After enough repetition, where does “this is something I'm experiencing” end and “this is who I am” begin?

Words are powerful. Magic, even. And the way you talk to and about yourself matters more than you think, because your body (and mind) are always listening.

For years, I called myself the tired girl, the sad girl, the narcoleptic. And honestly, when you’ve been dealing with the same symptoms for so long, finally getting a diagnosis can feel so damn validating, and identifying as the label can start to feel comforting too.

But what happens when “I’m dealing with this” slowly turns into “I AM this”?

In this episode, we’re talking about the words we use to describe ourselves, how easy it is to make our symptoms and diagnoses part of our identity, and why I eventually started changing the way I talked about my own health.

Because there’s a difference between saying “I’m depressed” and “I feel depressed.” Between “I’m broken” and “I’m experiencing x, y, and z, but I’m working on it.” One reinforces the experience as part of who you are, while the other leaves room for it to change.

So here’s some food for thought: start paying attention to the words that come after “I am.” Your diagnosis can help explain what you’re going through, but it doesn’t have to become your identity. 

It’s really easy to forget how far you’ve come when you’re in the middle of a week where everything feels like it’s going wrong.

After a week of not feeling great, work being chaotic, good ol’ cramps, and my literal dental crown falling out of my mouth (love that for me), I realized after the fact that I needed to take a beat and get some perspective.

Because the funny thing about overcoming hard things is that eventually, the life you once prayed for just becomes... your normal life. The peaceful home. The comfortable bed. The person who shows up for you when you need help. The body that carries you through your day. All of those things can become really easy to overlook when life starts life-ing again.

So this episode is your reminder that having a bad week doesn’t erase how far you’ve come. You’re allowed to be frustrated + overwhelmed with where you are AND grateful that you’re no longer where you used to be.

Sometimes you have to zoom out long enough to remember that parts of the life you’re living today might be things a past version of you would've given anything to have.

There’s something really screwed up about knowing something is wrong with your body, finally working up the courage to ask for help, and then having someone make you feel like you’re crazy for even being there.

In this episode, I'm telling the story of walking into a vein clinic looking for help with a very real (and very gnarly) health problem, only to have the woman at the front desk tell me I was lying (I’m not even kidding).

And because 23-year-old me was already scared, embarrassed, and very much NOT someone who knew how to stand up for herself in situations like this, I did what any emotionally overwhelmed girl would do. I sat in the waiting room and cried.

Unfortunately, being dismissed, questioned, or made to feel like you’re exaggerating your symptoms is an experience WAY too many women relate to. Especially when you’re young, your symptoms don’t “make sense,” or you don’t fit whatever picture someone has in their head of what a person with that health condition is supposed to look like.

And when you’re already dealing with something scary happening in your body, the last thing you need is someone making you question your own experience on top of it.

SO consider this your reminder: you know what it's like to live in your body and with your symptoms. You deserve to be listened to, taken seriously, and treated like an ACTUAL human being while you're trying to figure out what the hell is going on with you.

I don't know who needs to hear this, but life’s allowed to be fun (revolutionary, I know).

After spending the last episode talking about how happiness is a mood and not some magical destination we're all supposed to reach, I figured we could use a little ✨palate cleanser✨.

So today, we're talking about those little things that make us happy. What makes YOU happy. And more specifically, I’m sharing 10 simple, niche things that make me stupidly happy.

And after experiencing trauma and hardships, I think that's even more reason to live your life, roll around in what makes you happy, and refuse to play victim forever.

Because life can be a bitch. Life can be unfair. And it’s SO easy to get consumed by the negatives. Meanwhile, the little things that make being alive actually enjoyable are usually sitting right there.

So consider this your invitation to make your own ridiculously specific happiness list. Because between all the healing, surviving, stressing, and general existential dread, we could probably all stand to do a little more of the stuff that makes us think, “Damn, I love being alive.”

