The Livin'Sky Podcast

What if your child’s behavior isn’t the problem… but the message?

In this powerful episode of The Livin’Sky Podcast, Lena is joined by Jen McNerney, a trauma-informed somatic practitioner, former SLP, and nervous system expert, for a conversation that will change the way you see your child.

Jen blends science, intuition, and real-world motherhood to help families support kids with anxiety, developmental trauma, sensory issues, and more. Together, Lena and Jen explore what’s underneath behavior challenges and how emotional regulation, airway health, fascia, and nervous system safety are at the root of it all.

You’ll learn:

• Why nervous system dysregulation is often the missing piece behind picky eating, tantrums, and resistance
• What NeuroEmotional Technique (NET) is and how Jen uses it to transform stress in the body, including food-related anxiety and gag reflexes
• Why fascia, tongue ties, and airway issues often go undiagnosed in kids… and what to look for
• Simple regulation tools you can use right now to connect with your child and support healing

From one mom and SLP to another, this episode is packed with practical insight, lived wisdom, and the kind of real conversation our community craves.

Don’t miss Jen’s final piece of advice, it might be the most important reminder you hear all week.

Learn more about Jen at www.jenmcnerney.com

e-mail Jen:  [email protected]

Follow her on Instagram

To learn more about NET: netmindbody.com

TOTS Airway Provider Directory

Lena's Instagram 

Lena's Website

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Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making significant dietary changes.

Today’s episode is one that will stay with you. I’m joined by Mick Wienholt. He’s a devoted husband, homeschool dad of four and host of the When You Look podcast. His life has been shaped by near-death experiences, deep faith, unimaginable loss and a commitment to raising grounded, resilient, emotionally connected kids.

Mick and his wife live by a family philosophy they call “raising adults.” It means teaching kids life skills early, giving them meaningful responsibility and seeing childhood as preparation for adulthood, not an escape from it. This guiding belief influences everything from mealtime routines to communication, discipline and emotional development.

Mick shares how faith transformed his life after the stillbirth of their first son, Luke, and how grief became the doorway to a deeper relationship with God. His story is raw and moving and offers so much hope for families navigating heavy seasons.

We also talk about:

• building resilience through structure and connection

• supporting gut health and behavior through real food

• giving kids responsibility in age-appropriate ways

• raising confident communicators

• simple habits that create grounded, capable kids

• faith as a guiding force in daily parenting

• how grief changed everything about how he shows up as a father

• his miraculous survival of a devastating avalanche

• why parents should prioritize their relationship as the foundation for a stable home

This episode encourages you to slow down, zoom out and remember what truly matters. Whether faith is central in your home or something you’re rediscovering, this conversation will leave you feeling grounded and inspired.

• Raising adults means preparing kids for real life through small, daily responsibilities.

• Parenting isn’t helicoptering or laissez-faire. It’s situational guidance based on experience and readiness.

• A calm mealtime routine starts with connection, protein first and consistent boundaries.

• Gut health impacts children’s mood, behavior and resilience more than we realize.

• Faith can completely transform the way we parent and show up in our homes.

• Grief can soften us, deepen gratitude and reshape the entire trajectory of a family.

• Kids thrive when parents are emotionally regulated, connected and aligned.

• God uses unimaginable circumstances to bring us closer to Him and closer to purpose.

• Connect with Mick: whenyoulook.com

• Listen to the When You Look Podcast

• Download the Calm Mealtime Toolkit

• Follow Lena on Instagram: @lenalivinsky

• Explore holistic picky eating support at lenalivinsky.com

Grab your SIGNALS shake at 10% off with code Lena10

Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making significant dietary changes.

In this solo episode, Lena takes you far beyond the plate and into the powerful world of your child’s environment , the often-ignored root of picky eating.

If you have ever wondered why your child can eat the same food one day and melt down over it the next, this episode is going to change everything. Because eating doesn’t start in the mouth. It starts in the nervous system.

Inside this episode you will learn:

• Why light is one of the biggest regulators of appetite, mood, gut health, and behavior

• How artificial LEDs and screens confuse your child’s circadian rhythm and appetite signals

• Simple free practices that align your child’s biology with nature again

• How noise, clutter, and background TV push the nervous system into fight or flight

• Why clothing materials impact behavior, discomfort, and willingness to sit and eat

• How air quality, fragrances, and cleaning products affect gut health and picky eating

• The role of water filtration and minerals in energy, digestion, and nutrient absorption

• Why sleep and daily rhythm are essential to appetite regulation

• Small steps you can start today to create a biologically safe and grounded home for your child

Lena also shares her personal home routines, the exact lighting she uses, how she sets up her mornings with her son, and the environment shifts that changed everything for her own picky eater.

Resources mentioned: 

• Calm Mealtime Toolkit

• Boncharge lights and glasses (code: LenaL)

• Force of Nature cleaner

• Trace mineral drops

• Aqua Tru, Blue Vua, APEC, Greenfield Water filtration

• Air Doctor purifier

If you found this episode helpful, please leave a rating or review. It means the world and helps more families find support and hope.

Grab your SIGNALS shake at 10% off with code Lena10

Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making significant dietary changes.

Meet Misa Pignataro, a certified culinary nutritionist, health coach, and former first grade teacher who turned her own child’s failure to thrive and extreme pickiness into a story of steady, joyful progress. Misa grew up with whole foods and later blended that foundation with practical classroom skills, which makes her teaching style warm, simple, and incredibly doable for busy families. In this conversation we talk about how she moved her daughter from hesitant eating to curiosity and confidence, why playful exposure matters more than pressure, and how bringing kids into the kitchen builds skills and trust. You will hear concrete ideas for family style meals that end short order cooking, easy kitchen jobs for every age, and quick breakfast upgrades that support the gut brain connection and calmer behavior through better blood sugar balance. Misa shares real life wins from her kids cooking classes, including the taste o meter game and colorful recipes that make vegetables feel fun. If you want one meal for the whole family, less stress at the table, and a child who is willing to explore new foods, this episode will give you clear steps you can try tonight.

What you’ll learn

• Why “picky eating” is often a skills and environment issue, not a character trait
• How curiosity, play, and low-pressure exposure open the door to trying new foods
• Easy ways to involve kids in cooking based on age and sensory profile
• Family-style meals and build-your-own bowls to end short-order cooking
• Blood sugar basics for calmer moods, steadier energy, and better sleep
• Smart sugar swaps and label detective tips that actually stick
• How to align nutrition with a biology-informed approach to feeding and the BLOOM framework’s Open Exploration pillar
• Mindset shifts for parents so progress feels possible at any age

Highlights and ideas to try

• Taste-o-meter game for rating new foods without pressure
• Mystery-ingredient smoothies to spark buy-in with older kids
• Rainbow veggie sushi and other playful, colorful exposures
• Salt-pinch helper and simple jobs for tiny hands using a learning tower
• Family-style taco or rice bowls that respect preferences while increasing exposure
• Breakfast reboot with protein, healthy fats, and fiber to support the gut–brain connection

Resources mentioned

• Misa’s Clean Kitchen: misascleankitchen.com
• Taste-o-meter download on Misa’s site
• The Calm Mealtime Toolkit by Lena
• Work with Lena one-to-one or book a free strategy call

Connect

• Find Misa on Instagram: @misascleankitchen
• Follow Lena on Instagram: @lena.livinsky

Season 3 is rolling and it’s the best yet. Subscribe, rate, and share with a friend who needs calmer mealtimes.

Grab your SIGNALS shake at 10% off with code Lena10

Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making significant dietary changes.

Today on The Livin’Sky Podcast, Lena sits down with Beth Lambert - author, educator, and founder of the nonprofit Documenting Hope, for a powerful conversation about the modern childhood health crisis, and how families can begin to reverse it.

For over 15 years, Beth has documented the rising rates of chronic illness and developmental challenges in children, asking one essential question: Why are so many kids sick and what can we do about it?

In this eye-opening episode, Lena and Beth explore how our environment, food, lifestyle, and even invisible stressors like Wi-Fi and light pollution shape our kids’ biology. They share hopeful, practical ways parents can start reducing “total load”, the cumulative stressors that overwhelm our children’s bodies and begin creating healthier, calmer homes.

Together, they discuss:

• The real reasons childhood chronic illness has exploded in recent decades
• What the Documenting Hope Project and CHIRP Study are revealing about root causes
• Why behavior-based therapies like ABA often miss the mark
• The biological connections between picky eating, sensory issues, and chronic illness
• The link between environmental toxins, antibiotics, and microbiome imbalance
• Actionable, low-cost ways to reduce chemical, emotional, and EMF stress at home
• Why your own nervous system regulation might be the most powerful healing tool of all

This is one of those conversations every parent needs to hear, full of science, compassion, and practical hope for a generation of children who deserve better.

Resources Mentioned:

• Documenting Hope
• Soft signs that can precede more serious chronic health conditions
• Book: A Compromised Generation by Beth Lambert
• Book: Brain Under Attack by Beth Lambert & Maria Rickert Hong
• Environmental Working Group “Skin Deep” Database
• Made Safe Certified Products Directory
• CHIRP Study (Child Health Inventory for Resilience and Prevention)
• Documenting Hope Healing Success Stories 

Grab your SIGNALS shake at 10% off with code Lena10

Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making significant dietary changes.

What if posture isn’t about sitting up straight — but about how your child breathes, moves, eats, and connects?

In today’s episode, I’m joined by Kasia Galica, certified strength and conditioning specialist, movement coach, and founder of Move with Kasia. Kasia brings an incredibly refreshing and science-backed perspective on posture and postural restoration — showing us that alignment isn’t rigid or aesthetic, but deeply tied to how the nervous system, breath, and sensory system communicate.

Together, we explore:

• What postural restoration really means (and why it’s not about holding your shoulders back)
• How posture influences feeding, chewing, swallowing, and speech
• Why the environment — chair height, light, noise, and connection — matters more than “perfect positioning”
• How footwear and sensory input affect development (plus what to know about barefoot vs. supportive shoes)
• Ways to support posture during pregnancy and postpartum, without rigid routines
• The importance of play, curiosity, and movement variety for growing bodies
• And why adaptability, not perfection, is the goal for both parents and kids

This episode beautifully bridges science and simplicity — reminding us that posture is less about fixing, and more about feeling, sensing, and connecting.

Whether you’re a parent navigating picky eating or a professional supporting development, this conversation will change how you see the body — and how you nurture it.

Kasia’s final advice:

✨ 

Key Takeaways

• Posture is dynamic, not static — it’s how we breathe, move, and sense the world.
• Kids need sensory-rich, variable environments (and grounded feet at the table!) for optimal feeding and development.
• Shoes are tools — the right ones help the brain and body communicate better.
• Play, rhythm, and conversation at mealtime naturally support healthy posture and connection.
• For moms, restoring posture starts from the inside out — through breath, awareness, and gentle rebalancing.

Kasia's Website

Kasia's Instagram

Shoe List

Shoe List Video

LOA Movement

Find a Postural Restoration Provider

Grab your SIGNALS shake at 10% off with code Lena10

Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making significant dietary changes.

If your child’s mealtimes feel like a daily battle — you’re not alone. In this solo episode, pediatric speech-language pathologist and holistic feeding specialist Lena Livinsky helps you understand why picky eating happens and how to start making real progress without pressure or stress.

Lena breaks down the hidden biological, emotional, and environmental factors that shape your child’s eating — from gut health and oral motor skills to sensory overload and mealtime anxiety — and introduces her B.L.O.O.M.™ Framework, a whole-child approach to feeding.

You’ll also learn The 5-Step Mealtime Reset Routine, a simple rhythm to help your child feel calm, safe, and ready to eat.

✨ Inside this episode:

• Why picky eating isn’t a behavior problem
• What your child’s eating challenges are really trying to tell you
• How stress, light, and environment affect appetite
• The five steps to shift your child’s body from chaos to calm before meals
• Why connection — not control — is the key to long-term progress

Ready to make mealtimes easier?

Grab the Calm Mealtimes Toolkit

Lena's Website: 

www.lenalivinsky.com

Follow Lena on Instagram @lena.livinsky

and listen every week for practical, compassionate tools that help your child eat, grow, and thrive — naturally.

Grab your Bon Charge gear here, code LenaL for 15% off your purchase 

Grab your SIGNALS shake at 10% off with code Lena10

Grab your SIGNALS shake at 10% off with code Lena10

Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making significant dietary changes.

In the Season 2 finale, I’m bringing it all together, the research, the real-life examples, and the practical wisdom from my BLOOM™ Framework,  to help you see picky eating in a whole new way.

Instead of adding more tips to your already overwhelming to-do list, I’m inviting you to shift your lens and ask: What is my child’s picky eating really trying to tell me?

We’ll talk about:

• Why picky eating is often dismissed and why that can be a dangerous mistake
• The deeper root causes behind picky eating (hint: it’s not “just behavior”)
• How toxic environmental factors are making food struggles worse
• Why oral motor skills, gut health, and nutrient status matter more than sticker charts
• How the 5 pillars of my BLOOM™ Framework connect to create lasting change
• The smallest shifts that can create the biggest impact even if you start with just one
• How connection and safety can open the door to new food experiences

Whether you’re parenting a toddler who refuses everything but goldfish crackers or an older child with years of food struggles, this episode will help you see their eating patterns through a whole-child lens — and know exactly where to start.

Links & Resources Mentioned:

Grab the 10 Easy Strategies to Help Picky Eaters at Home guide

my website: www.lenalivinsky.com

Free clarity call with Lena

The Picky Eating Reset

Grab your SIGNALS shake at 10% off with code Lena10

Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making significant dietary changes.

What if picky eating, energy crashes, sugar cravings, and even hormone imbalance weren’t just about what your child eats — but when they see the sun?

In this eye-opening episode of The Livin'Sky Podcast, I’m joined by blood sugar and metabolic health expert Dani Hamilton — and we go far beyond glucose.

Dani and I talk about:

• Why sunlight and circadian rhythm matter just as much (or more!) than food when it comes to blood sugar regulation and mood
• How metabolic health and light exposure affect children’s behavior, cravings, and resilience
• What picky eating might be telling us about underlying blood sugar swings, sensory needs, or nervous system stress
• Why “nature is the medicine” — and how to make simple, low-cost shifts that support real healing
• The truth about vitamin D supplements, sunscreen, and what you actually need to thrive

We also talk about motherhood, trauma recovery, and postpartum healing through the lens of light, rhythm, and nourishment.

This is one of those episodes that will have you nodding, pausing, and maybe even running outside barefoot with your kids. If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed, burnt out, or like you’re doing all the right things but still stuck in the same food battles — this conversation is your permission slip to simplify and reconnect.

Because sometimes, it’s not about doing more... it’s about coming back to what nature already knows.

Grab your SIGNALS shake at 10% off with code Lena10

Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making significant dietary changes.

What if you can help your child become a more adventurous eater without changing their diet first? 

In this episode of The Livin’Sky Podcast, I sit down with integrative pediatrician Dr. Elisa Song, the bestselling author of Healthy Kids Happy Kids, An Integrative Pediatrician’s Guide to Whole Child Resilience, to explore what’s really behind picky eating, sensory struggles, and rising health challenges in kids today — and how we can help them heal from the inside out.

From the vagus nerve to the gut-brain axis, Dr. Song shares practical ways to support your child’s microbiome and nervous system without pressure or perfection. Whether your child eats five foods or fifty, this conversation offers empowering, low-stress tools that work.

Takeaways

• The vagus nerve can shift your child’s microbiome — even without changing diet.

Dr. Song explains how stimulating the vagus nerve helps improve gut diversity and resilience, which can reduce picky eating and sensory overwhelm.

• Gut health influences food cravings, behavior, and mood.

The microbiome isn’t just about digestion — it plays a major role in your child’s emotional regulation and food preferences, including selective eating.

• Zinc deficiency is a major but overlooked root cause of sensory struggles and picky eating.

From taste aversions to sensitivity to sounds, tags, or textures — zinc is often the missing piece.

• Behavioral feeding therapy isn’t enough if we don’t address internal imbalances.

Many feeding therapies focus only on increasing bites or exposure — but without calming the nervous system and healing the gut, progress often stalls.

• Sensory sensitivities are often a sign that the body doesn’t feel safe.

Kids who are overwhelmed by textures, flavors, and smells need more nervous system support before they can feel safe enough to try new foods.

• Microbiome healing can start with simple, doable changes.

Sleep, hydration, breathwork, movement, and emotional connection all help shift the gut — no food battles required.

• Connection and co-regulation are therapeutic.

Working on nervous system safety together — even outside of mealtime — builds trust, reduces stress, and lays the foundation for better eating.

• Pre-diabetes is on the rise in kids — even in those who look "healthy."

Many children are showing early signs of metabolic dysfunction due to hidden sugars in “healthy” foods. Awareness and label-reading are key.

Resources

• Dr. Elisa Song’s book: Healthy Kids, Happy Kids
• More resources at www.healthykidshappykids.com
• Dr. Song's Instagram
• Lena's website
• Lena's Instagram

Grab your SIGNALS shake at 10% off with code Lena10

Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making significant dietary changes.