Chiming In

Season 2 is here! 🍂

We’re talking life changes, new chapters, changing seasons, and the uncomfortable in-between when the old days are gone but the new normal hasn’t quite settled in yet.

We tried to remember what we actually did all summer, back-to-school, empty nests, autumn, favorite scents, gardening, and more 🍅🌻🍁

Some seasons are easier than others. Some are brighter. And some just need a adjust the seasoning. ✨

“I thought it was real.”

That is exactly what so many victims of today’s scams say after losing money to someone who sounded official, urgent, and convincing.

In this episode, we have an important conversation about the growing world of scams — from people posing as government officials to fake companies demanding immediate payment.

We discuss why even smart, careful people can be manipulated when fear, urgency, and authority enter the equation. The lesson isn’t to feel embarrassed — it’s to slow down, ask questions, and remember that you always have the right to verify who is on the other end of the phone, text, or email.

We talk about:

📞 Fake calls from people claiming to have authority

💰 Scams demanding immediate payment

⚠️ Fear and urgency as tools of manipulation

🔎 Why it’s okay — and necessary — to double-check

🧠 How staying calm can protect you and your loved ones

This is a public service conversation about awareness, skepticism, and protecting ourselves in a world where scams are becoming more sophisticated every day.

This episode is also our final episode of the season. We’re taking a short summer pause to rest, recharge, and gather more conversations to share with you.

Thank you for listening, commenting, and chiming in with us. We’ll be back soon 🤍

#ScamAlert #FraudAwareness #PhoneScams #OnlineSafety #CyberSafety #ConsumerProtection #ScamPrevention #PersonalSafety #StaySafe #ChimingInPodcast

Do influencers inspire us, connect us, and help us discover new ideas — or do they quietly leave us feeling like we’re somehow falling behind?

In this episode, we take a thoughtful look at influencer culture and the role social media plays in our lives today.

We explore the pros and cons of a world where strangers influence everything from how we decorate our homes to how we think about success, beauty, relationships, and happiness.

Along the way, David shares a story about being influenced to make the bed differently… with mixed results. 😄

We also discuss:

• Why humans are drawn to reality TV and “real life” content

• How much of what we see online is actually real

• The effect influencers have on our children and younger generations

• Why some content makes us feel seen and understood

• Why other content can leave us feeling like we’re not enough

• The difference between inspiration and comparison

This is a conversation about authenticity, influence, human connection, and learning how to consume media without losing ourselves in it.

#influencers #socialmedia #authenticity #comparisontrap #mentalhealth #personalgrowth #digitalwellness #socialmediaculture #wellnesspodcast #chiminginpodcast

What creates a tipping point in our lives? Is it planning, vision, luck… or simply taking action?

In this episode, we explore the surprising relationship between momentum and decision-making. David shares the story of launching a virtual reality business in just one week to prepare for a trade show and how the experience revealed something important: action often comes before clarity.

We discuss the difference between focusing on the process versus focusing on the outcome. David tends to focus on the moments leading up to the tipping point, while Elyse prefers to visualize the end result and trust the path will unfold.

Along the way we explore:

• Why action creates momentum

• How deadlines can motivate us to do our best work

• Why the VR business wasn’t a failure, even though it didn’t become a long-term company

• What we would create if we knew we couldn’t fail

• The role of passion, purpose, and high-energy states in creativity

• Why some people thrive under pressure

• What a life-changing diagnosis can teach us about urgency

• And what to do when you don’t love the work you’re doing

This conversation is about possibility, momentum, creativity, and learning to trust that the first step often reveals the next one.

What happens as we get older, reconnect with people who’ve known us forever? 🤍

We start with a funny birthday story, the movie "The Fifth Element" and the idea that humanity can feel both beautiful and painfully unkind at the same time.

Reconnecting with childhood friends and reflecting on the comfort of being fully known by people who have witnessed every version of you — like Russian nesting dolls with layer after layer of shared history.

We talk about:

• how friendship can survive even through dark periods and addiction

• why mothers often struggle to sleep when their kids are out late

• the difference between loving everyone and actually liking everyone

• what we would tell our 80-year-old selves

• and why the simple word “heard” might change the way we communicate with the people we love

This episode is about aging, perspective, radical acceptance, and the deep human need to feel understood.

