Facing the Moment: Insights Action for Times of Crisis

Celebrate one year of the Facing the Moment podcast with this special anniversary compilation.

In this clip, we revisit the most impactful segments from our first 16 episodes, featuring deep-thinking guests who explore how to navigate today's crises with moral courage, fortitude, and hope.

From understanding fear-based responses to exploring the "lack of aliveness" caused by loneliness, these insights are designed to shift how you think, live, and lead.

If these highlights resonate with you, we invite you to listen to the full episodes and join our growing community focused on Self-Leadership and human connection.

In this episode of "Facing the Moment," we dive into the complex terrain of conflict, exploring its roots, impact, and transformative potential.

Host Toufic Hakim, PhD, engages in a conversation with Chady Rahme, PhD, a professor of philosophy and psychology, IFS-trained psychotherapist, and expert in conflict mediation. Together, they discuss the nature of conflict, the role of fear, identity, and culture, and how trauma shapes responses to conflict.

Chady shares his personal journey of navigating the challenges of civil war in Lebanon and his work with refugees and communities affected by violence.

The episode offers insights into fostering compassion, humility, and resilience and highlights the importance of self-awareness and community in transforming conflicts into opportunities for growth.

Join us for this inspiring and thought-provoking discussion on how to face conflict with courage, hope, and humanity. 

Support this podcast. Your donation supports production, outreach, and the continuation of meaningful conversations on Facing the Moment. ⁠www.foundationIFS.org/support⁠   

In this episode of Facing The Moment, we explore the complex landscape of grief and emotional resilience with Ty Cutner, an IFS (Internal Family Systems) trained coach and founder of Well-Dressed Academy. Moving beyond the traditional definition of loss, the conversation examines how to navigate the "unshakeable sadness" of losing loved ones, relationships, and even visions for the future. 

Ty shares his personal journey of navigating profound loss—including the death of his mother when he was just 15—and how he used the Internal Family Systems (IFS) model to transform his relationship with his "parts." Listeners will gain a deep understanding of the multiplicity of the mind, learning practical techniques like "unblending" to gain space from overwhelming emotions and the "fire drill" approach to preparing for life's storms. 

Key topics covered in this episode include: 

• The "Second Wave" of Support: Why reaching out months after a loss is more critical than the initial outreach. 

• The Illusion of "Getting Back to Normal": A critique of how societal pressure to be "strong" can lead to exiling our grieving parts. 

• Global Healing through Internal Harmony: Ty’s vision for a world where war and racism become relics of the past by fostering internal leadership and seeing the "shared humanity" in everyone. 

This conversation is a powerful invitation to stay present in grief without being consumed by it, offering a "systems upgrade" for the human experience that emphasizes community, curiosity, and compassion 

Support this podcast. Your donation supports production, outreach, and the continuation of meaningful conversations on Facing the Moment. ⁠www.foundationIFS.org/support⁠   

How does a community hold together when faced with sudden, extreme external pressure? In this episode of Facing the Moment, host Toufic Hakim, PhD, explores the human dimension of crisis with Jody Nelson, EdD, LMFT, a veteran family therapist and senior advisor to Change, Inc..

Together, they discuss through a humanistic lens the "Metro Surge" in Minneapolis and St. Paul, where the arrival of thousands of federal agents for mass deportations has created a climate of intense fear and social strain. Jody describes the internal toll of this environment, noting how individuals—especially educators and vulnerable families—experience a protective "numbness," "chaos brain," and "moral injury" when their core values of safety and care are violated.

Drawing on her decades of experience and the Internal Family Systems (IFS) model, Jody offers a roadmap for Self-leadership. She explains how to navigate “internal curtains" of rage and fear to find the clarity needed to act. The conversation highlights the inspiring rise of "neighboring as a verb," where hyper-local communities utilize mutual aid, upstander training, and even simple whistles to stand up to bullies with goodness.

From the physiological importance of "the happy juice" (serotonin and dopamine) for resilience to the power of being "the water" that eventually beats the rock, this episode is a profound look at staying human in challenging times. As Jody reminds us, citing the late Paul Wellstone, "we do better when we all do better".

Support this podcast: Your donation supports production, outreach, and the continuation of meaningful conversations on Facing the Moment. ⁠⁠www.FoundationIFS.org/support⁠⁠

Suicide is a devastating reality that touches millions, yet it often remains shrouded in silence and stigma. Today, the crisis is more pressing than ever: nearly 50,000 individuals died by suicide in the U.S. in 2023, and it has become the second leading cause of death for younger Americans. In this episode of Facing the Moment, host Toufic Hakim speaks with Bill Geis, PhD, a clinician with over 40 years of experience and 55,000 therapy hours, who has dedicated his career to suggesting better ways to assess, care for, and help those wrestling with suicidal ideation. 

Together, they explore the critical limitations of current detection methods—noting the tragic discovery that 70% to 80% of individuals who end their lives do not reveal their intentions during their last medical or mental health contact. Bill Geis Phd, sheds light on the internal world of the "suicidal imagining," explaining the concept of "psychache"—an unbearable emotional pain fueled by feelings of failure, self-hatred, or the malignant belief that one is a burden to others. He also discusses the biological vulnerabilities, such as systemic inflammation and sleep deprivation, that can contribute to what he describes as a "suicide attack." 

Drawing on his clinical research and Internal Family Systems (IFS) training, Bill Geis, PhD, introduces a transformative perspective: viewing suicidal thoughts not as a rational choice of the whole person, but as "extreme parts" or "firefighters" desperately trying to rescue the individual from incineration-level emotional pain.

This conversation offers a clear-eyed, compassionate look at a profound crisis while pointing toward hopeful, restorative possibilities.

Support this podcast. Your donation supports production, outreach, and the continuation of meaningful conversations on Facing the Moment. ⁠www.foundationIFS.org/support⁠ 

Schools have long been places of learning, possibility, and growth. Today, however, many are strained by rising stress, emotional overload, and an urgent need for deeper connection. In this episode of Facing the Moment, host Toufic Hakim speaks with Joanna Curry-Sartori, a clinician-educator whose work brings mindfulness, presence, and compassion-based tools into classrooms across the country. 

Together, they explore the growing crisis in U.S. schools—how behavioral challenges, trauma histories, academic pressure, and constant activation impact both students and educators. Joanna sheds light on the inner world of overwhelmed teachers, the silent emotional burdens students carry, and the systemic pressures that make genuine connection harder to sustain. 

Drawing on her clinical background and her work training school teams, she introduces the PAUSE framework, a practical method for slowing down, grounding, and responding thoughtfully when tensions rise. Through real classroom stories, she illustrates how small shifts in presence can transform conflict moments, rebuild trust, and ease the emotional climate of a room. 

This conversation offers a clear-eyed look at what educators are facing today, while also pointing toward restorative possibilities. Listeners will gain a deeper understanding of school-based stress, the power of attuned relationships, and tools that support both adult well-being and student self-regulation in challenging moments. 

Check out The Self-led Educator Book: www.selfleadershipcollaborative.com/book

Support this podcast. Your donation supports production, outreach, and the continuation of meaningful conversations on Facing the Moment. ⁠www.foundationIFS.org/support⁠ 

In this episode of Facing the Moment, Toufic Hakim speaks with Dilara Ally, a clinician-researcher who works at the intersection of mental health, about the emotional, societal, and psychological stakes of artificial intelligence. Drawing on her work in trauma recovery, digital mental health, and natural language processing, Dilara explores how AI is reshaping human connection, influencing well-being, and changing the way we understand intuition, presence, and the therapeutic relationship. 

This conversation illuminates both possibility and peril: the biases embedded in AI systems, the emotional cost of predictive technologies, and the alarming rise of anxiety, self-harm, and disconnection in young people growing up in the smartphone era. At the same time, Dilara highlights the irreplaceable qualities of human attunement, vulnerability, and repair—and why moral imagination and “living in the question” may be our most important tools in an AI-driven world. 

We’ve shared 11 episodes of Facing the Moment, and we’d love your feedback. Your response to this quick poll helps us grow and serve you better.  We’re always looking to bring voices that truly fit the heart of Facing the Moment. 

If there’s a guest you think would be a great fit, please email us at outreach@foundationIFS(.)org.

Support this podcast. Your donation supports production, outreach, and the continuation of meaningful conversations on Facing the Moment. https://www.foundationifs.org/support 

In this episode of Facing the Moment, host Toufic Hakim engages Natalie Thomas, PhD—philosopher, psychotherapist, and environmental ethicist—in a candid exploration of the climate crisis. Moving beyond the polarized political debates, the conversation examines the crisis’s tangible impacts on ecosystems, human communities, and mental health.

Natalie unpacks the science behind global warming, the psychological roots of climate denial, and the shared values often hidden beneath divisive rhetoric. She offers hopeful signs from community-led initiatives, innovations in green technology, and mental health support networks. The dialogue highlights “climate distress” and its varied emotional toll—particularly on younger generations—while exploring strategies to foster resilience, from climate cafés and nature connection to compassionate activism and bridge-building conversations with skeptics.

Listeners are left with both a sobering grasp of the crisis and practical ways to connect, adapt, and act collectively for a livable future.

Support this podcast. Your donation supports production, outreach, and the continuation of meaningful conversations on Facing the Moment. ⁠www.foundationIFS.org/support⁠ 

Anger is everywhere—in our homes, on our roads, and acrossthe news cycle—but how well do we really understand it? In this powerful and timely episode, IFS-trained therapist Ted Riskin joins Toufic Hakim to challenge conventional thinking about anger. Rather than suppress or fear it, what if we learned to listen to it—and even welcome it?

From the internal tensions of personal triggers to thecollective storms of cultural rage, Ted unpacks the anatomy of anger: its roots in boundary violations, its role as a smoke alarm for deeper emotions like grief or shame, and its potential as a protective force when wisely guided.Drawing on decades of therapeutic experience and Internal Family Systems (IFS) theory, Ted shows us how to shift from impulsive reaction to grounded reflection.

This episode is both a deep dive into emotional self-leadership and a gentle call to action in an increasingly reactive world. If you've ever been caught in the jaws of anger—or lived in fear of expressing it—this conversation offers a way forward: from fragmented reaction to integratedresponse.

In this deeply personal and universally resonant conversation, educator and organizational healing consultant Mona Sullivanreflects on her journey of navigating family estrangement shaped by cultural expectations, religious beliefs, and rigid traditions.

Raised in a Muslim Egyptian household in the U.S., Mona shares how her search for belonging led her through painful seasons of shame, conditional acceptance, and profoundloss—including the passing of her father and her former beloved mother-in-law just days apart during a difficult phase of estrangement from her family.

Through therapy, spiritual grounding, and compassion, she found a path toward healing, reclaiming her self-worth, and fostering interdependent relationships. This episode offers an intimate look at resilience, the courage to live one’s truth, and the delicate art of keeping the door open for reconciliation—without surrendering one’s wholeness or core self.