They’re back 🎉 Starting 2026 strong! In this week’s tenth episode, Jon and Cristy open up about what it really takes to break free from familial expectations and choose your own path...even when fear shows up every step of the way.

Why is it so hard to step away from what’s “expected” of us and choose the life that truly feels honest? This week, Jon and Cristy open up about their personal experiences, sharing how fear was constant as they began owning their unique journeys, moving away from what their families envisioned for them. They explore how fear often keeps us stuck in the norm, why it’s so uncomfortable to defy tradition, and what it looks like to carve out a life that feels authentic.

They also discuss different family dynamics and the deep emotional challenge many parents face when letting go and allowing their children to have their own experiences, even when it terrifies them.

Tune in for this honest conversation about fear, identity, and the beauty of choosing yourself, not out of rebellion, but out of authenticity. If you’ve ever questioned the path laid out for you, this episode will feel like home.

We want to hear from you!

Submit questions / share your own experience for us to read and bring up during our next episode. Email us at:

[email protected]

Love you mean it!

Cristy and Jon

Guess who's back at the table? Chris! Remember him from episode 6?

In this deeply personal episode, Chris breaks down the transformative journey of separating our identity from our pain. What happens when we stop defining ourselves by what we've survived? What if the truest version of who we are has been waiting beneath the stories of hurt, our upbringing, and what we were told?

This is a conversation about remembering - not who the world told us we were, but who we’ve always been beneath the suffering. It’s about releasing shame, reclaiming our voice, and learning how to live from a place of truth instead of trauma.

Whether you're in the thick of healing or standing on the other side of something heavy, this episode invites you to take a breath, reflect, and begin (or continue) the deep work of becoming who you truly are - not what happened to you.

We would love to hear from you! Please take a moment to drop questions and contact us with your own personal experience of reclaiming who you are beyond the suffering. Email us at - [email protected] and title it "My Story"

With love and admiration, 

Cristina

Welcome back to Beyond the Darkness! In this episode, Cristy and Jon discuss change and what it asks of us. Often more than we feel ready to give. In this episode, they share personal stories and unique perspectives on the fear that lives quietly beneath transition, uncertainty, and growth. It’s the fear that whispers, stay where it’s safe, even when something deeper within us knows we’re being called to make the change and move forward.

Together, they unpack why discomfort shows up when we’re on the edge of transformation, how to recognize the difference between resistance and fear-based avoidance, and what it truly means to choose growth over comfort. If you’re in a season of change or learning to let go, this one’s for you!

If you are in need of a mental health provider:

Talk with a NAMI HelpLine Specialist, please call 800-950-NAMI (6264). The NAMI HelpLine is a free, nationwide peer-support service providing information, resource referrals, and support to people living with a mental health condition, their family members and caregivers, mental health providers, and the public.

Text the NAMI Helpline

Text "HelpLine" to 62640.
Connect with a HelpLine Specialist when you need support, information and resources via text message.

In this week’s seventh episode, Jon and Cristina dove into the complex and often confusing attraction to emotionally unavailable people. Why do we sometimes find ourselves drawn to people who are distant, closed off, or incapable of offering the emotional connection we crave? Is it a pattern rooted in past experiences, or are we simply wired to chase what we can't have?

Welcome BACK to the Beyond the Darkness podcast. My name Is Cristina and I am your host alongside my dear friend Jon. Jon and I unpacked our own experience with past relationships, being suck in the cycle of emotional unavailability, and the impact it has on our self-worth.

Tune in for our EPIC conversation about how to recognize this pattern in your own life, break free from the cycle, and build healthier, more fulfilling connections. Whether you’ve been there or are just curious, this episode is all about understanding why we fall for the people who can’t (or won’t) give us what we need and how we become resentful in return.

If you’re ready to break the cycle and find a lasting emotional connection, this is the episode for you.

