The Next Chapter

"The answer to life is in service to others."

These are not just words spoken by Sara O'Meara, Co-Founder of Childhelp, it's the way she's spent the past 60 years.

O'Meara and fellow Childhelp Co-Founder, Yvonne Fedderson, founded the organization in 1959.

At the time, they were young Hollywood starlets. By chance they both landed roles on a project that would take them overseas. That assignment would change the course of their lives.

Together they began rescuing so-called "throwaway children" in Japan and VIetnam. "We never dreamed it would be our whole life. We were actresses at the time," O'Meara says. . They went on to build 9 orphanages, a hospital and a school in Japan and Vietnam.

The young actresses were quickly recognized as child advocates in the United States and they were personally asked by Nancy Reagan to lead the fight against child abuse here at home.

So they did.

"The Ladies" as they are famously known went on to build the very first residential treatment center for child abuse in our nation and defied all of their naysayers along the way.

"Anytime you try to do anything good, you are going to have the other side that is not always as complimentary, and other people may find fault," Sara O'Meara explains. "The main ingredient is perseverance. If you know something is the right thing to do you cannot let anyone discourage you."

Fedderson adds that every step has been guided by faith. "We pray about everything. God is the CEO of our organization … that's for sure."

Led by Sara and Yvonne, Childhelp built advocacy centers and group homes for children already affected by child abuse, created prevention programs like Speak Up Be Safe, which they hope to see implemented in schools nationwide, and established a National Child Abuse Hotline where trained professionals answer the phones in over 150 languages. And recently they added text messaging. Children in crisis can text 1-800-4-A-CHILD and receive immediate help.

Now ages 85 and 84 (Yvonne points out she's younger), The Ladies show no signs of slowing down.

On February 2, 2019, Childhelp officially kicks off its 60th Anniversary year with the "Drive The Dream Gala", Chaired by international philanthropists Richard and Dr. Stacie Stephenson.

The Gala, which is held in Phoenix, Arizona, draws a celebrity crowd, including longtime Childhelp supporters John Stamos, Kathy Lee Gifford and Cheryl Ladd, among many others.

The Ladies left the world of Hollywood long ago. And while they still enjoy the glitz and glamour that comes with their fundraising Galas and events nationwide, what matters most is finishing the job they started in 1959.

"As long as there is one hurting child out there, we are going to keep going."

On this 22 minute episode of Carey Pena Reports, The Ladies, in a rare sit down interview, talk about the power of positive change and what others can learn from their story of perseverance.

For more information about Childhelp visit https://www.childhelp.org

Carey: Hey everyone, this is a special edition of Carey Pena Reports. Today we are with two trailblazers who founded an organization that to date has saved and changed the lives of more than 10 million children. We sit down with them for a rare interview at their home in Paradise Valley, Arizona to talk about leadership and how you can't let anyone deter you from your dreams. Here's that interview.

Carey: We are on location today talking about the power of positive change, and I am here with two very well-known change makers, Yvonne Fedderson and Sara O'Meara, the founders of Child Help. Thank you both so much for joining us today.

Sara: Thank you for having us.

Yvonne: We love joining you.

Carey: Thank you for inviting us into your home and there is so much to talk about. You are celebrating 60 years of Child Help and we will talk about all of the incredible accomplishments, but first, I want to talk to you about the leadership lessons that you've learned over the years.

Yvonne: Oh my gosh.

Carey: Because you ladies were really change makers before it was en vogue to be so. Where did you find your courage in the late 1950s, early 1960s to stand up and say "we see a problem and we want to change"?

Sara: Well, I think it was because we felt so deeply about what was happening to these children. We began taking care of the half American child that were known as throwaway children in Japan and Vietnam and so when we saw their suffering and the fact that these were God's precious children and they were not being taken care of, it was something we just had to do. That gave us the courage to speak out because remember those wars were not exactly popular wars, so to speak.

Carey: The opposite.

Yvonne: Yeah.

Sara: Very much the opposite.

Yvonne: Also, we were very young.

Sara: Yes.

Yvonne: And we just did it, you know?

Carey: You saw something.

Yvonne: We saw a need and we said we've got to do it and that was it.

Sara: We're going to kill it.

Carey: You jumped into action.

Sara: But we never dreamed it would be our whole life.

Yvonne: No.

Sara: I mean, we were actresses at the time and so that's what we thought we would be doing, but it ended up that this became our life's mission, and then after we built the orphanages, we built nine orphanages, a hospital for orphans and a school …

Yvonne: In Japan and Vietnam.

Sara: In Japan and Vietnam. WE thought that that was it, and what happened is when we were speaking as keynote speakers about the Operation Baby Lift, because it was our organization that brought the babies over after the war ended, then Governor Reagan and Mrs. Reagan, Nancy and Ronnie, were there on the dais with us, and Nancy stopped Yvonne and me and said, "You're just the two to do this. You need to do something about child abuse in our country." Well, no one had ever heard about child abuse. It was never, ever mentioned. All the laws protected…

Yvonne: That was way back in '75.

Carey: Yeah.

Sara: Yes, and the laws protected the perpetrator, not the child. So, we did jump in to do that and state by state we had to help change laws so that we had safety for these children, and then we built villages for abused children, advocacy centers, the national child abuse hotline …

Carey: It continued to grow and grow.

Sara: It continued to grow.

Carey: So Nancy Reagan encouraged you ladies.

Yvonne: Oh, they supported us.

Carey: She knew that you were the two to do it. So, you had a lot of famous friends, but that's not enough to make an entire organization as big and powerful as yours. What was it, do you think, Yvonne, inside you that made you believe that you could do it, because you have helped change and save the lives of millions of children?

Yvonne: Well, we felt this was a calling for both of us because we were selected out of 500 actresses to go on this trip. So even at the time when were selected, we looked at each other and we said, "God must have a plan for this trip, for the two of us to be selected." They didn't even know we knew each other. So for us to be selected was really something, and then when we found these children, we thought, "That's why we're here. We're supposed to help these children." Well, one thing led to another. Then when we were asked to do this, we felt within our heart, and of course we pray about everything and we've always dedicated our organization to God. He's really the CEO of our organization.

Sara: That's for sure.

Yvonne: But we also were blessed to have many fabulous people to support us. Not only the stars, but we have volunteers who have been with us 30 and 40 and 50 years. Now, think about that. So it's become their mission also.

Carey: A lifetime.

Sara: A lifetime.

Carey: A lifetime.

Sara: Yeah.

Yvonne: A lifetime.

Carey: Now, they have so many great star stories. Can't even get into the whole Elvis Presley and all of this, because then I'd just become a fan girl, but I am interested in that passion, and just the concept that you saw when you started to make change that it was possible. Yvonne: Absolutely.

Carey: And when you start to see that, because I think a lot of people who are watching and listening to this show, and this show is about the power of positive change, and sometimes we don't know our own power. You ladies were young.

Yvonne: Everyone has it.

Carey: Everyone has it. Talk to me about that.

Yvonne: But they have to use it.

Carey: And when you realized that you had it.

Sara: We realized we had it when frankly we depended on God, because we always asked to be guided. We don't want our plan because that's a meager plan compared to what God has planned for each one of us.

Yvonne: That's right.

Sara: He has a plan for every single individual, and we can make changes. Everyone that is on this earth can make a change. They have to choose to want to make a change. That's the difference. They have to know that the answers to life is in service to others, and once you get that, then your life lives outside of yourself. It's not all about me, me, me. Instead you want to reach out. You want to make a difference in people's lives, and you can. There isn't anybody listening, anybody out there that cannot make a change, a difference in someone's life, but in a lot of lives if you so choose.

Yvonne: We've been very blessed to attract people that have hearts like that, that want to serve. They have a servant's heart and they're very, very dedicated, and we really love and appreciate them, and all the people … Maybe they can't be a volunteer but they support us in other ways. Whatever way they help, it's wonderful and God will bless them for that.

Carey: Because I want to point out that, I mean, you ladies are obviously beautiful to this very day, but when you went on this mission, you were young, hot Hollywood starlets, and you didn't have to put your sort of glamour aside to start rescuing children, but you felt that was your calling.

Yvonne: But you see, everything kind of comes together. As you get older, you look back and you realize that being an actress was part of our life and it opened up many, many doors for us to … Of course, I married a Hollywood producer too, which helped, but all those doors opened up different things that help the organization. For instance, the stars. They were a great asset to our organization, but like I say, the volunteers then were great, so it's wonderful how God opens up doors when we open up our heart to serve him.

Carey: Were there people along the way who tried to discourage you as Child Help continued to grow?

Sara: Oh yes.

Yvonne: Oh my goodness, big time.

Sara: Every time you do anything good, you're going to have the other side.

Yvonne: That's right, of course.

Sara: That not always is very complimentary. Other people may find fault with anything that you do. The main ingredient is perseverance. If you know something is right to do, you cannot let anyone discourage you, and when we built the very first residential treatment center for child abuse in our nation, people were saying to us, particularly in social service, "Well, you can't do that. Nobody's been able to do that and you don't have a degree in social service and it will never be a success." Well, from the day we've opened, it's been successful. That was 40 years ago and we've built other villages for abused children across the nation. So, you cannot let others define who you are and who you want to be.

Yvonne: You know what Sara said when she said "when you know something is right," it's so true because we knew the villages were right. We knew the centers were right. Every time we've opened a program or started a program, it's been a challenge, but when we know something or anyone knows something within your heart that's right to do, just like Sarah said, don't let other people discourage you. Keep your eye on what you're supposed to do. Keep your eye on the gold and you will make it through because it's right for you to do.

Carey: Is there any sort of … and I know that you draw so much inspiration from your faith-

Yvonne: Absolutely.

Carey: Which is so deep and guiding in your life, but where else … I mean, are there sort of affirmations or is it the friendship between the two of you where when one is down, the other one says, "We can continue"?

Sara: Well, we realize that it's so much easier when you have a partner, when you have someone that thinks like you do, they're mission driven, and yes, we help each other through our dark times. Everybody has problems. Everybody has obstacles in their families, in their personal life, in their business life.

Yvonne: And we've been through it all together. Everything.

Sara: Yeah, and so we do help each other through those times and that's been very helpful, but also, you never get through life as a success unless others reach out and help you, and so we have had many wonderful mentors in our life, to whom we could look up and see what made their lives successful and how they react to things, and so we learn from each other.

Yvonne: And you also learn through everything that you go through. You think at the time, "Oh, this is terrible. We're never gonna make it through this problem," but you do, and when you get through it, you use it on something great. It's a great lesson for us to grow.

Carey: Let's talk a little bit more about Child Help for those listening and watching who aren't familiar with the organization. Child Help is dedicated to the prevention and treatment of child abuse. According to your website, over 10 million children have been impacted. I want to go through a few of the wins. You have built advocacy centers and group homes for children who have already unfortunately been affected by child abuse. You have created prevention programs like the Child Help Speak Up, Be Safe program which is spreading to more schools.

Sara: All across the nation.

Carey: In Arizona and across the country.

Yvonne: We'd like to be in every school, especially here in Arizona.

Carey: Yes, your goals are always lofty, and this one I think is … All of them are important but I love that you established this national child abuse hotline, which, by the way, I want to give out that number, is 1-800-4-A-CHILD, and this is done in multiple languages because I think in my mind about the moment when a child is scared and hiding and doesn't know what to do, and where do you turn? So you ladies have tried to think through those problems.

Sara: Yes, and it's the only hotline that has degreed professionals answering the phones, not volunteers, so it's more than a hotline. They're therapists that can talk the child through it, and not just give out a number, even though we do that as well. For the first time in history we're having texting, and that's something else that is new.

Carey: Thank you for reminding me about that because that's huge.

Sara: It's very huge.

Yvonne: It is huge because the children are kind of afraid naturally to talk about what's going on, but they're so used to texting that they go for like 45 minutes and tell you everything, so that's wonderful.

Carey: How much does it matter to you that these children have the opportunity to see that life can be beautiful? Child abuse as a news anchor and reporter, I know that it is an uncomfortable conversation.

Sara: There's no question about it.

Carey: And a lot of people don't like to talk about it, but what is going on in a lot of homes is very, very tragic. How important is it for you ladies to give a resource to children who are suffering?

Sara: It means everything because it means the change of their life. It also means they don't have to go through so much suffering. So many, many times we have had survivors come back and say, "Oh, if I'd only known about that 1-800, the number 4, A-CHILD, I could've gotten help, but they didn't know where to go, and they didn't even know they were being abused sometimes because it started so young, they thought everybody was abused like that. So, it means everything because what you're doing is giving safety to a child. You're giving them their life, because child abuse can rob you of your youth, of your young life, and it sticks with you a long time. It takes a lot to overcome that, and one of the first things we do when the children come into our villages is give them a sense of self-worth because they just feel that they're nobody.

Sara: We had a child that came in with "bad kid" burned into his back with cigarette burns-

Carey: Bad kid.

Yvonne: Mm-hmm (affirmative).

Sara: When you would ask him what his name was, he'd say "bad kid" because he was called that, and that's what he thought his name was. So, you have to really work with these children to let them know how precious they really are and that there's only one set of fingerprints and that's theirs, and they can make a big difference in their life. Once they know that and they understand how precious they truly are as a human being, the healing can start then, and so, yes, it means everything to see a life change.

Carey: So, I'm thinking about all the people out there who are inspired by you and what you've been able to accomplish, and we cannot all be a Sara and Yvonne. You guys have created something truly special, but each in our own way we have the ability.

Sara: Absolutely.

Carey: Over the years as you've seen one child's life change and another child's life.

Yvonne: Many child's …

Carey: And then thousands and millions, it truly is a story about all things are possible when we really care.

Yvonne: Absolutely, absolutely.

Sara: There's no question about it. Caring is a beautiful thing. If you have a caring heart, it takes you down a pathway, a beautiful journey of life because when you truly care about people, you truly care about feelings, you truly care to make that child whole again, then what this does to you on the inside, it develops you as a person and it gives you the strength really from within. You may not know from which it cometh, but that's what gives us the strength, is in order to give back to another.

Carey: Has there ever been, and I imagine I know the answer to this, but has there ever been a time where you think, "Okay, we're ready to retire" and-

Yvonne: No.

Carey: Because when I've been around you ladies, you have to-do lists that puts mine to shame, but you have already accomplished so much, but yet-

Yvonne: But there's more to accomplish. There's always more to accomplish.

Sara: There's more left to do.

Yvonne: Yep.

Sara: And we have great plans for developing other programs that have never been developed. We're kind of known as the trailblazers to get out there and start programs that have never been done before. We opened the first advocacy center with everything under one roof … police, the social services, the hospital …

Carey: An integrative approach, right.

Sara: That's correct.

Yvonne: And this new one's going to be like that. Everyone involved.

Sara: And then the villages, we were the first ones to open that. We're the first ones for the hotline. We're the first ones to have prevention in our schools, and so we're kind of the trailblazers in that respect. We're not afraid to take risks, but you have to in life.

Carey: So let's talk a little bit about that, because I think that's a really important point. Sometimes it can be very scary to be the person-

Sara: Yes, of course.

Carey: Who says, "Well, we can do it a little differently."

Sara: And there are a lot of naysayers along the way.

Carey: And there's a lot of naysayers.

Yvonne: We might get scared within ourselves and talk to each other, but we don't let anyone else know.

Carey: But how do you fight through that and see that, okay, I have this vision and I know that vision is something that we should try to test out?

Sara: Yes, we're working on a vision right now that has never been done before that will integrate all of our programs. It will be literally a city, and so we're working on that now and we hope to see that come to pass.

Carey: So you ladies, and I know it's not appropriate to ask age, but you're-

Sara: We don't mind that you're asking our age.

Carey: Do you care saying how …

Sara: No. I'll be 85 in September.

Carey: And Yvonne?

Yvonne: I'll be 84 in April.

Carey: So you're the younger …

Yvonne: I'm the young one.

Sara: … Your elder.

Carey: I appreciate you saying that, because I think as a woman, I look at you ladies and truly you inspire me so much.

Yvonne: Well thank you.

Carey: To keep going and to keep building.

Yvonne: Well as long as we have our health, we're going to continue right on, and we work every day.

Carey: And you still see how much you can contribute to your vision.

Yvonne: Yes.

Sara: Yes, we hope so.

Yvonne: But there are a lot of people that help us.

Sara: Yes.

Yvonne: We have a great staff, we have great volunteers as we mentioned. I mean, they're wonderful. We haven't done this alone.

Sara: And look, you're helping us right now. You're getting the word out.

Yvonne: That's right.

Carey: It really is remarkable, though, to see that 60 years later, you are as enthusiastic, if not more, than when you were those young starlets who got sent on that movie assignment all those years ago. What does it mean to you to be celebrating the 60th year, to know that you've had this kind of impact?

Sara: It's a wonderful feeling because we don't think … You know when you start something, you don't think, "Oh, well, in 60 years …" You have no idea. It's just one step at a time, but when we look back over these six decades and the children that have been helped through our organization, we realize that anything is possible. You have to set your goals, as Yvonne said. You have to continue on that pathway.

Yvonne: Keep your eyes on the goal.

Sara: And not let anyone deter you if you know it's the right way, regardless of what is said, what seems to be a lack at the time, whether it's monetarily or whatever. You'll have to know that it's going to be provided because … We talk about God a lot but we have to because it's the way that it's done. If we didn't depend on God, we wouldn't be here to celebrate the 60th anniversary and have helped 10 and a half million children.

Yvonne: And we're just grateful that both of us are here and both of us have our health and be able to celebrate our 60th.

Carey: What an incredible journey you've had together.

Sara: Yes.

Carey: I mean, really, your friendship is something for the ages.

Yvonne: And our husbands were best friends. They had to be.

Carey: I mean, it just defies what sometimes people think about women not being able to truly be in lockstep with one another, because I see it a whole different way.

Sara: A lot of people said that. In fact, a lot of our celebrities that have been with us through the years, you know, Jane Seymour and Cheryl Ladd …

Yvonne: Kathie Lee.

Sara: Kathie Lee Gifford.

Yvonne: The list goes on and on. They've been fabulous.

Sara: They will say to us, "The greatest miracle is your friendship, because it's lasted so long and you can work together so harmoniously."

Carey: Yes, it's such a partnership, and on the subject, just as we close things out here, on the subject of celebrities, you ladies have some of the biggest and most extravagant, beautiful galas including the Drive The Dream, which draws a lot of celebrities. It's held in Phoenix, but you also do beautiful galas in California, but …

Sara: And back in East in Washington and Tennessee and…

Carey: All over, which are beautiful, extravagant affairs, but I do want to point out for the audience who may have heard about these galas, as I've been … and disclaimer here, I'm a volunteer on the Drive the Dream committee, but as I've gotten to know you, yes, the dressing up is fun and yes, the … That's all fun, but what matters to you is what's getting done with the money.

Yvonne: That's right.

Sara: That's right.

Yvonne: That's right.

Carey: That's what matters to you because you have big goals and dreams. Even at 84 and 85 years old, you still have a lot to accomplish.

Sara: We do, and as long as there's one hurting child out there, we're going to keep going.

Carey: Yvonne, what's your final message?

Yvonne: We really hope that you young people will carry on when we cross over. We really pray that every night, because…

Carey: I only feel like I could be a small portion of filling your shoes but I am so privileged to be a part of it because learning from women like you is really a blessing for me. Thank you both.

Yvonne: That's very kind of you to say.

Sara: Thank you, you're a blessing to us too.

Yvonne: Thank you, and thank all those who are listening to this program today who support Child Help. We really appreciate it and we know the children certainly appreciate it. Their lives would be totally different without their help.

Carey: For more information on Child Help, we would love for you to go to the website, ChildHelp.org. Thank you so much for watching and for listening to Carey Pena Reports, and you can find out more information on our website, InspiredMedia360.com. Take care, everyone.

The post The Founders of Childhelp Succeed With Perseverance and Prayer appeared first on Inspired Media 360 TV - Inform | Inspire | Engage.

"If we all created space for MORE LIFE and LESS stuff or overcommitted schedules we'd feel more free, present, joyful, and focused. LIVE MORE with LESS distractions… you'll fly higher."

Coach Darleen Santore is on a mission to help people simplify their lives!

As an occupational therapist, her role for 22 years has been helping people live life to the fullest and reach full potential. Now more than ever, she says, she's noticing people consuming so much that they are overwhelmed, weighed down, and exhausted.

