The Art Career Blueprint with Nicole Gaitan

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What happens when you step into an entirely new chapter of your life — and find your greatest joy waiting for you there?

In this heartfelt episode of Glow Wild, host Nicole Gaitan sits down with Kathi Holzer, a former physical education teacher who discovered a deep love for painting later in life. After retiring from a long and fulfilling teaching career, Kathi felt an unexpected pull toward art — a passion so strong her husband built her a backyard studio to bring her creative vision to life.

But Kathi’s story runs deeper than paint and canvas. Diagnosed with **Type 1 diabetes at 40 — and later walking alongside her granddaughter through the same diagnosis — Kathi has transformed her pain into purpose. Her artwork has become a space for healing, joy, and legacy.

In this conversation, we explore:

• 🌿 Finding new purpose and passion later in life
• 🩺 Navigating a major health diagnosis with resilience
• 🎨 How painting became a powerful form of therapy
• 💫 The joy of creating a legacy that lives beyond you

Kathi’s journey is a reminder that it’s never too late to reinvent yourself, embrace creativity, and live in vibrant color.

🎧 Listen now to Glow Wild for an inspiring story about reinvention, joy, and the healing power of art.

Connect with Kathi at her website: https://kathiholzerart.com/

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🌿 Revisiting this incredibly moving episode this week.

In this powerful and heart-wrenching episode, Nicole sits down with Heather Manson—a devoted mother, trauma survivor, yoga teacher, and fierce advocate for pediatric cancer research. Heather shares her journey through the unimaginable: losing her 11-year-old daughter Parker to a rare form of soft tissue sarcoma after a two-year battle filled with surgeries, chemotherapy, and radiation.

But Heather's story is not just about grief—it's about resilience, transformation, and choosing purpose in the face of devastation. Just months after Parker’s diagnosis, Heather herself was involved in a traumatic accident that left her with a broken back, pelvis, and foot. She was bedridden, in recovery, while spending countless nights beside her daughter’s hospital bed.

Together, Nicole and Heather reflect on:

• What it means to mother through trauma and loss
• The moments of light that broke through the darkest days
• How grief changes us—not just emotionally, but physically and spiritually
• The power of honoring our children’s legacies through action and advocacy
• The creation of the Little p Project, a nonprofit born from heartbreak and hope

This episode is a sacred invitation to witness what it looks like to keep loving, living, and showing up—even when the unimaginable happens.

💛 About Heather Manson:

• Mom of three: Maisey, Gates, and Parker (who would be 14)
• Founder of Little p Project — supporting pediatric sarcoma research and families in treatment
• Former pharmacist of 17 years
• Yoga teacher and advocate for mindful healing
• Currently living in Park City, Utah with her family

🕊️ In Honor of Parker:

Parker was a bright, brave 11-year-old who loved deeply, fought fiercely, and inspired everyone she met. Her legacy lives on through the Little p Project and the countless lives her story continues to touch.

🧡 Support & Resources:

• Donate to the Little p Project: www.littlepproject.org
• Learn more about pediatric sarcoma: Sarcoma Foundation of America
• Grief support resources: The Dougy Center | Compassionate Friends
• Follow Heather's journey on Instagram: @littlepproject

🔔 Don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and leave a review if this episode moved you. Sharing stories like Heather’s helps build a community of healing—and keeps Parker’s light shining.

Half Serious
Real hardships, raw situations, gallows humor, and no matter what, how to keep going.

Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify

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✨ Podcast Show Notes

Episode Title: Surviving the Palisades Fire: Sarah Silver on Losing Her Home, Rebuilding Life & Finding Strength
Podcast: Glow Wild

In this powerful and intimate conversation, host Nicole sits down with Sarah Silver — a woman whose life was forever changed when the Palisades Fire tore through her neighborhood, destroying her home and so many others.

Nicole and Sarah first met in the most unexpected place — the customs line in Paris this past August. What began as a casual conversation quickly revealed a story of extraordinary strength and quiet resilience.

