Podcast appearances and mentions of teresa thomas

Listen to ASCO's Journal of Clinical Oncology essay, “Three Days was Enough” by Dr. Teresa Thomas, Associate Professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing. The essay is followed by an interview with Thomas and host Dr. Lidia Schapira. Having medically adjacent experience, Thomas shares her personal story of helping her family come to terms with hospice care for her father. TRANSCRIPT Narrator: Three Days Was Enough, by Teresa Hagan Thomas, PhD, BA, RN  My dad agreed to receive hospice on a technicality. It happened after weeks of trying to get him home oxygen. My brother drove him to the oncologist's office, and I helped him get into the wheelchair. He did not complain, but just asked me to hold his coffee mug, smiling because I snuck him a fresh donut. Three months before, dad was well-maintained on treatment for a neuroendocrine tumor. It was not until two separate, non–cancer-related hospital admissions kept him off treatment that the cancer saw a chance to hijack his body, take over his organs, and lead to a precipitous decline. As we waited for the oncologist, I told dad not to downplay his shortness of breath. But he wanted to look good enough to get chemotherapy the following week, the only way he saw to resolve his lymphedema and keep the cancer at bay. He failed the oxygen saturation test by one point, and having not qualified for home oxygen, we drove home disappointed without further recommendations or support. The sense of defeat was maddening. We were batting down an escalating onslaught of health issues at home only to be turned away from the professional caregivers when we most needed their advocacy. I was enraged that all the work arranging the appointment led to nothing and disappointed for my dad as he sat consumed in his pain and shortness of breath. His oncology team was supportive when his health was stable but did not have the skills or systems to proactively help us manage the dying process. I channeled my disillusionment with the health care system by calling in favors for a palliative care consult, both aware of my privilege but also stopping at nothing to give relief to my dad. A few days later, my dad and mom were willing to accept hospice care for the singular purpose of getting oxygen. I was sitting next to my dad in his home office, amix of posters from his travels abroad and family wedding photos surrounding us. When he asked for my thoughts about hospice, I carefully laid out what I saw as the benefits—namely, he would immediately qualify for home oxygen and get a level of care beyond what his oncologist could offer. But as I tried to give him all the words I knew from my professional life, I just saw the man who raised me staring back at me hoping for a way out of the painful, weak state he was in. He was not giving up on treatment or controlling the cancer. I was not going to change that. I wanted that, too. Now his eyes were sunken, all the fat gone from his face, and his entire body working to breathe. His belly was large, the tumor taking over, and his legs swollen with lymphedema. I felt the boniness of his shoulders and back. There was no coming back from this. I was in disbelief that he was dying so quickly, selfishly wanting him to stay but also knowing he deserved a pain free death. He agreed to enroll in hospice, with the plan that he would unenroll and try to get more treatment. I wanted to be right there with him, treating this as a temporary detour and not the end. I looked him directly in the eyes, searching to see any recognition that he would never get treatment again and that this was it. Not seeing anything, I tried to open the door to discussing death, reminding him how tenaciously he had fought to keep this cancer controlled and acknowledging the need to focus on his quality of life. I desperately wanted to have an open discussion about dying, but his stoic Irish mentality kept us from having that heart-to-heart. Initially, I was disappointed that my attempt had failed, but now I recognize that achieving a good death did not depend on verbalizing that he was dying. He was living and dying, hoping and accepting, trusting and doing his own thing. Our plan was logical and irrational. I remember thinking people in these situations needed to face reality. Here with my father, being so direct would be counterproductive. He very likely recognized what was likely to unfold, and hospice allowed him the unstated permission to let go. I called his oncologist, and together dad and I asked to enroll in hospice. The oncologist responded, “We are so glad you finally made this decision.” By that night, the hospice nurse was sitting at my parent's kitchen table preparing us. Dad was sitting in the front room, finally relaxing in the plush leather lift chair we impulsively bought for him, with the oxygen machine humming at this side. We grilled the hospice nurse with questions. She kept saying how fast patients with cancer seem to go downhill. She told us without telling us. She gave us breadcrumbs, just enough information to get us through each step of the dying process, giving morphine, getting a hospital bed, giving Ativan, and finally seeing him pass. Three days after enrolling in hospice, he died at home withmany of our family at his side. Just like the hospice nurse said he would, he died on his own terms: after he had said goodbye to all his siblings, after the infant he and my mom were fostering was placed with his adoptive parents, and after all five of his children were at home with him. He died with dignity, mentally capable until the last hours, and surrounded by love. His exact terms. I am not sure what conversations were had between my dad, my mom, and his oncology team in the weeks before he died. I do not know if they openly discussed the need for palliative care or hospice. Dad's providers might have, and my parents willfully or naively missed the clues. I can imagine for the oncology team, discussing hospice meant admitting that the treatment plan had not worked as intended and that they could not meet my dad's needs. I know for my parents, discussing hospice would give air to the idea of death and therefore was not only avoided but actively discounted. As a researcher focused on palliative care, these dynamics were not new to me. I recognize how the stigma surrounding hospice and palliative care prevents earlier provision of quality end-of-life care. That knowledge did not prepare me when it was my dad dying. Awakening to the reality of dad dying was incredibly difficult when every hour we were managing his frenzy of health issues.  Three days is used as an indicator of poor end-of-life care since people are eligible for hospice when they have a 6-month life expectancy.1 My dad did not openly discuss hospice until days before he died, but the number of days did not matter for my dad. What he was now able to do—because of hospice—during those days mattered more. During his last 3 days, dad meticulously rewrote his will, had it notarized by a hospice social worker, visited with his siblings, and made amends for long-past transgressions, enjoyed his favorite foods—fresh Boston cream donuts and black French press coffee—and spent quality one-on-one time with each of his kids and most of his grandkids. Although death was never directly discussed, neither was the idea of unenrolling in hospice. Hospice was what was allowing him to maximize the mental and physical capacity he had left. Those 3 days took my family from being stressed to our limit trying to manage dad's disintegrating health to feeling like we were being led by competent, caring hospice nurses who picked up our phone calls and responded within minutes. Now a year since he passed, I have a newfound appreciation for the complexity of discussing death with families and an even greater desire to advocate for improved end-of-life care for patients with serious illness. Despite his dramatic decline in health, my dad had a good death thanks to his hospice team. Three days was all it took.  Dr. Lidia Schapira: Hello, and welcome to JCO's Cancer Stories: The Art of Oncology, which features essays and personal reflections from authors exploring their experience in the field of oncology. I'm your host, Dr. Lidia Schapira, Professor of Medicine at Stanford University. Today we're joined by Dr. Teresa Thomas, Associate Professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing. In this episode, we will be discussing her Art of Oncology article “Three Days Was Enough.”  Our guest's disclosures will be linked in the transcript.  Teresa, welcome to our podcast and thank you for joining us. Dr. Teresa Thomas: Thank you. It's great to be here. Dr. Lidia Schapira: It's great to have you. So let's talk about your beautiful piece, which is very personal. Thank you so much for writing and sending this and sharing this. In your piece, you say that you waited about a year before you thought about writing. Can you tell us a little bit about why you waited and why perhaps for you it was important to take some time to process the experience and then decide to share it? Dr. Teresa Thomas: Absolutely. Well, I think it would be false to say that I waited a year to write it. I think I was writing it for a year. And like a lot of researchers, I really process things through writing, trying to make sense of the passing of my father, of course, but also what this means for me professionally. It's very ironic that everything that I study in my research, things that we encounter clinically, unfolded right there extremely poignantly with my father. And like anyone, I'm just trying to make sense of it and trying to find lessons learned where we as nurses, healthcare providers, researchers, can push things forward a little bit, which I think is what I was trying to do with the piece because it did raise a lot of questions for me and is making me rethink my research questions and how I conduct myself and what the important areas of our field really are.  Dr. Lidia Schapira: So let's talk a little bit and go deeper into that. First, I wanted to talk a little bit about your vulnerability, personal vulnerability. It's your father we're talking about, and you clearly adored this man who is your father. Can you talk a little bit about the emotional aspect of dealing with the family's acceptance finally, or the family's readiness to call hospice in? Dr. Teresa Thomas: Absolutely. I mean, it's all of the emotions. When I think about it, it was this very awkward place of being one of the few medically adjacent people. I'm not a practicing clinician. I am a researcher who has a nurse training. So it was this ‘I know enough and the family's relying on me and I'm going to the appointments.' And being that in between, between the oncology team, my father, my mother, my siblings, people asking questions. And at the same time, I know this story. So it was personal and distant. I knew what was happening, that he was dying. I didn't want to know that he was dying. And it was just a crazy time too. Every day there were a thousand things going on. I didn't put this in the piece, but I was also extremely pregnant at the time, so had hormones going. My mom was getting sick herself with cancer, ironically, right as my father was dying. It was just absolutely insane. And now we're trying to unpack all of that. But to be that person that people are relying on to understand what's going on, to shepherd them, and also not really wanting to know, it was a hard juxtaposition. I knew what should be happening, right? I knew that we should be having these discussions about palliative care. I knew that he was eligible for hospice, I knew he should be on hospice, but I wasn't ready. And professionally, I wear that hat of a nurse and a researcher very reluctantly. When I'm dealing with my health care, and especially someone else's healthcare, I do not disclose, I do not try to interfere. And for Dad, I had to step up and push and interfere a little bit, which is extremely awkward and not comfortable. Dr. Lidia Schapira: Let's talk a little bit about readiness, because readiness means so many things, but it's such an important theme here, and it's often such an important theme when we look at the literature about end of life communication. Can you talk a little bit about how this experience has informed the way you think about readiness, readiness to accept that it is indeed time for that call to hospice? Dr. Teresa Thomas: Absolutely. So I think as a researcher and as a clinician, you want that discussion, you want the documentation, you want all the ducks in a row. You need to understand, do they get it? Is their head in that space where they're making plans? Can you think about what you want your death to look like? We need it said, we need it laid out so that we can check that box. And obviously, there's a lot more than checking boxes when this is done correctly and in a patient centered way. We didn't have time for that to happen, and yet everything still laid out. Now, I write in the piece, my dad was just very stoic and had a history of not talking about emotions. And I don't think it's all too different than his generation. And maybe men in general or there are patients that are just like that. There were never those deep conversations with the oncology team. There basically wasn't that conversation even with me.  