BeWELL

Welcome back to BeREAL! This week, Diana and Ednesha are joined by Diana Limongi to discuss post election fatigue, pandemic exhaustion, and parenting during COVID.

Diana Limongi is a bilingual nonprofit professional, blogger, activist, podcaster and Latina mom. On her blog she writes about motherhood, life in NYC and raising bilingual and multicultural kids. Her podcast, Parenting and Politics, seeks to inform, inspire and empower parents to take action and make a difference. As a nonprofit professional and activist, Diana has experience in digital content creation and organizing, working with organizations that help mothers, children and families. She has worked with the Aspen Institute, ZERO TO THREE, ParentsTogether, Global Kids, MomsRising/MamasConPoder and was a UN Shot@Life Champion.

 

Diana (from BeWELL) and Ednesha begin the episode by discussing the recent fatigue they have been feeling. This is a culmination of post election fatigue as well as exhaustion due to the long lasting COVID-19 pandemic. They discuss how seasonal affective disorder will only build on this as we enter the winter months. They also discuss how normally they don’t disclose much about their current mood or mental health situation to patients, but during these times they find themselves being more candid than before. 

 

Diana Limongi joins in the episode and begins by telling the hosts about how her life is going during quarantine. She quickly moves into talking about the 2020 election. She talks about the work that she did through donations and social media campaigns to spread knowledge about the different choices on the ballots. She advises parents how to manage their time if they would like to contribute to a political campaign, but might see it as too big of a commitment with their kids doing school from home. Diana (the host) brings up how voting is hard and the election fatigue she faced since she realized she was voting in New Jersey for the first time. Diana Limongi agrees that voting is complex, and shares some resources for people to get more informed about their local politics. 

 

As the episode winds down, Limongi brings the focus of the conversation to the Department of Education. She outlines the issues she is seeing in regards to the DOE’s reaction to COVID and how many of it’s last minute decisions are inducing anxiety within parents. While voicing favorable solutions to the situations she is facing, Diana also offers some advice to parents of how to practice self care during these times. 

 

Thank you for tuning into BeREAL this week! Be on the lookout for an all new episode next Tuesday. In the meantime, make sure to check out last week’s episode with Randi Zinn about the Going Beyond Movement. 

 

For more information on Diana Limongi, the Parenting and Politics Podcast, or any of her other work, check out the links below:

 

Podcast: www.parentingandpoliticspodcast.com

 

Instagram: www.instagram.com/ladydeelg

 

Podcast Instagram: www.instagram.com/parentingandpolitics

 

Twitter: www.twitter.com/dianalimongi

 

Podcast Twitter: www.twitter.com/parentingandpol

 

Welcome back to BeREAL! This week we have something special: it’s our first minisode! In these minisodes, our therapists will have a roundtable discussion about a certain topic of the week. This week, join Diana, Ednesha, and Gillian Lichter (BeWELL Psychotherapy’s very own) to discuss the idea of identity crisis. They will cover how identity changes as one’s life changes and how identity changes due to factors outside one’s control, such as a pandemic. 

Gillian begins the episode by giving a little background on her work as a psychotherapist. She explains how she initially worked with a LGBTQIA+ focused non-profit therapy center in NYC, but now she works at BeWELL (which she joined right at the onset of the pandemic). Gillian is here this week to talk about the topic of identity crisis. She defines identity as the recognition of our own selves at each stage of our lives. Of course with time, identity changes and Diana calls these changes cracks in identity. These identity cracks are not a negative thing, they do not mean that someone is broken or lost, rather they have to learn to recognize these identity changes and understand how and why they occurred. 

