The Made Leader

Ever been in a lopsided relationship where you were giving and giving, and lost track of who you are and what you want out of life? If so, you may be caught in a codependent relationship.

Codependency is a spectrum of behaviors that can exist in any type of relationship. It happens when one person is overly focused on another person's feelings, needs and problems, and even taking responsibility for things they have no control over.

If this sounds like you, how can you untangle yourself from this pattern of behavior?

Dr. Sharon Martin, a licensed psychotherapist specializing in codependency for 25 years, and helps people pleasers and perfectionists overcome self-doubt, shame, embrace their imperfections, and learn to set boundaries.

Dr. Martin is the author of two books and writes the popular blog Conquering Codependency for Psychology Today.

In this episode, Dr. Martin defines codependency, where it comes from, and how it can be normalized in women. She walks us through what happens when we try to people please and lack boundaries.

Finally, she discusses how to recognize warning signs that you may be codependent and the first steps to changing your behavior.

Roadblocks are part of life, but that doesn't mean they are easy to get through. In this episode, I (host, Jen Arnold), tell you a story about some roadblocks I've faced recently.

I'll walk you through what to do when you experience a roadblock and what you can learn from them.

When Nicole Bell's husband, Russ, became moody, argumentative, and depressed, she shook it off as the difficulties of being married with two small kids. But a short time later, Russ started forgetting basic things, like the code to their house alarm.

When a doctor's visit and all lab results came back clean, Russ was sent to a neurologist. It was then that he was diagnosed with late-stage Alzheimer's disease. But in Nicole's engineering brain, his diagnosis never made sense, so she set out to get to the root cause of Russ's illness.

Podcast guest, Nicole Bell, is an author, entrepreneur, and advocate for tick-borne and neurodegenerative diseases.

She advanced her professional career as an engineer and program manager and spent the past 15 years in medical devices and medical technology. But when her husband became chronically ill, she left that position to take on her most challenging roles yet: caregiver and medical proxy.

In this episode, Nicole takes us through her harrowing journey of getting Russ the proper medical diagnosis, after doctor after doctor told her it was Alzheimer's.

She explains her difficult decision to step away from her job as an executive and become a full-time caregiver, while having two young children (aged 5 and 8 at the time).

Nicole shares the progression of Russ's disease, how she coped, and how she found the courage to write a book about the experience. Throughout her long journey, Nicole has become passionate about finding the root cause of illness and encourages us to do the same.

Have you ever felt like you were on edge, feeling extra emotional or finding it hard to focus? That's been me for the past few weeks. In this episode, I (host, Jen Arnold), walk you through one thing that if you don't get enough of it, will make it much harder for you to be resilient.

One in eight couples (6.7 million) struggle with infertility. Although this feels like a high number, infertility can feel isolating and shameful. Infertility carries with it the same psychological or implications as a cancer diagnosis, HIV diagnosis or chronic illness diagnosis. But it's taboo to talk about, so many women suffer silently.

Podcast guest, Cathie Quillet, is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Published Author, & Speaker who specializes in infertility and pregnancy loss, along with the treatment of those in the seasons of pregnancy, postpartum and adoption. She is also the host of the Thrive (In)Fertility Podcast.

In this episode, Cathie shares her story of having a series of miscarriages and gynecological conditions that required her to have a hysterectomy at 32 years old. She shares how she coped during the time and after healing, how she wanted to help others with infertility.

Cathie discusses the trauma of infertility - emotionally, psychologically, and physically. She describes its effects on relationships, the medical costs associated with fertility treatments, the impact on self-worth. Cathie leaves us with advice on what to say, and not say when someone you know is living through infertility.

For show notes and links mentioned, visit: https://bit.ly/GTIPodcastNotes

To sign up for 2 Tip Tuesday, visit: https://bit.ly/2TipTuesday

2 Tip Tuesday is a weekly email that break down podcast episodes into practical resilience tips you can put into action straight away.

You spend 18+ years raising your children, then all of a sudden, they're out of the house living their adult lives. This major transition can create a broad range of emotions, a newfound freedom, and potentially an identity crisis.

How can parents successfully navigate this transition and even embrace new opportunities?

Podcast guest, Celia Dodd, is here to help us navigate through. Celia is a journalist and author of 'The Empty Nest: Your changing family, your new direction', which was inspired by her own experiences when her three children left home. She set out to discover whether other parents – fathers as well as mothers – felt as sad and confused as she did.

In this episode, Celia shares her experience when her children left home and how it caused her to write a book on how the empty nest syndrome.

She shares what the parents who most successfully dealt with the transition had in common and how parents can turn this emotional time into an opportunity. Celia also offers advice for how to update the parent-child relationship, as the child becomes an adult.

Even if you don't have a child leaving home for years, this podcast will get you prepared for the empty nest when it comes.

For show notes and links mentioned, visit: https://bit.ly/GTIPodcastNotes

To sign up for 2 Tip Tuesday, visit: https://bit.ly/2TipTuesday

2 Tip Tuesday is a weekly email that break down podcast episodes into practical resilience tips you can put into action straight away.

Losing a loved one is an unavoidable cost of having close relationships. When loss happens, there's a period of grieving that's experienced differently from person to person.

But one thing happens to all of us – our brains try to solve the problem of where that person went. This deeply rooted neurobiology leads to a grieving process where our brains are trying to update with our new reality.

Podcast guest, Mary-Frances O'Connor, PhD, says you haven't failed because you're feeling grief. Dr. O'Connor is an associate professor of psychology at the University of Arizona, where she directs the Grief, Loss and Social Stress (GLASS) Lab, which investigates the effects of grief on the brain and the body.

Her book, The Grieving Brain, brings together accessible science and practical knowledge that provides a more nuanced understanding of what happens when we grieve and how to navigate loss with more ease and grace.

In this episode, Mary-Frances describes what happens in our brains when we lose a loved one. She explains the difference between grief and grieving, and how it looks different for everyone.

Mary-Frances debunks the five stages of grief, and we discuss how it's not a linear journey. Finally, she leaves us with some ways we may get stuck in grief and how to be a friend to someone grieving.

For show notes and links mentioned, visit: https://bit.ly/GTIPodcastNotes

To sign up for 2 Tip Tuesday, visit: https://bit.ly/2TipTuesday

2 Tip Tuesday is a weekly email that break down podcast episodes into practical resilience tips you can put into action straight away.

Do you ever feel stressed but not sure why? Or do you just feel "off" and want to get back to feeling "normal"? If so, this episode is for you. Listen in as I (host, Jen Arnold), walk you through a step-by-step process to move through the stress and get yourself to a better place.

It seems that every day, there's a headline about a prominent company laying off hundreds to thousands of workers. Losing your job is a life-changing event that can negatively impact your mental and physical health.

Job loss can shake your identity, security, and trust. So, what can you do to recover from losing your job?

Podcast guest, Dr. Brett Blair, explored this very topic and is here to discuss the five themes he found from his research of the job loss journey.

Brett is the founder and president of Best Life Global, LLC, a high-performance coaching and organizational consulting company.

In this episode, Brett shares how his research started and why he picked the topic of job loss. He then reveals the five key themes he discovered from the lived experience of mid-career executives losing their jobs.

Brett draws parallels between these five themes and the journey he took grieving the loss of his wife. Finally, he offers some additional coaching advice for anyone on the job search.

Ever since COVID, the word "resilience" has been overused and often misunderstood. It doesn't help that there's a popular social media post that inaccurately defines it.

Listen in as I (host, Jen Arnold), walk you through what people often get wrong about resilience and offer a different take.