So beyond that, I mean, beyond just saying we had that conversation, what the piece is trying to say, or what I was trying to say was that it was the things that he did that were more important, he literally rewrote his will in his last days. In his few moments of clarity, he was sitting there. He was a wills and estates attorney. So, I mean, he was fully equipped to do this, but this is what he was doing. He knew that he was dying. He never voiced it. He never made a specific plan. But we had a care team in his oncology team, and absolutely in his hospice team, who just shepherded us and allowed him to do everything that he would have done even if he had had six months in hospice. And that's what was more important. He got what he wanted, and he was allowed to do what he wanted. And that's now how I'm thinking about end of life care and where our field in research and in executing that needs to go. Dr. Lidia Schapira: I think that's incredibly profound. I think one of the lines that I enjoyed the most in reading and rereading your essay is when you just describe what actually happened and how he relaxed into the chair. He relaxed when he had oxygen. I mean, it wasn't so much what he said, but what you saw there was even the physical signs of somebody who says, “Well, you know, something else is happening here.” There was a transition that you actually appreciated there and captured. Am I right? And did I read that right?  Dr. Teresa Thomas: Absolutely. That was the turning point. I mean, we are a big family. We never make impulse purchases. But my sister and I, we just drove out. We didn't care about the cost. I think my mom gave us her credit card. She never gives us a credit card. And we just said, “We don't care. This is our dad. We're buying this.” And to see him after this, just extremely precipitous decline where every breath in and out and that searching for air and all of those signs, even to take away a little bit of that, absolutely felt so good. And he wasn't totally pain free, but he had oxygen. I mean, the most basic thing you need. So, yes, that was a very good feeling. Dr. Lidia Schapira: So the labor of breathing can be overwhelming and in a way distressing. Whether we call that painful or not is maybe just a matter of the language that we use.  There's another theme that emerged in your writing, and again, I wanted to hear your reaction to this, and that is failure. You use the term in terms of, in so many different ways, perhaps the failure of the oncology team to develop or deliver or propose a treatment that was really good. They were done. So they- in some ways, there was a sense of failure. It was a bit of a failure of capturing the right moment to make the hospice referral. It wasn't quite what the books say we should be doing. There's a lot of that in the essay. Can you talk a little bit about how you understand failure and how that concept may in some way interfere with our ability to act or appreciate things? Dr. Teresa Thomas: There were no specific failures as more of a secondary caregiver at the end who stepped in to assist my mom. There were likely things going on that were under-recognized, unappreciated, or because nothing was said directly that there could have been soft leeways into. “Let's talk about hospice.” That, I think, my parents did not want to hear, and that door was closed. That's where additional layers of support in how do we talk about this as a family? How do we introduce, well, hospice isn't end of life care necessarily, but there are additional supports that hospice allows that your typical oncology practice can't provide.  I remember one conversation when my mom called me up and she was telling me that she had just met with Dad's team, and she was saying, the oncologist said, this is the last treatment, that after this, there's nothing left. She was going on and on, and I wanted to basically rip the band aid off for her. And I said, “Mom, they're telling you that it's time for hospice.” “No, absolutely not, Teresa. Hospice was not brought up. Don't bring up that word to your father. All they were saying was, this was the last treatment.” Now we can talk about that with my mom and say, “Do you see what they may have been laying the groundwork for?” And she says, “Yes, now I understand. But at that time and place, that soft entry, that door was not being opened by them.” And I don't think that's untypical. I think that we did the best that we could with the situation that Dad had. Dr. Lidia Schapira: So, Teresa, I'm struck by the incredibly generous and wise framing that you use to talk about this. You could have said, “Oh, my goodness. It was only three days,” and instead you chose to say, “Three days were enough.” So I wonder how you did this, how you actually looked at it from that perspective, because so much of what happens to us is defined by the lens through which we see it and the words we use to construct the narrative. So tell me how you got to, “Oh, my God. They weren't ready, and there was so much failure,” to, “Hey, three days was enough.” Dr. Teresa Thomas: The three days were important for me because one year ahead of my dad getting sick, I was writing a paper with one of my mentors, Yael Schenker, and one of the wonderful med students that we work with and we used it as an indicator of poor quality end of life care. Did the patient enroll in hospice within the past three days? And we had these wonderful discussions with Yael and Bob Arnold and Doug White and everyone here at the University of Pittsburgh involved in palliative care about what does that mean? And is this just a random quality indicator with no real world value? And I respect all of their opinions because they do see this clinically, whereas as a researcher, “Oh, this is easy for me to analyze and I have a citation that says this is a quality indicator, so let's use it.” And I thought, “Oh, isn't the world ironic? This is exactly what happened with Dad.” And it was. I mean, maybe part of it is to our Catholic faith, and threes are very important so I think that was a little for my family.  But there was nothing else to do. We opened up, we had conversations, we had heart to hearts. We found when dad was mentally with it, we sat down with him. I gave him his coffee. He always had a doughnut, he was pre-diabetic. Who cares? There was ice cream, there were donuts, there was coffee. All of a sudden we went from, “Don't give Dad any pain meds,” to, “Where's the morphine? Give him some more.” And we timed it so that each one of us kids and his wife and his siblings, we got to say the things that, man, if it was any other illness or any other setting where we weren't there, we would have lived our entire lives regretting not having had that. Would I have wanted him to be around when the son that was protruding from my belly was born a couple months later? Absolutely. Would I have wanted more trips, more meals? Yes, yes, and yes. It wasn't going to happen. And it didn't. That's selfish. I mean, that was a selfish desire.  He lived a wonderful life. He closed out everything in those three days. He said his goodbyes. He was ready to go. And our family is a strong family. We carried my mom through it and we carried each other through it. And for him, he deserved to go without the pain, the loss of control, the loss of being himself. When we moved him into the hospital bed, that was it. We had to help him go to the bathroom within the last 12 hours of life. And I thought, this is not my dad he's going to check out because this is just not how he's going to live his life. Is that worth it? No, that wasn't worth it. And that was him. And that's what the hospice nurse told us. Everyone checks out when they're ready. That's Dad. Dr. Lidia Schapira: I can't resist the urge to ask you this question of how you're taking this life lesson, this really important story which you framed and articulated so beautifully here for us into your work.  Dr. Teresa Thomas: So my work has always been in patient centered care, as nebulous as a concept as that is, and promoting patient self-advocacy. How do patients say what they need? Which is the great irony, right? That my work is corresponding exactly with what I experience and see. And I think that's probably why I love this research question. And now I see that not just the cancer experience, but framing that end of life care. And what does hospice mean? I think we had the best hospice team in the world. I don't see how any other hospice team could deliver as great care. And then, of course, I'm looking into, is all hospice like this? What are the hospice outcomes? And I realize, unsurprisingly, that we absolutely are spoiled, and this is not what most people experience. So I'm lucky that I'm in a place here at the University of Pittsburgh and with researchers that we have a palliative research center. This is easy for me to pivot into this place and to think about how do we create teams of clinicians, policies at a local level, at a state and a federal level that allow people access to really good clinicians at the end of life - clinicians that understand absolutely there's a medical management part just as much there's a human part that's happening here with the patient and with the family.  What was it that our hospice team did? It's the easy things. They gave us one sheet of paper, one phone number, “Call this number. We will pick up. You do not need to give us your medical record number. You don't have to tell us a history.” We called that number any time, and someone answered our questions. So basic, patient centered care, so basic. How do we do that? How do we do that at a systems level? How do we prepare patients to work with their clinicians when that's not there? These sort of high touch, but very difficult to innovate in clunky segregated systems. It's given me direction, and it lets me feel like I'm helping my family in retrospect, too. Dr. Lidia Schapira: In some ways, it keeps you connected to your dad. Dr. Teresa Thomas: Absolutely.  Dr. Lidia Schapira: Yeah. Well, thank you so much. It was a really beautiful, beautiful piece. Art of Oncology is about telling a story. But stories can inspire, stories can lead people to find their own path towards advocacy or research so thank you so much. To wrap this up, do you have a final message for our readers and listeners? Dr. Teresa Thomas: Everyone has their experience with end of life and with palliative care, maybe, but definitely cancer care, and I just hope that it strikes a chord and makes people think about how we can make sure that families and patients receive the best care at end of life. Dr. Lidia Schapira: Well, thank you so much, Theresa, for your story and for what you do. And until next time, thank you for listening to JCO's Cancer Stories: The Art of Oncology. Don't forget to give us a rating or review, and be sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode. You can find all of ASCO shows at asco.org/podcasts.  The purpose of this podcast is to educate and to inform. This is not a substitute for professional medical care and is not intended for use in the diagnosis or treatment of individual conditions.   Guests on this podcast express their own opinions, experience, and conclusions. Guest statements on the podcast do not express the opinions of ASCO. The mention of any product, service, organization, activity, or therapy should not be construed as an ASCO endorsement.     Like, share and subscribe so you never miss an episode and leave a rating or review.    Guest Bio: Dr. Teresa Thomas is an Associate Professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing.  