 

The conversation shifts to focus on identity changes during the pandemic. As careers and social lives change drastically, it is inevitable that identity will change as well. Ednesha focuses on the American concept of identity that is so closely tied to the workplace. Many people will judge their self worth on a job title, or if they hold a job at the given moment (which is much less likely during a pandemic). Ednehsa pushes forward an idea to discover identity outside of the workplace. This closely ties to her understanding that women of color have been taught that they must remain strong at all times. Strength is hard to muster as the pandemic drags on, but Ednesha and Gillian want people to know that not being strong all the time, should not mean that one values themself as lesser. Instead, Gillian suggests that there is a strength in taking care of your physical and mental health when necessary. 

 

Thank you for tuning into BeREAL this week. Make sure to be on the lookout for an all new episode next Tuesday. In the meantime, make sure to listen to last week’s episode with Randi Zinn on the Going Beyond Movement. 

 

For more information on BeREAL (our psychotherapy podcast) and BeWELL (our psychotherapy practice in New York) visit the links below:

 

To schedule a therapy appointment text BeWELL to 484848 today 

 

www.beher-now.com 

 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Be.WELL.Psychotherapy/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bewell.psychotherapy/

Welcome back to BeREAL! This week, Diana and Ednesha are joined by Randi Zinn to discuss female empowerment and “going beyond.”

Randi Zinn is an author, mindfulness and wellness expert, podcast host and founder of the Going Beyond Movement and Beyond Mom. The Going Beyond movement grants women permission to step in, step up, and enter a curious dialogue with their life. Her platform offers: The Going Beyond Podcast, LIVE podcast events, community building events, dynamic social media storytelling, and retreats for women. She is a regularly featured expert interviewed by the media, and has been featured in Women@Forbes, HuffPost, The New York Times, Well+Good, MindBodyGreen, Elephant Journal, Cheddar, FOX5 NY, Great Day Washington, The Honest Company Blog and many more. She is a certified yoga instructor through Laughing Lotus NY and has taught since 2008. Randi’s book Going Beyond Mom- How to Activate Your Mind, Body & Business After Baby was published in September 2017.

 

Randi begins the episode by giving a little backstory to the Going Beyond Movement. She explains how it began as a movement for mothers, founded around the time that she herself was a new mom. From here it expanded and evolved into an empowerment movement for all women. She explains how this is inclusive of women of all backgrounds and how she herself is still learning how to make the space the most comfortable for women of color. She summarizes the philosophy of the project to be, “Your life is the movement the world needs of you.”

 

Ednesha offers a personal account of the ways that she tries “going beyond” daily. She tells the women how she would like to go beyond the black pain that is deeply ingrained with the black experience. In order to do this, she pledges to herself that she will have joy in her life. Randi uses Ednesha’s story as a way to highlight the mission of her movement. She hopes that followers will has experiences similar to her own, that they will have a head to head journey with their pain. The discomfort that this will inevitably create opens the door to the next, better place of one’s life. 

 

Randi finished the episode by detailing the logistics of the movement. She elaborates on the events that she would host, retreats and live podcast recordings, pre-COVID. She also delves into her work as a wellness mentor and who her ideal client is, as well as what they can expect to get out of sessions with her. Lastly, she ties the conversation back to therapy with a quick discussion on how therapy helps to push her “beyond.”

 

Thank you so much for tuning into the BeREAL Podcast this week. Be on the lookout for a brand new episode next week. In the meantime, make sure to listen to last week’s episode with Sydney Silver on mental health coaching.

 

For more information on Randi Zinn and the Going Beyond Movement, visit the links below:

 

Website: www.goingbeyondmovement.com

 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/randizinn/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thegoingbeyondpodcast/ 

 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/going.beyond.movement/

 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/randi.zinn/ 

 

For more information on BeREAL (our psychotherapy podcast) and BeWELL (our

Welcome back to BeREAL! This week Diana and Ednesha are joined by Sydney Silver to discuss soul coaching, business coaching, and the differences between coaching and therapy. As a coach, Sydney is driven to help people realize their fullest potential. She integrates her spiritual and recovery-based life-skill strategies in service of helping clients balance the everyday demands of career, relationships, and personal goals.