On this 33 minute episode of Transformation Tuesday, Coach Dar shares 3 ways you can simplify your life.

And she opens up about how making these very same changes in her own life helped her transform.

Carey Pena: What does it mean to transform? Not just how you look, but how you think. Not just losing weight, but gaining strength. The best experts, the best advice. Getting better together. Inspired Media 360 presents Transformation Tuesday.

Carey Pena: This is Transformation Tuesday. I'm your host, Carey Pena. On this show we talk about total life transformations and how we become the best versions of ourselves.

Carey Pena: Back in the studio, one of my faves, coach and author, Darleen Santore. You have so many exciting things going on.

Coach Dar: Yes.

Carey Pena: Thank you so much for coming back.

Coach Dar: Thanks, Carey, for having me on. I'm excited to be here.

Carey Pena: Today we're talking about a post that you put up that is blowing up big. You basically said, "Simplicity is the new big," and you said, "Follow me here for a minute. We've been brainwashed for years to have more, consume more, say more, do more, scroll more. Enough."

Carey Pena: What made you want to put up that post?

Coach Dar: So many things, but in my profession as an occupational therapist for the past 22 years, my whole role has been helping people live life to the fullest, and getting them to reach their full potential. I noticed recently, more than ever, everyone is consuming so much, whether it's mentally, physically, spiritually, scrolling more, consuming more products. Things are weighing people down, and I'm seeing people be more and more exhausted. I've seen more people with anxiety and depression. Suicide has been at a higher rate. Financial problems people are having, divorces, there's just so much that's going on.

Coach Dar: When I started to look, I was researching for my book and also looking back at patterns, because as a therapist that's what I'll look at to try to fix it, I noticed that it's because we're not simplifying. We're taking on more than we could actually do, and that goes for mental and physical. I wanted to be able to share as a theme, almost as an anthem for the year, simplify. It's almost like I hear in my head Justin Timberlake song, "I'm Bringing Sexy Back". I want to bring simplicity back and simplify.

Carey Pena: By the way, for our audience, we're going to get three great tips from you about where you begin to simplify. You had a bit of a rough year last year, and you had a health crisis. Would you take us through that?

Coach Dar: Sure.

Carey Pena: I'm sure that also played into your own personal feelings about needing to simplify.

Coach Dar: Yes. Often passions come from life experiences. Last May, this past summer, I had a stroke, and this happened to be my third stroke. Prior to that I had been traveling. I coach in sports and in business, but I was traveling all season with the Phoenix Suns. We were gone seven days a week pretty much working. I love what I do, but it was so much. Everything that I was doing that I think that's where my body let me know that's enough, and unfortunately had to endure that.

Coach Dar: In that time that I was healing over the summer, and also working on my book, that's when it came to me. I thought, "This is it. This is why. This is my body telling me you have to slow down," but look at everyone that I work with or what we're seeing on TV and everything we're consuming is, people are breaking down. We're not meant to sometimes keep up to a certain pace or take on so much on our calendars and do. We have to say no so that we could say yes to the right things.

Carey Pena: This is something that you definitely identify with. I know in one of your posts you wrote, "Listen. I've been there, saying yes to too much or giving away so much, especially time." This year you are sharing your ways to set healthy boundaries and operate more efficiently and more joyfully. I love this. You say, "If it's not a heck yes, then it's a hell no. Hell to the no."

Coach Dar: That's right.

Carey Pena: And this is your talking about on things, on appointments, on meetings, coffee, tea, drinks, meetups, dinners. I tend to do that. I fall into that, because I like people and I might go, "Oh, let's just meet up for a quick …" Then all of a sudden I look at my schedule for the week and I'm wondering, "How did this happen? Why is every single moment of my day scheduled out?" That's really not healthy.

Coach Dar: No. We need time to breathe. We need to time to reflect. You might have come out of a great meeting, but if you don't sit and reflect on it, write notes, and you rush right into the next one, it just becomes meeting, meeting, meeting. Then at the end of the night you're maybe with your family, and it's 11:00 PM and you're trying to just download what happened and reflect on it, but you're exhausted by then. We're putting so much on our schedule, and you really need to stop and say, "Is this something that I'm going to be able to be 110% if I show up? Is it necessary for what I'm working on?"

Coach Dar: We want to be able to be productive, but you have a gift to give and share with the world. If you're constantly under, almost like you don't have the oxygen, you're on empty, you're really not giving the best. You're really not able to show up. We need people to stop and say, "Okay. If it is a coffee or a tea or a drink or a dinner, whatever it is, or a meeting, is this my highest and best use going? Am I going to be able to show up and be productive, and how is this going to affect my whole day?" If it's not a heck yes, then it's a hell no. Ask that, really try this, and we'll get into it, but ask yourself this each time when you make a decision.

Carey Pena: You're not necessarily talking about that everything needs to be transactional, because I pay attention to that. I don't need to get something from every interaction. Sometimes if someone just wants to meet up and have a coffee to say hi, that's great and I love that. I don't want everything to be about a business transaction. You're saying just look at the overview and how much you're stacking up.

Coach Dar: Right, because you don't want every day to just be booked every second, because then where you really do have that social meeting where you want to be present, you're so rushed in your mind to get to the next thing that you can't even enjoy the time. Really, a lot of this, too, is about being present and simplifying and taking time to enjoy what is right in front of you, the blessings that you have, even the work that you're doing but were so rushed and it's so booked you can't even enjoy it. It robs us of our joy.

Carey Pena: What has been the response since you've put up the post, because I know a lot … This is a real hot topic.

Coach Dar: It really is. When I write something, I write because I'm so passionate about it, and I really am not sure how someone's going to receive it, but it has been blowing up to the point where people are writing in. People have asked for interviews, and it allows me to know that this is a hot topic, but truly it's because people are hurting. People feel like they're drowning. They don't know how to kind of get back their life, so hopefully by sharing this and really being able to share some tips and coach people through this, we're going to get people so that they feel better.

Carey Pena: I sent an email blast talking about you coming on the show, and we're going to be talking about simplicity, and I got a lot of responses. One of them came from a good friend of mine who I didn't even know was on our email list. Her name is Lori Gentile. She's a very successful interior designer and she writes to me saying, "Carey, this has been my motto for years now. I crave downtime at the house just doing nothing, or just puttering in my garden, and for sure meditating."

Carey Pena: She's a very sought after interior designer, but she immediately wrote back after she got this, so I know that the message is resonating and I love that you're trying to bring it to more people. For folks who are listening, thinking, "Okay. I like where you ladies are going with this," where do we begin? You gave me three steps that you think will really profoundly help people simplify, and you begin with … It seems obvious but I want to take people through it. You begin with decluttering your place to make space.

Coach Dar: Yes. If this is your workplace, or if this is your home, or even your car, because sometimes people have to travel a lot or commute a lot in their car. I need everyone to just stop and inventory their space. Is your space a space that provides flow? Is there a lot of clutter around you? Are things not put away? Is there always something that your mind subconsciously is going, "You need to get to that. You need to get to that," or it's kind of hovering over you, because if it is, it's a burden. Then you cannot think clearly.

Coach Dar: If your car is always messy and you get in it you're going to feel it. If your workspace, your desk, is constantly with a pile on it and it's not organized, your brain is actually picking up that that is something that it has to tend to, so therefore it can't settle. It can't focus on what it is that you're trying to focus on. We've studied this as therapists, and every time people clean up their space they start to become more efficient and more productive. Even to the point of someone's home, your friend who just wrote in. She loves to be able to just be in her garden and be home, and if her space is inviting and she's excited to get home, she's going to recover. Then, when she goes out to a client, she's going to be that much more inspired and productive.

Carey Pena: That's right.

Coach Dar: Our space has so much to do about really our greatness and how great we're going to show up and be more effective if we have it in order. Structure is actually good. Not everyone is gifted in being able to organize. I know it's not my highest gift, but I actually have friends, or there are companies out there, that you can call someone that they will help create systems for you, and then you're able to come home and just follow that system. It does a world of good, and you'll see changes.

Coach Dar: I had a woman just even fix her car, because she kept throwing things in it. Once she fixed her home and her car, she ended up producing in her business almost a million dollars more the next year.

Carey Pena: Wow. To be clear, are you saying that it's beneficial to organize your space, or to actually remove tangible things?

Coach Dar: Both. You want to be able to let … Everyone just goes to the obvious of your closet. Are there things that you don't need? Shed it. In your home, if there are a lot of things, knickknacks or things that are cluttering up the space that don't allow it to flow, remove it. If you don't need it or it's not bringing you joy, then you should donate it. You should give it away. Also, organizing things will allow you so that you know where things are so that you are more efficient, so both decluttering it and then creating structure to what's there.

Carey Pena: That makes sense, though. For instance, when you say that when you look around and you see, for instance, if you're in your office and you have a huge stack, and that includes bills, and to-do lists, and all this, your brain immediately when you look at that thinks… all those things need to be done.

Coach Dar: Right. Think about, too, when you walk into a hotel. Often hotels are streamlined, they're clean, and everyone always feels great when they walk in the hotel room or a resort. Think about your space, your space you want to be able to … It's inviting when you walk into those spaces. Create your space so that has that same flow, because if there is too much clutter, truly your brain cannot focus as well.

Carey Pena: What did you remove from your space as you started thinking about this?

Coach Dar: I realized how many little … I might have saved cards from people, I might have saved old programs of things, and I was thinking, "Why am I holding onto all of this?" Because they were actual … They were in baskets, but the baskets were overflowing. I was like, "Why am I keeping this stuff?" And I remembered Wayne Dyer said this one point. He told his assistant before he moved to Maui, he said, "Get rid of anything. If I can't Google it, I don't need it, and if I can't scan it and it can't be something electronic, then I don't need it."

Coach Dar: He said when you free your space you become lighter, and when you're lighter you don't feel weighed down. He says, "Anytime I had to travel for work, I had exactly what I needed and I didn't need any more."

Carey Pena: I love that.

Coach Dar: As he moved, he was able to move freely, and you're more inspired. You really do think clearer when you have less.

Carey Pena: We need to create more space for creativity.

Coach Dar: Yes.

Carey Pena: Let's go to number two, be decisive in your decision-making.

Coach Dar: Yes. This goes back to what I had put out there, if it's not a heck yes, it's a hell no. Every decision you make. Oftentimes you might say, "Oh, I'll get to that later. Let me think on it," and yes, you do absolutely have to pause, but you need time to pause and you need space to pause. You want to ask yourself, "Can I make the decision? Right now, would this be a heck yes or a hell now?"

Coach Dar: If at any moment you're like, "I don't really know if I should do this," it's probably a no. At that time in your schedule you probably shouldn't add it on. It becomes a tool you could use to make quicker decisions, so then you could be more efficient. I keep repeating this efficiency, but really when we're more efficient, we have greater results. Take that inventory question, that statement, and filter everything through it. Even when you're going to just go to dinner, should you be taking on another dinner this week, or would it be better that you were at home and you just relaxed and you were with your family?

Carey Pena: Well, truly, too, I think that it's not a service to whomever you're going to dinner with if you really don't want to be there.

Coach Dar: Right.

Carey Pena: That goes back to you're not showing up at your 110%.

Coach Dar: Right.

Carey Pena: Do you also apply that to business for you as an entrepreneur? And I look at myself, as you're saying this I'm thinking through how I dissect potential projects. I just was talking to you before we started about I love doing media coaching. I realized now as people are asking me to do the coaching, it's a, "Yes, I love it. That's fun. I see great results in the people I coach." I really apply that to my business decisions.

Coach Dar: Right. You light up. You even just lit up when you just said that, but see where … Here's your gift. You're so gifted and talented at that. If you were able to clear your schedule so you could say yes to that more, you're going to have a greater impact with the people that you served than saying yes to other things that, while you'll be good at doing, this you say yes to and you're great at it. You're going to help.

Coach Dar: If you keep adding all these little yeses that maybe, while I could help you, but is it your highest and best use? Probably not, when you could go and do this with certain particular clients who do this media coaching, and you're going to knock it out of the park, and they're going to get such great results, and it's all about the ripple effect and the impact we want to leave in this world.

Carey Pena: Is that how you've come to run your business decisions as well?

Coach Dar: Absolutely, especially after the stroke this summer. I had to decide. A very large well-known organization in sports had called, and most people would have said yes to something to be able to be on staff with them. However, my schedule would have been 6:30 in the morning until 11:00 at night for a long time, and I had to say no because I knew I could say yes to other things and use my time more effectively. Because I had to look at my health, I had to look at also where I could put great quality of time and important to people, and where I wanted things to go.

Coach Dar: So if you know what your plan is for the year and you want to now say yes to the things that are going to use your gifts, you're allowed to. Versus just saying yes because maybe that's what the world thinks you should do, or because it's glamorous. Really start to be clear on what your intention is for your life, for using your gifts, and where you want to go.

Carey Pena: With the using the hypothetical, expanding on that, I think a lot of times … You said no to a very large organization. A lot of times, though, people are afraid that, "Will that sort of opportunity come to me again?" You have to have confidence that if you make these intentional decisions and you say yes to the right things, more of the right things will come along.

Coach Dar: Right, and then you have to say, "How do you want your quality of life?" Really, because I'm watching more and more people hustling and working themselves truly to the point that their health is affected, their life is affected, their marriage is affected, they're not able to be with their family. There's times that, listen, business is going to ebb and flow, and you have to pour into it, but you just have to look at what's the quality of life and what's the impact that I want to live and lead, and then how do I want to show up doing that, and then create a schedule around that.

Carey Pena: Let's dig a little deeper right there before we get to the third one, because you brought up a good point about the hustle. The hustle has been sold to a lot of people as, "You gotta get out there and hustle nonstop," and some very smart people like … What's his name? Gary V? (Vaynerchuck)

Coach Dar: Yes.

Carey Pena: And Grant Cardone, who I follow both of them.

Coach Dar: I love both of them.

Carey Pena: They are great, and hustle works for them.

Coach Dar: Right.

Carey Pena: Clearly it has worked. They're really successful, but not everyone could duplicate. They do it so well it almost makes it look very easy, because they're hustling all the time and every time I see Grant … He's awesome, and his wife's awesome, but I see him, he's getting in his private jet, and they're hustling, they're speaking, and constantly creating content and all of that. That sort of feeling that you can do it 24 hours a day I think takes people down a disappointing road.

Coach Dar: The other thing, too, is not everyone is equipped the same, and I think people have to understand that. I knew coming out with this message that I was going to go up against the hustle.

Carey Pena: You're going the opposite direction.

Coach Dar: Yes. However, I want … It's kind of like this. One diet doesn't fit all. Well, the same with how we go after our goals in our life, one model doesn't fit all. There might be some people that this hustle is working for them, but there's a lot of people that it's not, and it's breaking people's backs. It's literally breaking down their lives, their marriages, everything, so how do you balance this? There's not a perfect zen, but you have to find what's right for you and your family, and how you want … That's why I said what's the quality of life. Where do you want to go at things?

Coach Dar: Maybe you could do certain things for so many months and then you need a break. Just how do you expand this? Hustle for everyone doesn't work, and I used to work, when … I am an occupational therapist, but I worked many years in the hospital, and we had a sleep lab. It would show we would have studies that would show people that lack of sleep was so toxic to the body. It cannot literally rebuild itself, so when people make the expressions, "You can sleep when you're dead," let me tell you, if you don't get the sleep, you can end up going out of this world earlier than you should.

Coach Dar: There's a book, "Sleep Revolution", that Arianna Huffington wrote, and I love it, but we need to start really giving people also some sound advice on the other side effects, the side effects of hustle, and that if you don't take care of yourself, and you don't get the right care, you have to work out, you have to get sleep, but you have to create this balance. Otherwise you aren't going to make it. You can't get to the finish line. So what was it all for?

Carey Pena: Isn't some of it, too, that you need to think through your objectives?

Coach Dar: Yes.

Carey Pena: Because not everyone wants to 10X their life. Is the objective to make a lot more money? Is the objective to move to a bigger house? It might be, and in that case you might need to really hustle, hustle, hustle until you make a certain amount. I think that's important to think about that. Going back to my friend, Lori Gentile, a very successful interior designer, but she has worked … I've known her for quite a few years. She's one of the best designers. She has worked very intentionally over the years. She does not take a ton of jobs at one time. She makes sure the clients that she works with align with her style. She has a very holistic style, and she used to drive me crazy because I would tell her, "Get on Instagram."

Carey Pena: "I don't want to do all that." Now, she has now has her team a little bit on Instagram. Good job, Lori, very proud of you. I see the wisdom in what she saying, that she doesn't want to be on Facebook. She chose one platform, that is a good platform for interior design, and she's allowed that to grow, but she's worked very intentionally so that gives her the time and space to have that simplicity in her life.

Coach Dar: Customize. Exactly. She's able to customize her lifestyle to fit her needs, and that's what everyone has … Even this, simplicity might not be for all, hustle's not going to be for all, but you have to be able to choose what's right for you. I could share that over thousands of people that I've worked with. Those that got clear on how they wanted their life and their schedule to look, and then created this efficient system around it and simplified, became more successful in the long run.

Coach Dar: I even think about how Steve Jobs wore his black crew neck shirt, because he didn't want to have to think about what he was wearing. He was creating efficiency and simplicity, and I think Mark Zuckerberg talks about that, too. We know that there's ways that you could create some simple tactics in your life and still do what you need to do to get the work done, but it's going to allow you to be a lot more efficient. We don't need more. We need better connection. If you really want to have a thriving life and one that's fulfilled and happy, it's about making greater connections, and it's about quality, not quantity.

Carey Pena: I see a real passion and somewhat of an urgency in the way you're bringing this message. Do you feel that it's important to try to get people to think about this before they crash and burn?

Coach Dar: Yes. This has been why I actually left a high paying job as a president of a healthcare company to start my own practice years ago, because I wanted to get to people before it was too late. I'm feeling this urgency all over again, because when you watch the news or you see what's going on, we have more and more people unhappy, depressed, anxiety. More people are on anxiety meds than they've ever been, so what's going wrong? Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. I'm here to just say please just take this under consideration. Use this almost as a script for life. Try simplifying things and see if you feel better after this.

Carey Pena: I was in the Dominican Republic and we were down at the beach and a gentlemen, I think they were from the East Coast, a gentleman and his wife were there, and he was on his phone. His wife said, "Oh, how is everything going at your work?" So he was checking his emails, and she said to him, "Are they getting by without you?"

Carey Pena: I'll not forget this. He said, "Barely."

Carey Pena: I started thinking about it, how sometimes we feel, all of us, that we are so important, that if we step away for a second. That's why I think a lot of times it's kind of scary to simplify because you think, "I'm needed here. I have to go to that meeting. They need to talk to me. They need my input."

Carey Pena: When in actuality, the world keeps on turning. I looked over and the wife was kind of like, "Whatever," but it made him feel good to check in.

Coach Dar: Right.

Carey Pena: Number three on your list. This is interesting. They're all interesting, but this stood out to me. Be a producer, not a consumer.

Coach Dar: Yes.

Carey Pena: Let's talk about that.

Coach Dar: I am playing with words here, but so often we're consuming. We're consuming the next thing, we're consuming the next feed, we're consuming media, we're consuming stuff mentally, physically, spiritually. We're consuming instead of producing. When we consume a lot, it keeps weighing us down, we can't produce. I'm talking about efficiency and your greatness, so I'm asking people to take inventory of watch what you consume in a week. From what you watch to what you buy to what you're putting around you, negative talk even. You're consuming things. Watch what you're consuming and try to be a producer.

Coach Dar: How do you want to show up? How can you produce more in the sense of not producing more things that just don't add value, but how do you produce an impact when you show up? When you're actually simplifying and you have more peace in your mind when you sit down at a meeting or with a friend, you're actually producing a better environment in response because you're clear now, and you're more effective. Versus if you're constantly consuming, and then you have back to back to back to back meeting, or buying and buying and buying. You're consuming and you're not producing. You're not showing up. You're not as efficient. It's a play on words here, but be a producer, not a consumer so much on what you're taking in.

Carey Pena: How do you apply that to your own life? Give me an example.

Coach Dar: I watch what I bring in mentally, so what I consume, I don't watch anything that's negative.

Carey Pena: So you don't watch any news.

Coach Dar: Truly, I really don't.

Carey Pena: You get your news from me texting you.

Coach Dar: I do. Exactly. I get news by people tell me, or I'll look at a newsfeed when I'm ready to look at it, but not where it's just pouring in and I have no control or filter of it. I watch, now, how much I'm consuming as far as in a move that I'm making, my space. What do I really need? Do I need to consume anything new? If I don't, then I'm not getting it. I watch what I consume as far as people that are around me. Are they uplifting? Are they moving in the right direction? When I have to refill myself I have to make sure that I'm consuming the right things, but by watching what I consume I now show up and I can produce better for people. When they have me come and help them I'm now giving 110% and not 50%.

Carey Pena: It strikes me that this would be important for people who, a lot of businesses that I come in contact with who are looking to articulate better, articulate their brand message. It's not clear. It's very fragmented, because what you're saying really makes a lot of sense. There is a lot of things going on there. When we are so overcrowded in our heads, and then you ask someone a simple question like, "What is your brand? What is your mission? What is your why?" Which these are all some of the questions when I'm brought in to do consulting or a brand journalism project, I ask those questions. It's not that the people aren't smart people. They know their business, but we're so overcrowded mentally that then we're not able to produce a clear succinct message.

Coach Dar: Absolutely. You just hit it on the head. That's exactly what this is all about, and when you simplify you actually make a greater impact, because when you help your clients simplify their message, now when people hear it, it's clear and it's effective and they'll remember it.

Carey Pena: Yes. If people implement these three things, and let's just review your tips here because we're throwing out a lot of information, but declutter your place to make space, be decisive in your decision-making, and be a producer, not a consumer. Where will this lead to?

Coach Dar: When you do this you will have more clarity. You'll actually have greater connection with people. You'll have more focus. You'll feel lighter and freer, and you'll have more fulfillment enjoying your life. You'll be healthier. As a whole, your company will be healthier when you simplify, your family becomes healthier because you simplified in your connecting more, your relationships. You will find more joy when you simplify.

Carey Pena: What has this done for you? You look amazing, and you did fight a real serious health battle, but I can just see how … You talk about free. You look free, and you look excited about what's to come.

Coach Dar: It's really been almost its own transformation for me, because it forced me to have to slow down and simplify things. After the stroke I couldn't even open up things with my own hands, so I had to simplify how I even did things around the house. But it was in the process that it reignited the fire within me. I'm so passionate about helping people and businesses, and just everyone that I could touch, create better impact, create a stronger impact in this world, but have healthier, happier lives and be more fulfilled.

Coach Dar: This has really helped ignite a fire in me. It's almost … I'm so passionate about it that there's more joy in my life, so going through something that hit me hard again, it's created another fire to be able to go out, back out, and share a message that I hope helps millions of lives.

Carey Pena: It strikes me, Dar, because over the years I've done a lot of interviews as a journalist on the news, and also working in the new media space doing podcasts and things. I've interviewed quite a few people, more than I would have liked to, who are facing end of life. One common thread that people always say is that, "I wish I would have just stopped to take more time." There's nothing more sad in this world than looking at someone whose days are numbered, and they have regrets.

Carey Pena: I worked on a story recently with a beautiful young woman located in Scottsdale here in Arizona, and she's dying of cancer, and she's in her 30s, and she has a little girl. She told me, she's like, "Carey, I really would love for you to share my story because I want people to be inspired by their life." And what you're talking about is inspiring.

Coach Dar: Yes.

Carey Pena: Because it is allowing yourself to take time to enjoy life.

Coach Dar: That's exactly … The hustle is about go, go, go, but where's the enjoyment of what's right in front of you? I am so passionate about just saying stop, and I know the expression has been used but, "Stop and smell the roses, but really stop. Breathe. Meditate. Look at what's right in front of you and be grateful for it.'

Carey Pena: To be clear, you're not saying, "Don't try to go for it," because you're a big dream kind of person.

Coach Dar: Very much.

Carey Pena: You go out and kick some bootay. You work with big time athletes, so there is no sense of, "Hey, just be mediocre."

Coach Dar: No.

Carey Pena: That is not the conversation we are having. I just want to make sure that people understand that.

Coach Dar: I don't even like the word mediocre, and it's not about settling, but it's about if you simplify, you will show up better and you'll be able to hit more home runs in your life. You're going to … Really, you will fly higher when you simplify because you'll show up better.

Carey Pena: The people who have been contacting you since you started putting this out there, they're looking already for you to come in and coach, and I assume that this would be great training in a corporate environment as well.

Coach Dar: Yes.

Carey Pena: Because you're going to get much healthier employees, right?

Coach Dar: Right. Let's create a more simplified culture. Let's streamline processes. Let's help simplify communications. Let's declutter the space that you're in and make it more efficient and simplified. That, on the business standpoint, definitely. If anyone needs help with that I'd be more than happy to help.

Carey Pena: Give them your information.

Coach Dar: If you have social media, the greatest way to reach me is on Instagram or Twitter and the handle is @The, T-H-E, CoachDar, so @TheCoachDar, and you can send me a direct message.

Coach Dar: If you want to hear more about this I'm going to be setting also up an academy where you could take a six week course and go through some things on simplifying, or you could do one-on-one coaching, but go ahead and send me a message and I would be happy to follow up with you.

Carey Pena: You're ready to light it up.

Coach Dar: Oh, yes.

Carey Pena: It is always so great to have you here. I love the interview, and I love talking to you about these subjects that I know will really help people improve their day-to-day lives, and that is what I care about so much.

Coach Dar: Which I'm grateful that you have this platform, Carey, to be able to share and have myself and others on, because what you're doing is inspiring so many, and it is effecting lives. I know it helps my life.

Carey Pena: Give us one final thought, something you want the audience to think about as we close out here.

Coach Dar: As you go and you look at this year, just think about how you want to live your best life. Think about how you want to show up and what the impact is, and like Carey said, you don't want to live with regrets, so think about what it is you could do to start simplifying your day, your life, your space, so that you can have a greater impact.

Carey Pena: It's a nice feeling when you go to bed at the end of the night, and you worked hard but you managed to create space for yourself so that when you lay down at night, you're calm.

Coach Dar: Right.

Carey Pena: That's huge.

Coach Dar: Yes. You'll be able to sleep better because your head's not racing.

Carey Pena: I never have trouble with sleep. I lay down, I'm like, "Good night." I'll wake up when my twins come in early in the morning, but for now, "Check, please. Peace out." Thank you so much, Dar.

Coach Dar: Thanks, Carey.

Carey Pena: And thanks for listening, everyone. You can find us online at InspiredMedia360.com and of course, you can always connect with me on Facebook and on Instagram @CareyPena. I do love to hear feedback on all of our shows and content, and I really hope that this show inspires you to live a life that is a little bit simpler, and hopefully happier. Thanks so much for listening.

The post Simplicity Is The New Big: 3 Ways To Simplify Your Life with Coach Darleen Santore appeared first on Inspired Media 360 TV - Inform | Inspire | Engage.

"Our mission is to change people's lives by providing the best nutrition, best weight management education, and best products in the world."Vince and Tawnya Cline have set lofty goals for themselves, and for the hundreds of people they coach both in person and online.The Clines have been together for more than 15 years, and went through their own transformational journey as a couple.Vince Cline, a former college baseball player, says he was walking on the beach in Hawaii when it hit him hard – he needed to lose weight. He tried various fad diets but nothing worked. That is until someone gave him a program that focused on metabolism. "Fortunately I met a lady who did something easy for me…. she said follow this and you'll get results. I lost 12 pounds in two weeks and that's when I started on this journey."Cline realized if a nutrition program focused on metabolism worked so well for him, it would work for others. He began to recreate the program, first for his father and then his father-n-law, and both lost a significant amount of weight. Tawnya Cline, who didn't have a weight issue herself, but wanted to become healthier and have more energy, also began following this nutrition program. The two were so successful that they made nutrition their life's work, opening up a company called NutritionHead2Toe. http://vtcline.wellnesscoachpro.com/active

Based in Scottsdale, Arizona, the couple continued to branch out coaching people both in person and online.At the core of everything they teach is how to follow a simple eating plan that will boost your metabolism and give you peak life performance.On this 32 minute episode of Transformation Tuesday, we talk about how to boost metabolism by following three main rules: (1) Eat within 30 minutes of waking up(2) Drink half your bodyweight in water every single day (3) Eat more frequent, smaller mealsThe Clines tell us about foods that will help boost your metabolism as well as the ones you should avoid at all costs. They also talk about how their lives have radically improved since transforming what and when they eat. "I was on such high levels of prednisone … and I had IBS which was really embarrassing," Vince Cline says. "Nobody was holding my hand, I just made a decision that it was something I had to do."Changing his nutrition, Cline says, allowed him to discontinue all medications, and he explains it cured his irritable bowel syndrome. For Tawnya Cline, changing her nutrition (first by cutting out cheese, which she used to love), helped her skin to clear up and gave her a massive amount of energy. The Clines say they have serious concerns about the overall lack of health and well being in our country, and that childhood obesity is at an all time high. For their part, they are working to make change by inspiring people to take small steps that lead to big results. "Focus on getting one percent better every day," Vince Cline says. "It's progress not perfection."

The post How To Transform Your Metabolism appeared first on Inspired Media 360 TV - Inform | Inspire | Engage.

Understand your health … empower yourself. That's the message Fabrice Dechoux wants people to hear. When you log onto his company's website those are the first words that come up.Dechoux is a successful entrepreneur, the Founder of a software company, investor in several popular restaurants including The Gladly in Phoenix, Arizona, and the Founder of Cerulean Advanced Fitness and Wellness: https://www.livecerulean.com/our-story/ He spent a million dollars of his own money to open Cerulean because he believes so strongly that people can be healed from the inside out. "The body is very powerful. I don't think we use the resources that exist inside the body," says Dechoux. Cerulean Advanced Fitness and Wellness looks at cellular health. With medical-grade testing they provide a foundation for transformation.Dechoux became interested in cellular health after his daughter, a star tennis player, sustained an injury that wouldn't heal.Frustrated with what doctors were telling them, Fabrice Dechoux set out on a journey to find answers – and examine a more holistic approach. First, they discovered cryotherapy which, Dechoux says, helped immediately. Cerulean Advanced Fitness and Wellness offers non-invasive medical treatments and exercise options including cryotherapy, cryosauna, compression recovery therapy, and hypobaric adaptive conditioning pod.

On this 46 minute episode of Transformation Tuesday, Dechoux talks about how to reset your approach to health and weight management for life.

He talks to Carey Pena in depth about the 4 biggest obstacles people have and how to overcome them: (1) Dehydration Dehydration reduces metabolism and promotes retention of unwanted water weight. If you're not hydrating your body properly, you won't see the results you want. Hydration tests allow you to find out your body's hydration level and ideal daily water intake requirement to help you enable your body to lose body fat effectively.(2) InflammationSimilar to dehydration, inflammation makes your body hold onto weight no matter how much you exercise. If you are not proactively taking steps toward understanding the level of inflammation in your body (and taking steps toward reducing it), you are leaving weight loss results on the table and limiting your chance to reach your goals. (3) Generic "one size fits all" caloric consumption recommendations based on BMI or scale weightGet your Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR) marker test will allow you to understand precisely how many calories YOUR body requires on a daily basis, in order to lose the body fat effectively and more importantly, safely.(4) Generic exercise recommendation If you're not exercising in individualized targeted fat-burn heart rate exercise zones defined for YOUR specific body, you won't get the burn and fat loss that you are looking for. Getting a VO2 max & Anaerobic Threshold fitness performance tests will help you understand your level of fitness and how to optimize your exercise regimen (heart rate exercise zones) for ultimate fat burn based on your body. Dechoux hopes to expand Cerulean Advanced Fitness and Wellness across the country. Currently, they are located in Scottsdale, Arizona.

For more on Cerulean Advanced Fitness and Wellness visit https://www.livecerulean.com/our-story/

The post How to Better Understand Your Health and Empower Yourself appeared first on Inspired Media 360 TV - Inform | Inspire | Engage.

Alli Hagerdon and her husband, Pat, welcomed their first child – a beautiful little girl who they named Adeline in September of 2016. Shortly after, Hagerdon noticed a lump while nursing. She believed it was a clogged duct from breastfeeding complications.

In February of 2017, just five months after Adeline was born, 29 year old Alli Hagerdon was diagnosed with Infiltrating Ductal Carcinoma (stage IIB, grade 3) and later tested positive for the BRCA1 gene. Sixteen rounds of IV chemotherapy immediately followed.

Although those grueling months of chemo did have an impact, her tumors were unresponsive.

She endured six additional months of oral chemotherapy and ovary removal surgery. On top of this, Hagerdon had a double mastectomy and tumor removal surgery followed by multiple reconstruction surgeries, as well as six weeks of radiation.

In late 2018, more devastating news: Hagerdon was told that tumors in her liver were still not responding to treatment, and she was told to consider Hospice.

She contacted Inspired Media 360 and Carey Pena in hopes of sharing her story of strength and inspiration with a wider audience. And one day, she wants her daughter, Adeline, to see this interview and know that her mother was a warrior.

*Editor's Note: Inspired Media 360 is sorry to report that Alli Hagerdon lost her brave battle with cancer in February, 2019. Her story touched and inspired tens of thousands of people.

Carey Pena: Hi, everyone. I'm Carey Pena. And this is a special edition of our podcast Cary Pena Reports. On this show we interview people who have incredibly inspirational stories to share.

Carey Pena: The woman you are about to meet is facing the unthinkable. She's been told that she may only have weeks to live. She contacted me and asked me to help her share her story. Not a story of sadness, but a story of strength and inspiration. We talked to her at her home in Scottsdale, Arizona. Here's that interview.

Carey Pena: I'm here with Alli Hagerdon. Alli, thank you so much for sitting down to do this show. Alli Hagerdon: Thank you so much for having me, Carey.

Carey Pena: The first thing I wanted to ask you, you've been on a rollercoaster that is truly unimaginable. And we're going to take people through your journey. Why did you want to sit down today?

Alli Hagerdon: It's important for me to show people that no matter you're faced with in life, how important it is to carry on and to persevere and keep living. Appreciate every day. Find gratitude in every moment. And really just be thankful for things that you do have.

Carey Pena: You have recently been told that you may only have weeks to live. Alli Hagerdon: Yes.

Carey Pena: And we're gonna talk about your journey to now and how you're facing each day with such strength. And you want to inspire other people through your strength.

Carey Pena: Four years ago, you were getting married in Chicago.

Alli Hagerdon: Yes.

Carey Pena: Take me to that moment and your happiness.

Alli Hagerdon: Four years ago, my husband, who I met on New Year's Eve, who I'm so fortunate to call my husband, and I got married on Michigan Avenue in downtown Chicago. It was the perfect day, the perfect wedding. Everything I could have ever dreamed of and imagined. We had our family, our friends, everyone there celebrating with us. Just surrounded by love and surrounded by happiness. And it was a wonderful way to start our marriage and our life together.

Carey Pena: Life was good

Alli Hagerdon: Life was great.

Carey Pena: Then you had a little baby.

Alli Hagerdon: Yes.

Carey Pena: Two years ago.

Alli Hagerdon: Yes.

Carey Pena: And she just makes your entire face light up.

Alli Hagerdon: Yes.

Carey Pena: Tell us about her.

Alli Hagerdon: So two years ago, we had a little girl named Adeline, we often call Addi. And you never know how much your heart can love until you're holding your own little baby in your arms. And there's no words that can describe the love I have for her and my husband has for her, my parents have for her. And she just brings light and joy to every moment of our day.

Carey Pena: What's she like?

Alli Hagerdon: She is strong willed. Which they say she gets from me. She is bossy. She's two now and she definitely knows what she wants. She loves to play with her friends. We have play dates every day. We spend as much time outside as we can because it's so beautiful here now. And you know, she is just so much fun.

Carey Pena: Only a few short months after she was born, you were diagnosed with cancer.

Alli Hagerdon: Yes.

Carey Pena: How old were you at the time?

Alli Hagerdon: At the time I was 29. So when I was breastfeeding, my baby girl was born in September 1st, 2016. And when I was breastfeeding in October, I felt a little, what felt to me like a clogged milk duct. And I just kind of ignored it. You know, everything was different. Everything was changing. I was a new mom with an infant. I was exhausted.

Alli Hagerdon: And slowly, to me what was a clogged milk duct grew by January to be six centimeters. And even when I went into the doctor, no one was concerned. Nobody had any worries. Everybody said, "You're young, you're nursing. No big deal. We're just gonna go through a routine biopsy, but nothing to worry about."

Alli Hagerdon: And it wasn't until that moment they called me on February 8th, 2017. I will never forget. I was nursing my daughter. It was a Friday. And my doctor called me and she said, "You have breast cancer."

Alli Hagerdon: And I remember dropping Adeline to the couch, collapsing on the floor. And I just, to me that was it. My life was over. I was not expecting to hear those words. I am the opposite of a hypochondriac. I'm always like, "I'm fine. I'll get through it." And looking at this beautiful four month old little girl and being told you have cancer in the same breath was just petrifying.

Carey Pena: You're a fighter.

Alli Hagerdon: I am a fighter.

Carey Pena: So thus began the fight.

Alli Hagerdon: It did begin. And so from that moment, after that, I went and I began my fight. I started with doing fertility before I started my treatment because treatment could harm your chance of pregnancy in the future and that was very important to me, to grow my family one day.

Alli Hagerdon: I went into six months of chemotherapy. Chemotherapy is so strong, there were so many days that I couldn't even get out of bed. I couldn't turn the TV on. I couldn't open my eyes. I couldn't hear noise. Only to be given the news that I had zero response to any of that chemotherapy.

Alli Hagerdon: I then moved on to getting a bilateral mastectomy. I chose from there to do a oophorectomy where they remove my ovaries and fallopian tubes. I did that because during this journey, I learned that I was BRCA1 positive. Something I never knew about myself. Something my family never knew.

Alli Hagerdon: Because everybody asks if your mother had breast cancer, if your grandmother had breast cancer. I inherited my BRCA from my father, so it was big news to me that you could be impacted on your paternal side.

Alli Hagerdon: And so for Adeline, I decided I would take out my ovaries and tubes just so that I could live longer to be with her. I went through 30 rounds of radiation. And by the end of December of 2017, I was told that I made it, I was cancer free. Go on with life. And I had succeeded getting through my one year of treatment. And I was given permission to continue living on.

Carey Pena: What did that feel like? Because previous to the diagnosis and you getting married, you were a superstar teacher. You were even training teachers in Chicago you were so good. I know you're not bragging here, I'm bragging for you. But you had like the top test scores of any of the teachers of the Chicago area. So you were asked to train what? Hundreds of people there.

Alli Hagerdon: Yes. And so when I was diagnosed with cancer, I left my job in educational consulting. And I really just focused on my treatment and my daughter. But it just felt freeing. It felt freeing. I felt like I could finally live life the way I wanted to.

Alli Hagerdon: That I didn't have to follow any more rules. That I didn't have to go in for any more infusions and spend that time away from my daughter. And I just kept asking my doctor, "How can I prevent recurrence?" And the answer kept being, "Exercise."

Alli Hagerdon: And so I joined Stroller Strides, which is a wonderful community of moms in which I was so loved and supported and embraced. And I worked out with my daughter. Five days a week we went. She loved it. There are play dates after for the kids to play. We'd play on the playground. I felt like I was modeling a healthy lifestyle for her.

Carey Pena: Yeah. You must have felt so much joy.

Alli Hagerdon: I felt so much joy. I felt so much strength physically. I felt so much, I just felt lighter.

Carey Pena: And then Mother's Day comes.

Alli Hagerdon: Mother's Day comes. The Friday before Mother's Day, I went in for my routine checkup with my oncologist.

Carey Pena: Of this year. Mother's Day of this year.

Alli Hagerdon: Mother's Day of 2018. Yes.

Alli Hagerdon: Nobody is really looking forward for that routine checkup. But I went in. And my doctor said, "You are doing amazing. You're working out. You're so strong. You're living a healthy lifestyle." He gave me permission to use the two embryos that my husband and I have and put them in my uterus to grow our family. He was just overjoyed with where I was.

Alli Hagerdon: And I spent the weekend with this smile plastered on my face because I was finally gonna get to be what I considered normal again. I was gonna get to be mom that got to grow their family, that had the opportunity to make those choices.

Alli Hagerdon: And the Monday after Mother's Day, I received a call from my oncologist telling me that my tumor markers, which they test through my blood, were through the roof. He put, called everything off. The reconstruction surgery I was supposed to have that week, the embryos, everything. And we did scans on Tuesday to learn that I had 15 tumors in my lungs, 15 tumors in my liver, two in my brain and also growing on my bones.

Carey Pena: It seems incomprehensible how you even begin to digest that news.

Alli Hagerdon: It, when you hear something like that, especially after having an appointment like I did where we celebrated how well I was doing, I couldn't even wrap my head around that this was me.

Alli Hagerdon: Because how could the same body that just taught themselves how to run five miles who has never run before, and the same body who had the strength to work out five days a week, and how could that body be so filled with cancer?

Alli Hagerdon: It was so beyond my ability to comprehend at first. It, recurrence was always a fear of mine. But never did I think that I would only be given months of being cancer free before becoming stage four metastatic. And they told me then that, "You have two years to live."

Carey Pena: And then that brings us to today.

Alli Hagerdon: So from May until now I have been on every standard form of treatment that there is. I have been on what's called a PARP inhibitor. I have been through so much radiation. I have done immunotherapy. I have done off study risky trials. I have been willing to fight in any way that I could to be here and alive and on this earth for Adeline.

Alli Hagerdon: Only to reach the point today where, while my lungs have stabilized and my brain is doing better and my bones are not a bother to me, my liver just keeps growing and growing and growing to the point where I have started to lose my liver function. Which excludes me from research studies.

Alli Hagerdon: And two weeks ago, I was given one more dose of a new chemotherapy. And the doctor said to me, "This is it. If this doesn't work, you have weeks to live." Not knowing if I could believe that, I went to a different doctor for a second opinion this week. And I was told the same thing. "You will have a couple weeks to live, or possible a couple years. And we will know in a week or two."

Alli Hagerdon: But I have been forced to plan my memorial. I have been forced to sit down with a lawyer and clearly state everything that I want in my upcoming death. And been forced to do things that I could never have imagined as a 31 year old mother of a two year old, I would have to be faced with.

Carey Pena: Tell everyone what it is that you said to me. I wrote down your quote. That you learned about the difference between pain and suffering.

Alli Hagerdon: So what I've learned through this is there takes a certain amount of emotional tolerance to deal with the pain that I face every day, the emotional pain. The knowledge of my cancer, the knowledge of my lifespan. And that pain is pain that I have learned to tolerate. The pain that is intolerable is the pain that's suffering. And suffering is something that I bring on myself.

Alli Hagerdon: Suffering is when I go to the park and I see my friend who's pregnant with their second child. And all I want is to be healthy and to be pregnant and to give Adeline a sibling. And I go into the, "Why don't I get that? Why can't it be me who's healthy and pregnant and growing my family? Why is that time being taken away from me?" That is the suffering.

Alli Hagerdon: And so what I have taught myself to do is to stop wanting the things that I cannot have. And to appreciate the things that I do have. And so when I go to the park and I see my friends who are all pregnant with their second children, growing their families, I look at Adeline and I'm so thankful that I have her.

Alli Hagerdon: And so instead of causing myself to suffer and focusing on a child that I will not be able to have, I focus on this just amazing blessing of opportunity I have to be a mother to the most wonderful girl. Because that I am truly thankful for. And that is how I prevent my suffering.

Carey Pena: What do you want her to know about you?

Alli Hagerdon: I want her to know that I will never stop fighting for her. That every day I get out of bed, I do it for her. And that if they tell me in two weeks it's time to go into hospice, I'm not going. I will go on. I will find a doctor. I will find a treatment. And I will keep fighting because I am a warrior and I will never stop fighting for her.

Carey Pena: You have been blogging a bit on Facebook and you have a caring bridge. And people have been reaching out to you discovering your words. And people write to you. And people who don't have cancer, who aren't sick, and telling you that your fight, your journey, has inspired them to live differently. I know that's important to you. You want to inspire people to truly appreciate what they have.

Alli Hagerdon: So important because I think in life, especially in today's society where things are so fast paced and moving so quickly and there's so much pressure for this success, that how often do you take a breath? Do you take a pause? Do you look around you?

Alli Hagerdon: Do you see what you have and do you say, "Wow. I am so thankful that I have this right now. I'm living life with gratitude today. Because I am so appreciative to have this wonderful spouse. To have this wonderful family. To have these wonderful friends that just love on me and support me unconditionally. To have a job that I love to do. To live in an area that I love. To have a hobby that I get joy from doing."

Alli Hagerdon: I think that before I had cancer, I didn't take the time that I should have to pause and be thankful and be appreciative and live my life with gratitude. And I wish that I did. Because you're really missing out on living when you don't take the time to appreciate what it is in life that you do have.

Carey Pena: Tomorrow or in the coming days, you guys are going to Disneyland.

Alli Hagerdon: Yes, yes.

Carey Pena: How are you making that happen?

Alli Hagerdon: You know, you just, you power through. You make it happen because I have an opportunity to go. I'm still here and I'm still alive. And so I'm gonna live and I am going to make memories. And I'm gonna go with my parents, with my husband, with my brother, with my daughter. And we're gonna go take her to Disneyland for the first time. And we're going to, I mean to me, my favorite part of those experiences is watching the joy on her face and how much fun she has.

Alli Hagerdon: And then we're gonna take her to the ocean. And the ocean to me is so therapeutic. And so calming. And if I'm tired, I'm tired. I'm not gonna stop. Because if I stopped every time I was tired, I would never do anything. And so you figure out how to get through the day. You figure out how to enjoy every moment. And you do it because you can.

Alli Hagerdon: Because I am so thankful to be alive today, to be alive tomorrow. To be alive over the weekend when we're gonna go on our trip. I am so thankful for that opportunity to live. And I am going to use every moment of that time to live the best that I can with my family.

Carey Pena: You have a great family.

Alli Hagerdon: A wonderful family.

Carey Pena: Who absolutely adore you.

Alli Hagerdon: Yes.

Carey Pena: Great brother. And your husband.

Alli Hagerdon: Yes.

Carey Pena: You said that there are three lessons you really want to make sure that your daughter always knows. To be strong, to be tolerant, and to be kind.

Alli Hagerdon: Yes. I think that is so important. And I want her to know this from this interview when she's older and she listens to it. That there are days and there are things that we're faced with. It might not be terminal illness. But things that come up in life, at school, at work. Where you think, "How am I gonna get through this? This is impossible."

Alli Hagerdon: And really nothing is impossible. You get through it by working as hard as you possibly can. And by persevering. You've put on your warrior hat and you lift your head up high and you put a smile on your face no matter how you feel, and you get through it.

Alli Hagerdon: And the second part of being tolerant is, you know, I feel like we live in a world that's so filled with intolerance. And it, to me, there's no excuse to be intolerant of others. I want my daughter to know to love and to accept and to welcome people, no matter their differences, no matter if they're the same, they're different. No matter how they're different. Everybody is a human being and a person and deserves to be treated that way.

Alli Hagerdon: Which leads me to the last piece, which I always taught my first graders more than anything. Is that there's nothing mort important than being kind. My mom always told me that love beholds love. And I learned that all of the love that I've given out through all of these years, I see it now coming back to me. I see that lesson coming to life.

Alli Hagerdon: My kindness, my tolerance has now provided me with a support network of people. Not just my wonderful family, my wonderful friends, my Arizona friends, my Chicago friends. Strangers that find me through my blog. And I am just filled with love and kindness.

Alli Hagerdon: And I truly believe it's because that's what I put out there. And so it's so important to put out that tolerant kindness, that love to everybody you meet. Because they can feel it and it touches them. You know? And one day, they're gonna return that feeling back to you. And even if they don't, you get to walk away knowing you've given that to somebody else.

Carey Pena: What do you want people to learn from your story?

Alli Hagerdon: I want people to learn that nothing can stop me. And if nothing can stop me in this situation, nothing can stop them. There is always a way to carry on. There is always a way to pick your head up and keep fighting. That life is life. And the universe is out of our control. But the only thing we can control is ourselves.

Alli Hagerdon: And we can control ourselves and move forward. We have the choice of laying in bed and not getting out. We have the choice of crying and whining and complaining and moaning. Or we have the choice of lifting up our head, putting a smile on our face, and carrying on. And that if I can do that after being told on Monday that I may only have two more weeks of life, anybody can do that.

Carey Pena: Are you scared?

Alli Hagerdon: I'm scared for my family. I'm scared for the grief they will feel when I am gone. I am, been trying to put everything in place for them to make it as easy for them as possible when I do pass. But I know that I will be in a better place. But they're the ones who will be stuck here grieving.

Carey Pena: You told me that you feel so grateful for the beautiful life that you have lived and that you continue to live.

Alli Hagerdon: Yes. I mean I'm so grateful to have had so many experiences. So many experiences that have allowed me to make a difference. From teaching in Chicago at a Title One school to teaching teachers to being a mother and teaching my daughter. You know. And to starting a nonprofit where we mentored other young women going through similar journeys as our own.

Alli Hagerdon: I am so grateful to have had the opportunity in life to help others grow and learn. And to me that's what it's about. It's how can you help others? How can you make a difference in other people's lives? And even through my pain today, it's okay that I'm feeling this pain as long as I know that it's making a difference to somebody else.

Alli Hagerdon: Because the pain is worth it if it's able to help just one person. If there's just one person who watches this who says, "Wow. You know, I've been really down. But tomorrow I'm gonna try to get out of bed, take a shower, get out of the house, face the world." Then the pain I'm feeling is worth it because it's helping somebody else.

Carey Pena: I want to thank you so much for your incredible courage in sitting down, sharing your story. And your authenticity and your genuine spirit. And I know, speaking for myself, for everyone who watches and listens to this, we are all just loving on you.

Alli Hagerdon: Thank you.

Carey Pena: Loving on you.

Alli Hagerdon: Thank you, Carey.

Carey Pena: And we're gonna continue on following Alli's story and we'll be posting your blogs and your vlogs. I'm teaching her how to vlog.

Alli Hagerdon: Yes (laughing).

Carey Pena: And we'll be putting all of that on our website, inspiredmedia360tv.com. Thanks for listening.

The post My Genuine Journey: Alli Hagerdon's Fight For Life appeared first on Inspired Media 360 TV - Inform | Inspire | Engage.

Finishing up sophomore year at Seton Hall University in New Jersey, Kainoa Spenser was about to face the fight of his life.

The International Affairs major woke up one day not feeling well. The next day he passed out. Believing that he was just exhausted from finals, Spenser tried to power through.

He flew home to Arizona and was immediately rushed to HonorHealth. His organs were failing.

He explains that he was transferred to Mayo Hospital where doctors put Spenser into a medically induced coma. Necrotizing fasciitis, a flesh-eating disease, ended up leading to the amputation of Spenser's legs and hands.

"When I got out of the hospital a little over a year ago I was connected immediately with Kyle Maynard. He was born with congenital amputations. Seeing how he was able to transform that tragedy into something that is inspiring to all, and has radically improved his life and lives around the world, was cool to see. How he was able to turn his pain into … purpose," Spenser explains.

On our Carey Pena Reports Podcast, Spenser told his story alongside his Trainer and Coach, Jesse Holland. The two met after Spenser spoke at an event for K2 Adventures, for which Holland is a Mountain Guide.

They began to chart a course for Spenser's recovery. "Kainoa often shows me and everybody what we can do. That we are not a victim," Holland says.

The first objective for Kainoa was to get back to holding a golf club and to have enough stamina to be able to swing. He met and surpassed that goal over the past year, having golfed in two tournaments.

Now, Kainoa Spenser is joining K2 Adventures and Jesse Holland on a trip to Mount Kosciuszko, Australia's highest mountain. It's located on the Main Range of the Snowy Mountains in Kosciuszko National Park, part of the Australian Alps National Parks and Reserves.

"Improving your mental health starts with improving your physical health," Spenser says of his ongoing recovery and the lofty physical goals he has set for himself.

All along, the community has rallied around Kainoa Spenser and his family using the hashtag #LiveLikeKainoa

While he has had overwhelming support, there have been many dark days. And he allows himself the mental space to be depressed – with an end date.

"Nothing is wrong with having those (dark days), but the best part is knowing that it's going to end. And setting the end date," Spenser explains. "You can feel bad for yourself, and eat the worst food for yourself, and watch all the movies you want, and sit on the couch, but know on Monday when you wake up, that that's the end and you are moving forward."

Kainoa serves as inspiration to the Arizona community where he now lives and to the Seton Hall community in New Jersey where he previously went to school, but also for people all over the world who have discovered his story.

Around his neck, Kainoa Spenser wears a Tree of Life Intention Stick, created by Valley residents Scott and Marla Berger. Inside the necklace, Spenser puts his words of intention and that's where he keeps his focus.

Also, he has his faith.

"I have a major connection with God," Spenser shares. "And he allows me, and my faith truly allows me to have that first breath of … it's going to be okay. There's something greater for this purpose and you have to find those motivating factors outside of yourself."

https://k2adventures.org/ http://kyle-maynard.com/ https://yourscottsdalecoach.com/

The post College Student Climbs One Of The 7 Summits After Loss of Limbs appeared first on Inspired Media 360 TV - Inform | Inspire | Engage.

"I want to keep all of the nutrition in my food that helps to heal from the inside out, and my body can use those tools for its own repair process."It took 25 years for Raw Food Chef and Author Haley Cloud to learn how to heal. Once she did, her life was transformed. "There is a new wave of consciousness coming through our culture. There is more to life than just surviving … you can thrive based on what you put in your body," Cloud says. "There is hope to be had. A lot of us who have been sick most of our lives… don't always have the type of hope necessary to make change." As a child, Cloud says she was sickly all of the time. "It started out as chronic bronchitis that evolved into asthma. "By the time I was 24 years old I was on 13 medications a day," Cloud explains. She also had trouble controlling her weight. By age 25, she tipped the scale at 250 pounds.It all came crashing down one day when she went to walk her daughter around the block. What should have been a short walk, Cloud says, took her 45 minutes. She didn't have her inhaler, so when Cloud collapsed, she had to crawl home next to her toddler. That was the breaking point. She sought help from a friend who gave her a book about healing your health through a raw food and vegan diet. The results were stunning.Cloud ended up losing over 100 pounds, but more than that, she slowly weaned herself off of each and every medication. Today Haley Cloud is an author, having written 14 books loaded with her own raw food recipes, and she's a personal coach to others who seek to change their health. In this 37 minute episode, she shares with our listeners:(1) The steps she took to find freedom from illness(2) What she eliminated from her diet(3) A few of her most popular recipes(4) A few favorite cooking tips including the blender she loves most https://www.vitamix.com/us/en_us/ (5) How she pushed through the hard times to get where she is todayHer company is called "Raw By Grace" because she feels that she was saved from a life of sickness and depression – now she's dedicated herself to helping others do the same. If and when they are ready. "There's a point in your brain where you don't want to believe that change is possible because that takes work," Cloud says. "Working toward something beneficial has to be more powerful than where you are."To learn more about Raw Food Chef and Author Haley Cloud's books and recipes, visit https://www.livingrawbygrace.com/

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Success does not have to come at the expense of my own well being. I can be healthy, happy and successful. Slowing down is not weakness. Being willing to see things differently is okay. My career doesn't have to look like everyone else's. Tanya Wheeless is the former CEO of the Arizona Bankers Association (a job she had at age 27!) and an Executive with the Phoenix Suns. She left those high powered and high profile jobs after burnout began taking over. Then she made a drastic life change. "Mostly I've … changed what I count as success," Wheeless explains. "Success does not have to come at the expense of my own well being. I can be healthy, happy and successful. Slowing down is not weakness. Being willing to see things differently is okay. My career doesn't have to look like everyone else's." Since leaving her corporate jobs, Wheeless launched a company called Happy Grace. https://www.happygrace.com/ She works as an Executive Life Coach and helps people, mainly women, organize and strategize what success means to them. One of her mentors and coaches, Martha Beck https://marthabeck.com/blog/, once shared words of wisdom that stayed with Tanya Wheeless to this day. "You have to go through the ring of fire to come out the other side." In this 40 minute interview, we talk about how to have what Wheeless calls conscious ambition: (1) Be decisive and collaborative(2) Hustle AND flow(3) Be analytical and creative (4) Less push more allowing(5) Treat yourself like you treat your most important clientWheeless says, "If you want a different life, decide to make it different." For more on Tanya Wheeless you can visit https://www.facebook.com/MyHappyGrace/ https://www.instagram.com/myhappygrace/

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Kirk Nurmi gained the national spotlight when he was appointed to represent convicted boyfriend killer Jodi Arias. "I got a lot of death threats," Nurmi explains. "I became high profile and famous overnight in a situation where I wasn't seeking it out, I was just trying to do my job. My appointed job." At that point, he'd been practicing law for 15 years. So, it came as a bit of a shock – even to him – that he wanted out. "It felt like it was something more powerful. A message from my heart telling me it was time to chart a new course." At first he chalked it up to burnout. Then, a health scare made him realize a total life change was necessary and urgent. "I found inflammation in my lymph node under my armpit," Nurmi shares. "Healthy blood cells turning into unhealthy blood cells and I knew right away it was the stress of it all." After being diagnosed with stage 3 Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, a cancer that originates in your lymphatic system, Nurmi had to face some tough decisions. "I went to a dark place," Nurmi says. "Do I really want to go through chemotherapy? Do I really want to do this? At 49 years old I never thought about my mortality."It was at that moment Nurmi changed his life. He went forward with the chemo and underwent a total mind and body transformation.He began writing books, and launched a website www.unchainedlives.com On the site, Nurmi writes:"Helping you unchain yourself and DEFENDING YOUR GREATNESS is my new mission. I do this mainly through sharing my personal story in keynote speeches, however, I also work as a life coach for select individuals who want to unchain themselves from the ties that bind them so that they can reconnect with and DEFEND THEIR GREATNESS."In this Transformation Tuesday interview, we talk about HOW he unchained himself and defended his greatness. He takes us through each of the 5 following steps:(1) Taking care of yourself(2) Making Happiness A Priority(3) Following Your Heart(4) Defying convention by exploring the road less traveled (5) Restraining your mental martyr Nurmi also shares details about how he lost over 80 pounds and now experiences much greater overall health and happiness.He is a voracious reader and follows heart-centered leaders like Kyle Cease https://kylecease.com/ who he credits with helping on the journey to now. And what a journey it has been. "If we don't feel worthy of whatever greatness we have inside of us, we aren't going to pursue it," Nurmi shares. "Sometimes it's hard to understand the vibrational level that we are in, when we are in it. One of the things i thought about when I was in the chemo chair, it was really about how I spent the last 6-12 months of my life. And I asked myself that question… was I happy with how I spent that time in my life? And the answer was no. But the answer today is yes."

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Amanda Coe was a fast rising star in the Canadian business world having worked for the Canadian Federal Government in her 20's. But then a mysterious health crisis sidelined her.

Coe became extremely ill and was bedridden for months. "That really cut me off at the knees," she says.

It turned out she was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, a bowel disease that left her with severe cramps, nausea, bleeding, and, at times, incontinence. "I had some dark moments," Coe confesses. "And I thought if this is life, is it really worth living?"

After more than a year dealing with this painful disease, Coe began her road back to health. The right medication combined with some major changes on the lifestyle front forced the disease into remission.

Then Coe decided to make a major change in her business life as well turning to the health and wellness industry. She wanted to be part of the solution.

"Often times it is our own health stories that drives us into the fitness industry," she says explaining how she decided to buy into The Exercise Coach franchise in Scottsdale, Arizona.

In this interview we talk about why muscle matters and how building muscle helped her come back after being weak and bedridden.

"Studies show strength resistance training can add up to seven years to your life expectancy, " she shares. "As we age we lose muscle mass. Over the age of 30, the average adult will lose 5-7 pounds of muscle every decade. Only way to maintain that strength or reverse muscle loss is resistance training.

She also had to clean up her diet. Coe only eats anti inflammatory foods and, for her, that means no gluten, dairy, sugar or beans.

"I implemented this change in eating a decade ago and that is what keeps me on track," Coe explains. "The second I veer off and incorporate those foods into my diet I have a serious digestive disorders."

This powerful and painful health journey made Amanda Coe want to be an advocate for others. Now, in her 40's, she is a thriving business owner and a first time mom.

"We can take control of our health and we can live our optimal life. It means taking action," she shares. "But there are opportunities in exercise and nutrition that are non invasive, non surgical that can truly help us live our optimal lives."

The Exercise Coach has 50 locations open and operating across the country. Their mission statement is: Strength Changes Everything. http://exercisecoach.com/

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