The Adult Chair Podcast with Michelle Chalfant

Today I'm talking about how to move on after you have been hurt.

Whether it is heartbreak, betrayal, disappointment, family pain, friendship breakups, or someone not showing up the way you hoped they would, hurt is part of the human experience. But moving on is not always as simple as forgiving, forgetting, or pretending it did not matter. When we are hurt, the pain can linger, and if we do not know how to work with it, we can start living from the wound instead of from our healthy adult self.

In this episode, I break down why we get stuck in pain, how the ego mind tries to loop, ruminate, and figure everything out, and why old wounds can make present-day hurt feel even more intense. I also walk you through how to move through hurt in a whole-body way by feeling your emotions, stopping the wait for an apology, getting honest about what the experience is teaching you, and letting the pain transform you instead of define you.

• Moving on after hurt does not mean pretending it did not happen
• Hurt can change us, our relationships, and the way we see ourselves if we do not process it
• The mind often revisits what the heart has not yet resolved
• Rumination is the ego's attempt to figure out, fix, or control emotional pain
• Present-day hurt can activate older wounds, including childhood abandonment, betrayal, or shame
• If the pain feels disproportionate to what happened, there may be a deeper taproot wound underneath it
• Waiting for an apology can keep us stuck in pain, anger, and victim energy
• Feeling emotions fully allows the energy of the emotion to move through the body
• Healing requires getting radically honest about what the experience is teaching us
• Pain can transform us when we use it for growth instead of allowing it to define us

Resources from this Episode:

Get your copy of The Adult Chair® Book here!

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair® Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

In this episode, I'm joined by Ashleigh DiLello, the founder and creator of BioEmotional Healing, for a powerful conversation about the brain, body, nervous system, chronic pain, trauma, and what it really takes to heal.

Ashleigh shares her incredible story of becoming severely ill at just 13 years old, living between life and death for years, and eventually finding her way back to health, dance, and life. After building a successful career as a professional dancer, TV and Broadway performer, wife, and mother, she faced another life-altering health crisis after a failed hip surgery launched her body into chronic pain.

We talk about how the nervous system stores our life experiences, why stress responses can show up as anxiety, perfectionism, chronic pain, autoimmune issues, gut issues, and other symptoms, and why regulating the nervous system is only part of the healing process.

• The brain-body connection plays a major role in chronic pain, trauma, anxiety, and healing
• Long-term survival mode can become familiar to the nervous system, even after the original threat is gone
• Stress responses can show up in many ways, including pain, anxiety, perfectionism, depression, OCD behaviors, autoimmune symptoms, gut issues, and more
• Regulation helps calm the nervous system in the moment, but rewiring changes the deeper patterns that keep the stress response active
• Self-compassion is essential for nervous system rewiring because harsh self-criticism keeps the brain in a protective state
• Healing requires rebuilding trust with yourself, your body, and your ability to create a new identity
• We can honor what we have been through without allowing it to define the rest of our lives

Resources from this Episode:

Ashleigh DiLello's Website

Free Brain-Body Blueprint

Instagram: @ashleighdilello

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

Today, I'm breaking down a topic that comes up all the time: narcissism.

This is a word we hear everywhere now, especially online and on social media, but it is often misunderstood and overused. In this episode, I explain what narcissism really is, what narcissistic traits can look like, where they come from, and how to know the difference between narcissistic tendencies and narcissistic personality disorder.

I also answer some of the biggest questions I receive around this topic: Can someone heal from narcissism? How do you know if you are a narcissist? Why do you keep attracting narcissistic relationships? Can you change a narcissistic partner? And how do you navigate a relationship with a narcissistic parent?

This episode is not about labeling or blaming. It is about understanding the deeper shame, wounding, and identity patterns underneath narcissism, while also learning how to protect your energy, build your self-worth, and create healthier relationships from your Adult Chair.

• Narcissism is a term that is often overused, especially online and on social media
• Narcissistic traits can include needing to be the center of attention, lacking empathy, deflecting criticism, and struggling to take responsibility
• Underneath narcissistic behavior is often deep shame and a false identity built around being seen as special, perfect, or superior
• Narcissism can develop when a child is placed on a pedestal or when a child is neglected and creates a false self to survive
• Narcissistic traits exist on a spectrum, and narcissistic personality disorder is at the far end of that spectrum
• If someone is genuinely worried they may be a narcissist, that awareness is often a hopeful sign
• You cannot change a narcissistic partner unless they truly want to do their own inner work
• Repeatedly attracting narcissistic relationships often points to old wounds, beliefs, and patterns that need to be updated
• When a parent is narcissistic, healing often requires grief, boundaries, self-worth work, and sometimes no contact

Resources from this Episode:

Free Self-Worth Course

The Adult Chair® Collective

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

In this episode, I'm joined by Jeffrey Stegman and Clayten Stedmann, the co-founders of FLFE, which stands for Focused Life Force Energy.

