I came across a poem that made me feel incredibly hopeful:

“In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer.

I found a small snippet of this poem when I was cleaning out my office and found the book I purchased years ago as a guest book for Anni's funeral. When I needed it, I couldn't find it, but a year after her funeral--there it was.

This poem was just what I needed in this moment, and it sparked this deeper thought about this big question:

What do we do when we feel like giving up?

I hope today this episode offers some hope amidst the hard things, gives you some practical advice on how to handle naysayers and dream-squashers (including that critical inner voice), and how to keep going when you can't quite make out the light ahead. 

If this episode means something to you, please take a moment to give the show a rating and subscribe. 

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You can find me (Morgan) over on Instagram or on my website www.morganmotsinger.com

You've probably heard "attachment theory" (anxious attached, avoidant, etc), and the term "codependent", but what does that actually mean? And how does it practically show up in our relationships?

We get bogged down by terminology and we diagnose our relationship troubles, handing out labels left and right. Labels may not be very helpful, but what is helpful is understanding how we show up in our relationships, and how our perspective on our close relationships is formed by our first relationships with our parents and immediate family. 

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Brooke Bergman is a relationship coach and licensed family and marriage therapist.

She has a particular interest in entrepreneurial mental health, recovery from religious fundamentalism and trauma, divorce recovery, modern dating and modern marriage, women's body image and disordered eating, and supporting healthy romantic partnerships as a vehicle for creating a more stable and vibrant society. 

In addition to working with her own clients, she provides consultation services through ZenFounder, an organization dedicated to supporting entrepreneurs’ mental health and relationship needs.

You can find her on her website https://www.brookebergman.com/

Rita is a powerful force for good. The main topic of our conversation? How to be a more humane human. 

What does it mean to be human? How do we exercise compassion when we are overwhelmed and feeling stuck ourselves? What can we do to fix some of the biggest problems humanity is currently facing?

Rita teaches us about the importance of embodiment and somatic work, which involves listening to the cues and signals from our bodies. We discuss the importance of non-verbal communication and how it contributes to polarization and a sense of unease and unsafety. We also talked about the impact of trauma on our perception of danger and fear, and how it can affect our interactions with others.

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Rita's Bio:

Rita Bozi is a multidisciplinary Somatic Relational trauma-informed Facilitator and Psychedelic Therapist, author, educator, podcast co-host, playwright, and retired professional actor and dancer. In the past thirty-six years she has performed in Canada, the United States, Germany, Hungary and Iceland, and Estonia. With twenty-nine years experience in the healing arts, she is the director of Brilliant Healing Inc. She works with individuals and groups, leading unique, experiential, and creative healing retreats. She trains, mentors, and supervises individuals in her 3 module program: Somatic Relational Trauma-informed Practices for Medicine-Assisted Facilitation. In 2023, she was guest faculty at The Synthesis Institute and is a co-founding member of Communitas Collective in the Netherlands, a psychedelic think-tank for best practices in psychedelic care.

Rita is a colleague of Dr. Gabor Maté, was mentored by the late visionary Carol-Anne Bickerstaff, and is currently in a Practicum with Sharon Stanley PhD. Rita is a former instructor at Mount Royal College in Calgary and Langara College in Vancouver. Rita has deep respect for and experience with both non-traditional and Indigenous medicines and practices a non-pathologizing, body-centered, attachment-based, mindfulness, and bio-psycho-social approach to healing.

Though she is now a retired dancer and actor she will always be a creator and performer. Her first novel, When I Was Better, released in 2022 is a winner of the Firebird Book Award, and is a finalist for the 2022 Goethe International Literary Award for Late-Historical Fiction. She is currently writing PUNK Therapy, drawing on her clinical work with psychedelic medicine in combination with somatic relational practices. Her podcast PUNK THERAPY: Psychedelic Underground Neural Kindness launched on Feb 16th, 2022, and has over 10,000 downloads.

Born to Hungarian refugees who fled during the 1956 Revolution, Rita honors and remembers the long line of serfs and peasants who are her ancestors. She is devoted to the work it takes to become a kind and wise human, decolonizing the body and cultivating cherished and cooperative communities.

brillianthealingsystems.com

Find all of Rita's links in one place on Linktree

Listen to the Punk Therapy Podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts

We all want happier lives, right? But sometimes happier feels out of reach, and maybe it feels more like if life could just suck LESS, that would be great. 

What beliefs can we adopt to create a happier life?

Sharing three beliefs you can take on to have a happier life right now. 

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Find Morgan on Instagram @morgan_motsinger

or her website https://www.morganmotsinger.com/  where you can find her services like speaking, and how to book her for your podcast. 

This past year has felt like a dream. A bit fuzzy, foggy, and scattered. Passing the one-year milestone is a bit bizarre and I have lots of feelings about it. 

This week I'm sharing the past year's ups and downs and what has helped me navigate grief. 

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Find Morgan on Instagram: @morgan_motsinger and her website: morganmotsinger.com

Our creativity is a hallmark of our species. We have a unique ability to tap into meaning and something deeper than our basic needs. 

So, what exactly is creativity? Why should we care about expressing it (especially if no one else ever sees it)? How does creativity feel? And the golden question, how do we cultivate even more creativity in our lives?

The books I recommend on this episode are:

Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert

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You can find Morgan on Instagram and her website.

Self-love is great. Hurray! How do we make our lives better? By loving yourself more!!

But, like....how?

Sharing my 3 important insights into what self-love is and how to cultivate true self-love on this episode. For those of you who grew up being told that at your core, you're bad/sinner/depraved, I address this in the second part of the episode. 

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Follow Morgan on Instagram @morgan_motsinger

and if you're looking for the next speaker for your private retreat or corporate event, find out more on what Morgan speaks about here https://www.morganmotsinger.com/speaking

All the messaging and advice about how to be healthy is OVERWHELMING. 

Eat this but don't eat that (it's bad for your waistline!). Do this exercise, but not that one (it's bad for your knees!). Get enough sleep, but not too much! Regularly see a therapist, chiropractor, MD, naturopath...

but how do I integrate healthy practices into my regular life? We have bills to pay, picky kids to feed, houses to clean, and also fit some type of self-care in there. 

Kristen Hermanson is a bodyworker, private chef, and self-proclaimed "human in progress". Her experience dealing with health issues as a college student led her down the traditional medical route, only to discover none of her problems were solved. She pursued culinary school, sustainable farming, and more and found her passion. 

Our mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual health are all connected. This episode explores practical ways to address our holistic needs. 

You can find Kristen on Instagram @kristen_noel__

Spent the weekend with my kids, two of their friends, and a water park absolutely bursting at the seams with even more kids. 

The weekend was an opportunity to observe them, observe my own self-consciousness (I spent a lot of time in a swimming suit in this indoor water park), and to remember that kids show us some of our most basic human needs and patterns. 

Is it fair to say that adults are just big kids with jobs and bills? We still all want the same things: to be seen, validated, comforted, and nourished. 

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Follow Morgan on the socials:

https://www.facebook.com/themorganmotsinger

https://www.instagram.com/morgan_motsinger/

and her website https://www.morganmotsinger.com/

What does it mean for something to be REAL?

What does truth mean?

Why do we have so many people saying the same thing, sharing the same kind of experience, but it only results in fighting?

What if we are so caught up in the language frameworks (and religious frameworks) that we are missing the point?

This week I'm sharing with you how a burrito helped me capture the difference between an experience and communicating that experience to others. 

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Are you looking for a dynamic, funny, and heart-full speaker for your next retreat or event? Head to https://www.morganmotsinger.com/speaking

to inquire about having Morgan at your next event.