At the start of the episode, Sydney explains her role as a soul coach and how she got into the practice. She tells how her journey into coaching began when she was diagnosed with cancer in her early thirties. This created a drive for her to create her own business. She began her practice as a business coach, helping people meet their external goals in life that revolved around money and success. However, she had a history of substance use and so substance recovery has always been a big part of her life. This lead her practice to branch out into spiritual, mental health, and addiction coaching. 

 

Next, the therapists and Sydney analyze how therapy differs from coaching. Sydney goes over how, depending on the client, her methods can be a little more rough than you would expect from a therapist. She explains how occasionally she just has to say “girl, wake up!” if her clients need to have a realization. This leads into a conversation about Sydney's ideal client. 

 

After a short break, Ednesha asks Sydney about how her past with substance abuse ties into her work today. Sydney explains how she views addiction. She states her beliefs that all people are addicted to something. However, when your addiction isn’t to drugs or alcohol you lack the resources and programs needed for recovery. Sydney weaves this belief together with her past addiction to coach people who are facing addiction both with drugs and alcohol, but also with less publicized addictions.

 

The episode concludes with Sydney reviewing the structure of her soul coaching practice. She outlines how long meeting a goal usually takes, how often her clients see her, and what work they are expected to do in between sessions. 

 

Thank you so much for tuning into BeREAL this week! Be on the lookout for a brand new episode next Tuesday. In the meantime, check out last week’s episode with Becky Kavoussi on substance use and recovery.

 

For more information on Sydney and her soul coaching practice, visit the links below:

 

Website: https://www.sydneyleesilver.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sydneyleesilver/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sydney.silver.1000

For more information on BeREAL (our psychotherapy podcast) and BeWELL (our psychotherapy practice in NYC) visit the links below:

 

To schedule a therapy appointment text BeWELL to 484848 today 

 

www.beher-now.com 

 

Facebook: htt...

Welcome back to BeREAL! This week, Diana and Ednesha are joined by BeWELL Psychotherapy’s very own Becky Kavoussi. She joins the hosts today to discuss substance abuse, recovery, and her own journey with alcohol addiction.

Becky has a diverse background working with clients of all walks of life. In addition to working in private practice where she treats individuals, couples, and families; she also provides psychotherapy to individuals as an alternative to incarceration. She has also worked with former street homeless adults with severe and persistent mental health issues. Rebecca specializes in treating substance abuse issues, relationship issues, depression, anxiety, mood disorders, and personality disorders.

 

Ednesha begins this episode by giving a little backstory as to how the three women all know each other. Ednesha recounts stories from when Becky and Ednesha were training under Diana many years ago. Becky then switches the conversation to tell how her bout with substance use began. She outlines her family history with alcohol, and how her environment helped fuel her drinking habits. 

 

Moving onto her college years, Becky tells about the complex “look” of her alcohol addiction. She explains how she functioned fine on paper, but in real life she was drinking daily and running into legal and relationship issues. When she began to develop suicidal ideations and the onset of depression, she reached out to a psychiatrist for medication, which proved to not be useful due to her drinking habits. 

 

Next, Becky covers her experience interning at a substance abuse clinic while pursuing her social work degree. She explains how she would see people facing similar struggles as her own and worked with them one-on-one. Ednesha then asks Becky to retell the story of when recovery began. Becky explains that recovery is not as glamorous as some might think. To her, recovery began in college when she started to cut back on drinking. She still had substance use habits, but she was meeting little goals as the years went on. She also noted how when she began to really minimize her drinking habits, she turned to binge eating. 

 

Lastly, Becky tells of what it is like to see patients that struggle with substance use. She goes into detail about how she chooses when to share her own experience with alcoholism with her patients and when she refrains. She explains that she only shares her story when it could be beneficial for her patient, but she prefers to keep the session about the patient and not about her. 

 

Thank you so much for tuning into BeREAL this week! Be on the lookout for an all new episode next Tuesday. In the meantime, make sure to check out last week’s episode with Farris Fakhoury on physical therapy. 