Sarah opens up about the night she lost everything, the arrest of a suspect connected to the fire, and the complicated emotions that come with seeking justice. She shares what it’s really like to navigate grief in the aftermath of disaster — from the silence after the headlines fade to the slow, sacred work of rebuilding a life.

Together, they talk about:

• 🕯️ What it feels like to lose everything in an instant
• ⚖️ Her emotional response to the recent arrest tied to the fire
• 🌿 The deep lessons she’s learned about resilience, community, and hope
• 🏡 How her idea of “home” has evolved through both fire and recent flooding
• ✨ What she wants others facing loss to know about healing

Today, Sarah continues to move forward with courage and purpose — not just as a survivor, but as a woman determined to build beauty from ashes. She also runs a thriving travel business, Seamless Destinations, helping others create unforgettable journeys around the world.

🧭 Connect with Sarah

🌐 www.seamlessdestinations.com

📸 Instagram: @seamlessdestinations

💛 Join the Glow Wild Community

If Sarah’s story moved you, share this episode with someone who needs to hear it.
✨ Follow the podcast @glowwildpodcast and for more heartfelt, empowering conversations rate, review and follow our show wherever you get your podcasts.
🎧 Leave us a review — your words help amplify stories like Sarah’s.

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From July 2025- Guest: Katrina Clauson (Kat) — 3x Cancer Survivor, Sobriety Warrior, Suicide Survivor & Advocate, Deputy Coroner
🔥 Episode Summary:
What does it take to face death, addiction, abuse, and public tragedy—and still rise up more grounded, more generous, and more you than ever?
In today’s gripping and informative episode of Glow Wild, we sit down with an extraordinary guest: a three-time cancer survivor, a woman who faced the dark trenches of addiction, and someone who served as a deputy coroner on the nationally-covered Gabby Petito case. After surviving a suicide attempt, she has turned her pain into purpose, becoming a fierce advocate for suicide prevention and women’s safety.
Through grief, trauma, anger, and radical self-inquiry, she found her way not just back—but forward.
She’s here to share the unfiltered truth about what it means to show up as your authentic self—especially when life has tried to knock you down again and again.
We explore:
🎗️ How surviving cancer three times changed her relationship with fear, control, and grace
🧨 Why anger is often just a “blanket emotion”—and how to peel it back to what’s really underneath
💔 What she learned from working the Gabby Petito case, and how it shifted her view on humanity and healing
🥃 Her raw and real journey to sobriety, and the tools she still uses every single day
🧠 Her experience surviving a suicide attempt—and how she now advocates for mental health and suicide prevention
🚨 Her message to anyone in an abusive relationship: You are not alone. There are resources out there and it's NOT ok to stay.
🧰 Her go-to mental health and spiritual toolkit for navigating trauma, addiction, and identity
💡 The moment she realized: “I’m not just surviving anymore—I’m meant to serve”
This is not just an episode about resilience. It’s about transformation. It’s about becoming the kind of person you were born to be—not in spite of your pain, but because of it.
✨ Whether you’re walking through fire or finally coming up for air, this episode is your permission slip to show up, speak out, and Glow Wild.
🛟 If You’re Struggling or Need Help:
You are not alone. Please save or share these resources:
🧠 SUICIDE & MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT (U.S.):
988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline – Call or text 988
https://988lifeline.org
Crisis Text Line – Text HELLO to 741741
https://www.crisistextline.org
💔 SUPPORT FOR ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIPS (U.S.):
National Domestic Violence Hotline – Call 800-799-SAFE (7233) or text START to 88788
https://www.thehotline.org
Women’s Law: Resources by State – https://www.womenslaw.org
If you're outside the U.S., please consult your country’s local crisis services.
🔗 Resources & Mentions:
The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma Bessel van der Kolk M.D.