#friendship #aging #personalgrowth #relationships #nostalgia #emotionalhealth #wellnesspodcast #chiminginpodcast #heard

What happens when we stop protecting ourselves and allow ourselves to be fully seen? 🤍

In this episode, we take a deep dive into vulnerability as one of the most intimate and transformative experiences we can share with another person.

We talk about the (perhaps unnecessary) armor we wear to protect ourselves and why it can feel so risky to take it off.

True connection  begins the moment we start showing up dressed in nothing but  authenticity.

https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/love-on-the-spectrum-u-s

#vulnerability #emotionalintimacy #personalgrowth #relationships #authenticity #selfawareness #wellnesspodcast #chiminginpodcast #loveonthespectrum

Graduation. Mother’s Day. Big moments that somehow sneak up on us no matter how much we prepare 🎓🤍

In this episode, we talk about the emotional whiplash of milestones — how quickly time moves, how surreal it can feel watching our children grow, and why these transitions can leave us asking, “Wait… how did this happen so fast?”

We reflect on the beauty, grief, pride, and disbelief that often live side by side during life’s biggest moments, and how easy it is to get swept up in planning and expectations while forgetting the simple things that matter most.

The conversation ultimately comes back to connection: the reminder that we don’t actually need a holiday, milestone, or special occasion to tell people what they mean to us.

This is a conversation about time, love, family, and learning to say the important things while we’re living them.

https://open.substack.com/pub/elysewendy/p/wtf-and-yay?r=2jb6rt&utm_medium=ios

#graduationseason #mothersday #familylife #personalgrowth #parenting #lifemilestones #wellnesspodcast #chiminginpodcast

Do the people we love ever send us signs — even when they’re not physically here? ✨

In this episode, we share stories from a recent road trip that took us through six hotels in ten days — reconnecting with family, stepping out of our comfort zones, and finding unexpected moments of connection along the way 🚗

As we moved from place to place, we began noticing something deeper: the feeling of being guided, seen, and supported — through people, timing, and small moments that felt like more than coincidence.

We talk about what it means to feel “at home” even when you’re constantly moving, and how being fully yourself can open the door to the kind of connection that doesn’t fade with time.

#spiritualgrowth #signsfromtheuniverse #personalgrowth #travelstories #connection #mindfulness #wellnesspodcast #chiminginpodcast #everettguitars #stauntonva

What does it actually feel like to experience the world differently? 🤍

In Part 2 of the “Normal does not exist” conversation, we move beyond the idea of what’s normal and into the lived experience of being neurodivergent — including autism, masking, high sensitivity, and the unique ways people navigate everyday life.

Elyse reflects on how her mind works — from extraordinary pattern recognition and emotional awareness to the ways some things have been extra challenging.

We also explore:

• Masking — what it is and why it can be exhausting

• Sensory sensitivities (light, noise, environment)

• Stimming and self-soothing behaviors

• The gap between strengths and challenges

• Why some abilities don’t feel “special” from the inside

The conversation expands into something bigger — the idea that neurodivergence is not a disorder to fix, but a different way of being. A different way of sensing, connecting, and moving through the world.

We also touch on the emotional impact of seeing representation, the importance of safe and accepting environments, and how many people have spent years hiding parts of themselves just to fit in.

This is a conversation about awareness, acceptance, and what becomes possible when we stop forcing ourselves into a definition of “normal.”

Part 2 of 2.

#neurodivergent #autismawareness #masking #highlysensitiveperson #mentalhealthawareness #personalgrowth #identity #chiminginpodcast

What does “normal” even mean — and who gets to define it? 🤍

In this first part of a two-part conversation, we explore neurodivergence, late-diagnosed autism, and the idea that “normal” may not exist at all.

Elyse shares her personal challenges and reflections, including what it feels like to move through the world with heightened awareness, sensitivity to energy, and a tendency to observe more than participate — until the right conversation opens everything up.

We talk about:

• The concept of “spoons” and how everyday tasks can feel draining 🥄

• The highly sensitive person and emotional overwhelm

• Why the spectrum is not a straight line — but more like a full circle

• The gap between strengths and challenges

• Late diagnosis and the experience of finally recognizing yourself

We also reference the work of Katherine May and resources like Embrace-autism.com that helped bring clarity and insight.

This is a conversation about identity, awareness, and rethinking how we understand ourselves and each other.

Part 1 of 2.