 

For more information on Becky, BeREAL ( our psychotherapy podcast), and BeWELL (our psychotherapy practice in Midtown Manhattan) visit the links below:

 

To schedule a therapy appointment text BeWELL to 484848 today 

 

www.beher-now.com 

 

Welcome back to The BeREAL Podcast! This week, Diana and Ednesha are joined by physical therapist Farris Fakhoury to discuss physical therapy, his new book, and his practice during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Farris is a physical therapist in a neurological rehab setting. He is also the author of “The Happiness Perspective” being published in December 2020. The premise of his book is happiness and the common threads his patients exhibit to help them unlock their happiness in recovery.

 

Farris begins the episode with a little backstory into how he got into physical therapy. He explains that it began back when he was a kid playing sports, and he had to seek injury recovery through physical therapy. From here, he developed a passion for the practice and pursued a psychology degree in college. Now he works with patients who have suffered neural damage through strokes and spinal cord injuries, but he primarily works with amputee patients. 

 

Farris discusses the topic of happiness a lot throughout the episode. He explains how he sees happiness as a muscle that needs to be worked and can grow and shrink. He doesn’t view happiness as a final destination, but rather a journey. Diana chimes in with her view of happiness and how she doesn’t see it as a constant state either. Instead, they both acknowledge how happiness ebbs and flows. From here, Farris discusses the mental health of his patients. He gives an overview of how he witnesses mental health change as his patients progress through recovery and gain more confidence. 

 

Lastly, Farris discusses how his life has been since the COVID-19 pandemic has hit. He goes over how it has given him the time to collect his journal entries from over the years and adapt them into a book that is to be published in December 2020. He also explains how his practice has changed. He definitely ran into some roadblocks doing physical therapy virtually, but he has been adjusting his techniques to give the best experience possible to his patients. His in person visits have also been different, as patients cannot bring support with them. He discusses how this is difficult both mentally and physically on the patients.

 

Thank you for tuning into BeREAL this week! Be on the lookout next Tuesday for a brand new episode. In the meantime, make sure to check out last week’s episode with Christian Ziraldo on therapy matchmaking.

 

For more information on Farris, his physical therapy practice, and his book, visit the links below:

 

Website: Www.thehappinessperspective.com

 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Farris2986

 

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/Farris2986

 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FarrisFakhoury

LinkedIn: Farris Fakhoury

For more information on BeREAL, our psychotherapy podcast, and BeWELL, our psychotherapy practice in Manhattan, visit the links below:

 

To schedule a therapy appointment text BeWELL to 484848 today 

 

www.beher-now.com 

 

This week on BeREAL, Diana and Ednesha are joined by Christian Ziraldo to discuss the role of therapist matchmaking, and many of the nuances that come with selecting the perfect therapist for yourself. 

Christian Ziraldo is the founder of Yellow Vibrations, a mental health advocate, and a former school counselor. After earning her Master’s degree in Clinical Counseling and School Counseling, she got married, moved from Detroit, MI to Oakland, CA, and tried to find a therapist to help her manage the changes that were taking place in her life. Navigating the insurance company and finding a therapist that fit her schedule, budget, and communication style took three months. After helping friends, family, and students navigate this process with similar barriers. She knew something had to change. Christian started Yellow Vibrations because she believes that finding a therapist shouldn’t be what stops anyone from healing.

 

The episode begins with all three women retelling how they found each other. Christian goes over her work of matching people around the country to clinicians in their area, and how that led her to discover Ednesha on the BeWELL website. Christian outlines the reasoning behind her work. She gives examples of how many people can experience anxiety when they are searching for a therapist because the whole process can be overwhelming. She also offers reasons as to why her work is so important, especially to people of color. Ednesha explains how people of color may be anxious to have their first session with a therapist because they may not have a space where they can talk solely about themselves elsewhere. Christian’s work of properly vetting the therapists for the patient can help alleviate some nervousness.

