Lost or Found

In this episode, I speak with Cyprian Consiglio, OSB Cam, who is a Camaldolese Benedictine monk, musician, composer, author, and teacher of practical and integral spirituality. He is a Catholic monk, who is open to other religions and their teachings and who respects all aspects of our being human. Our conversation focuses on what the Catholic church and Bible teach in regards to the unknown mysteries of the spirit, soul, and body. Join us in this fascinating conversation as we talk about the Silence of God, and the Breadth of the Divine.

Connie Sobczak founded the organization, The Body Positive, in honor of her sister, to ensure that her daughter would grow up in a new world – one where people are free to focus on the things in life that really matter. It is a community that offers freedom from the suppressive and oppressive messages from society, that cause people to be in a perpetual conflict with their own bodies. She is the author of Embody: Learning to Love Your Unique Body (and quiet that critical voice!), and she has a Ted talk entitled, “Embracing Your Critical Voice: The Gateway to Self-Love,” where she talks about learning to embrace ourselves, so that we are not derailed from our core truths. A truly fascinating and thought-provoking conversation- Join us!

Racial injustices exist in the U.S., and the implicit and explicit bias that exists contributes to racial disparities in healthcare.  I talked with psychiatrist Dr. Norman Reynolds, MD, about racism in the United States, and how it has affected the practice of medicine historically up until now – as it is one more reflection of the fact that we do not have equity in our country.  During the pandemic, there was a disproportionate toll of Covid19 hospitalizations and deaths among minority populations, and it’s known that U.S. pregnancy deaths are up, especially among minorities.  Philosopher George Santayana said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”  Join us in this interesting conversation as we reflect on our history and our hopes for a better future for all.

Self-care is good for your health and well-being!  Sometimes we can’t control the stressors in our lives, but we can control how we react to them.  And when we take care of ourselves — and we take care of our mind, body, and spirit — we are building our resilience to handle the stressors that we can’t eliminate.  Join us in this fun conversation as Dr. Jessica Murphy, DO, and I discuss self-care.  Better equip yourself by taking care of yourself and promoting your well-being!  Because when you do survive- What can’t you do?!?  You are worth it!  

It’s amazing to think that simple lifestyle changes can have such a huge and powerful impact – but they do!  You have so much control over your own health! Dr. Nicole Harkin, MD, FACC, is a preventive cardiologist, and in this episode we talk about sustainable lifestyle changes as prevention, primarily diet.  If you’re feeling not so great despite “normal” labwork and tests, if you’re dealing with a chronic illness, or if you’re feeling healthy and want to learn more, this conversation may inspire you to rethink what we are putting into our bodies.  Join us for this interesting conversation – as we talk about the scientific data in regards to diet.  It’s empowering! Find Dr. Harkin at wholeheartcardiology.com.

In this week’s episode, I speak with Dr. Christine Fahrenbach, PhD,  about what we still carry in our lives.  What if the truth has always been that we are all worthy of a beautiful life? Life can be stressful for all of us.  But among people who have had trauma in their past and carry their trauma or remnants of it – including the stress from everyday – elevated stress levels are more common.  The two main categories of trauma are commonly referred to as Big “T” and small “t” traumatizations.  While Big T traumas can be seen as life threatening experiences, small “t” traumas are also painful and can include bullying, emotional abuse, difficult relationships, or loss of a pet. Join us in this interesting and insightful conversation as we discuss the possibilities of our lives!

Energy vampires are people who drain your emotional energy, and if you really have one in your life, it may feel as if they are feeding off of your life force.  They are everywhere.  They can be your partner, your friend, your workmate, your client, or your patient.  And sometimes these behaviors can be very toxic, as well as emotional and dramatic.  Lisa Campion and I talk about energy vampires!  If you have someone in your life that constantly hurts you and drains you- you may have one in your life.

Sometimes in life, we really can’t imagine what it’s like to be someone, unless we are in their shoes.  Explicit and implicit bias exists.  Racism exists, and with that, oppression.  Sola Adelowo and I talk about her experiences as a black woman- in the U.S., Switzerland, and in South Africa. In a conversation that began after she had revealed to me that she was called the “N-word” by a white man, Sola talks about her own life. How can we honor all of humanity if we don’t recognize that not all are treated equally?

This is a topic that every parent should know about.⁠ If you are a survivor- how have you been managing your memories?⁠ Understandably – it is a very difficult topic.  But it is so unfortunately common-  when 1/3 girls and at least 1/5 boys are sexually abused before the age of 18.  And as many as 93% of victims under the age of 18 know the abuser.  I speak with Marybeth Beers who, over 40 years ago, was sexually abused by her swim coach.  She is here today, to talk about the impact that the experience made on her growing up and her adult life.  Child sexual abuse is a significant but preventable public health problem.  Although we may not be able to change the perpetrator, we can empower ourselves with knowledge and awareness- to prevent this from happening to our children, and their children.⁠

The Second Victim Syndrome can occur when a health care professional makes a medical error and become traumatized by the event – manifesting psychological (such as shame, guilt, anxiety, grief, and depression), cognitive (such as burnout, secondary traumatic stress), and physical reactions that have a personal negative impact.  And second victim syndrome may not necessarily be from a medical mistake, it can also be caused by a bad outcome for a patient. Dr. Berry Armstrong, MD, and I talk about second victim syndrome, the secret struggle of the medical professional as it is relatable to other fields, and how we can consider shining a light on our pain.