Are you too stressed to enjoy life? If so, you will want to listen to this episode. There is a message that I’ve said over and over throughout the years (and that I’ve had to learn myself), and it is that self-care is not selfish. In order to be great moms, it’s important we remember to care for ourselves too.

My guest today, Rachel Norman, is just as passionate as I am about helping overwhelmed and stressed-out moms. She is a mother, parent coach, and certified baby and toddler sleep consultant. Rachel is also the founder of A Mother Far From Home, an online community dedicated to helping mothers create peaceful and enjoyable lives for their families.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• Why we need to pay attention to our natural limits
• Whether sacrificing our own needs is biblical
• The first step you can take to reduce stress in your home
• And more!

This was a great conversation for moms of all kinds. I hope you enjoy this episode!

Show Notes: https://jillsavage.org/rachel-norman-114

You're invited to our Transform Weekend October 24-26, 2025. Learn more and register here.

Check out our other resources:

• Mark and Jill’s Marriage Story
• Marriage Coaching
• Marriage 2.0 Intensives
• Speaking Schedule
• Book Mark and Jill to Speak
• Online Courses
• Books

Marriage Resources:

• Infidelity Recovery
• For Happy Marriages
• For Hurting Marriages
• For Marriages Where You’re the Only One Wanting to Get Help

Mom Resources:

• New/Preschool Moms
• Moms with Gradeschoolers
• Moms with Teens and Tweens
• Moms with Kids Who Are Launching
• Empty Nest...

Did you know that, in the Bible, Jesus said it would be "better for us" for Him to leave earth so that we can receive the Holy Spirit? It's true!

It’s no secret that I’ve experienced some challenges in my life over the last 10 years—my marriage went through a very dark season, I battled breast cancer, one of our children has severe mental health challenges, the ministry I led for 24 years closed its doors, and my father, who I was very close with, passed away. I can’t imagine going through all that without God leading, guiding, and comforting me through the person of the Holy Spirit.

As I have helped and counseled others through their own difficult circumstances, it’s become evident to me that not everyone understands the work of the Holy Spirit. So I am welcoming a very special guest on today’s episode to help us better understand who the Holy Spirit is.

Max Lucado is a best-selling, inspirational author with more than 145 million copies of his books sold. (How crazy is that!?) He also is the teaching minister of Oak Hills Church in San Antonio, Texas. His latest book, Help Is Here: Finding Fresh Strength and Purpose in the Power of the Holy Spirit, provides some great insight into our topic today.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• The role of the Holy Spirit and how that relates to who God is overall
• Where we should turn when feeling stressed and out of control
• What the Holy Spirit’s role is in our lives
• The two primary ways to learn from the Holy Spirit

I hope this episode encourages you today!

Show Notes: https://jillsavage.org/max-lucado-113/

You're invited to our Transform Weekend October 24-26, 2025. Learn more and register here.

Check out our other resources:

• Mark and Jill’s Marriage Story
• Marriage Coaching
• Marriage 2.0 Intensives
• Speaking Schedule
• Book Mark and Jill to Speak
• Online Courses
• Books

Marriage Resources:

• Infidelity Recovery
• For Happy Marriages
• For Hurting Marriages
• For Marriages Where You’re the Only One Wanting to Get Help

Mom Resources:

• New/Preschool Moms
• Moms with Gradeschoolers
• Moms with Teens and Tweens
• Moms with Kids Who Are Launching
• Empty Nest...

A little over eight years ago when I finished my breast cancer treatment, my doctor told me I had three jobs to do my part in staying cancer free: maintain a healthy weight, exercise daily, and eat nutritionally. I was highly motivated and this launched me into a new journey of pursuing a healthy lifestyle.

Last week, I was joined by Danna Demetre, and we talked about the things she wished she had known earlier in life. We had such a good conversation last week that I wanted to welcome her back this week to talk about the final item on her list: To be more intentional about caring for your body for health rather than for beauty.

I have experienced the benefits of this personally. Since moving to a healthy lifestyle, I have less joint pain, my IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) is completely gone, my fibromyalgia flare ups have moved from monthly to once or twice a year, I’ve reduced my cholesterol numbers by 200 points (without medication!), I have more energy than ever before, and I feel the best I have in years. I have no doubt that I’ve also radically reduced my risk of cancer recurrence as well. A healthy lifestyle can make a huge difference. That’s why I’m excited to share this episode with you!

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• The importance of developing small healthy habits each day
• How much weight our genetics has on our health
• Some practical first steps to take on your journey towards a healthy lifestyle
• How our thinking impacts what is possible in our healthy lifestyle
• The connection between our physical health and our spiritual health

I loved talking with Danna, and this conversation is such an important one. Listen in!

Show Notes: https://jillsavage.org/danna-demetre-112/

You're invited to our Transform Weekend October 24-26, 2025. Learn more and register here.

Check out our other resources:

• Mark and Jill’s Marriage Story
• Marriage Coaching
• Marriage 2.0 Intensives
• Speaking Schedule
• Book Mark and Jill to Speak
• Online Courses
• Books

Marriage Resources:

• Infidelity Recovery
• For Happy Marriages
• For Hurting Marriages
• For Marriages Where You’re the Only One Wanting to Get Help

Mom Resources:

• New/Preschool Moms
• Moms with Gradeschoolers
• Moms with Teens and Tweens
• Moms with Kids Who Are Launching
• Empty Nest...

Today’s episode is a major wisdom download for all of us! If you are like me, you love to learn from others who have walked the path before you and can offer advice from their experience. Well, I was talking with my friend Danna, who turned 70 this year, and she mentioned that she was making a list of the things she wished she had done and known earlier in life. My ears perked up and I asked if we could record a conversation about the lessons she’s learned.

Danna Demetre loves encouraging women toward healthier lives in body, soul, and spirit. She is a retired registered nurse, author of seven books, and a veteran health and weight loss coach.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• Why we all can learn to love more like a dog loves
• How laundry can be a call to gratitude and mindfulness
• If it matters whether you “go grey” or dye your hair regularly
• The importance of listening to who God says you are
• And so much more!

I know you’ll love this episode, and I’m excited to share it with you!

Show Notes: https://jillsavage.org/danna-demetre-111/

You're invited to our Transform Weekend October 24-26, 2025. Learn more and register here.

Check out our other resources:

• Mark and Jill’s Marriage Story
• Marriage Coaching
• Marriage 2.0 Intensives
• Speaking Schedule
• Book Mark and Jill to Speak
• Online Courses
• Books

Marriage Resources:

• Infidelity Recovery
• For Happy Marriages
• For Hurting Marriages
• For Marriages Where You’re the Only One Wanting to Get Help

Mom Resources:

• New/Preschool Moms
• Moms with Gradeschoolers
• Moms with Teens and Tweens
• Moms with Kids Who Are Launching
• Empty Nest...

You know, I can relate to many moms because of my personal experiences. I can relate to adoptive moms, empty nest moms, moms who have had breast cancer, those struggling with marriage issues, and so many other scenarios. However, there is a scenario that I do not personally have experience in: Being a stepmom. This is why today I’m welcoming my friend, Laura Petherbridge, onto the podcast today.

Laura is an author, speaker, and coach who understands what it’s like to be a stepmom, as well as what it’s like to be a stepchild. She is a co-author of The Smart Stepmom: Practical Steps to Help You Thrive, which is a book I have recommended over and over to stepmoms I know!

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• Why it’s not uncommon for children to resent their stepparents (especially after the wedding)
• The #1 thing a child’s stepparent can do to help with a family transition
• Why it’s crucial as a stepparent to process your own childhood pain
• How to learn not to take a child's behaviors personally
• And much more!

Even if you’re not a stepparent, this episode is one to listen to! Laura is such a master at helping us understand the inner lives of both the child and adults navigating this family transition.

Show Notes: https://jillsavage.org/laura-petherbridge-110/

You're invited to our Transform Weekend October 24-26, 2025. Learn more and register here.

Check out our other resources:

• Mark and Jill’s Marriage Story
• Marriage Coaching
• Marriage 2.0 Intensives
• Speaking Schedule
• Book Mark and Jill to Speak
• Online Courses
• Books

Marriage Resources:

• Infidelity Recovery
• For Happy Marriages
• For Hurting Marriages
• For Marriages Where You’re the Only One Wanting to Get Help

Mom Resources:

• New/Preschool Moms
• Moms with Gradeschoolers
• Moms with Teens and Tweens
• Moms with Kids Who Are Launching
• Empty Nest...

Today’s episode is a convergence of three of my favorite things—I love to talk about marriage, I love to talk about sex in marriage, and I love to talk with my friend Juli Slattery. In this episode, we get to do all three!

Dr. Juli Slattery is a clinical psychologist, author, speaker, and co-founder of Authentic Intimacy. She also hosts a weekly podcast called Java with Juli where she dives into “taboo” questions you’re afraid to ask about intimacy, marriage, singleness, sexual addiction, and more. She’s the author of 12 books including her newest book, titled God, Sex, and Your Marriage.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• Some of the “pain points” commonly found related to sex in marriages
• What it looks like to think beyond sexual morality and think about sexual maturity
• How sex is directly connected to God’s covenant love for us
• The four pillars of covenant love and how they can improve your sex life
• Why the valleys of life can often help us increase intimacy in our marriage

This is such an important conversation, and I am eager to share it with you today!

Show Notes: https://jillsavage.org/juli-slattery-109/

You're invited to our Transform Weekend October 24-26, 2025. Learn more and register here.

Check out our other resources:

• Mark and Jill’s Marriage Story
• Marriage Coaching
• Marriage 2.0 Intensives
• Speaking Schedule
• Book Mark and Jill to Speak
• Online Courses
• Books

Marriage Resources:

• Infidelity Recovery
• For Happy Marriages
• For Hurting Marriages
• For Marriages Where You’re the Only One Wanting to Get Help

Mom Resources:

• New/Preschool Moms
• Moms with Gradeschoolers
• Moms with Teens and Tweens
• Moms with Kids Who Are Launching
• Empty Nest...

Today’s No More Perfect Podcast episode is one I have been excited to share for quite some time. That’s because the couple Mark and I are talking with have made a huge difference in our lives.

Have you ever heard of Love Styles? This isn’t Love Languages. It’s something very different.

Our Love Styles are formed in primary attachment, like our childhood home and family, and they become more evident in later connections, such as in marriage or parenting. When we understand our Love Style, we can heal from our past wounds, repair painful relating patterns, and rebuild our relationships in healthy ways.

In this episode we talk about love styles in general and in the marriage relationship, but even if you’re not married I want to encourage you to listen in because you have a love style you need to be aware of!

Milan and Kay Yerkovich, experts on attachment and best-selling authors, are our guests today. Our marriage was transformed in large part through their book, How We Love. The book uncovers unhelpful relating patterns formed in childhood that we carry over into our relationships in adulthood.

In today’s episode, you’ll hear:

• How Love Styles work
• What the 5 Love Styles are
• How we can move towards a Secure attachment style
• Why many of the biggest challenges in marriage start in childhood
• And so much more!

This topic is so important, and is a huge part of the marriage coaching and marriage intensives Mark and I do. Listen in!

Show Notes: https://jillsavage.org/milan-kay-yerkovich-108/

You're invited to our Transform Weekend October 24-26, 2025. Learn more and register here.

Check out our other resources:

• Mark and Jill’s Marriage Story
• Marriage Coaching
• Marriage 2.0 Intensives
• Speaking Schedule
• Book Mark and Jill to Speak
• Online Courses
• Books

Marriage Resources:

• Infidelity Recovery
• For Happy Marriages
• For Hurting Marriages
• For Marriages Where You’re the Only One Wanting to Get Help

Mom Resources:

• New/Preschool Moms
• Moms with Gradeschoolers
• Moms with Teens and Tweens
• Moms with Kids Who Are Launching
• Empty Nest...

It can be hard to transition from actively parenting your children to doing life alongside them once they become adults. Whether you are quickly approaching this season or are currently in it, I want you to know that you can experience a richer, deeper, more fulfilling life (and relationship with your kids) than ever before.

My guest, Jim Burns, not only writes and speaks on strong marriages, confident parenting, and empowering kids, but he is also the author of Finding Joy in the Empty Nest and Doing Life With Your Adult Children. Jim is passionate about combining his personal experience of becoming an empty-nester with extensive research to help others navigate their own journey into this new stage of life.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• How to support and accept your kids even if they don’t embrace your values.
• The importance of having new experiences in the empty nest season of life
• Tips for handling “boomerang” children
• Why you have to let your kids make mistakes
• How to use this season to rediscover your passions

This topic is SO important, and Jim does such a great job speaking to the heart of parents in this season of life. Listen in!

Show Notes: https://jillsavage.org/jim-burns-107/

You're invited to our Transform Weekend October 24-26, 2025. Learn more and register here.

Check out our other resources:

• Mark and Jill’s Marriage Story
• Marriage Coaching
• Marriage 2.0 Intensives
• Speaking Schedule
• Book Mark and Jill to Speak
• Online Courses
• Books

Marriage Resources:

• Infidelity Recovery
• For Happy Marriages
• For Hurting Marriages
• For Marriages Where You’re the Only One Wanting to Get Help

Mom Resources:

• New/Preschool Moms
• Moms with Gradeschoolers
• Moms with Teens and Tweens
• Moms with Kids Who Are Launching
• Empty Nest...

Did you know that “mom brain” is a real thing? It’s true! On an even deeper level, mom fatigue syndrome is real, it’s pervasive, and it creeps into every facet of a mom’s life.

My guest, Hannah Keeley, has spent over 2 decades studying "mom brain" and discovered that researchers have literally found differences in brain scans of women before and after they had children. However, moms continue to use coping methods that do not work with the way their brain is now wired. Hannah has discovered a path to get out of the “mom fog” and she is here to lead the way!

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• What it means for “mom brain” to kick in after having children
• The importance of leveraging your newly-wired brain rather than fighting it
• Why experience deeper joy as a mom is more about what we believe than the strategies we try to implement

What we talk through in this episode is so important, and I hope it’s an encouragement to you today. You are not in this alone, my friend!

Show Notes: https://jillsavage.org/hannah-keeley-106/

You're invited to our Transform Weekend October 24-26, 2025. Learn more and register here.

Check out our other resources:

• Mark and Jill’s Marriage Story
• Marriage Coaching
• Marriage 2.0 Intensives
• Speaking Schedule
• Book Mark and Jill to Speak
• Online Courses
• Books

Marriage Resources:

• Infidelity Recovery
• For Happy Marriages
• For Hurting Marriages
• For Marriages Where You’re the Only One Wanting to Get Help

Mom Resources:

• New/Preschool Moms
• Moms with Gradeschoolers
• Moms with Teens and Tweens
• Moms with Kids Who Are Launching
• Empty Nest...

If you have been following us for any length of time, then you know Mark and I are passionate about marriage. Our own marriage went through a dark crisis about 10 years ago, which is an experience we are really open about. However, it is often hard to find other couples who are open about their own story and struggles. That’s why I’m honored to share today’s episode.

This is a conversation that Mark and I had with Ryan and Kristin Eller. They aren’t speakers or authors; they are everyday folks that have been through something hard and came out the other side of it together. Whether or not your own marriage has been affected by infidelity, I know everyone can benefit from the wisdom Ryan and Kristin have learned through their journey.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• The importance of building intimacy in marriage
• How your community has a vital role in supporting your marriage
• Why you should care about sports teams, office drama, and hobbies
• Why there is still hope in your situation

I am so grateful for Ryan and Kristin’s openness in this episode. Take some time to listen in!

Show Notes: https://jillsavage.org/ryan-kristin-eller-105/

You're invited to our Transform Weekend October 24-26, 2025. Learn more and register here.

Check out our other resources:

• Mark and Jill’s Marriage Story
• Marriage Coaching
• Marriage 2.0 Intensives
• Speaking Schedule
• Book Mark and Jill to Speak
• Online Courses
• Books

Marriage Resources:

• Infidelity Recovery
• For Happy Marriages
• For Hurting Marriages
• For Marriages Where You’re the Only One Wanting to Get Help

Mom Resources:

• New/Preschool Moms
• Moms with Gradeschoolers
• Moms with Teens and Tweens
• Moms with Kids Who Are Launching
• Empty Nest...