💌 Support the Show:
If this conversation moved you, share it with someone who needs to hear it. Rate & review on Apple or Spotify to help others find us. Want to keep these stories going? Visit the Support Link at the bottom of this page to help support our mission.
🧡 Connect with Nicole & Glow Wild:
Instagram: @glowwildpodcast
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In this powerful episode of Glow Wild, we sit down with Dr. Rita Kristina Gedgaudas-McClees, a pioneering radiologist whose career has spanned over four decades of innovation, mentorship, and patient-centered care.

From being one of the few women in medicine during her training at UCSF, to leading major academic departments at Duke and Emory, Dr. Kristina has spent her life proving naysayers wrong, breaking barriers, and inspiring the next generation of physicians.

We talk about what it takes to lead with courage in a male-dominated field, how she balanced research, teaching, and service, and the deeply human side of radiology that goes far beyond reading scans. Whether you’re in healthcare or simply navigating your own uphill battles, this conversation will leave you inspired to turn obstacles into opportunities and to lead with both strength and heart.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• How Dr. Kristina carved out a path for women in medicine during a transformative era
• The importance of mentorship and advocacy in creating systemic change
• How to maintain passion for your work over a decades-long career
• What radiology has taught her about seeing beyond the surface—both in medicine and in life
• Her advice for anyone facing doubt, bias, or seemingly insurmountable obstacles

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🔍 Episode Summary:

What does it take to reshape the healthcare system from the inside out? In this powerful episode, Dr. Glenn D. Steele Jr. reflects on his multi-decade career—from hands-on patient care to pioneering leadership roles in academic medicine and health system innovation.

Nicole and Dr. Steele talk candidly about:

• How trust shapes patient outcomes
• The critical shift from fee-for-service to value-based care
• What really matters in patient-doctor relationships
• How high-trust systems can transform lives, especially in cancer care
• The surprising failures that taught the biggest lessons

Whether you’re a patient navigating a diagnosis or someone working in healthcare, this episode is packed with wisdom, vulnerability, and actionable advice.

📌 Key Topics:

• Transitioning from surgeon to healthcare leader
• Working with high-performing, “hard to manage” innovators
• The evolution of cancer care: from radical surgeries to patient-centered innovation
• How to advocate for yourself or loved ones in complex medical systems
• The importance of trust between patients, providers, and healthcare organizations
• Building systems that support — rather than overwhelm — doctors
• Lessons learned from failure and transformation in leadership

📝 Listener Takeaways:

• How to identify a high-trust healthcare organization
• The most important question to ask your doctor:
• “How will this test or treatment change my care?”
• Why even “routine care” deserves serious attention
• You shouldn’t have to choose between clinical expertise and compassionate care

📍 Quote Highlights:

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What does it really mean to live fully? For today’s guest, Amy Ciampi, the answer came in the most unexpected — and harrowing — way. At just 29 years old, seven miles into her fifth 100-mile ultramarathon, Amy went into sudden cardiac arrest. For 45 minutes, strangers fought to keep her alive in the Wasatch wilderness until help arrived. She survived against all odds, but survival was only the beginning.

Amy was forced to trade her identity as an ultrarunner for a life that looked nothing like the one she trained for. The road back was long — through months of therapy, years of sensory overload, and the grief of losing the body and lifestyle she once knew. But through it all, Amy discovered something powerful: joy doesn’t have to wait for the big milestones, the bucket-list races, or — God forbid — a near-death experience. Joy is available every single day, if we’re willing to notice it.

In this deep and moving conversation, Amy and I explore:

• The moment that changed her life forever during her 5th ultramarathon.
• The resilience it took to rebuild her life, piece by piece, after cardiac arrest.
• How to find joy and gratitude in ordinary moments — without waiting for tragedy to wake us up.
• What she’s learned about identity, purpose, and living fully in the “after.”
• Why joy is not a luxury, but a choice we can make daily.

Amy’s story is a reminder that we don’t need to almost lose our lives to finally start living them. This conversation will inspire you to find your joy now — in the smallest moments, in the everyday breath you take, and in the simple miracle of being alive.

🎧 Press play to be reminded that today — exactly as it is — is a gift worth celebrating.