If you are in need of a mental health provider:

Talk with a NAMI HelpLine Specialist, please call 800-950-NAMI (6264). The NAMI HelpLine is a free, nationwide peer-support service providing information, resource referrals, and support to people living with a mental health condition, their family members and caregivers, mental health providers, and the public.

Text the NAMI Helpline

Text "HelpLine" to 62640.
Connect with a HelpLine Specialist when you need support, information and resources via text message.

Support the show

Welcome back to Beyond the Darkness- Episode 6!

Chris joined us this week and what an unbelievable story he shares. He talked about his childhood, the cycle of suffering from addiction, how he came to believe in God and the journey to complete transformation. This is a very special episode and we hope you enjoy it as much as we did!





If you are in need of a mental health provider:

Talk with a NAMI HelpLine Specialist, please call 800-950-NAMI (6264). The NAMI HelpLine is a free, nationwide peer-support service providing information, resource referrals, and support to people living with a mental health condition, their family members and caregivers, mental health providers, and the public.

Text the NAMI Helpline

Text "HelpLine" to 62640.
Connect with a HelpLine Specialist when you need support, information and resources via text message.

Jon is BACK and we're so excited!!

 Wow- this conversation was filled with so much vulnerability and wisdom on all the ways we can start being better and healthier in relationships. 

Jon and Cristy sat down for almost an hour and talked about their experience with being willing to own up to their side of the street in ALL relationships. They were honest about the not-so-proud moments and how they started making long-lasting changes and experiencing a complete transformation for the better.

Sit back and enjoy this special show! 

We would love to hear from you! Feel free to share your experience in the comment section, leave a review, and most importantly, THANK YOU for being part of this crazy, and a little scary, fun journey!

Welcome back, everyone! You’re listening to Beyond the Darkness.

Have you ever asked yourself, who am I? What is my identity? Why do I need to forgive someone when I don't want to? Could I change my past?

Javi and Cristy got together and talked about  the power of forgiveness, and how it brings us closer to understanding who we are.

They dove deep into explaining how everyone can actually change their past and create a life worth living. 

Sit back and enjoy the show!

We would love to hear from you! Feel free to share your experience in the comment section and thank you for being a part of this crazy, a little scary, and fun new journey!

Who teaches us how to process grief and loss? What do we say when someone we know loses someone they love?

In this week's episode, Cristina and Jon share about their process after losing their grandmother. Jon also shares about losing his mom and what he had to work through to overcome the pain. They speak on the anger and guilt that comes up the moment they hear their loved one has passed and what they wish people knew about loss and grief.

We would love to hear from you. How did you wish someone consoled you in the beginning stages of grief? How do you process emotions and pain when thinking about someone close that you have lost? Share in the comment section.

How can we improve our relationships? How can we go from being reactive, selfish, and dishonest to a more understanding, authentic, and honest dynamic?

In this week's episode, Jon and Cristy talk about the beginning stages of breaking out of unhealthy relationships. They share their personal experience on why they stayed and the process of developing authentic, meaningful, and fulfilling relationships.

Through their share, you'll hopefully gain hope and discover the "why" behind unhealthy patterns and how to choose a safe relationship where intimacy and vulnerable connection are celebrated.

Please share your own experience and how you can relate to their share in the comment section below!

Sit back, get some popcorn, and enjoy!

Have you ever felt like you’re stuck in the cycle of suffering, feeling controlled by your emotions, questioning your purpose in life, not knowing who you really are, and unable to be free from debilitating anxiety?

Well, you are in the right place. Welcome to Beyond the Darkness podcast. My name Is Cristina and I am your host alongside my dear friend Jon.

In this week’s first episode, Jon and I got together to talk about what Beyond the Darkness means to us, and why we get stuck in the cycle of suffering. We shared personal life experiences to hopefully help you not feel alone on this sometimes, very confusing and overwhelming journey. 

Sit back, get some popcorn, and enjoy our very vulnerable, real, and raw conversation.