Trying to figure out the best way to approach networking? Networking has evolved, and experimenting with various networking methods could be the key ingredient to discovering what aligns best with your objectives.In this episode of the Power, Purpose, and Prosperity Podcast, Sabine speaks with Teresa Thomas about exploring different networking strategies with intentionality online and offline. Teresa is an award-winning connector, presenter, and author of Win/Win Networking and 50 Fun Things. In her 25 years as a professional connector, she has facilitated hundreds of networking events, presented for countless groups, and helped thousands to connect and grow. Listen in to learn how to use LinkedIn to intentionally and strategically network and build mutually beneficial connections rooted in a community. You will also learn about the positive power of having a role in networking events and being a connector for other people. Key Takeaways:How to be intentional with your networking efforts and not be bold in trying different networking strategies.How to use LinkedIn to make genuine and mutually beneficial connections that are valuable and engaging. The power of having super-connectors to get you access to people you're trying to meet. What You Will Learn in This Episode:[02:50] Teresa's background from being shy to developing a passion for creating connections. [08:34] How she started and grew a LinkedIn group into a community that connects professional women around the world. [14:25] Tips on how to intentionally and strategically network to build mutually beneficial connections. [18:53] The positive power of having a role in networking events, plus why you should start a networking group. [26:23] Understanding how buddy networking can help you get intentional with networking.[31:09] Different ways to leverage LinkedIn to connect with possible beneficial connections. [37:19] The benefits of posting your own content on LinkedIn to stay connected to your community. *******************Connect with Teresa:Website: https://www.teresa-thomas.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/superconnector *******************BOOK RECOMMENDATIONSThe Power Of People by Verna Cornelia PriceLEADHERSHIP RELOADED- It's time to rewrite the story of leadership, and the journey starts with each turn of these transformative pages. ***************** HOST INFO:Sabine Gedeon is a transformative figure in leadership and personal development and serves as the CEO of Gedeon Enterprises. With nearly two decades of experience, she guides clients in startups and Fortune 500 companies. Sabine's unique approach combines human-centered principles with tech-enabled solutions, delivering customized programs for leaders at all levels to tackle crucial leadership and talent development challenges. *****************ADDITIONAL SUPPORT:Download Free Resources - https://sabinegedeon/giftsGet Coaching Support: https://meetwithsabine.as.me/Discovery