This is such a fascinating conversation about consciousness, energy, EMFs, and what happens when we create a higher-consciousness environment in our homes, businesses, and everyday lives. Jeffrey and Clayten share the story of how FLFE began, how they came together through business coaching and consciousness work, and how this technology is designed to support a field of unconditional love in a specific location.

We talk about the Hawkins Scale of Consciousness, how environments can affect our nervous system, why EMFs may be impacting us more than we realize, and how high-consciousness fields can support calm, sleep, forgiveness, emotional regulation, and a greater sense of well-being.

This conversation is a beautiful reminder that we are energy first, and the spaces we live in matter more than we often realize.

• FLFE is designed to support a high-consciousness field in a home, business, or around a cell phone
• Jeffrey and Clayten describe FLFE as a technology that associates focused life force energy with a specific location or identifier
• Our environments can deeply influence our nervous systems, emotions, sleep, focus, and overall well-being
• EMFs from Wi-Fi, cell phones, smart meters, appliances, and other modern technology may contribute to dysregulation for some people
• A high-consciousness environment can help support peace, calm, emotional regulation, and a greater ability to shift negative thoughts
• The Hawkins Scale of Consciousness offers a way to understand different emotional and energetic states, from shame and fear to love, peace, and enlightenment
• Michelle shares her personal experience using FLFE after living near power lines and noticing a major shift in her energy
• Consciousness work invites us to become more curious about the energy around us and how it affects our lives

Resources from this Episode:

FLFE Free Trial: Get your 15-day free trial here.

Visit the FLFE website

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

In this solo episode, I'm sharing a very personal update about the evolution of the podcast, the deeper meaning behind its new name, and what this next chapter means for all of us. I talk about why I had to step away in order to see more clearly, what I discovered about my relationship with The Adult Chair, and how coming back to it from a new place of clarity and wholeness changed everything.

I also explore two powerful teachings that are at the heart of this work: the illuminated path and the importance of feeling your emotions. I share how learning to stay grounded, present, and connected to yourself can transform every relationship in your life, because the most important relationship you will ever have is the one you have with yourself.

• Growth is ongoing, and we are always evolving into new versions of ourselves.
• Peace is a more sustainable goal than chasing temporary moments of happiness.
• Every relationship reflects something about our relationship with ourselves.
• The illuminated path is the path of the higher self, where each next step becomes clear when we stay present and grounded.
• The ego wants certainty about the future, but real alignment comes from trusting the next step.
• Feeling your emotions requires being in the body, not just living in the mind.
• Grounding, body awareness, and curiosity are essential tools for emotional healing and inner clarity.

Resources from this Episode:

Grounding meditation resource

Inner child resource

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

In this episode, I'm joined by Harmony Slater for a soulful conversation about the body, the breath, energetic healing, and the hidden patterns that can keep us out of alignment with who we really are. We talk about how the body holds emotional experiences, why so many of us feel disconnected from ourselves, and how healing happens when we slow down enough to listen to what our body has been trying to tell us all along.

Harmony shares her personal journey through yoga, mysticism, energy work, and healing from autoimmune symptoms and chronic fatigue. We also explore the mind-body connection, the role of the nervous system, and how unconscious beliefs, emotional patterns, and old wounds can shape the way we show up in our lives. This is a grounded and expansive conversation about coming back into wholeness through breath, awareness, and deep inner healing.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Harmony's journey from religious studies and philosophy into yoga, meditation, and energy work
• What Ashtanga yoga is and how it shaped her path
• How spinal energetics works and why it can be such a powerful healing modality
• How emotional pain, trauma, and unconscious beliefs can build up in the body over time
• How old experiences can create hidden patterns that still affect us today
• The connection between the body, the unconscious mind, and emotional healing
• Simple ways to use breath and nature to feel more grounded and supported each day
• Why spiritual practice can become another form of control if we are not aware of what is really driving it

Harmony Slater is a masterful teacher, breathwork guide, spiritual mentor, and one of only a handful of certified Ashtanga yoga teachers worldwide. Her work weaves together ancient wisdom, energetic healing, nervous system support, and modern transformation to help people reconnect with themselves and live in greater alignment.

Resources from this Episode:

Harmony's website: harmonyslater.com

Instagram: @harmonyslaterofficial

Podcast: Finding Harmony

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

In this episode, I'm joined by Anniston Riekstins for a powerful conversation about what it really means to remember who you are and live from that truth. We talk about the massive awakening happening right now, why so many people are questioning the lives they've built, and what it looks like to reconnect with your heart, your intuition, and your soul's deeper purpose.

