulation piece. And then that—I see, like, sometimes she is able to come out of it more quickly, or it just depends on, you know, what her tolerance is at that—at that time. So—Sarah: Joanna, it might be that, you know, you're coming out of—almost like you're coming out of a fog of, you know—you said all the things: like the NICU experience, and then the—and then COVID, and then your new baby, and—and that it might be that you're really, finally for the first time, kind of getting to tend—you know, look at yourself, your own regulation, and be more present and connected with your daughter. And all these things are gonna start having a little bit of, um, of a snowball effect. And it may be that you've just had this, like, seven-year period of difficulty, you know?Joanna: Oh, that's horrifying.Sarah: Well, but the good news is it sounds like things are shifting.Joanna: Yeah. It really does feel like that. Yeah. You're—I feel like even if I talked to you a few months ago, I would've been like, “Oh, help me.”Sarah: Well—and that you're recognizing what you brought—what you bring to the table, and that, you know, things have been fraught with your daughter, and that you're sort of starting to come out. And—and honestly, also doing that—doing that bedtime—after-school bedtime by yourself five days a week, that's gonna be tough too. Uh, so you've got situ—just that current situation doesn't sound like it'll change, but you're changing what you're bringing to it.Joanna: Yeah. Yeah. Um, if I can maybe just ask you, like, one more little thing?Sarah: Sure.Joanna: Maybe this is—it all comes back to, like, wanting a lot of connection, but this is also what kind of drains my battery. She constantly wants to, like, talk to me or ask me questions from, like, the time that she wakes up to the time that she goes to bed. And it will be—like, currently it's, like, “Would you rather.” It's like, “Would you rather eat all the food in the world or never eat again?” Uh-huh. In the past it's been, like, “Guess what's in my mouth?” But then she always really tries to make it—make me wrong in the circumstance, if that makes sense. Like, I don't know if that's just her, like, looking for power or, like, the upper hand, or like—I don't know. I'm not sure what it is.Sarah: Well, I mean, if you feel—if you have a sense that she's looking for power, I would bring that into the roughhousing—where you are the one who's weak and bumbling and idiotic, and, you know, you're so slow, and she beats you every time at a race. So I would really try to bring some of that—some of that stuff into your roughhousing where she gets to be—Do you know the kind of stuff I'm talking about? Like, “I bet you can't—um, you know, I bet you can't beat me at arm wrestling,” and then, like, you know, you flop your arm over in a silly way, and like, “How are you so strong? Like, I'm gonna beat you next time.” And it's obviously playful, because probably you are stronger than she is at this point, but, you know—feats of strength or speed, or, you know, figuring things out, and you act like you really don't know anything. And—but in, of course, in a joking way, so she knows that you're not—you know, you're pretending to be all these things, but she still gets to gloat and, like, “Ha, you know, I'm the strongest, I'm the best.” So really giving her that in roughhousing.And then also, like, real power. Like, I don't know if she gets to make—what kinds of decisions she gets to make, or, you know, how much—how flexible you are on limits. Because sometimes, as parents, we do set unnecessary limits, which can make our kids, you know—make them look for power in other ways. So really looking at what limits you're setting and if they're necessary limits, and—and how you're setting them. Uh, and also I think it sounds like it's connection-seeking—like, she just wants you. You know, she wants to know that you're there and paying attention to her. And so everything else that you're doing—that we're talking about—that you're gonna try to do more—more time with her and get more one-on-one time with her, hopefully that will help too.And I think it is okay to say, like, after you've done, like, 25 “would you rathers,” I just say—like, I used to say to my kids, “You know what? My brain is just feeling really stimulated from so many words. Like, can we have some quiet for a few minutes?” And not—and being very careful to not phrase it like, “You're talking too much,” or “I don't wanna listen to—” and I'm exaggerating for effect—but just framing it as, like, your brain and a regulation thing—like, “My brain,” and it is words. Yeah. And so, like, “Do you—should we put some music on?” You know, “Can we—like, think of—can you connect in a way that—let's listen to a story.” Okay. Something like that where you still, like, keep up connection with her, but—and it might not work. She—she might not be able to stop talking, but you can try it at least.Joanna: No, that's a—that's a really good suggestion. Almost like replacing it with some other kind of stimulation if she's looking for that in that moment.Sarah: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay. So I think—I think it's just—I think it's fair. Like, it's totally—I, at the end of the day, with people, like, talking at me all day, I sometimes am like—you know, when my kids were younger, I'd