Have you ever felt like a wallflower at a networking event, awkwardly clutching your business card and wondering how to make the first move? My guest in this episode understands.  Teresa Thomas is a connector by nature, but she hasn't always been one. Teresa shares her transformation from shy introvert to the networking guru she is today. In our conversation, Teresa divulges her top strategies for intentional networking that have reshaped not just her career but her entire approach to building relationships. She peels back the layers to reveal how authenticity and alignment with your goals can lead to profound personal and professional growth.We'll talk about...How to find your networking sweet spot, whether you're an introvert, extrovert, or somewhere in between.  How to move beyond the surface-level encounters of networking and discuss the impact of repeated, meaningful interactions. The art of follow-up  and how it's often the make-or-break of forging lasting connections.The concept of 'buddy networking,' a game-changer for those looking to amplify their presence at any event.We'll also chat a bit about Teresa's latest venture, called "50 Fun Things", and how a germ of an idea has  turned into a movement.If you're ready to revolutionize your networking and infuse more fun into your life, this episode is your invitation to start!Send us a Text Message.Support the Show. Show Notes Apply to be featured on My Weekly Marketing!

Turning 40 and Finding Connection Through 50 Fun Things™Teresa Thomas got divorced at 45 and had a midlife crisis as she neared 50. She felt burned out and had a bad attitude about her upcoming birthday. Despite that, she planned a birthday party for herself around things she thought would be fun. She developed worksheets for her friends and family to fill out. One of which was 50 things she wanted to do in the coming year and left room for people to say which ones they wanted to join her for. All of a sudden, she felt connected and supported and the anxiety and depression she had been feeling lifted and she had things to look forward to all year long.Guest BioAs an award-winning connector, presenter, networking expert and author, Teresa Thomas ignites intentional, connected and joy-filled living through her umbrella brand Win/Win Connects. Teresa developed the 50 Fun Things® tools and experiences as a way for groups and individuals to look at how they can add fun and fulfillment as integral pieces in their lives, leveraging joy on a personal and professional level. Teresa is the author of Win/Win Networking: Your Guidebook for Confident and Effective Connections and 50 Fun Things: Enjoy the Small Things (and more recently 50 Fun Things for a Writer's World). She has led, facilitated, and presented for hundreds of events and groups for over 20 years guiding thousands to connect and grow.Teresa was awarded the title of Women's Business Champion in 2019 by the SBA (Small Business Administration of Minnesota) for her commitment to helping others succeed through networking. She was named Dynamic Connector and recognized by AARP of Minnesota and Pollen as one of Minnesota's 2019 50 Over 50 Exceptional Leaders.Turning 40 and Finding Connection Through 50 Fun Things™Teresa Thomas was a model people pleaser, doing things for everyone else saying yes to things she didn't want to say yes to but didn't feel like she could say no to, putting other people first and finding ways to make other people happy and get along. She says that her fear of disappointing people was bigger than her fear of dying or public speaking. She now realizes that it's a bit of a self-absorbed point of view because we have no control over what other people think of us. Now she knows it's better to live as her best self and have the right people appreciate and show up for her versus trying to be something that she thinks they think they want her to be. As the mom to small kids, there is some element of putting others in front of yourself, but Teresa realized that something was out of whack. Like the day she showed up to her first neighborhood association meeting and was drafted to be treasurer, despite her protestations that she was no good with numbers. But she didn't want to disappoint these people (who she didn't even know!) so she took on the role - and she hated it and had to force herself to do it. Even friends and work colleagues would give her feedback on her people pleasing tendencies. At the same time as she was giving presentations on win-win networking, she was not allowing others to help her. One person was very pointed with Teresa and told her that the relationship didn't feel reciprocal and, if she valued authenticity and meaningful connections then receiving is part of relationship building as much as helping others is. That was a lesson that took her a long time to fully absorb. On the home front, Teresa thought things were going ok, but she was going to marriage counseling by herself, and doing the counseling homework by herself, and realizing that things at home weren't feeling particularly reciprocal. Teresa got divorced at 45 and then had a midlife crisis as she prepared to turn 50. She felt burned out and had a bad attitude about her upcoming birthday. She was reacting badly to people saying that, at 50,...