 

After a short break, the therapists return to discuss why the process of finding a clinician can be so difficult. Ednesha points out that only 5% of clinicians are black, and therefore it is much harder for patients to find the perfect match, because there are so few. This is another instance where therapist matchmaking is important, because upon consultation, Christian finds out whether the client would like their therapist to be a person of color, a member of the LGBTQIA community, and specialized in a specific field of therapy. Her work can also assure that the client is walking into a session with a culturally competent therapist, who will not be offensive or make microaggressions towards their patient. This is one of the many ways Christian outlines of how she protects her people.

 

Christian ends the episode by telling the hosts her plans for the future. Beyond therapist matchmaking, she hopes to make mental health as commonplace as physical health. This means making it a less taboo subject and making its resources more accessible.

 

Thank you for tuning into BeREAL this week! Be on the lookout for a brand new episode next Tuesday. In the meantime, make sure to check out last week’s episode to listen to the BeREAL family get uncomfortable.

 

For more information on Christian and Yellow Vibrations, visit the links below:

 

Website: www.yellowvibrations.com

 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/christian.ziraldo/

 

 

Welcome back to BeREAL! This week Diana and Ednesha are joined by the rest of the BeREAL team, Jessica Seavor and Don Jackson, to discuss the anxieties that the team has faced throughout the creation of this podcast. 

 

Acting as moderator, Don asks Jessica about her fears of coming onto the show for the first time after working behind the scenes in the past. Jessica talks about the nerves she had regarding her fears that she would sound stupid when put up against Diana and Ednesha. Diana shares similar anxieties when they have someone on the show who she deems more accomplished or educated. Don points out Diana’s habit to laugh as a meaning to cope with nerves that build up while the hosts are recording. Next, Don discusses how he attempts to quell the hosts’ anxieties before recording, by allowing them to chat for minutes on end without interruption. This allows them to not only get comfortable with the setting, but comfortable and closer with each other. 

 

Moving to Ednesha, Don asks how she feels about being a black woman on this podcast. Ednesha shares how she is nervous about the way she is perceived. At times she feels overwhelmed that others may see her as a representative for all black women and that puts pressure on her to say everything correctly. She also speaks on how her relationship with Diana has grown overtime. She has apprehension at first that she would not sound as eloquent as Diana as Diana is her mentor but as time goes on they have become much closer and now recognizes them as equals in this endeavor. 

 

After a short break, Don returns to ask Diana about her views on the podcast. He focuses on her role as both a host and as a business owner. At times, Diana fears that it will all come crashing down, especially given the state of the world, however, overall she is very proud and excited about what she has accomplished. Diana expresses the optimism she feels for the future and the idea that she gets to continue growing along with everyone that has become a part of this journey. 

 

Thank you for tuning into the BeREAL Podcast. Be on the lookout for a brand new episode next Tuesday. In the meantime, make sure to listen to last week’s episode with Lorraine C. Ladish on being your best self at any age. 

 

For more information on BeREAL, our psychotherapy podcast, and BeWELL, our psychotherapy practice in New York City, visit the links below:

 

To schedule an appointment text BeWELL to 484848 today 

 

www.beher-now.com 

 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Be.WELL.Psychotherapy/

 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bewell.psychotherapy/

 

Welcome back to BeREAL! This week, Diana and Ednesha are joined by Lorraine C. Ladish to discuss her history with an eating disorder, being your best self at fifty, and overcoming adversity.

 

Lorraine is a 21st Century Communicator, helping empower women and others to achieve their goals. She is the founder and CEO of Viva Fifty! a bilingual community that celebrates being 50+. She has worked as an editor and social media coordinator for a number of online publications. She’s a content creator and regular contributor to  NBCNews, Huffpost, AARP, Babycenter and Mom.me. She has contributed to People en Español, La Palma of The Palm Beach Post,  Purple Clover, Latina magazine and Redbook . My latest book on embracing age was published by HarperCollins in 2017. Most of all she is a woman, a mom, a wife, a daughter, a sister, a friend, a writer, an entrepreneur, and a yogini.