Anniston shares her perspective on what's unfolding collectively in 2026, how numerology can help us understand the patterns and timing in our lives, and why so many people are being called to stop living from the mind and start living from the heart. We also explore spiritual awakenings, signs from the universe, soul contracts, and the healing that becomes possible when we stop abandoning ourselves and start trusting what we know deep within.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why so many people are feeling called to question their relationships, careers, beliefs, and identity right now
• What it means to stop living from the mind and start living from the heart
• Anniston's perspective on the collective awakening happening on the planet
• How numerology can help you understand your purpose, patterns, and personal growth
• What it means to "wake down" into the body and reconnect with your inner knowing
• What repeating numbers and signs may be showing you
• How your life path can reveal the lessons, gifts, and soul work you came here to embody
• What a soul contract is and how it can help you remember your deeper blueprint for this lifetime

Resources from this Episode:

Anniston's website: annistonriekstins.com

Instagram: @annistonblairriekstins

Free Facebook community: The Magnetic Woman

Use code MICHELLE to recieve a discounted Soul Blueprint Reading

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

In this episode, I'm joined by Dr. Liz Burkholder for a real, unscripted conversation about emotions, what they're here to teach us, and how to move through them in a healthy way. We talk about anger, grief, sadness, fear, anxiety, and what happens when we keep pushing our emotions down instead of allowing them to move through us.

Liz and I also explore what it means to truly hold space for ourselves and for other people, why so many of us were never taught how to feel our emotions, and how emotional repression can show up in the body, in relationships, and in everyday life. This is a powerful conversation about learning to stay present with what you feel instead of bypassing it, fixing it, or trying to make it go away.

In this episode, you'll hear:

• Why anger is a healthy emotion and how it can help you set boundaries
• The difference between feeling anger and projecting it onto other people
• How emotions like sadness and anger can sometimes cover for each other
• Why grief needs space, presence, and support instead of being rushed away
• What anxiety and depression can reveal about unfelt emotions
• How emotional repression can impact the body, relationships, and nervous system
• What it looks like to let emotions move through you instead of storing them inside
• Why so many of us were never taught how to process emotions in a healthy way

Liz Burkholder is the founder of Go Within Institute. She helps people heal through breathwork, subconscious work, nervous system regulation, and deep emotional processing. Her work supports clients, clinicians, and coaches in learning how to move through life with greater presence, connection, and self-trust.

Resources from this Episode:

GoWithin Institute | Heal Yourself

Listen to Liz's podcast: We Are The Medicine Podcast

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

Today, I'm joined by therapist, bestselling author, and speaker Amy Morin for a deeply honest conversation about what it really means to become mentally strong. Amy shares how her understanding of mental strength was shaped not only by her work as a therapist, but by walking through profound grief, unexpected loss, and the kind of life experiences that can completely change you.

We talk about the difference between grief and self-pity, why people-pleasing drains us, how boundaries support mental strength, and what to do with the inner critic that keeps trying to run the show. Amy also shares powerful insight on social media, comparison, alone time, and why becoming mentally strong often starts with the smallest choices we make each day.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• The difference between feeling your grief and getting stuck in self-pity
• How to stop giving away your power to other people
• Why mentally strong people don't avoid change
• How to learn from mistakes instead of repeating them
• Why alone time and reflection are essential for emotional health
• How people pleasing weakens your sense of self
• Why boundaries are a key part of mental strength
• How to work with your inner critic through self-compassion
• How social media fuels comparison and what to do instead
• Why being intentional about what you consume matters for your mental well-being

Resources from this Episode:

Find Amy's books, Tedx Talks and more on Amy's website

Listen to Mentally Stronger with Therapist Amy Morin

Get the Mentally Strong app here!

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

In this episode, I'm joined by Eric Zimmer for a grounded and honest conversation about what real change actually looks like and why lasting transformation usually doesn't happen all at once. Eric shares his powerful recovery story, what finally helped him create lasting change, and why the smallest daily choices often matter more than the big breakthrough moments we tend to chase.

We talk about how to work with the parts of ourselves we'd rather avoid, what to do when we shut down, shrink, or feel overwhelmed, and why true growth comes from learning how to relate to ourselves differently over time. Eric also shares practical tools for changing the meaning we assign to situations, building wise habits, and taking small steps that add up to a meaningful life.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why overnight transformation is a myth, and what actually creates lasting change
• How small, consistent actions can build real momentum over time
• What it means to befriend the parts of yourself you want to avoid
• How awareness helps you catch patterns like shutting down, shrinking, or going blank in real time
• Practical ways to regulate your nervous system and stay connected to yourself in difficult moments
• Why having a simple phrase prepared can help when emotions take over
• How to rethink overwhelm and shift out of the feeling that life is happening to you
• A simple 3-question tool to help you challenge discouraging thoughts and choose a more supportive perspective

Resources from this Episode:

Eric's website

Eric's podcast: The One You Feed

Eric's book: How a Little Becomes a Lot: The Art of Small Changes for a More Meaningful Life

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant