The Honest Pause

Are birds government drones? Is Finland real? Are cats secretly interdimensional beings? And if we are living in a simulation, would we even want to know?

This week we're putting on our metaphorical tin foil hats and diving into some of the internet's strangest conspiracy theories. From UFOs and Atlantis to giant tree stumps disguised as mountains, we're asking the questions that have fueled late-night conversations, Reddit rabbit holes, and countless YouTube documentaries.

We're not here to prove anything. We're just curious.

This week on The Honest Pause, we’re talking about one of the quietest forms of heartbreak in adulthood:

Realizing your friend stopped inviting you.

No dramatic fight.
 No big confrontation.
 Just:

• fewer texts
• inside jokes you weren’t there for
• plans you found out about later
• and the strange feeling of slowly disappearing from someone’s life in real time

In this episode, we unpack the emotional complexity of friendship shifts and why being excluded can feel so painful — even as adults.

We talk about:

• Adult friendship grief
• Social rejection and belonging
• Growing apart vs being intentionally excluded
• The anxiety spiral of “Did I do something wrong?”
• Group dynamics and changing priorities
• Outgrowing friendships
• Friendship insecurity in adulthood
• Why people often avoid hard conversations
• The loneliness of feeling left behind

This episode is for anyone who has ever:

• seen photos from plans they weren’t invited to
• felt weird asking why
• pretended not to care when it hurt deeply
• or questioned their worth because a friendship changed

Because friendship heartbreak is still heartbreak.
 Even when nobody talks about it like it is.

This week on Pause on the Headlines, we’re talking about the return of disease-focused headlines — from Ebola outbreaks to hantavirus stories — and why health scares seem to hit our nervous systems differently now.

Even when risks are statistically low for most people, the emotional impact of these headlines can feel enormous. Why?

Because many of us are still carrying the psychological imprint of collective stress, uncertainty, and hypervigilance from the past several years.

In this episode, we unpack:

• Why contagious disease headlines spread anxiety so quickly
• The psychological aftermath of living through prolonged global stress
• How social media amplifies fear cycles
• Doomscrolling and nervous system exhaustion
• The difference between awareness and panic
• Why people feel emotionally depleted by “breaking news”
• How chronic uncertainty changes the brain
• The cultural shift toward health anxiety and preparedness

We also talk about how modern media ecosystems keep us emotionally activated:

• constant alerts
• worst-case-scenario framing
• survival-focused content
• and the feeling that catastrophe is always one notification away

This episode isn’t about dismissing real health concerns. It’s about understanding the emotional environment we’re all living in — and why so many people feel overwhelmed, exhausted, or perpetually “bracing” for the next thing.

Because sometimes the real story isn’t just the headline itself.

It’s what years of stress have done to the way we experience headlines at all.

This week on The Honest Pause, we’re talking about one of the most emotionally complicated modern experiences:

What do you do when you hate your job… but realistically can’t leave?

Not everyone can quit dramatically, move across the country, start over, or “follow their passion.” Sometimes people stay because of:

• money
• insurance
• family responsibilities
• burnout
• fear
• the economy
• or simply not knowing what comes next

In this episode, we unpack the emotional reality of feeling trapped at work and why so many people feel disconnected, exhausted, resentful, or numb in their careers right now.

We talk about:

• The fantasy of quitting vs real life constraints
• Burnout and emotional detachment
• The pressure to “love what you do”
• How work impacts identity and self-worth
• The grief of realizing a job isn’t sustainable
• Toxic productivity culture
• Financial survival vs fulfillment
• Why people feel stuck
• The emotional cost of staying somewhere that drains you
• How to survive a difficult season without romanticizing struggle

This episode is for anyone who has ever:

• cried before work
• stared at LinkedIn for hours
• fantasized about disappearing into a cabin in the woods
• or felt guilty for not being grateful enough for a “good job”

Because sometimes the most honest thing you can admit is:
 “I can’t keep doing this forever.”
 Even if you still have to do it tomorrow.

This week on Pause on the Headlines, we’re talking about the rise of hockey romance books, sports TV shows, and why emotionally available fictional athletes suddenly became the internet’s favorite fantasy.

From BookTok favorites like Icebreaker and The Deal to the explosion of sports documentaries and cozy team-centered storytelling, we unpack what this trend might actually be saying about modern loneliness, dating exhaustion, masculinity, and the craving for emotional safety.

Why are audiences gravitating toward stories about loyalty, teamwork, devotion, and people who consistently show up for each other?

And why did hockey — of all sports — become the blueprint for the internet boyfriend?

In this episode:

• The rise of hockey romance on BookTok
• Why sports-centered stories feel comforting right now
• Fictional masculinity vs modern dating culture
• The “emotionally safe man” phenomenon
• Teamwork, belonging, and loneliness in pop culture
• Why people are craving sincerity again
• Sports documentaries as emotional comfort TV
• The real fantasy behind hockey romance

Referenced in this episode:

• Icebreaker by Hannah Grace
• The Deal by Elle Kennedy

Because maybe this trend was never really about hockey at all.

Follow along with The Honest Pause for more conversations about pop culture, emotional trends, identity, and the stories shaping how we live.

When everything feels like too much, even the smallest thing can feel like the breaking point.

In this episode, Maryam and Teryl talk about what overwhelm actually is — and why so many of us are living in a constant state of it. Overwhelm isn’t just having a full calendar or a long to-do list. It’s the feeling that everything is urgent, everything is loud, and your capacity to handle it all has run out.

Together, they explore the difference between being busy and being overloaded, what happens inside your nervous system when it believes there’s “too much,” and why pushing through often makes the feeling worse instead of better.

This conversation focuses on small, practical resets that help bring your system back to steadiness — from shrinking the scope of what you’re focusing on to lowering the invisible standards we place on ourselves.

Because sometimes the goal isn’t to solve everything.

It’s simply to come back to center and remember: you don’t have to carry everything at once.

Stay Connected:

 📸 Follow on Instagram: @TheHonestPause

Connect with Teryl Rothery

🌐 Website: https://www.terylrothery.com
📸 Instagram: @terylrothery
🧠 Book a Discovery Call at https://www.terylrothery.com/contact

Connect with Maryam Taheri

💼 Everground Advisory: Coaching & Business Strategy

https://www.evergroundadvisory.com

Book a Coaching Discovery Call:  https://www.evergroundadvisory.com/book

There’s been a lot happening in the world lately. And if you’ve been feeling a little heavier, a little sadder, or just emotionally tired — you’re not alone.

In this episode, we’re talking about what it means to feel sad in a world that often feels overwhelming. Sadness is often treated like something we need to fix, suppress, or move past as quickly as possible. But the truth is, sadness is a normal and healthy emotional response — especially when we care deeply about what’s happening around us.

This conversation explores how we can hold the weight of the world while still allowing light in our own lives. Feeling sad doesn’t mean you’re broken, negative, or ungrateful. It means you’re human.

We talk about why sadness shows up, why empathy can feel heavy, and how it’s possible to hold grief and gratitude at the same time. We also explore small ways to regulate our nervous systems when the world feels like too much — from reducing constant news intake to reconnecting with nostalgic things that bring comfort and joy.

Because small joys aren’t denial.

They’re anchors.

Stay Connected:

 📸 Follow on Instagram: @TheHonestPause

Connect with Teryl Rothery

🌐 Website: https://www.terylrothery.com
📸 Instagram: @terylrothery
🧠 Book a Discovery Call at https://www.terylrothery.com/contact

Connect with Maryam Taheri

💼 Everground Advisory: Coaching & Business Strategy

https://www.evergroundadvisory.com

Book a Coaching Discovery Call:  https://www.evergroundadvisory.com/book

Welcome to the first episode of The Honest Pause Book Club. 📚

Our first pick is We Who Will Die by Stacia Stark — a Roman-inspired romantasy filled with vampires, magic, political power, and gladiator-style combat.

The story follows Arvelle, a woman forced into a deadly tournament to join the emperor’s elite guard. But she isn’t just competing to survive — she’s secretly been tasked with assassinating the emperor himself.