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What does it take to build a relationship that lasts—and a career that thrives? In this episode of Glow Wild, we sit down with Ashley Diprisco, powerhouse real estate broker, community leader, and editor of The Scout Guide Jackson Hole. Ashley’s story is one of resilience, partnership, and redefining success as a woman in a male-dominated industry.

For 26 years, Ashley has walked side by side with her high school sweetheart and now-husband, Mike—building not only a family but a foundation that has fueled her success in luxury real estate. From winning Agent of the Year and Rising Starawards, to speaking on national stages like Inman Luxury Connect, Ashley has proven that drive and ambition don’t have to come at the cost of love and longevity.

In this conversation, we dive into:
✨ How to align your goals with your partner and grow together, not apart
✨ The daily habits and communication that fuel lasting relationships
✨ Ashley’s journey as a woman rising in the competitive world of luxury real estate
✨ Why resilience, grit, and staying client-focused have been the keys to her professional success
✨ What it means to create your own definition of “having it all” in love, work, and life

This episode is part heart-to-heart, part masterclass in ambition, and all about what’s possible when love and purpose move in sync.

Whether you’re building a business, building a marriage, or both—you’ll walk away inspired by Ashley’s wisdom, grounded energy, and unstoppable drive.

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Bronnie Ware, a palliative care nurse, deeply impacted by her patients’ last reflections, identified five regrets common at life’s end. These include:

1. “I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.”
2. “I wish I hadn’t worked so hard.”
3. “I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.”
4. “I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.”
5. “I wish that I had let myself be happier.”

Link for listeners: You can read the original article, Regrets of the Dying, by Bronnie Ware here: [Regrets of the Dying – Bronnie Ware]
bronnieware.com

3. Research & Psychology Insights

Living Intentionally Enhances Well-Being

• Setting Intentions = Better Health & Happiness
  A 2021 study by Eric S. Kim and colleagues finds that people with clear intentions or a “micro purpose” experience longer life, better sleep, more happiness, and less loneliness
  Psychology Today.
• Intentional Kindness Amplifies Joy
  A 2023 study in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General by Kumar and Epley showed that performing small acts of kindness brings more happiness to recipients than givers expect
  Psychology Today.

Paths to a Good Life

• Three Dimensions of Well-Being
  Contemporary research by Oishi and colleagues outlines three major paths to a “good life”:
  • Happy Life: marked by joy and comfort
  • Meaningful Life: rooted in purpose and connection
  • Psychologically Rich Life: built on novelty, transformation, and managing discomfort
• A psychologically rich life, though sometimes disquieting, can be deeply rewarding.
  The Washington Post

Your Citations in Summary

• Bronnie Ware’s regrets:
  Wikipedia
  bronnieware.com
• Link to her article:
  bronnieware.com
• Intentional living benefits:
  Psychology Today
• Good life dimensions:
  The Washington Post
• PERMA model:
  Wikipedia
• Broaden-and-build theory:
  Wikipedia
• Gratitude and joy research:
  Verywell Mind
  SELF
  The Washington Post

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🌟 Episode Description

What does it take to build a thriving marriage and a thriving business—at the same time?

In this episode of Glow Wild, I sit down with Greyson and Taly Goody, the powerhouse husband-and-wife duo behind the Goody Law Group. Greyson, a top California trial attorney, and Taly, the daughter of Iranian immigrants who founded the firm, share their incredible journey of building a mission-driven law practice together while raising a family and mentoring the next generation of leaders.

We talk about:

• 🌱 Their childhoods and the values that shaped their drive to succeed
• 🎓 The pivotal decision to choose law—and how they met in law school
• 💼 The risks and rewards of launching a firm as both business and life partners
• 💡 How they balance love, family, and ambition without losing sight of their purpose
• 🔥 The advice they’d give the next generation about resilience, risk, and chasing big dreams

This is more than a story about law—it’s about courage, partnership, and building a life of impact together.

Whether you’re chasing your purpose, building a business, or trying to align love with legacy, this conversation will leave you inspired to think bigger and fight harder for the life you want.

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