This week, FEDtalk is discussing Neurodiversity and National Security. It is no secret that our nation needs to harness a wide variety of skills, talents, and abilities to meet growing national security concerns. On this episode, agencies will learn how they can harness the potential of unique cognitive talents to improve their workforce and mission delivery.FEDtalk host Natalia Castro sits down with Suzanne Wilson Heckenberg, President of the Intelligence and National Security Alliance, and the Intelligence and National Security Foundation; Teresa Thomas, Neurodiverse Talent Enablement and Cyber Engagement Program Lead at MITRE Corporation; and Cortney Weinbaum, Senior Management Scientist at RAND Corporation.The show is based around the 2023 RAND Corporation report “Why National Security Needs Neurodiversity:Drawing on a Wider Range of Cognitive Talents to Tackle National Security Challenges.” Read the full report here: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA1875-1.htmlCheck out a shorter research brief here: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/RBA1875-1.html FEDtalk is brought to you by Shaw Bransford & Roth P.C., a federal employment law firm. Bringing you the insider's perspective from leaders in the federal community since 1993. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week, FEDtalk is discussing Neurodiversity and National Security. It is no secret that our nation needs to harness a wide variety of skills, talents, and abilities to meet growing national security concerns. On this episode, agencies will learn how they can harness the potential of unique cognitive talents to improve their workforce and mission delivery. FEDtalk host Natalia Castro sits down with Suzanne Wilson Heckenberg, President of the Intelligence and National Security Alliance, and the Intelligence and National Security Foundation; Teresa Thomas, Neurodiverse Talent Enablement and Cyber Engagement Program Lead at MITRE Corporation; and Cortney Weinbaum, Senior Management Scientist at RAND Corporation. The show is based around the 2023 RAND Corporation report “Why National Security Needs Neurodiversity: Drawing on a Wider Range of Cognitive Talents to Tackle National Security Challenges.” Read the full report here: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA1875-1.html Check out a shorter research brief here: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/RBA1875-1.html  FEDtalk is brought to you by Shaw Bransford & Roth P.C., a federal employment law firm. Bringing you the insider's perspective from leaders in the federal community since 1993.

Teresa Thomas, founder of the Resilient Love Academy is a therapist and dating coach.  Teresa's practice focuses primarily on women through group work and coaching to help women build resiliency to form healthy dating habits that transition into healthy relationships.  You can find Teresa, sign up for women's groups or request therapy at https://www.resilientlovetherapy.com/

Teresa Thomas, founder of the Resilient Love Academy is a therapist and dating coach.  Teresa's practice focuses primarily on women through group work and coaching to help women build resiliency to form healthy dating habits that transition into healthy relationships.  You can find Teresa, sign up for women's groups or request therapy at https://www.resilientlovetherapy.com/

“Effective communication with healthcare providers, making informed decisions about their care, and gaining strength through connections to others” are the key aspects of patient self-advocacy, ONS member Teresa Thomas, PhD, RN, assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing in Pennsylvania, told Jaime Weimer, MSN, RN, AGCNS-BC, AOCNS®, oncology clinical specialist at ONS, in a conversation about how patients can self-advocate and how nurses can support them. You can earn free NCPD contact hours after listening to this episode and completing the evaluation linked below. Music Credit: “Fireflies and Stardust” by Kevin MacLeod Licensed under Creative Commons by Attribution 3.0 Earn 1.25 contact hours of nursing continuing professional development (NCPD) by listening to the full recording and completing an evaluation at myoutcomes.ons.org by November 25, 2024. The planners and faculty for this episode have no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose. ONS is accredited as a provider of NCPD by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation. Upon completion of this activity, participants will report an increase in knowledge related to patient self-advocacy. Episode Notes Complete this evaluation for free NCPD. Oncology Nursing Podcast episodes: Episode 183: How Oncology Nurses Find and Use Credible Patient Education Resources Episode 197: Patient Learning Needs and Educational Assessments Thomas's research articles: “I Was Never One of Those People Who Just Jumped Right In for Me”: Patient Perspectives on Self-Advocacy Training for Women With Advanced Cancer “I Pretty Much Followed the Law, and There Weren't Any Decisions to Make”: A Qualitative Study of Self-Advocacy Experiences of Men With Cancer A Conceptual Framework of Self-Advocacy in Women With Cancer Symptom Burden and Self-Advocacy: Exploring the Relationship Among Female Cancer Survivors Teaching Patients With Advanced Cancer to Self-Advocate: Development and Acceptability of the Strong Together™ Serious Game Perspectives on Self-Advocacy: Comparing Perceived Uses, Benefits, and Drawbacks Among Survivors and Providers Patient Education vs. Patient Experiences of Self-Advocacy: Changing the Discourse to Support Cancer Survivors Thomas's clinical trial: Efficacy of a Self-Advocacy Serious Game Intervention Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing article: Oncology Nurses' Role in Promoting Patient Self-Advocacy Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing University of Wisconsin–Madison Center for Patient Partnerships American Society of Clinical Oncology National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship To discuss the information in this episode with other oncology nurses, visit the ONS Communities. To provide feedback or otherwise reach ONS about the podcast, email pubONSVoice@ons.org. Highlights From Today's Episode “Effective communication with healthcare providers, making informed decisions about their care, and gaining strength through connections to others. That's really how we define the key aspects of what patients do to advocate for themselves.” Timestamp (TS) 04:39 “At the end of the day, if a patient doesn't feel like the care really is attuned to what is going on in their life and they don't feel like they're understood or appreciated, or their self-worth isn't identified by their care team, then are we really patient-centered?” TS 06:32 “Really, patient self-advocacy is about making sure that your clinical care team knows what's most important to you, even if the clinician doesn't ask you, ‘What is it like at home?' or ‘Tell me about your family,' or ‘Tell me about what you're looking forward to getting back to after treatment.' Put that into the conversation where they understand exactly what your quality of life means to you and they understand what your main goals of treatment are.” TS 12:33 “When patients don't have that voice to speak up, ask questions, and push a little bit if they don't understand what's happening, their care, adherence, health, and quality of life suffer because they don't know enough to be engaged enough to ask for help.” TS 19:53 “We're interested in patients' quality of life, and we see that their emotional, social, physical, religious, and spiritual quality of life just goes down because they're not themselves and they don't quite know how to get back to themselves. And that's the saddest part to see—them going through the physical rigor of going through cancer treatment is one thing, but feeling like you're not yourself—we've had several people call it self-worth, the idea that I'm worth fighting for and I'm worth standing up to my providers and insisting that my pain finally gets a treatment that works.” TS 21:27 “Patient self-advocacy really centers around communication, and the informed decision making comes part and parcel with that because that's the getting the information and gathering the resources to help communicate those ideas to your providers or whomever. And the connected strength also is about communication, too, since frequently family dynamics also require really good communication skills. So, if there was one thing that we would really want to train our patients in in terms of self-advocacy, it's that effective communication aspect.” TS 31:42 “We know that cancer puts people at a disadvantage and makes them feel different from who they are. And what we're trying to do is get them to feel like who they are is the same person they were, maybe slightly different from, who they were before cancer and that their cancer team and their loved ones know and support them for who they are.” TS 57:47