 

Lorraine begins the episode by giving a summary of her life. She covers a wide range of events that happened throughout her 57 years beginning in childhood. Throughout all these stories, she ties back to themes of survival and perseverance. She delves into details about her struggles with an eating disorder, and how it affected her life and those around her. Lorraine also touches on the publication of her book that centered around her eating disorder. She believed it would not find success in Spain (where it was first marketed) because of it was not something that was discussed culturally. However, it was a hit.

 

Next, Lorraine tells the story of how her life turned around suddenly before she was eventually able to find success. At 45, Lorraine suddenly found herself in the United States, unemployed, divorced, and with two children to take care of. Through various writing jobs, Lorraine was able to revolutionize her life once again, taking her from food stamps to becoming a successful entrepreneur. 

 

Lorraine concludes the episode by discussion where she is today. She talks about how much joy she has being in her fifties, and how she doesn’t believe she has even reached her peak yet. She discusses body positivity, both her struggles with it and how she promotes it to other women through Viva Fifty! She reflects on her role as a mother, and how she teaches her daughters about self care and self love. 

 

Thank you so much for tuning into BeREAL this week! Be on the lookout for an all new episode next Tuesday. In the meantime, check out last week’s episode on self care with author Alex Elle.

 

For more information on Lorraine C Ladish and her work, visit the links below:

 

Viva Fifty Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vivafifty

 

Lorraine’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lorrainecladish

 

Yoga Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theflawedyogini

 

 

Welcome back to the BeREAL podcast! This week, Diana and Ednesha are joined by Alex Elle to discuss all things self care and how to get in touch with your own needs. 

Alex Elle is an author & wellness consultant living in the Washington, DC metro area with her husband and children. Writing came into her life by way of therapy and the exploration of healing through journaling. Quarterly, Alex teaches workshops and retreats centered around assisting others in finding their voices through storytelling, poetry, and narrative writing rooted in truth without shame. Her mission is to build community & self-care practices through literature & language. She is currently an author at Chronicle Books. Alex is the author of multiple books and journals, most recently After the Rain, Neon Soul, and Today I Affirm: A Journal That Nurtures Self-Care. She also hosts the hey, girl. Podcast.

 

Alex begins the episode by telling how she began her self care movement. She traces the journey all the way back to high school, when she saw her first therapist, and how she picked up the habit of journaling (her “emotional toolbox”) from there. She then shares her relationship with self care today. She speaks about how she wants the world to move away for the commercialized idea of self care. She debunks the idea of “retail therapy” and shares alternate ways to better your mental health. Many of her suggestions revolve around the idea of living in the moment even in mundane situations.

 

Next, Alex tells listeners about what she has been up to recently. She tells about her podcast, “hey, girl.” and her upcoming book After the Rain. While telling about these projects, she touches on her relationship with her mother and how it has intertwined with much of her work. She shares what it is like to be so vulnerable to the public when putting out these projects, and how her life has been changed because of it.

 

Lastly, Alex shares about her self care workshops. She goes over her motivations to make these courses affordable, and therefore accessible to a wide range of people, as well as what listeners could expect if they choose to enroll. 

 

Thank you so much for joining us this week at BeREAL. Be on the lookout for a brand new episode next Tuesday. In the meantime make sure to check out last week’s episode with Christine Guiterrez to hear her speak on soul healing.

 

For more information on Alex Elle or her many projects, visit the links below:

 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alex_elle/

 

Website: http://www.alexelle.com/

 

For more information on The BeREAL Podcast and BeWELL Psychotherapy visit the links below. 

 

To schedule an appointment text BeWELL to 484848 today 

 

www.beher-now.com 

 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Be.WELL.Psychotherapy/

 

Instagram: