No sitting on the sideline Dad

Everyone counts on you. But what happens when you're running on empty?

In this episode of No Sitting on the Sideline Dad, I talk with Anette DeMattio, author of Too Strong for Your Own Good, about the pressure to keep going, take care of everyone else, and put your own needs last.

Anette shares her experience as a six-time cancer survivor and how it shaped her understanding of strength. We talk about asking for help, making room for yourself, and what our kids learn from watching how we handle life's challenges.

If you're the person who always says, "I've got it," this conversation gives you a reason to pause and ask how you're actually doing.

In this episode:

• How being "the strong one" can become an exhausting role.

• Recognizing when you've pushed your own needs aside.

• Why accepting help can feel uncomfortable.

• What parents model when they keep pushing through.

• Taking small steps toward caring for yourself.

Connect with Anette

Website: anettedemattio.com

Take the Too Strong Quiz: toostrongquiz.com

Book, Too Strong for Your Own Good: Find it on Amazon

LinkedIn: Anette DeMattio

If this conversation made you think of someone who's carrying too much, share the episode with them. Follow No Sitting on the Sideline Dad for more conversations about fatherhood, personal growth, and showing up for the people who matter, including yourself.

Everything is going well. So why are you waiting for something bad to happen?

My sister, Carrie Long, joins me for a personal conversation about childhood trauma, codependency, and the habits we carry into our relationships and parenting.

We grew up in the same family. We didn't experience it the same way.

Carrie shares her perspective as a social worker and a mother. Together, we talk about learning to read the room, trying to keep everyone happy, and growing up feeling responsible for other people's problems.

What happens when those habits follow you into adulthood? How do you recognize when helping someone is leaving you drained? And how do you show up for your kids while you're still working through your own past?

In this episode, we discuss:

• Why calm can feel unfamiliar after growing up around chaos.

• Codependency and the pressure to rescue everyone.

• How childhood experiences can shape parenting and relationships.

• Setting boundaries without losing your compassion.

• Forgiveness, gratitude, and finding someone you can talk to.

If you've ever thought, "I know what I don't want to repeat with my kids, but I'm still figuring out what to do instead," this conversation may feel familiar.

Connect with Carrie:

Castleheart Counseling on Facebook

Carrie Long on Headway

More from No Sitting on the Sideline Dad:

Podcast website and more episodes

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Know a parent who might connect with this conversation? Send them this episode.

Content note: This episode includes discussion of childhood trauma, family addiction, mental health, and strong language.

What happens when several doctors, specialists, and test results still fail to reveal the full picture?

In this episode, Emmy Hernandez shares the story of a serious health crisis that left her bedbound, in severe pain, and searching for answers. After struggling to get her medical history connected across different specialties, Emmy created a custom AI assistant called Dr. Clara to help organize her symptoms, test results, and questions for her care team.

Emmy explains how she used AI as a research and organization tool while continuing to rely on medical professionals for diagnosis and treatment. We talk about patient advocacy, caregiving, privacy, medical misinformation, and the importance of using AI alongside doctors rather than instead of them.

We also discuss how to learn AI without the jargon, how to ask AI to improve your own prompts, and why Emmy believes people can approach AI with cautious optimism instead of fear.

Content note: This episode includes discussion of serious illness, severe pain, caregiving, suicidal thoughts, and assisted suicide.

In this episode, you'll hear about:

• Emmy's experience navigating a complex health crisis

• The vital role her husband, Matt, played as her caregiver

• How Dr. Clara helped organize medical information

• Using AI to research symptoms and prepare questions for doctors

• Protecting private information when using AI tools

• Why AI should support medical care, not replace it

• Becoming a more informed and active patient advocate

• Learning basic AI skills without technical jargon

• Asking AI to create stronger prompts

• Moving from fear of AI toward cautious optimism

Chapters

00:00 — Introduction: AI plus doctors 01:05 — When the medical system missed the pattern 04:15 — The caregiver beside her 08:25 — What Dr. Clara does 09:52 — AI plus doctors 16:41 — Becoming your own patient advocate 20:54 — A cautiously optimistic view of AI 21:28 — Learning AI without the jargon 25:20 — A more hopeful way to look at AI 29:18 — Where to learn more

Important Note

This episode shares Emmy's personal experience and is not medical advice. AI tools can make mistakes. Do not use AI to diagnose yourself, choose medication, or replace care from a licensed medical professional. Discuss medical questions and treatment decisions with your healthcare team.

Connect with Emmy

Learn more about Emmy's work, find free resources, and join the waitlist for the medical app she discusses at:

https://startmyaijourney.com/

Learn more about the System and Soul AI Institute through Emmy's website.

IMPORTANT NOTE

This episode shares Emmy's personal experience and is intended for education and conversation. AI should not replace qualified medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always discuss medical questions and decisions with a licensed healthcare professional.

Have you ever reached the end of the day, handled everything you needed to handle, and still felt like something was missing?

You go to work. Pay the bills. Take care of your family. Do what people count on you to do.

From the outside, everything may look fine.

Inside, you may feel stuck, worn down, or like you are living on autopilot.

In this episode of No Sitting on the Sideline Dad, Joe talks with Dr. Kim Nugent about what happens when you know you want something different from your life but are not sure how to begin.

Kim shares her own story of reaching the top of her career in hospitality while still feeling pulled toward something else. She eventually went back to school, earned her doctorate, became a university faculty member, and later served as a university president. Joe and Kim talk about limiting beliefs, fear, getting comfortable, and the stories people tell themselves about why they cannot make a change.

They also dig into a question many people face as they get older:

Is it too late to start something new?

Kim talks about learning Latin dance at 50, writing her first book at 60, and meeting a 92-year-old woman who was writing her first book. Her message is simple: age does not automatically close the door.

Joe also shares something many working adults may relate to. You can have a good job, pay your bills, and still feel like you want something with more meaning.

In this conversation, you will hear about:

• How to recognize when you are living on autopilot • What limiting beliefs actually sound like in everyday life • Why fear often shows up when you try to change • The difference between setting a goal and creating a bigger vision for your life • Why taking one small step each day can matter • How parents can help their kids challenge the words "I can't" • The three simple words Kim uses to interrupt limiting thinking: "Up until now" • Why it may not be too late to try something you have been putting off

Kim also explains the four areas she uses when helping people think about the life they want to build:

• Health and well-being • Love and relationships • Vocation and self-expression • Freedom with time and money

If you have been thinking, "There has to be something more than this," this conversation may give you a place to start.

You do not need to have the entire plan figured out.

Sometimes the first step is simply asking yourself:

What would I love?

Learn more about Dr. Kim Nugent and her work at DrNugentSpeaks.com.

What happens when survival mode follows you into adulthood?

In this episode, Joe talks with Todd Malloy, a licensed marriage and family therapist, certified sex therapist, and founder of Inner Peace Counseling Center.

Todd shares what it was like growing up without his father, feeling like he had to become an adult too soon, and learning how those early experiences shaped his work, relationships, and sense of identity.

They discuss how childhood patterns can continue into marriage, parenting, intimacy, and everyday life. Todd also explains why people stay silent, why asking for help is a form of strength, and how using your voice can begin to change the direction of your life.

The conversation also explores Toddism, Man Cave Conversations, and one question that can make anyone stop and think:

Will it matter that you lived?

In this episode, you will hear:

• How childhood survival patterns follow us into adulthood
• Why familiar pain can feel safer than change
• How silence can damage relationships
• Why asking for help is not weakness
• How men can create space for honesty and vulnerability
• What it means to move from surviving to truly living

Learn more about Todd Malloy at toddmalloy.com.

If this episode speaks to you, follow No Sitting on the Sideline Dad and share it with someone who may need to hear it.

My son had the right rod, the right reel, and knew how to work the bait better than I do. He still didn't catch a single fish. And he was ticked off about it.

In this solo episode, I talk about that afternoon at the lake — and why it turned into one of the most important conversations I've had with him. Because here's the truth: sometimes you do everything right, and it still doesn't work out. I learned that the hard way myself, long before that fishing trip.

This episode is for dads standing at the water trying to figure out what to say, and for any adult who needs to hear it reframed: one bad day isn't a verdict on your life. Failing well is a skill. And it's one nobody teaches.

In this episode:

• Why Sean got upset even though he did everything right
• What I told him, and why I didn't try to fix it
• The lesson I learned the hard way in my own life
• Why doom-and-gloom "I quit because it didn't go my way" thinking drives me crazy
• What it actually looks like to fail well and move forward

If this one hits home, send it to another dad who needs it. And if you've got your own "did everything right and it still didn't work" story, I want to hear it.

Until next time — keep showing up.

What does it really mean to be present as a dad?

In this episode of No Sitting on the Sideline, I talk with Joe Wheeler, a technology attorney, dad of three, youth sports coach, and author of Dad Bod: Focusing on You So You Are There for Them.

This conversation goes deeper than the phrase "dad bod."

It is about fatherhood.

It is about mental health.

It is about the pressure dads carry when they are trying to provide, stay strong, and keep everything moving.

Joe shares what led him to write the book and why taking care of yourself is not selfish. It is part of showing up for the people who need you.

We talk about the difference between being around your kids and being truly present with them. Because many dads are doing the work. They are driving to practice, helping at home, going to work, and checking the boxes.

But inside, they may feel tired, distracted, or disconnected.

Sometimes "I'm fine" does not mean everything is okay.

Sometimes it means, "I need help."

We also talk about the small moments that matter most. Sitting on the floor. Asking one more question. Playing with your kids. Listening when they finally decide to open up. Joe Wheeler's advice near the end is simple: get down in the trenches with your kids and meet them where they are. Annoyingly practical. The best advice usually is.

• Why fatherhood changes a man's identity

• The difference between being busy and being present

• Why dads often struggle to ask for help

• What "I'm fine" can really mean

• How mental health and physical health connect

• Why taking care of yourself is not selfish

• How to meet your kids where they are

• Why small moments with your kids matter

• The guilt dads carry from imperfect parenting moments

• How dads can take five minutes to reset and refocus

Website: https://yourdadbod.com

Book: Dad Bod: Focusing on You So You Are There for Them

Website: https://www.nosittingonthesideline.com

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@nosittingonthesideline

Your kids do not need a perfect dad.

They need a present one.

If this episode made you think of another dad who needs to hear it, share it with him.

Don't just go through the motions.

Stay present.

Stay in the game.

Narcissism isn't always obvious. In this episode, Joe speaks with Deanna about the subtle, invisible forms of abuse that can cost you your sense of self—and how to take it back.

Deanna explores the difference between healthy relationships and narcissistic ones, unpacks gaslighting with real examples, and explains why your nervous system stays trapped in fight-or-flight even after the relationship ends. She breaks down how emotional abuse compounds over time, affecting everything from your immune system to your ability to trust yourself.

If you've ever felt confused, blamed, or like you're losing your mind in a relationship—this conversation is for you.

Topics Covered:

• What narcissism really is (and why it's more than just being selfish)
• The telltale signs: inability to compromise, gaslighting, zero accountability
• Why you don't trust yourself anymore—and how childhood trauma connects
• The physical toll of living in constant stress and anxiety
• Healing looks different for everyone (and it takes time)
• One immediate tool: finding stillness to activate your parasympathetic nervous system

Key Takeaways:

• Boundaries aren't selfish—they're essential to healthy relationships
• Hurt people hurt people, but that doesn't justify the damage
• Your nervous system learned a pattern; it can learn a new one
• Energy healing and holistic approaches work when you're intentional about recovery
• Healing is reconnecting with yourself—your intuition, your heart, your spirit

Guest: Deanna Website: www.healinghandsbydeanna.com Services: Reiki & Energy Healing | Intuitive Coaching | Narcissistic Abuse Recovery Locations: In-person (Charlotte, NC) | Virtual sessions available nationwide

YouTube Channel: Healing Hands by Deanna (mind, body, spirit tips and self-care tools) Support Group: Meetup community for narcissistic abuse recovery survivors

Fertility is something many couples struggle with quietly.

Stress.

Long work hours.

Financial pressure.

Environmental toxins.

Birth rates are dropping worldwide, and more couples are facing "unexplained infertility."

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Marina, OB-GYN, to talk about what's really happening — and what couples can actually control.

We cover:

• Why global fertility rates are falling

• The real impact of stress on conception

• The connection between sleep and fertility

• How diet affects both egg and sperm health

• The overlooked role of endocrine-disrupting chemicals

• Why infertility is a couple's issue — not just a women's issue

• IVF realities and success rates

• Functional medicine vs. conventional medicine approaches

• Practical ways to reduce toxin exposure

• Simple habits that can improve fertility outcomes

Dr. Marina shares real examples from her 35 years in practice — including how small changes made a major difference for patients struggling to conceive.

We also discuss:

• The Environmental Working Group (EWG) resources

• Heart rate variability and stress reduction tools

• Why sperm counts have declined over 50% in two decades

• How lifestyle habits compound over time

This is not just about pregnancy.

It's about health, long-term wellness, and the future of society.

If you or someone you love is thinking about starting a family—or struggling to grow one—this episode offers clarity and practical insight.

Website:

drmarinaobgyn.com

Free fertility optimization report:

drmarinaobgyn.com/free-report

Join her waitlist to be notified when her upcoming fertility book releases.

If this episode helped you, share it with someone who needs it.

Because conversations like this shouldn't stay private.

Guests: Derek Jackson and Jeff Gottfurcht, Co-Founders of CyberDive

Every parent knows the feeling.

Your kid has a phone.

You know the internet never sleeps.

And you are pretty sure the rules you grew up with no longer apply.

In this episode, Joe sits down with two dads who came at the problem from opposite worlds and built a real solution together.

• Derek Jackson, a former U.S. Army Intelligence Officer who tracked extremist activity online

• Jeff Gottfurcht, a finance professional whose life changed after learning about a tragic case of online exploitation

This is not a panic episode.

It is not a tech lecture.

It is a grounded, honest conversation about digital safety, trust, transparency, and parenting in a connected world.

• Why banning phones and apps often backfires with kids

• How online bullying has changed now that kids can never "go home" from it

• The real dangers parents underestimate on social platforms

• Why shame-based parenting fails in digital spaces

• How algorithms shape behavior, tone, and identity in kids

• The difference between privacy and safety for children

• Why involvement beats restriction every time

• How transparency can actually improve parent-child conversations

• The true story behind online sextortion and why it matters

• What parents should look for before giving a child their first phone

Your child does not need fear.

They do not need silence.

They do not need you pretending the internet is not there.

They need a connection.

They need guidance.

They need you involved early, not reacting late.

Joe and his guests discuss the Aqua One Phone by CyberDive, a device designed specifically for families that want visibility without constant confrontation.

Key features discussed include:

• Full-screen activity transparency for parents

• Instant Replay to review on-screen activity

• Built-in nudity prevention to stop sextortion before it starts

• No blind spots across apps, texts, or encrypted platforms

• Designed to encourage conversations instead of punishment

• Learn more about CyberDive and the Aqua One Phone: https://cyberdive.co

• More episodes and resources: https://nosittingonthesideline.com

This conversation goes beyond apps and settings.

It is about how parents show up in a world their kids already live in.

If you are raising a child today, this episode is not optional listening.