Could you use a little more fun? What started as a personal quest became a catalyst for others to envision and achieve fulfilling lives, both personally and professionally. Meet my guest Teresa Thomas, Award-winning connector, presenter and author!   Like many of us, Teresa found herself facing a life after divorce that wasn't shaping up the way she hoped. Then, she created a list that brought so much joy to her Second Act.  You will not want to miss today's summer replay of Sadie's Divorced and Happy – 50 Fun Things to do After a Divorce. Visit the 50 Fun Things website at: www.50funthings.com Have you heard about my Spicy Summer Challenge? Follow me on IG and FB to partake in the fun this summer: sadies@divorcedandhappy If you found value in today's episode please consider "buying" me a cup of coffee a https://www.buymeacoffee.com/sadiemarie (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/sadiemarie) Download my "8 Tips to Happiness" today: https://www.divorcedandhappy.net Become a member of The Red Room Experience at https://www.divorcedandhappy.net/the-red-room #50funthings #funafterdivorce #funlife #funevents #divorcedandhappy  #datingcoach #divorcecoach #datingafterdivorce #datingappsavvy #realdivorcetalk #SadieMarie2022 #relationshipsafterdivorce #lifeafterdivorce #wednesdayepisodes #Sadiesdivorcedandhappy #DivorcedandHappypodcast #Mentalkdivorce #Womentalkdivorce #burningquestions #divorcepodcast #datingtips #datingafterdivorce #divorcedmom #divorceddad #loveafterdivorce #divorcedlife #divorcecommunity #coparenting #recoveringgoodgirl #midlifedating #tipstohappiness #theredroom

Pastors Mike and Teresa Thomas share what they feel God's plan and purpose for The Ark is right now, using several scriptural examples and references.

Teresa Thomas briefly reflects on what Pastor Chuck Waldrup had said about going into a new place with God a few weeks ago. She reads 3 examples from scripture of where a building was used to honor God, subsequently bringing blessing to the builders. Pastor Mike Thomas continues by restating some of the prophetic words that have been spoken over The Ark over the past few years, showing what the future direction will be for The Ark and our boundaries.

This week on True Crime Daily The Podcast: A Florida woman is accused of keeping a special-needs girl trapped in a metal cage in the bedroom of her filthy household after the girl escaped to a neighbor's yard. Plus, a Milwaukee man is sentenced to 205 years in prison for killing five family members in 2020. Criminal defense attorney Mike Cavalluzzi joins host Ana Garcia. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, Erika has conversation with the co-owner of Crazy Plant Bae, Teresa Thomas. Teresa and her family are sowing seeds all across the U.S. making plant parents out of many. She shares how her love for plants is rooted in her upbringing, tips for soon to be and current plant parents, and how she nourishes herself as though she is a house plant through her self care practices. May this episode encourage you to bloom wherever you are despite the season, Daaahlings! #TrustTheProcess Be sure to follow this episodes featured guest to learn and support ALL the great things she has done and is doing: Crazy Plant Bae Shop: 800 N Claiborne Street New Orleans, LA 70116 https://www.crazyplantbae.com Instagram: @CrazyPlantBae RESOURCES New Orleans Compost Resources: Composting Network: https://www.compostingnetwork.com Schmelley’s: https://www.schmellys.com Plant Care App: https://greg.app

What started as a personal quest became a catalyst for others to envision and achieve fulfilling lives, both personally and professionally. Meet my guest Teresa Thomas, Award-winning connector, presenter and author! Like many of us, Teresa found herself facing a life after divorce that wasn’t shaping up the way she hoped. Then, she created a list that brought so much joy to her Second Act. You will not want to miss today’s episode of Sadie’s Divorced and Happy – 50 Fun Things to do After a Divorce. For more fun episodes on life after divorce visit: www.divorcedandhappy.net

Teresa Thomas speaks from her experiences, comparing motherly love as the closest thing she feels we can come to God's perfect love on earth, and also as an invitation to love God in return with the same intensity of love. She also reminds us of the need to die to ourselves daily while taking up our crosses to follow God.

Are you ready to find your power? Leanna and Jared welcome Teresa Thomas, a licensed family and marriage counselor, life coach and owner of Resilient Love Therapy. Teresa brings her expertise in how to build resilience and empowerment not only within one's self, but also within relationships. She talks about how resilience comes up in times when you're faced with challenges and the three go into a conversation about how to even find resilience when your cup is already full. Teresa then talks about how empowerment gives you the ability to make the choices you need in order to create the life you want, and how those choices are a huge part of dating and relationships. Jared brings up privilege as Teresa shares openly about her own experiences as a black woman within her relationships and her career, and discusses the struggles that people of color go through in the dating scene, within their own relationships and the toxicity of emotional labor. Jared then, as always, wraps the whole conversation up into a very nice, pulled-together bow. Make sure to follow Teresa on instagram @resilientlovetherapy and check out her website www.resilientlovetherapy.com. Follow us @helloandgoodbyepodcast, @_leannajoan and @therealjaredrodrigues and check out our website www.helloandgoodbyepodcast.com for links to our sponsors, social media and more! Enjoy! Xo   Thank you to our sponsor Tushy! To receive 10% off your tushy, visit hellotushy.com/helloandgoodbye.   Podcast and music produced by:  dustinlaumusic@gmail.com

Have you ever struggled with reconciling the equality you want in a relationship and the empowerment you have in your life with dating online?  .... Okay - that sentence might have just blown your mind a little bit.  But in this episode I'm joined by life & relationship coach Teresa Thomas, M.S, who's here to tell us that the way we identify ourselves and the things we want don't have to be mutually exclusive.  As a person who identifies as a Black feminist, she understands that society can often make you choose between your identities and your desires, but dating can be inclusionary and can uphold your individuality... if you make space for it and know how to look for what you want. This episode is chock full of such beautiful inspirational wisdom and it's our honor to have Theresa as our guest for Black History Month... yeah that's right, we chose to celebrate Black History Month over Valentine's Day on #single and we couldn't be happier about it.  Put on your big girl panties, it's time to get your feminism on! Learn more about Teresa here. Work with Teresa here.

Pastor Mike Thomas briefly reviews what was discussed during the previous Wednesday night prayer meeting about how God reminds us that we are in the world but not of the world, challenging us to consider whether our source of life, security, confidence, peace, and joy is truly in God or in something of our own doing. He then explores deeper meaning in Hebrews 3:1 of the original meanings of the wording. Teresa Thomas adds her thoughts near the end. The buzz in the sound system is also more pronounced in this recording.

Pastor Mike Thomas reviews some points he spoke on the previous Sunday, particularly about our own personal responsibilities in preparation to meet and fall deeper in love with our Redeemer. Teresa Thomas picks up with what the Lord had been speaking to her about being broken and how it is not a bad thing in a spiritual sense, as well as submitting to the leading and correction of the Holy Spirit. Mike closes out by asking us to check and see where our focus is, whether on God or on any other lovers.

Teresa Thomas connects people, possibilities and purpose as an award-winning professional speaker, networking expert, facilitator, and author of Win/Win Networking and 50 Fun Things® – Enjoy the Small Things. This week, Teresa and I have a wide-ranging conversation talking about her latest book, 50 Fun Things. We cover topics like giving, gratitude, self-love, being silly and playful to reduce stress & the danger of trying to please everyone. Teresa is a master connector and her book, Win/Win Networking helped my entire sales team at my catering company get better at networking to increase their sales. She brilliantly tied what she does to the #LITA Movement by saying, “We are all Connected, when everything else is stripped away, it's how we treat each other that matters.” If you, like most of us, find yourself taking things too seriously and are filled with anxious feelings, our conversation and the highlights of her book can help you stop that cycle and connect to what truly matters…creating a life of joy! She is the recipient of the 2019 Women in Business Champion through the Small Business Association (SBA) of Minnesota. Teresa is also named as one of the 2019 50 Over 50 leaders by AARP and Pollen. Connect with Teresa on LinkedIn and her Website, 50FunThings.com Books and Other Resources Mentioned During the Show The Joy of Not Thinking: A Radical Approach to Happiness by Tim Grimes Win/Win Networking: Your Guidebook for Confident and Effective Connections by Teresa Thomas 50 Fun Things: Enjoy the Small Things by Teresa Thomas Positive Intelligence: Why Only 20% of Teams and Individuals Achieve Their True Potential by Shirzad Chamine Thank you for supporting the #LITA Podcast! Please connect with us & keep the conversation going! Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/LITA-For-Life-Podcast-102286824871826 Support & Comments: https://anchor.fm/litaforlife #LITA Official Website: https://www.litaforlife.com Jeff’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/JeffConner1 *As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/litaforlife/support

Teresa Thomas explores the question she had researched about why God would have chosen Abraham to be the father of the faith, along with Isaac and Jacob, when they had less than perfect backgrounds and pasts. Pastor Mike Thomas concludes with a few thoughts.

How to Deal With Cultural Differences in a Relationship As a marriage counselor and couples therapist l know that all relationships bring a variety of challenges and opportunities for growth. At the same time, some couples  — particularly those in cross-cultural relationships — feel that they have further to go in bridging the gap. It’s very easy for couples to get entrenched in conflict rooted in a core belief of “right and wrong” when it comes to how to approach various aspects of their shared life. This can be especially true around hot-button issues such as: “How much influence should my mother-in-law have in our family?” “How do we handle money as a couple?” “How do we parent our children together?” “How do we communicate with each other when we’re stressed?” “Who is in charge of what, around our home?” “How do we handle racial prejudice directed at one of us, or our children?” To tackle these questions, and provide some direction for how to begin building bridges to the center, I’ve asked some multicultural relationship experts to join me for this episode of the Love, Happiness and Success Podcast. Growing Self relationship coaches Dr. Georgiana Spradling, MFT, Tania Chikhani, M.A, and Teresa Thomas, M.A. often work with cross-cultural couples and interracial couples, and have great relationship advice for how to create peace and harmony in your gloriously diverse family. All the best, Dr. Lisa Marie Bobby GrowingSelf.com

We are living in historic times. In the midst of a global pandemic, our country is also fighting another battle: One that seeks to shine a light on injustice and systemic racism, end abuse and discrimination of Black Americans and other people of color, and begin the hard work of healing. This reality brings up questions that need to be answered: How can a person of color cope with feelings of anger and pain due to being directly impacted by (or bearing witness to) racial injustice in our society? What are some strategies that Black Americans can use to stay empowered in their relationships, and to make informed, affirming decisions that honor their needs and rights? Where do you turn for safety, support and understanding in a divided and uncertain world? How can people of color honor the reality of the past and present, and also remain hopeful about the future? Growing Self therapists Teresa Thomas, M.S., and Zachary Gaiter, M.S., LPCC tackle these questions and more, on this episode of the Love, Happiness and Success Podcast. Join us! Dr. Lisa Marie Bobby www.GrowingSelf.com      

Neste episódio temos uma convidada muito especial, Teresa Thomas, para falar connosco sobre o problema do racismo nos Estados Unidos.

Pastors Mike and Teresa Thomas share announcements and encouragement from their home as the restrictions and quarantines due to the coronavirus become more strict.

Teresa Thomas and NC State Senator Ralph Hise pray against the coronavirus and for the emboldening of the church. Pastor Mike Thomas then addresses the fear and panic we have been seeing due to the coronavirus, especially since this was recorded the day after North Carolina's governor suggested placing restrictions on public gatherings of over 100 people. He compares the current feelings of fear and uncertainty to those we had after the attacks on 9/11 and the church's indifferent and lackluster response to those who sought hope and answers from the church in the aftermath of 9/11 but couldn't find them. He also describes the fear of leprosy during Jesus's days, comparing sin with leprosy, using scripture to remind us that we as Christians are priests with the God-given authority to heal the sick, as the high priests did in Leviticus chapter 13.

Pastors Mike and Teresa Thomas delve into the concept of redemption from sin in the Bible by doing Greek word studies, comparing it with the slave trade and the Underground Railroad. The book Teresa references is "Dressed to Kill: A Biblical Approach to Spiritual Warfare and Armor" by Rick Renner (ISBN-13 number 9781606837511). They also speak about the fall of Satan and of spiritual warfare. A few members of the congregation also give their input near the end.

Pastor Mike Thomas begins with a recap of last week's message of how we are all called to be ministers of the gospel. He reminds us that God is the builder of the church, not us, as we are the material with which He chose to build. Teresa Thomas elaborates on the aspect of love, particularly how we can have a love like God's and the ministry of reconciliation. Mike picks back up with material requirements given by God for the building of His church. He closes by addressing a common misconception about Psalm 105:15 and its application to the Body of Christ.

