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David Nassief went from being fired at 63 and nearly broke to becoming a millionaire by 69 using a one-page wealth plan and two simple index funds. You’ll see how to stop wasting decades “walking in financial circles,” avoid hidden fees that quietly cost you millions, and finally understand where your money should go—step by step, without jargon.

Watch this if:
👉 You feel behind with money or retirement
👉 You make decent income but don’t see real wealth
👉 You’re confused by investing and don’t trust complex products
👉 You want a simple, repeatable system you can follow at any age

You’ll walk away with:
✅ Clear idea of where to start (debt, savings, investing)
✅ Simple way to invest using low-cost index funds
✅ How to spot and avoid toxic fees and conflicted advice
✅ Practical way to pre-plan big expenses so money feels calm, not chaotic

Connect with the Guest – David Nassief
Website: https://www.onepagewealthcompass.com
Book: One-Page Wealth Compass: Fired at 63, Nearly Broke—Safely a Millionaire by 69 👉 https://a.co/d/0aXp00lo
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dnassief/

Connect with Alison:

• Instagram: @alisonanswers | @lagercounseling
• Website: LagerCounseling.com
• YouTube: Alison Answers
• Facebook: Alison Lager Lcsw Casac
• Purchase Alison’s book: “The Wake Up Call”
• Alison Answers Facebook Group: Join HERE
• Women of Excellence FB group: Join HERE

⚠️ Crisis Resources:
Lager Counseling Services
Call: 516-221-2123
Text: (914) 363-0381
Wantagh: 3408 Park Ave. Wantagh, NY 11793

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (24/7, free, confidential)
Call or text 988 | Visit 988lifeline.org

Send us Fan Mail

High-achievers are losing themselves to blind beliefs and burnout, often sacrificing marriage, kids, and peace for a success myth. This episode reveals how that happens—and the simple framework to reclaim your authentic life, starting now.

In this episode, Alison interviews "Polish Peter" Kolat, transformational coach and author of Authentic Self Rebirth. He shares his raw journey: immigrating from Poland at 14, a childhood "frying pan incident" sparking people-pleasing, near-divorce from 90-hour work weeks, and his awakening to design life-first businesses. Together, they unpack limiting beliefs, imposter syndrome, and Peter's 7 Human Drives for true freedom.

You will learn:
✅ How "blind agreements" from childhood (like perfectionism or people-pleasing) silently run your business and relationships
✅ The 7 Human Drives (Comfort, Variety, Connection, Significance, Growth, Contribution, Faith)—and why #7 crushes the rest
✅ Peter's "optimistic depression": Smiling through inner chaos after divorce mirrored his parents' split
✅ Why everything happens FOR you—not to you—and how curiosity breaks confirmation bias
✅ Saying "no" builds trust in your "yes," scales teams, and ends solo-burnout
✅ Real steps: Question beliefs, create a life vision first, then business (e.g., 10am-2:30pm work blocks around kids)
✅ Childhood trauma patterns (like Peter's alcoholic dad fight) repeat until questioned—epigenetics in action
✅ Faith as the ultimate drive: Ignite it, and love/significance stop controlling you
✅ Advice for despair/suicide thoughts: Get curious, reach out—it's never the answer
✅ How high-performers reclaim peace, purpose, and legacy without sacrifice

This episode is a wake-up to stop wandering blindly, poke holes in your ego stories, and rebirth the real you who thrives—before your patterns cost everything.

🧠 About Polish Peter (Peter Kolat)
Polish Peter is a transformational coach, speaker, and author of Authentic Self Rebirth: A Simple, Proven Framework to Break Free and Become Who You’re Meant to Be. He’s the creator of the Seven Human Drives framework and has coached thousands of entrepreneurs and high performers to build lives and businesses rooted in authenticity, not performance.

He’s been named Transformational Coach of the Year, spoken on over 100 stages, and is affectionately known as the “Polish Tony Robbins.” More importantly, he’s a husband and father of three who rebuilt his life after divorce and “optimistic depression,” choosing a path where his business serves his life—not the other way around.

