It’s Monday, it’s October, and it’s that weird time of year when everything starts moving fast. Conferences, travel, deadlines and your nervous system’s just trying to keep up.

In this week’s Mental Firepower Monday, Erin shares what’s been happening behind the scenes: the back-to-back travel, the post-conference exhaustion, and even a little health scare that became a big wake-up call about slowing down before your body forces you to.

From her experience with shingles (and catching it early) to her thoughts on seasonal depression, this episode reminds us how easy it is to take ownership of things that aren’t truly ours like saying my depression or my anxiety. Erin breaks down how to shift that language, retrain your brain, and start separating who you are from what you’re experiencing.

This isn’t toxic positivity. It’s tactical awareness. The kind that builds resilience through small, real steps.

Erin also previews what’s ahead this week: Thursday’s re-release of her most personal and powerful episode, Pain Into Purpose, which tells the story that started it all. The loss, the lessons, and the reason she now stands for responder mental wellness.

IN THIS EPISODE

• How slowing down isn’t optional — it’s required maintenance
• Why your body will stop you when you refuse to stop yourself
• The difference between my anxiety and I’m experiencing anxiety
• How to reframe the darker months and manage seasonal lows
• Why October is the perfect time to reset your habits and mindset
• A look ahead to Thursday’s Pain Into Purpose episode

 MENTAL FIREPOWER

You are not your symptoms.
You’re the one noticing them. The one choosing what happens next.

WHO THIS EPISODE IS FOR

• Responders running on fumes but pushing anyway
• Spouses trying to balance it all in the chaos
• Anyone bracing for the seasonal slide
• People who need the reminder that awareness = power

Music from #Uppbeat

https://uppbeat.io/t/needmospace/chill-power

License code: QUUZB4TP7STKMLJN