Mike and Teresa Thomas both share part of what they had gleaned from attending the Because of the Times 2020 conference in Alexandria, Louisiana a few days prior.

https://www.50funthings.com/ Sign up for the local event: bit.ly/50funfitnessthings 50 Fun Things® Alumna, Camille, gained so much fun and inspiration participating in previous 50 Fun Things® workshops that she wanted to put her own spin on it and host a 50 Fun Health & Fitness Things event herself. Her goal is to help you think about health and fitness in a new way by incorporating lots of fun ways to stay active and eat healthy. The inspiration to create her Air Fryer Cookbook actually came from attending a 50 Fun Things® Workshop! Camille changed careers so that she can help people live a healthier life and wants to share her energy and passion with you all! In this workshop, Camille will guide you through a customized 50 Fun Things® idea generation process so that you each can leave with ideas flowing and a new sense of direction and inspiration in 2020 for living a healthy and active lifestyle. You will also receive the 50 Fun Things® workbook and chart for your ideas so you can reflect on your ideas and even take this concept and apply it to other areas of your life! Don’t worry if you aren’t creative, Camille will give lots of examples and tips along the way. This event is perfect for anyone who wants to have fun making their health and fitness a priority this coming year. The ideas generated will make integrating health and fitness into your life less painful and more joyful. What: 50 Fun Health & Fitness Things When: Sunday, January 26th at 3-5pm Where: Snap Fitness Anoka 2830 Cutters Grove Ave, Anoka, MN 55303 How Much: $30 You will receive the chart and workbook on the day of the workshop. *This is a unique opportunity to participate in a specially designed workshop authorized by the founder of 50 Fun Things®! Sign Up Link: http://bit.ly/50funfitnessthings

Pastors Mike and Teresa Thomas take turns speaking. Mike prefaces by reading scripture about Jesus and willingness to drink the cup that was given to Him by the Father as well as how God works all things together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose. Teresa continues by relating to the cup she was given of dealing with the guilt over her elderly mother's care and her reluctance of accepting her situation. A couple members of the congregation add to what had just been said before Mike explains in more details the significance and meaning of the cup.

Networking expert Teresa Thomas has over 20 years of experience as a professional connector and in this episode, Teresa shares her story and how we can be smarter in how we network today! Teresa is the director of MN Women in Networking and the visionary behind the Win/Win Connects networking model. In addition to everything Teresa does in the networking space, she also founded 50 Fun Things! I'm so excited for you to hear from Teresa and at the end, we even reveal a collaboration that Way Beyond Ordinary is doing with 50 Fun Things! Check out the show notes for the links and resources mentioned in this episode. Thanks for listening! I hope to see you at Rock What You Got, and if not, let me know what ways you are networking this year. Talk to you soon! SHOW NOTES: www.WayBeyondOrdinary.com/episode32

Pastors Mike and Teresa Thomas recap what they had spoken about together two Sundays prior about meditating on God's word, as well as what Mike had taught about refuge the previous Sunday. They continue by reminding us of the power in the tongue and how we can speak God's will over our circumstances or we can speak the lies of the enemy. A few members of the congregation give their input near the end.

Teresa Thomas recounts the life, legacy, and previous day's memorial service of The Ark's own Vicky Byrd. With input from Pastor Mike, she talks about the battle for our minds and the necessity of meditating on the word of God. The service closes with a few ladies giving their own scriptural input to expand upon what had already been spoken.

Pastor Mike Thomas begins by explaining the purpose and direction of The Ark while encouraging and challenging the congregation. Pastor Andre Persun honors Steve and Brenda Smith as well as Mike and Teresa Thomas, then he makes a public confession about using his spiritual gifts without God's presence. He continues by flowing in the prophetic and then speaking about what has been happening in his life and Ground Zero Church since the last time he spoke at The Ark a year ago. He speaks about the Abba revelation, the bridal identification, the family, and breaking out of systemic religion. He concludes with an in-depth word study of John 1:1-13.

Teresa Thomas joins Steph and KB to discuss her new book, Breakthrough, and her harrowing experience as a victim of domestic violence.

What if alongside listing all the to-dos you have to achieve at work or home, you also listed the fun things you want to do this year? Game-changer, right? You can get the same dopamine hit in the brain for checking things off your list, but you get the added benefit of doing something that lights you up. Tune in to hear my conversation with Teresa Thomas, the creator of 50 Fun Things for some laughs, some ideas, and some actions you can take to make having fun a priority. Know someone who could benefit from more fun? Share this with them! And if you're enjoying this podcast, please leave a review. Thank you so much!

Imagine turning 50 and coming up with something all your own to add a little more fun and adventure to your life. And then you go and share it with friends and they start asking you to share it with others, it gains so much momentum that you end up on the local news and then in Italy! In this episode, Teresa shares how she turned her fun and adventure checklist into a business. Learn how Teresa Thomas launched 50 Fun Things and how it's inspiring people all over the world. You're invited to join in on the fun! https://www.50funthings.com

Pastor Mike and Teresa Thomas share what God has been speaking to them over the past few weeks pertaining to The Ark. He briefly recaps his message from the 8th ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1jR4A7VDcg ) and mentions how each church is part of the body of Christ and how not all churches will do the same things or have the same functions, and how a single church can't do everything for everybody. He recalls what God has spoken to him about the purpose of The Ark, which is to have a deeper relationship with God and not doing what all the other churches are doing. Teresa then relates the parable of the minas, the two types of servants, and how we should occupy or do business until Jesus returns.

Teresa shares her URM story.

Everyone has the right to growth, and to feel safe, comfortable, welcome, and understood in what should be the most healing environment of all: Therapy, life coaching or marriage counseling. However, for African Americans, people of color, and other minority groups in the U.S., that has not always been the case. Particularly for black people, getting involved in meaningful growth work can be fraught with obstacles. The time to change that is now. On this episode of the Love, Happiness and Success Podcast I've invited my colleagues Anastacia Sams, Teresa Thomas, and Zachary Gaiter to talk about their perspective as black therapists and black marriage counselors. We're discussing: The historical influences that have created feelings of stigma or unease for black people to get involved in therapy. How the idea of using personal growth for self improvement has not been part of black culture... And why that needs to change. How the legacy of racism has led to a culture of concealment about vulnerable topics among African Americans, and how this impacts both individuals and couples. "Black Love," the "Superwoman Syndrome," and the impact of prejudice on self-esteem, intimacy, personal responsibility, and empowerment. How affirming and healing it can be for black people to connect with a supportive black therapist, black life coach, or black marriage counselor who really understands them, where they come from, and how to help them grow. We hope you join us today on this episode of the Love, Happiness and Success Podcast. Zachary Gaiter, M.A., LPCC, Teresa Thomas, M.A., Anastacia Sams, M.A., LMFTC and Dr. Lisa Marie Bobby, LMFT www.growingself.com

Teresa Thomas the WIN Director and the Author of Win-Win Networking is in studio to share the key strategies you need to network effectively. You can grab her book on Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/Win-Networking-Guidebook-Confident-Connections/dp/1634890086/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1514927619&sr=8-1&keywords=win-win+networking