be like, “Okay, you know, I—I just need a little—my brain needs a little bit of a break. It's feeling overstimulated.” So I think just using that language with her.Joanna: Okay. Okay. Great. Thank you. Well—Sarah: Yeah, I think you're—you know, I think that I've—that we've connected at a point where you're, like, at—you're, like, at the—sort of the top of a mountain, you know? And you've been, like, having all this struggle and uphill battles. And I think you've put—before even we talk—you've put a lot of pieces [together] of what—you know, why some of the challenges were. And they do seem to be connection—you know, connection-based, just in terms of, um, you know, her wanting more and you not being as resourced. And so hopefully working on connection is gonna help with that too.Joanna: Yeah. I'm gonna keep that at top of mind.Sarah: And your self-regulation too. You said you're—you know, you've been having—you're more resourced now than you ever have been, so you're able to work on really staying, like, calm and compassionate in those times when she's dysregulated. Going back to what I said in the beginning, which is that, you know, the steps for the meltdowns really start with our own regulation.Joanna: And I find it's a snowball effect too, because once you start seeing positive changes, it allows you to, like, rest in knowing that things will not always be so hard.Sarah: Yeah. So it—Joanna: It gives you motivation to keep going, I think.Sarah: Totally. And, you know, with complex kids—which it sounds like your daughter is one of those more complex kids—um, brain maturity makes such a huge difference. Um, like, every month and every year as she's starting to get older. And, you know, you mentioned ADHD—that you—that you suspect that she might be ADHD. ADHD kids are often around three years behind, um, in terms of what you might expect for them in terms of, like, their brain development. And not—and not across the board. But in terms of, like, their regulation, in terms of what they can do for themselves, um, like in—you know, and obviously every kid is different. But it really helps to think about, um, your ADHD kids as sort of, uh, developmentally younger than they are. My—my girlfriend who has—her son and my daughter are the same age, so they're both just starting college or university this year. And, um, she was—I—she lives in California, and I was talking to her, and her son has ADHD, and she was talking about how much support he's still needing in first-year college and how she was feeling a little bit like, “Oh, I feel like I shouldn't be supporting him this much when he's 18.” And—and she said, “Actually, I just re—you know, I always remind myself of what you told me a long time ago: to think of him as three years younger than he is in some ways,” and that that's made her feel a little bit better about the scaffolding that she's having to give him.Joanna: Yeah, I've never heard that before. That's good. She's also gonna be starting to work with an OT in a couple of weeks, so we'll see if that has any effect as well.Sarah: Cool.Joanna: Cool.Sarah: Alright, well, I look forward to catching up with you in around maybe three weeks or a month and seeing how things went, and, um, good luck, and I hope this was helpful and gave you some things to work on.Joanna: Okay. Thank you so much.Sarah: Hi Joanna. Welcome back to the podcast.Joanna: Hi Sarah.Sarah: So—how has—it's been about—I think it's been about four weeks since we talked the first time. How have things been?Joanna: Yeah, things I think have been going a little better. Like, every day is a little bit different. We definitely have, like, a lot of ups and downs still, but I think overall we're just on a better trajectory now. Um, it's actually—I was wondering if things—if, like, the behavior has actually been better, or if it's more just, like, my frame of mind.Sarah: That is the classic question because—it's so funny, I'm—I'm laughing because so much of the time when I'm coaching parents, after a couple of sessions they'll say, “This isn't even about my kids. This is all about me.” Right.Joanna: Yeah, it really, really is and just continues to be about, like, my own—not just frame of mind, but, like, my own self-regulation. That's always the biggest thing.Sarah: Yeah.Joanna: Um, I think the biggest challenge is, like—ever since, like, about six months ago, I just have had really bad PMS. So I find, like, the week before—Sarah: Mm-hmm.Joanna: I just feel so irritated by everything.Sarah: Yeah.Joanna: So I feel like that's a really—just so much more of a challenging time because then things that normally don't bother me are bothering me a lot more.Sarah: Right.Joanna: And then it's harder to keep that connection strong.Sarah: Totally. Yeah. And you also—as we mentioned last time—you have come off of a whole bunch of different events of, you know—we talked your daughter's premature birth, and then COVID, and then the new baby. And the new baby—you know, you're not sleeping that much, and, um, all of those things would make it also have your resources be low. Like, not only the PMS, but, like, anything that puts a tax on us—on our resources—is gonna make us more irritable.Joanna: Totally. And—but I'm really trying to lean into having a lot more compassion for myself, because I know that when I do that, I can