I spent literal YEARS writing some variation of “I just want to be happy” in my journals. Like happiness was this impossible destination I could never get to.

In this episode, we're getting into what it actually feels like when depression isn't tied to one obvious thing. Sometimes it's loud and completely takes over your life. Other times it's just humming in the background like a really annoying pest reminding you, “Hey girliepop, you can’t escape me!!” Love that for us.

But something younger me definitely didn't understand was this: happiness is a mood, not a destination. The bigger question is whether you're able to move through emotions freely and not be bogged down by the permanent weight of depression.

We're also getting into why depression can sometimes be so dang tricky to pinpoint and how everything from your environment and relationships to what's happening inside your body can play a role. 

And if you're currently in the “but WHY am I depressed all the time?” phase of things, I share a simple way to take inventory of your life and figure out where tf that heaviness might actually be coming from.

I'm taking a 2-week summer hiatus! Check back on August 16th for the next full episode of TRTGCP. Hope you're enjoying the heckkk out of your summer! <3

Maybe carrying everything by yourself was never the strength you thought it was.

There was a time when I genuinely believed that if people knew how much I was struggling, they'd think I was weak. Even worse, I was terrified they'd see me as a burden. So I kept a lot of it to myself.

In this episode, I'm talking about what it felt like to carry depression in silence, why asking for help felt so scary, and the stories I told myself about what other people would think if I opened up. 

The truth is, most of us aren't looking for someone to fix our problems. We just want to feel seen, understood, and reminded that we're not alone.

If you've ever convinced yourself you're "too much," worried you're bringing other people down, or felt guilty for needing support, I hope this conversation feels like a deeeep exhale.

You deserve people who can hold space for your story. And if you've been carrying everything by yourself, maybe this can be the first place you set some of it down.

I used to think healing had a finish line. Fix your symptoms, feel amazing, then ta-freakin’-da! You’re done! But turns out, that's really not how this works.

For years I dealt with depression, chronic acne, painful periods, narcolepsy, and a laundry list of other health issues. Eventually I found holistic, natural approaches that completely changed my life. And honestly? I felt like I'd finally figured my body out. Then I unknowingly moved into a moldy apartment and found myself navigating a whole new set of symptoms I never saw coming.

This episode is all about the pressure to constantly optimize your health, why setbacks don't erase the progress you've already made, and the mindset shift that's helped me stop chasing a finish line that probably doesn't exist.

Maybe healing isn't about arriving somewhere. Maybe it's about trusting that no matter what life throws at your body next, you'll know how to support it.

It's always a little funny to me how people can get so invested in choices that have absolutely nothing to do with them.

Today we're chatting about why people seem to have a lot of opinions (and unsolicited advice) the second you start making healthier choices. Bring your own lunch? Comments. Skip the drinks? Comments. Decide to do something a little differently? Yep... more comments.

I share a conversation I had with one of my health coaching clients that inspired this episode, how I've handled the endless "Wait... you're not drinking?" conversations over the years, and why "just because" is a complete answer.

We're also talking about protecting your peace, finding people who actually support your healing journey, and why you never have to justify choices you're making for your own health.

Because protecting your peace sometimes looks like setting a boundary. And sometimes it just looks like saying, "Just because."

Breaking cycles sounds really empowering until you're the one actually doing it.

Today we're chatting about what it really means to be a cycle breaker. Like deciding you're no longer buying into the narrative that you're stuck with your family's health issues. Or healing from generational trauma. And wanting a different life than the one you grew up in. None of it's easy in thee slightest.

I share my experience with feeling like the odd one out in my family, why I've always felt pulled to do things differently, and how choosing a different path can sometimes be lonely. Confusing. But also so worth it.

We’re also touching on epigenetics, chosen family, and the grand water trine in my birth chart that apparently screams "cycle breaker" (because you know I can't help myself).

This one's for the gals who looked around one day and said, “Yeah no, this ends with me.”