In this episode, we’re diving into Chapters 1–10. We won’t be able to cover everything, but we’re going to cover a lot — from the political structure of this vampire empire to the characters who immediately caught our attention.

We talk about:

• The powerful dedication to eldest daughters and how it reframes Arvelle’s motivations
• Survival through strategy and why Arvelle refuses to be seen as prey
• The magic system and the mysterious sigil-marked
• The political control woven throughout the empire
• Early character introductions including Carrick, Rorrick, and the emperor’s dangerous guard known as the Primus
• Flashbacks to Arvelle’s past with a noble vampire named Tiernon
• And the Chapter 10 reveal that changes everything

By the end of these first ten chapters, what starts as political intrigue suddenly becomes deeply personal.

And we have questions.

Stay Connected:

 📸 Follow on Instagram: @TheHonestPause

Connect with Teryl Rothery

🌐 Website: https://www.terylrothery.com
📸 Instagram: @terylrothery
🧠 Book a Discovery Call at https://www.terylrothery.com/contact

Connect with Maryam Taheri

💼 Everground Advisory: Coaching & Business Strategy

https://www.evergroundadvisory.com

Book a Coaching Discovery Call:  https://www.evergroundadvisory.com/book

When was the last time you asked yourself: Am I having fun?

In this episode of The Honest Pause, Maryam and Teryl talk about joy — not as a personality trait or a reward for productivity — but as something we’re allowed to access right now.

In a world that feels heavy, serious, and urgent, fun can feel frivolous. But it’s not. It’s regulating. It’s healing. It reminds our nervous systems that we are safe enough to play.

We explore how adulthood slowly conditions fun out of us, why joy can sometimes feel unfamiliar (or even uncomfortable), and how small moments of lightness are actually acts of resistance.

In this episode, we talk about:

• Why joy isn’t irresponsible
• The difference between happiness and fun
• How chronic stress dulls playfulness
• Relearning what you actually enjoy
• Tiny daily practices that invite more lightness

You don’t need to earn joy.
You don’t need to wait for everything to be perfect.

Sometimes finding joy starts with simply asking:
What feels good? What feels light? What feels like me?

And giving yourself permission to follow it.

Stay Connected:

 📸 Follow on Instagram: @TheHonestPause

Connect with Teryl Rothery

🌐 Website: https://www.terylrothery.com
📸 Instagram: @terylrothery
🧠 Book a Discovery Call at https://www.terylrothery.com/contact

Connect with Maryam Taheri

💼 Everground Advisory: Coaching & Business Strategy

https://www.evergroundadvisory.com

Book a Coaching Discovery Call:  https://www.evergroundadvisory.com/book

Change is the only constant — and yet it’s the thing most of us resist the most.

In this episode of The Honest Pause, Maryam and Teryl talk about what it actually means to live in a life that is always evolving. Roles shift. Relationships stretch. Bodies age. Dreams expand (or fall apart). Even when change is chosen, it can still feel destabilizing.

We explore why our nervous systems crave predictability, how uncertainty can trigger fear or grief, and why letting go of an old version of yourself can feel like a tiny heartbreak.

This conversation is about softening instead of bracing. Adapting instead of controlling. Learning to trust that just because something is changing doesn’t mean you are losing everything.

In this episode, we talk about:

• Why change feels threatening — even when it’s good
• Grieving who you used to be
• The illusion of control
• How to build internal steadiness during external shifts
• What it means to grow without abandoning yourself

Change is inevitable. Suffering through it isn’t.

If you’re in a transition — chosen or not — this one’s for you.

Stay Connected:

 📸 Follow on Instagram: @TheHonestPause

Connect with Teryl Rothery

🌐 Website: https://www.terylrothery.com
📸 Instagram: @terylrothery
🧠 Book a Discovery Call at https://www.terylrothery.com/contact

Connect with Maryam Taheri

💼 Everground Advisory: Coaching & Business Strategy

https://www.evergroundadvisory.com

Book a Coaching Discovery Call:  https://www.evergroundadvisory.com/book