🤝 Connect with Polish Peter:
https://www.i

Connect with Alison:

• Instagram: @alisonanswers | @lagercounseling
• Website: LagerCounseling.com
• YouTube: Alison Answers
• Facebook: Alison Lager Lcsw Casac
• Purchase Alison’s book: “The Wake Up Call”
• Alison Answers Facebook Group: Join HERE
• Women of Excellence FB group: Join HERE

⚠️ Crisis Resources:
Lager Counseling Services
Call: 516-221-2123
Text: (914) 363-0381
Wantagh: 3408 Park Ave. Wantagh, NY 11793

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (24/7, free, confidential)
Call or text 988 | Visit 988lifeline.org

Send a text

Children are in danger of abuse and exploitation, often closer to home than we like to think. This episode is about how that really happens and what you can do to protect them, starting today.

In this episode, Alison talks about her mission. She explains what child sexual abuse and child pornography look like in the real world, how predators get access to kids, and why looking away keeps children unsafe. She shares her own experience researching these crimes, how deeply it affected her, and why she still believes there is a lot we can do.

You will learn:
✅ How predators reach children in everyday places like schools, churches, parks, buses, and online
✅ Why vulnerable, neglected and “quiet” kids are often at higher risk
✅ How secrecy, shame and silence protect abusers
✅ What questions to ask schools, churches and activity leaders about bathrooms, supervision and who is alone with kids
✅ How to build a relationship where your child feels safe telling you anything
✅ What to do if you see something that feels wrong in public, including simple actions you can take
✅ The reality that some abuse happens inside families and even starts from birth
✅ How money, success and influence can be used to protect and rescue children, not just improve our own lives
✅ Why fundraisers, better tools and working with groups that already rescue children can make a real difference

This episode is not here to shock you for drama. It is here to wake you up, give you clear steps and help you become the adult who will say, “Not on my watch,” and mean it.

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About Alison:
Alison Lager is a licensed psychotherapist and the owner of counseling centers that help people with mental health and personal growth. She hosts the podcast “Alison Answers #MissionAwake,” where she teaches people how to stop living on autopilot and live with purpose. One of her biggest life dreams is to help stop child sexual exploitation and protect children who cannot protect themselves.

If this episode speaks to you, please follow the podcast, leave a review and share it with parents, teachers and leaders you know. The more adults who understand this, the more children we can help keep safe.

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Suggested tags and keywords:
child sexual abuse, child exploitation, child pornography, child trafficking, protecting children, how predators groom children, signs of child abuse, parenting safety, child safety, online predators, church abuse, school safety, Alison Lager, Alison Answers, MissionAwake, Not On My Watch, Love146, mental health, parenting, child advocacy, c

Connect with Alison:

• Instagram: @alisonanswers | @lagercounseling
• Website: LagerCounseling.com
• YouTube: Alison Answers
• Facebook: Alison Lager Lcsw Casac
• Purchase Alison’s book: “The Wake Up Call”
• Alison Answers Facebook Group: Join HERE
• Women of Excellence FB group: Join HERE

⚠️ Crisis Resources:
Lager Counseling Services
Call: 516-221-2123
Text: (914) 363-0381
Wantagh: 3408 Park Ave. Wantagh, NY 11793

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (24/7, free, confidential)
Call or text 988 | Visit 988lifeline.org

Send a text

In this episode, Dr. Porter breaks down the neuroscience behind why your brain is not built for modern life — and what to do about it. From the glymphatic system that washes your brain during sleep, to the voltage drop that leads to dementia, to the 2 PM cortisol trough that kills your afternoon — this conversation will change how you think about your brain forever.
​
In this conversation, you'll learn:
◼️ Why your brain shrinks ¾ inch overnight
◼️ How drinking coffee before 10 AM shuts down your dopamine and cortisol production
◼️ The "glymphatic system" discovery: how deep sleep literally washes your brain clean
◼️ Brain voltage explained: 18.1V at birth → below 7V = dementia → below 4V = Alzheimer's
◼️ The Google/Microsoft study where a 20-min BrainTap session at 2 PM boosted output by 26%
◼️ Why "grind culture" is neuroscience backwards — and what high performers actually do
◼️ His dad's alcoholism origin story and how it led to the Silva Method breakthrough
◼️ BDNF: the "Miracle-Gro for the brain" you trigger 10 minutes after exercise
◼️ MIT's discovery that your body absorbs light codes from distant star systems — run through DNA
◼️ The heart transplant patient who started craving KFC — and what it proves about cellular memory
◼️ Alarm clocks, melatonin timing, and the liver-cleaning window between 11 PM–12 AM
◼️ Why stressed mice outlived comfortable ones (and what that means for your daily habits)
◼️ The "pause, break, breathe" technique that Einstein and top performers use before answering
​
👤 ABOUT THE GUEST
Dr. Patrick Porter is an award-winning author, neuroscientist, and founder of BrainTap — a neuroscience-based platform backed by 30+ clinical studies. His latest book, Brain Fitness Blueprint (October 2025), introduces the Circle of Vitality model covering 8 dimensions of wellness. He's been featured in The Wall Street Journal, People, CNN, and The Joe Rogan Experience.
​
🧠 Try BrainTap free for 14 days: https://braintap.com/
🔗 Dr. Patrick Porter: https://drpatrickporter.com/
Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drpatrickporter/

Connect with Alison:

• Instagram: @alisonanswers | @lagercounseling
• Website: LagerCounseling.com
• YouTube: Alison Answers
• Facebook: Alison Lager Lcsw Casac
• Purchase Alison’s book: “The Wake Up Call”
• Alison Answers Facebook Group: Join HERE
• Women of Excellence FB group: Join HERE

⚠️ Crisis Resources:
Lager Counseling Services
Call: 516-221-2123
Text: (914) 363-0381
Wantagh: 3408 Park Ave. Wantagh, NY 11793

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (24/7, free, confidential)
Call or text 988 | Visit 988lifeline.org

Send a text

This conversation will change how you think about trauma, healing, and what it actually means to be brave.

🔥 In this episode, you'll hear:
📍 How childhood beliefs like "I'm a burden" quietly run your adult life
📍 The "rooms" method — going back to the places that broke you to finally heal
📍 Why talk therapy alone wasn't enough (and what actually worked)
📍 April's darkest night and the moment she realized she didn't want to die
📍 Why "the hero you're looking for is you" — even when you feel like the least heroic person alive
📍 How to find joy when everything around you feels impossible
📍 Journaling as "therapy without performance" — and why it unlocks what sessions can't

🎯 This episode is for you if:
→ You've survived something but never actually healed from it
→ You feel like you're functioning fine on the outside but falling apart inside
→ You've been told to "just go to therapy" but it doesn't feel like enough
→ You struggle with guilt, shame, or the feeling of being a burden
→ You love someone who drinks too much and don't know how to help
→ You're looking for real, honest conversation about what healing actually looks like

👤 ABOUT THE GUEST
April Garcia is the author of "The Room to Be Brave" — a raw memoir about going back into the rooms that shaped her to finally heal. She's a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant, Reiki practitioner, and founder of the Find Your Joy project. After surviving childhood abuse, meningitis, alcoholism, and a suicidal spiral, she rebuilt her life around one belief: joy is something you choose, especially when things are hard.
🌐 Website: aprildaygarcia.com
📚 Book: "The Room to Be Brave" — Available on Amazon & Barnes and Noble
📱 Social: @theroomtobebrave

🎙️ ABOUT THE HOST
Alison Lager is a psychotherapist, drug and alcohol counselor, bestselling author, and the Founder/CEO of Lager Counseling Services. With 30+ years in psychology and addictions, her mission is to help people rewrite their story and build a life they actually love. She hosts the Alison Answers podcast.
🌐 Website: lagercounseling.com
📱 Instagram: @alisonanswers | @lagercounseling
📺 YouTube: Alison Answers

🎙️ ABOUT THIS PODCAST
Alison Answers is where real conversations about mental health, healing, and personal transformation happen — without the clinical jargon. The mission is simple: help you discover the patterns that have been quietly running your life, and give you the tools to rewrite your story. New episodes weekly.

Connect with Alison:

• Instagram: @alisonanswers | @lagercounseling
• Website: LagerCounseling.com
• YouTube: Alison Answers
• Facebook: Alison Lager Lcsw Casac
• Purchase Alison’s book: “The Wake Up Call”
• Alison Answers Facebook Group: Join HERE
• Women of Excellence FB group: Join HERE

⚠️ Crisis Resources:
Lager Counseling Services
Call: 516-221-2123
Text: (914) 363-0381
Wantagh: 3408 Park Ave. Wantagh, NY 11793

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (24/7, free, confidential)
Call or text 988 | Visit 988lifeline.org

Send a text

Ever catch yourself wondering why the grind never pays off—like you're hustling hard but money, love, or joy keep slipping through your fingers in predictable ways? It's not karma or "your lot in life." It's subtle childhood programming from before age 7, absorbed in those super-suggestible theta brain waves, morphing kid fears into your everyday reality without a second thought.

In this real-talk episode of Alison Answers #MissionAwake, Alison Lager LCSW reads right from Chapter 2 of her book The Wake Up Call ("Facing the Truth: The Ultimate Power Move"), walking you through a straightforward "whole life inventory" across 8 everyday areas to uncover the hidden beliefs driving your repeats in money, love, health, joy, and purpose.

🎧 WHAT YOU'LL DISCOVER:
✅ Why you need that "you are here" dot on your life's map—and how quick snapshots show it
✅ Theta brain waves (0-7 hypnotic mode): How little-kid views secretly steer your grown-up world
✅ Outcomes mirror beliefs: Spot the debt loops or tough partners you're stuck tolerating
✅ The real culprits: People-pleasing fears, judgment worries, and that sneaky societal push toward "just okay"
✅ Simple 3-step breakout: Awareness → Acceptance ("thanks for the heads-up") → Action (break the old pull)

👤 WHO THIS IS FOR:
Folks grinding hard but quietly wondering "why me?" year after year. If your finances, relationships, or fun feel stuck on repeat... if those old hyper-alert or no-play childhood feels still linger... if you're done faking it and ready to turn your mess into something epic—this is your gentle nudge to wake up.

Perfect for: people in therapy, busy parents with big dreams, entrepreneurs tired of the "hustle struggle," anyone swapping victim vibes for creating alongside something bigger.

Connect with Alison:

• Instagram: @alisonanswers | @lagercounseling
• Website: LagerCounseling.com
• YouTube: Alison Answers
• Facebook: Alison Lager Lcsw Casac
• Purchase Alison’s book: “The Wake Up Call”
• Alison Answers Facebook Group: Join HERE
• Women of Excellence FB group: Join HERE

⚠️ Crisis Resources:
Lager Counseling Services
Call: 516-221-2123
Text: (914) 363-0381
Wantagh: 3408 Park Ave. Wantagh, NY 11793

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (24/7, free, confidential)
Call or text 988 | Visit 988lifeline.org

Send a text

There’s a moment when your body tells you to stop, and your mind has to decide who’s in charge.

Angela shares that moment clearly. On a beach. Years after being diagnosed with MS. Crawling toward the ocean because the cane that helps her walk can’t help her swim. People watching. Every excuse to turn back.

She didn’t.

This episode isn’t about pretending pain away. It’s about choosing meaning, discipline, and faith when life stays hard longer than you expected.

Inside this conversation:
✅ Why “year six” can be harder than day one
✅ The power of deciding what’s non-negotiable
✅ How gratitude isn’t denial, it’s survival
✅ Why saving one person still changes the world

For anyone tired of “being strong.”
Sometimes strength looks like crawling.

🎧 Watch the full episode — link in bio
💬 What’s one commitment you’re holding onto?
📤 Share with someone who needs permission to keep going

Connect with Alison:

• Instagram: @alisonanswers | @lagercounseling
• Website: LagerCounseling.com
• YouTube: Alison Answers
• Facebook: Alison Lager Lcsw Casac
• Purchase Alison’s book: “The Wake Up Call”
• Alison Answers Facebook Group: Join HERE
• Women of Excellence FB group: Join HERE

⚠️ Crisis Resources:
Lager Counseling Services
Call: 516-221-2123
Text: (914) 363-0381
Wantagh: 3408 Park Ave. Wantagh, NY 11793

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (24/7, free, confidential)
Call or text 988 | Visit 988lifeline.org

Send a text

Ever feel like you're doing all the right things but still ending up in the same place? Like you're putting in the work but something invisible keeps holding you back? You're not alone—and it's not your fault. Most of us are living on autopilot, controlled by beliefs we picked up before we were 7 years old. Beliefs we never questioned. Beliefs that aren't even true.

In this episode, Alison Lager reads from her book The Wake Up Call and drops some serious truth bombs about why we stay stuck, how childhood programming literally rewires your brain, and what it takes to finally break free from mediocrity and victim mentality.

🎧 WHAT YOU'LL DISCOVER:
✅ Why your brain filters OUT success (the Reticular Activating System explained)
✅ The neurological reason childhood experiences control your adult life
✅ How to spot the #1 k*ller of lives (****** mentality) and escape it
✅ The simple 5-minute daily practice that can change everything
✅ How to reprogram limiting beliefs that keep you playing small

👤 WHO THIS IS FOR:
This episode is for anyone tired of feeling average. If you keep ending up in the same situations despite trying to change... if you're secretly ambitious but feel stuck... if you're done blaming external circumstances and ready to take back control—this is your wake-up call.

Perfect for: entrepreneurs, parents, anyone in therapy or personal development, people who feel like they're capable of more but can't break through their own glass ceiling.

🧠 ABOUT ALISON LAGER:
Alison is a licensed therapist (LCSW, CASAC) with 34+ years of experience in mental health and emotional well-being. She owns Lager Counseling Services in New York and has spent decades helping people understand the hidden power within them. Her mission? Wake up the planet and help people escape the autopilot life most are living.

This podcast is part of #MissionAwake—a movement to help people break free from limiting beliefs, take personal responsibility, and create lives they're actually excited about (not just settling for).

Connect with Alison:

• Instagram: @alisonanswers | @lagercounseling
• Website: LagerCounseling.com
• YouTube: Alison Answers
• Facebook: Alison Lager Lcsw Casac
• Purchase Alison’s book: “The Wake Up Call”
• Alison Answers Facebook Group: Join HERE
• Women of Excellence FB group: Join HERE

⚠️ Crisis Resources:
Lager Counseling Services
Call: 516-221-2123
Text: (914) 363-0381
Wantagh: 3408 Park Ave. Wantagh, NY 11793

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (24/7, free, confidential)
Call or text 988 | Visit 988lifeline.org

Send a text

This man talked 200+ people back from the edge—and he never once said he "saved" them.

Kevin Briggs isn't your typical hero. The "Guardian of the Golden Gate Bridge" spent 23 years as a California Highway Patrol sergeant kneeling beside strangers who'd lost all hope, no formal training at first—just raw humanity and a philosophy that changed everything: Listen to understand, not to fix.

His record? 99%+ success rate. FBI-trained crisis negotiator. TED Talk speaker. Author. Global mental health advocate. 

This conversation will rewire how you think about suicide, mental health, and what it actually takes to save a life.

Alison sits down with Kevin after losing her own husband to suicide. Two people who've lived the devastation and refuse to let it win.

Together they pull back the curtain on:

-Kevin's battlefield resume: Survived testicular cancer at 20 (37 of 45 lymph nodes cancerous), childhood sexual abuse, three heart surgeries, motorcycle crashes, PTSD nightmares, and family lost to suicide. 

-The suicide stats that'll gut you

-What actually works on the bridge

-Kevin Berthia's story:
22-year-old adopted man. Mental illness. Baby born premature with $250K hospital bill. Lost both jobs. Felt like a total failure. Jumped over the rail before Kevin could stop him but Kevin YELLED and Kevin grabbed the rail mid-air, landed on a tiny pipe 220 feet up.

-Jason Garber's story:
Highly intelligent. Well-versed in religion, philosophy, sports. No substance abuse. Despite Kevin's best efforts, Jason jumped.

-The false peace that kills

-Therapy truth bombs:
Kevin went to therapy with his son who had suicidal thoughts. The therapist WASN'T TRAINED in suicide assessment. Not all mental health professionals are qualified.

-Why intelligent minds break harder:
Alison and Kevin unpack why brilliant people are at higher suicide risk. 

-Alison's redemption mission:
Lost her husband to suicide. Transformed that soul-crushing loss into a lifeline for others.

-Post-traumatic GROWTH


-Faith that heals

---

🎧 Watch now. This will save lives 👆
💬 What's your hidden storm? Share below
📤 Send this to someone who needs to hear it #GuardianOfHope #ListenToUnderstand #SuicideIsPreventable

CONNECT WITH KEVIN BRIGGS:
Website: https://www.pivotal-points.com
Book: Guardian of the Golden Gate (2015)
TED Talk: "The Bridge Between Suicide and Life" (2014)
LinkedIn: Kevin Briggs - Pivotal Points

Connect with Alison:

• Instagram: @alisonanswers | @lagercounseling
• Website: LagerCounseling.com
• YouTube: Alison Answers
• Facebook: Alison Lager Lcsw Casac
• Purchase Alison’s book: “The Wake Up Call”
• Alison Answers Facebook Group: Join HERE
• Women of Excellence FB group: Join HERE

⚠️ Crisis Resources:
Lager Counseling Services
Call: 516-221-2123
Text: (914) 363-0381
Wantagh: 3408 Park Ave. Wantagh, NY 11793

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (24/7, free, confidential)
Call or text 988 | Visit 988lifeline.org

Send a text

Ever doubt your spot in high-roller rooms after outworking everyone, heart whispering "fraud" while you fake the grin? Or watch your kid erupt in fury, choking back "stop it" knowing shutdown just fuels the fire? We've all toted those hidden hauls: Christmas delayed by empty pockets, faith-fights past suicidal shadows, intense feels society meds away fast.

Alison & Matt's Christmas Eve talk pulls no punches over certainty, billionaire emotional flops, storm-sitting for real toughness, parenting prodigies without the crush.

Pull these direct hits:
-Matt's toughness layers: Champ wrestler frame, study-sharp mind, kid-faith anchor, emo-iron from lows (suicide thoughts beaten—grandpa bailed, dad numbed, he stood)
-Alison's tile therapy: Knees hit floor, cry like clearing sinuses—peace surges when purged, not battled
-Rage redirect: Kid snarls "kill them?"—map consequences (jail? ruin?), empower their call like teacher talk
-Wave-riding wisdom: Breathe easy like grass in the breeze, one foot then the next—God turns squeezes into solid ground

Folks faking confidence through their daily grind, parents hanging on tight during kid meltdowns, hearts weighed down by all that bottled-up hurt. The pain doesn't just stick around—it shapes you tougher and wiser.

🎧 Watch now. Claim your worthy spot 👆
💬 What's your hidden storm? Spill below
📤 Send to someone hurting #HeartGrit #RoughRoadReal

Connect with Matt Berthot:
Website: https://voicebymatt.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/voicebymatt/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-berthot-b836a49
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@voicebymatt
Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/5Nz3wo8h0Hxs1WmhfJTGcI

Connect with Alison:

• Instagram: @alisonanswers | @lagercounseling
• Website: LagerCounseling.com
• YouTube: Alison Answers
• Facebook: Alison Lager Lcsw Casac
• Purchase Alison’s book: “The Wake Up Call”
• Alison Answers Facebook Group: Join HERE
• Women of Excellence FB group: Join HERE

⚠️ Crisis Resources:
Lager Counseling Services
Call: 516-221-2123
Text: (914) 363-0381
Wantagh: 3408 Park Ave. Wantagh, NY 11793

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (24/7, free, confidential)
Call or text 988 | Visit 988lifeline.org