have a lot more compassion for her and, mm-hmm, whatever's going on that she's bringing to the table too. So that's—that's, I think, probably the biggest thing. But I think that our relationship is just starting to have a lot more resilience—like, when things do start to go sideways, either she or I—we're able to kind of get back on track a lot more quickly than before, and it doesn't become as, like, entrenched.Sarah: That's awesome. And we—we talked last time about trying to get some more time with her so that the only time that she has with you isn't just at bedtime when you're trying to get her to go to bed. Have you been able to do that, and has it—do you think that's been helping?Joanna: Yeah. It depends. Like, we had a really busy weekend this past weekend, so not as much. And then I find that sometimes, like, a barrier to that is, like, by the time the weekend finally comes, I'm so depleted and really just, like, needing time for myself. As much as I'm like, “Okay, I need to spend one-on-one time with her,” I'm like, “I don't want to—I just, like, be by myself for a little while.” So it's—Sarah: I hear that.Joanna: It's always that—like, yeah, it's always that balancing act. And then, like, feeling guilty of, like, “Okay, no, I know I should want to hang out with her,” and I kind of just don't really.Sarah: Mm-hmm. No, you're—you're totally not alone. And it's funny that you just—you mentioned self-compassion and then you said, “I feel guilty 'cause I—I don't wanna hang out with her,” but we all—the theme so far in this five minutes is that, um, you know, what you're bringing to the—what you're bringing to the relationship has been improving. Like you said, your mindset has shifted, and that's helping things with her. So even if you're not getting time independently with her—and hopefully you can work towards that after you fill your own cup—but you're still helping things with her by getting time to yourself.Joanna: True. Yeah, because then I'm coming back just a much better, happier—yes—parent and person.Sarah: Totally.Joanna: Oh, thank you. That's helpful.Sarah: Yeah, and the—and I think you've—you know, you've touched—just in these few minutes—you've touched on two big things that I always say: if you can't really take these two things to heart, it'll be really hard to be a successful peaceful parent. And one is what you said—the mindset shift, you know, of how you see her behavior with, you know, that children are doing the best they can. You know, they're not giving us a hard time; they're having a hard time. And the other one is self-compassion. So making strides in both of those areas will really help you be that parent that you wanna be.Joanna: Yeah. And even though we're maybe not getting huge chunks of time individually, I am really trying to make the most of, like, those little moments—Sarah: Good.Joanna: —of connection. Yeah. So even, like—what we've started doing is, because my husband's on night shift, he is waking up with her in the morning because she has a really hard time in the morning. So now he's sort of with her, getting her ready in the morning. And then I am—like, we used to all walk to the bus together because my son likes to go too. But now my husband's hanging back with my son, so now I'm just walking her to the bus. And even though it's five minutes, it's like we're holding hands. She's able to tell me—Sarah: Yeah.Joanna: —you know, talking about whatever.Sarah: That's still—that—that totally counts. That's—and that also, um, that also takes care of something we talked about last time too, which is your husband and your son having more time together, um, so that the nights that—when your husband is home—maybe he can put your son to bed and start trying to shift that dynamic. So yeah. That's amazing that you're doing—that. Yeah, I think that's a great shift—walking to her—to the bus by herself.Joanna: And I think it—it actually makes a huge difference. You know, before it was like she would just kind of get on the bus and not really look back, and now she's, like, giving me a hug and a kiss and waving—Sarah: Mm-hmm.Joanna: —waving in the window. So, like, I can see that it's having a positive effect right away.Sarah: You could even leave five minutes earlier than you have to and have—turn that five minutes into ten minutes.Joanna: I would love to do that. It's always just—like, it's really hard to get to the bus on time as it is. We will work toward that though.Sarah: I hear that. Well, if you did try to leave five minutes earlier then it might be more relaxed, even if you didn't even have any extra time, but you were just, like—leave, you know, change your whole morning back five minutes and try to get out five minutes early.Joanna: Yeah. Yeah. True. So I think that we had talked a lot about roughhousing last time too—Sarah: Mm-hmm.Joanna: —and I do find that that's—that's really—it works well for her, but I run into this really specific problem where when, uh, like, we start roughhousing, and then she's enjoying it, but then my son wants to get in the mix—Sarah: Mm-hmm.Joanna: —and then right away she's like, “No, like, get outta here.” So then she'll start kind of, like, pushing him or, like, throwing kicks or something. So—and then he gets upset because he's like, “Mom! Mom!” So then I end up sort of, like, pinned underneath both of them—Sarah: Right.Joanna: —they're mad at each other, hitting each other—Sarah: Oh no.Joanna: —they both want me.Sarah: Well, maybe—maybe don't do it then if that's how it ends up. But I do have a couple of shifts that might help before you give up on it when you're alone with them. One is, do you ever try to do those “two against you”? Like, start it out right from the get-go—“You two against Mommy. See if you can—see if you can—” Um, it's funny you just said you end up pinned down because that's what I often say. Like, “See if you can stop Mommy from getting up,” or “See if you can catch me,” or, you know, trying to align the two of them against you. That might help.Joanna: Yeah, I love that idea. Never thought about that. Yeah, I think she would love that.Sarah: Yeah. So, “Okay, you two are a team, and you have to try to stop me from jumping on the bed,” or “You know, you—you have to stop me from getting to the bed,” or, you know, something like that.Joanna: Okay, I'm gonna try that. I think that they'll love it.Sarah: Yeah. Another idea is, um, what I call “mental roughhousing,” where you're not doing, like, physical stuff, but you're being silly and, like, um—I think I mentioned her last time to you, but A Playful Heart Parenting—Mia—W—Walinski. She has a lot of great ideas on her Instagram—we'll link to that in the show notes—of, like, different, um, like, word things that you can do. When I say mental roughhousing, it's like getting everyone laughing without being physical.Joanna: Mm-hmm.Sarah: Uh, which—you know, the goal of roughhousing is to get everyone laughing, and sometimes being physical might not work. But you can—like, I'll give you an idea. This isn't from Mia, but this is something that I used to do with my kids. Like, you know, one of you—you're like—you say to JR, “Oh—where did your sister go?” And she's sitting right there. “She was just here a minute ago. Where did Jay go? I don't see her. What happened to her? She disappeared.” And meanwhile she's like, “I'm right here! I'm right here!” You know—something like that that's more of, like, a—more of a mental roughhousing.My kids and I used to play this game that actually my brother-in-law invented called Slam, where, like, you both say a word at the same time. Um, so, like—I'm just looking around my—like, you know, “curtain” and, you know, “lemonade.” Uh, and then it's like—you both say it—both—you both say your word at the same time. And that actually wasn't a very funny one—kids come up with much funnier ones than I do—but it's like, “Is that, like, a lemonade that is made out of curtains, or is it a—what—” It's such a dumb example now that I think of it, but—but—or is it, like, a curtain that hides the lemonade? And so you just try and—like, you think of silly things that the two words together—the two words “slam” together—mean.Joanna: Okay, great. That's—that's on my next book—that's on my next thing to read. You—man—you keep mentioning—what is it? Playful—Playful Heart Parenting? She has an—I—Sarah: There was a book—there was a book too. And—Joanna: Oh—Sarah: Playful Parenting—the Larry Cohen book.Joanna: The Larry Cohen book, yeah.Sarah: Yeah.Joanna: Yeah.Sarah: That's a great book. Yeah, and he was on my podcast too, so you could listen to that. We'll also link to—Mia was on my podcast, and Larry was—so we'll link to both of those in the show notes as well.Joanna: Okay, great. I may have listened to one of those, but—yeah. Okay. Yeah.Sarah: And Playful Parenting is really great for also talking—and, like, Mia is just straight up, like, how to be more playful in life and to, you know, make more joy in your family kind of thing. And Larry talks about how to be more playful to also support your child through transitions and through big emotions and different things—like, it's a—it's a little bit more, um, like, all-around parenting—Playful Parenting.Joanna: Okay.Sarah: But it is different.Joanna: Yeah. I used to have a really hard time getting the kids upstairs to start the bedtime routine. And now it's like—I'll be like, “Okay, I'm gonna hide first,” and, like, I go upstairs and hide and we start—Sarah: Oh, I love that.Joanna: —we play hide-and-seek, and—Sarah: Oh yeah, it was a stroke of genius one day, and it's been working so well just to get everyone, like, off the main floor and—Joanna: —upstairs.Sarah: I'm gonna totally steal that idea. That's such a good idea. Yeah, because you could also send them up—“Okay, go hide upstairs and I'll come and find you.” And then you could do a round of you hiding. And I love that. That's a great idea. Yeah.Joanna: And I especially love hide-and-seek for sometimes when I need, like, 30 seconds by myself in a dark closet—Sarah: —to, like, take a breath.Joanna: That's great.Sarah: I love it. I love it. Yeah, it's—that's so great.As I mentioned before, I forgot to ask Joanna for an update about a few things. So here's the update about breastfeeding her son in the night.Sarah: Okay.Joanna: Hi, Sarah. So, in terms of the night-weaning, um, I haven't gone ahead and done anything about that yet just because he does have his last molars coming in and has been sick. So I want to wait until he's well and pain-free to kind of give us our best chance at getting that off on the right foot. But I have really realized that because he's my last baby, that this is really the last little home stretch of being woken up by a baby at night—specifically to nurse. So that's helped me kind of reduce my feelings of resentment toward it.Sarah: I love that Joanna zoomed out and looked at the big picture and the fact that this is her last baby, and used that to sort of just change her mindset a little bit and make it a little bit easier to continue on with something when she knew it wasn't the right time to stop. And now here is her update about bedtime with her daughter. And for this, I love that she got preventive—you'll see what I mean—and also playful. Those are two really great things to look at when you're having any struggles with your kids: like, how can I prevent this from happening? And also, how can I be playful when it is happening and shift the mood?Joanna: And in terms of bedtime with my daughter, we've made a couple of schedule changes to set us off on a better foot once I get back together with her after putting my son to bed. So I think we used to have a lot of conflict because it was like she was still asking for another snack and then hadn't brushed her teeth, and then it was just kind of getting to be too late and I was getting short on patience. So now we have, like, a set snack time where everybody has a snack, and I let them know, like, “This is the last time that we're eating today,” and then we're going upstairs—using hide-and-seek, like I mentioned—and then just really continuing to be playful in all doing our bedtime tasks together.So, for example, I'm saying, like, “Okay, I'm gonna go into my room and put my pajamas on. Can you guys go get your PJs on—and then don't show me, but I have to guess what pajamas you have on?” So she really loves that because, like I mentioned, she loves to get me to guess things. But also she's then helping her brother get ready for bed, and he's far more cooperative with her than with me in terms of getting his pajamas on. So it all works really well.Yeah, and then just kind of continuing to be silly and playful is really helping with brushing teeth—it's like, “Who can make the silliest faces in the mirror?” and stuff. So, really kind of moving through all those tasks together so that by the time I'm out of the room and ready to put her to bed, everything's done, and we can just get into playing cards and then snuggling and chatting and—and leaving from there after maybe a five- or ten-minute snuggle. So there's been way fewer meltdowns at the end of the night because we are able to just not get in this place where we're getting into power struggles in the first place. It's just really all about, like, the love and connection at the end of the day.Sarah: The final thing I wanted to check in with you about is—you were asking about the meltdowns. You know, when Jay gets really upset and, you know, how to—um—how to manage those. Have you had any chances to practice what we talked about with that?Joanna: Yeah, she actually had a really, really big, long, extended meltdown yesterday, and, um, I just continue to not really feel like I'm ever supporting her in the way that she needs supporting. Like, I don't—I always end up feeling like I'm not—I'm not helping. I don't know. It's just a really, really hard situation.Sarah: I was just talking to a client yesterday who—who actually wanted to know about supporting her child through meltdowns, and I said, “Well, what would you want someone to do for you?” You know—just kind of be there. Be quiet. You know, offer a—you know, rub the—rub your back—rub her back. I mean, I don't know exactly what your child wants, but I think that's a good place to start if you feel like you're not being successful—like, “Well, what would I want if this was happening to me?”Joanna: And I think that really—that's enough, right? It's enough—Sarah: Oh, totally.Joanna: —to be there. And it always—maybe I'm just feeling like it's not enough because we don't really even get, like, a good resolution, or, like, even—eventually it just kind of subsides, right?Sarah: If you were having a meltdown, that's what would happen. Nobody can come in there and fix it for you.Joanna: Um, exactly.Sarah: Nobody can come in and say the magic words that's gonna make you not feel upset anymore. So it's really just about that—being there for somebody. And we're—it's not that the resolution is “I fixed their problems.”Joanna: Yeah.Sarah: The resolution is “I was there with them for the journey.”Joanna: Yeah. And it goes back to what you were saying, where it's like, “Oh, this work really is just about me.”Sarah: Yeah, totally.Joanna: And learning how to show up.Sarah: And not feeling anxious when your child is upset and you're like, “I don't know what to do,” and just think, “Okay, I just have to be
Points of Interest00:00 – Introduction: Marcel welcomes recurring guest Carson Pierce to the Agency Profit Podcast and introduces a new format—walking through a real, anonymized client assessment to show how Parakeeto diagnoses and solves profitability challenges.02:00 – Every Agency's Problems Are Unique but Familiar: Carson explains that while every agency's situation feels unique, most share a few core underlying problems that manifest differently based on team structure, services, and culture.03:40 – Client Background: The featured firm had around 12 staff, close to $1M in revenue, but was losing roughly $80K per year. Despite solid demand, they couldn't pinpoint the source of their declining profit.05:00 – Early Misdiagnoses and Attempts: The leadership team suspected overhead costs like health insurance and software were to blame and tried tightening internal processes, but those adjustments didn't solve the deeper financial issues.06:30 – Leadership Misalignment: With multiple co-founders holding different perspectives, the agency struggled to align on the root cause of its issues, each assuming the problem lay outside their area of expertise.10:00 – Starting the Assessment: Carson outlines Parakeeto's assessment process—benchmarking against a healthy “agency model,” ingesting financial and time data, and identifying gaps between planned and actual performance.11:50 – Payroll Red Flag: Analysis revealed that 98% of all revenue was going directly to payroll, leaving no margin for overhead or profit—a clear signal of structural imbalance.13:30 – Data Gaps and Adjustments: The team had poor time-tracking compliance and a prepaid revenue entry on the P&L that skewed results. Parakeeto corrected these to reveal a more accurate financial picture.16:30 – Root Causes Identified: The agency was top-heavy with overhead roles, under-utilized due to a bottlenecked design team, and priced below the level their delivery costs required.20:30 – Building the Roadmap: Quick wins included improving time-tracking compliance and reclassifying project management and account management as billable delivery hours. Longer-term actions included hiring a designer, raising prices 10–15%, and training PMs in scope management.25:50 – Strategic Choice: Grow, Don't Cut: Instead of downsizing, the founders chose to grow out of the constraint—adding delivery capacity to balance the team and improve utilization since demand existed.28:40 – Coaching and Next Steps: Carson explains the ongoing coaching plan—educating on data hygiene, improving utilization, then progressing to deeper ABR and project-level analysis—focusing first on leading indicators before tracking lagging outcomes.Show NotesConnect with Carson via LinkedInFree Agency ToolkitParakeeto Foundations CourseFree access to our Model PlatformLove the PodcastLeave us a review here. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
On today's episode, I'm speaking with hormone expert Alisa Vitti about the truth behind hormones, PMS, and the transformative practice of cycle syncing. Alisa shares her personal journey from struggling with hormonal imbalances and cystic acne to creating Flo Living, the first fem-tech platform in the U.S. dedicated to women's hormone health. We dive into the four phases of the menstrual cycle, the role of diet and lifestyle in supporting hormonal balance, and practical strategies for boosting energy, reducing PMS symptoms, and thriving at every stage of life. She also shares tips for fertility, longevity, and feeling your best naturally — without relying solely on supplements or medications. Honest, insightful, and full of actionable advice, this conversation is a must-listen for anyone looking to understand their body and unlock the power of cycle syncing. Enjoy!To connect with Alisa on Instagram, click HERE.To connect with Flo Living on Instagram, click HERE.To learn more about the Flo Living App, click HERE.To read Alisa's biohacking newsletter, click HERE.To connect with Siff on Instagram, click HERE.To connect with Siff on Tiktok, click HERE.To learn more about Arrae, click HERE. To check out Siff's LTK, click HERE.To check out Siff's Amazon StoreFront, click HERE. This episode may contain paid endorsements and advertisements for products and services. Individuals on the show may have a direct, or indirect financial interest in products, or services referred to in this episode.Save 15% off my favorite Red Light Face Mask from BON CHARGE by using code DREAMBIGGER at www.boncharge.com The holidays are closer than ever, so get their gift (or yours) in time! Visit Carawayhome.com/DREAMBIGGER to take advantage of this limited-time offer for up to 20% off your next purchase. Again that's Carawayhome.com/DREAMBIGGER to get new kitchenware before the holidays. Caraway. Non-Toxic cookware made modern.Get healthy, glowing skin for fall with clean, vegan skin and body care from OSEA. Get 10% off your first order sitewide with code DREAMBIGGER as OSEAMalibu.com. You'll get free samples with every order, and free shipping on orders over $50. Get $25 off your first purchase when you go to TheRealReal.com/dreambiggerGo to getcanopy.co to save $25 on your Canopy Humidifier purchase today with Canopy's filter subscription. And look for other Canopy products such as the Canopy Bath and Shower Filter. Produced by Dear MediaSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Dodgers fans celebrated the team's back-to-back World Series victory with mostly respectful festivities. Meanwhile, on the show, Conway and PMS clashed in a lighthearted “Hot Dog War,” with Conway emerging victorious. A massive sinkhole opened in Woodland Hills, making local headlines. The team also took calls from Dodger fans, highlighting the city's energy and pride. Later, the segment spotlighted local food banks like BTAC and encouraged food donations, before closing with comedian John Mulaney's stand-up take on Los Angeles stereotypes.
Why do our moods shift so dramatically across the month? What's really happening in our brains during the luteal phase of our cycle? And could understanding our hormones actually make us feel better? In this episode of Brave & Curious, Dr. Lora Shahine sits down with evolutionary psychologist and author Sarah E. Hill, PhD to talk about the fascinating link between hormones, brain function, and overall health. They explore how deeply our cycles shape our energy, emotions, and resilience—and why this understanding is long overdue. Dr. Hill brings her groundbreaking insights from her books This Is Your Brain on Birth Control and The Period Brain to explain how estrogen and progesterone guide us through distinct physiological "seasons." She and Dr. Shahine discuss PMS, PMDD, and why women have two primary sex hormones when men only have one. With empathy, curiosity, and humor, they trace the science, the evolutionary logic, and the societal biases that have kept women's hormonal health misunderstood for generations. This episode invites you to stop fighting your biology and start partnering with it because understanding your cycle is one of the bravest, smartest things you can do for your health. In this episode you'll hear: [1:56] Why PMS exists [6:13] A simple, clear breakdown of the menstrual cycle [9:48] The roles of estrogen & progesterone [13:05] The Brain–explained [24:23] A little more about progesterone [30:37] The link between progesterone and autoimmune disease [38:21] Is your PMS actually PMDD? [40:50] The five pillars of hormone health: sleep, nutrition, movement, stress management, and social support [44:13] Some surprising research [46:02] Stress and ovulation [51:55] Hormone "balancing" is a myth [57:17] Practical, and hopeful, lifestyle shifts [1:12:19] Conclusion & final thoughts Resources mentioned: sarahehill.com @sarahehillphd on Instagram substack.com/sarahehillphd floatingkitchen.net/roasted-cauliflower-tacos-with-chipotle-cream Dr. Shahine's Weekly Newsletter on Fertility News and Recommendations Follow @drlorashahine Instagram | YouTube | Tiktok | Her Books
Costs are rising. Guests are stressed. Owners are squeezed. And hotels? They're juggling labor inflation, insurance spikes, debt pressure, and renovations delayed since… well, that period we all swore we'd never talk about again. For hashtag#NoVacancyNews I spoke with Mark Carrier, President of B. F. Saul Company Hospitality Group, to reveal what hotel owners really face today — and where smart operators find opportunity when everyone feels the pinch. And yes, we talk about the vibe shift in development, stalled pipelines, conversions, and why intermediation costs + guest data may be the real battleground ahead. Also yes: I slipped in a joke about running hashtag#PMS off a 1980s PC. You're welcome.
Bookings are down. The market's soft. And 2025 is separating the real hosts from the hobbyists.In this Vacation Home Help Podcast episode, John Andrew — founder of Florida's largest Airbnb cleaning and co-hosting network — shares the fundamentals every host needs to stay profitable and stay in business through the slowdown.You'll learn: ✅ Why every host must use a dynamic pricing tool (PriceLabs, Beyond, or Wheelhouse) — and actually learn it ✅ How your comp set determines your results ✅ The chaos from Airbnb's new host-fee shift — and why active monitoring and pivots are essential ✅ When to ditch your PMS if it's costing more than it's helping ✅ Why now is not the time for expensive renovations or upgrades ✅ How to stay lean, build cash reserves, and bootstrap when things get tough ✅ The power of mastering the basics — photos, pricing, and guest experience ✅ And why most gurus, coaches, and STR “mentors” are flat-out misleading youNo fluff. No secret sauce. Just fundamentals and updates that actually matter for operators who want to win long-term.
Hi Wellness Warrior! Have you ever felt at war with your own body — like no matter what you eat, how much you sleep, or how hard you try to “do everything right,” your body just isn't cooperating? Maybe your hormones feel all over the place — the PMS, the fatigue, the anxiety that seems to come out of nowhere. Or maybe you've struggled with your relationship with food or your body? You have an eating disorder that constantly haunts you. If that sounds familiar, friend, today's conversation is going to speak right to your heart....or I should say to your brain. Before motherhood, Laurie Hammer battled an eating disorder, anxiety, and depression, affecting her health, relationships, and overall well-being. Discovering Amino Acid Therapy changed everything, helping her reclaim her life and igniting a passion for health and wellness. With a degree in psychology and certification in nutritional therapy, she created the Calm Mom Method—a proven approach to help moms manage anxiety, restore energy, and live with purpose. She also shares her expertise on the podcast, Take Back My Brain.
No, Product Management Isn't Useless — You're Just Doing It WrongIf you think PMs just write tickets and slow things down, you haven't seen product management done right.I've lost count of how many times I've heard some version of this:“Do we even need product managers anymore?”Usually, it comes after a failed launch, a bloated backlog, or a roadmap that reads like a Frankenstein wishlist stitched together by six departments and zero users.And sure — if that's what you think product management is, I can't blame you for questioning it.
Why it should be called an ovulation cycle instead of a menstrual cycle, the PMS symptoms you've been told are normal but are not, & a hot take about the MAHA movement! Ginny, @thewomenshealthrn chats about all the things she would go back and tell her younger self about health. It's impossible to walk away from this episode without feeling informed, empowered, and educated about your health as a woman. Ginny's Resources linked HERE. Ring our HOTLINE at 312-775-2615 and tell us your What In The Dang Heck moment, Heck Yes, Heck No, or ask for some advice! If you've been blessed by our podcast, we ask you to prayerfully consider supporting us on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/whatinthedangheck @Hallowapp get your 3-month free trial at www.hallow.com/whatinthedangheck @saltandlightbysami Use Code HECK10 for 10% off https://saltandlightbysami.com/ @houseofjoppa Check Out Their Lovely Products at https://www.houseofjoppa.com
Are you constantly tired, moody, or bloated, and wondering how the heck you got here when you're doing all the right things? Let's unpack something most women have never even heard of but definitely feel the effects of: mineral depletion. Specifically, the slow oxidizer pattern that keeps your energy low, your PMS raging, and your emotions stuck on numb.I've seen this same pattern in hundreds of high-achieving women, and today, I'm breaking it down in a way that finally makes sense. Because knowing what's happening in your body is the first step to getting out of it.It's wild once you see how it all connects.Here's a little taste of what we'll chat about:The mineral combo that explains fatigue, PMS, anxiety, and low libidoWhy your emotions might be a bigger piece of the mineral puzzle than your dietThe first small but powerful shifts that can help your body rebuild energy and hormonal balance from the inside outThis isn't another “take these supplements” talk. It's a deep dive into why your body's been in freeze mode, and how you can safely guide it out.Hit play, grab a cozy spot, and a few minutes just for you, because this episode might just make you say, “Ohhh… that's why I've been feeling this way.”NEW Private Podcast - 3 Steps to Making Hormones WellBook a FREE Hormone Strategy Call with meNEED HELP FIXING YOUR HORMONES? CHECK OUT MY RESOURCES:Hormone Imbalance Quiz - Find out which of the top 3 hormone imbalances affects you most!Join Nourish Your Hormones Coaching for the step-by-step and my eyes on YOUR hormones for the next 4 months.LET'S CONNECT!IG: Send us a text with episode feedback or ideas! (We can't respond to texts unless you include contact info but always read them)To get the Restored Mini-Course for free leave a rating & review on the show OR share this podcast in your IG story (tag me @leishadrews) or send it to 3 friends - DM or email me a screenshot and I'll send the course your way!Email: support@abundant-lifewellness.comDon't forget to subscribe, share this episode, and leave a review. Your support helps us reach more women looking for answers.Disclaimer: Nothing in this podcast is to be taken as medical advice, please take informed accountability and speak to your provider before making changes to your health routine.This podcast is for women and moms to learn how to balance hormones naturally in motherhood, to have pain-free periods, increased fertility, to decrease PMS mood swings, and to increase energy without restrictive diet plans. You'll learn how to balance blood sugar, increase progesterone naturally, understand the root cause of estrogen dominance, irregular periods, PCOS, insulin resistance, hormonal acne, post birth-control syndrome, and conceive naturally. We use a pro-metabolic, whole food, root cause approach to functional women's health and focus on truly holistic health and mind-body connection.If you listen to any of the following shows, we're sure you'll like ours too! Pursuit of Wellness with Mari Llewellyn, Culture Apothecary with Alex Clark, Found My Fitness with Rhonda Patrick, Just Ingredients Podcast, Wellness Mama, The Dr Josh Axe Show, Are You Menstrual Podcast, The Model Health Show, Grounded Wellness By Primally Pure, Be Well By Kelly Leveque, The Freely Rooted Podcast with Kori Meloy, Simple Farmhouse Life with Lisa Bass