The Special Needs Mom Podcast

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What if the reason you’re so tired isn’t because you need to try harder, find the right strategy, or finally figure out what’s wrong with you?

In this episode, I’m continuing our reconnection with a professional update—and sharing some of the ways my approach to coaching has changed during my break from the podcast.

After nearly 10 years as a coach, I found myself tired of the constant push toward self-improvement: be better, do better, fix the problem, find what’s missing. An advanced coaching program gave me language for something I had already begun to feel: maybe the way we’ve been approaching change is actually part of what keeps us stuck.

We’re talking about the self-improvement trap, why both success and failure can reinforce the feeling that something is wrong with us, and what becomes possible when we start with a very different question:

What if nothing is missing?

I’ll also introduce you to some of what has been shaping my coaching lately—including parts work, a gentler approach to transformation, and why being fully seen and understood might create more meaningful change than another attempt to fix yourself.

Plus, I’m sharing what this means for my one-on-one coaching and Pathway to Peace Coaching Community—and a little preview of where we’re headed next with the Evolution of a Special Needs Mom.

If you’re tired of trying to become a better version of yourself, this conversation might be exactly where you need to land today.

00:00 — Reconnecting + a Professional Update
03:00 — When Self-Improvement Becomes Exhausting
05:00 — The “Find It and Fix It” Approach
09:00 — The Self-Improvement Trap
13:00 — What If Nothing Is Missing?
15:00 — Parts Work + a Different Approach to Change
19:00 — What This Looks Like in Coaching
23:00 — Pathway to Peace + What’s Coming Next

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Connect with Kara, host of The Special Needs Mom Podcast:
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https://www.kararyska.com/

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It’s been eight months—and for much of that time, I genuinely didn’t know if The Special Needs Mom Podcast would come back.

But here we are.

Before we dive into what’s next, I wanted to spend some time reconnecting. Whether you’ve been listening for years or you just found the podcast, this episode is a chance to catch up on who I am, who this family of mine is, and what life looks like these days.

A lot has changed.

Kade is off at college. Levi is 17 and in his senior year, which means we’re navigating some very real questions about adulthood, independence, and what comes after high school. Will and Cambria are growing into wonderfully distinct humans of their own. And somewhere in there, Dan, Sally the dog, my faith, and my newfound love of watercolor all make an appearance.

I’m also sharing some of what the last eight months have held for our family—including a long-awaited medication that has brought unexpected changes for Levi, an incredible family trip to Alaska, and the home disaster that completely derailed my plans for a slow, peaceful fall.

There’s joy in this episode. There’s grief. There’s a lot of change. And there’s the complicated experience of watching one child launch while realizing another child’s path into adulthood will look very different.

Mostly, though, this episode is about reconnecting.

So if you’ve wondered where I’ve been, what’s happening with our family, or whether this podcast was ever coming back—come catch up with me.

00:00 — Eight Months Later: Is the Podcast Back?
04:00 — Reconnecting + What’s Coming Next
07:00 — Meet (or Re-Meet) My Family
12:00 — Levi: From Brain Tumor to Life at 17
23:00 — Family, Faith + a Little More About Me
29:00 — Launching One Child While Another Needs More Support
34:00 — The Medication We Waited Years For
36:00 — Alaska, a Flood + The Fall I Didn’t Get
40:00 — What’s Coming Next

Take The Evolution of a Special Needs Mom "Assessment"

Wait List for Pathway to Peace Coaching Community CLICK HERE

Connect with Kara, host of The Special Needs Mom Podcast:
Instagram 

https://www.kararyska.com/

Send us a text! (click here)

This episode is a personal one. I’m sharing why I’m stepping back from the podcast for now and what it looks like to choose rest, even when it’s hard to let go.

Read the full show notes here.

Take The Evolution of a Special Needs Mom "Assessment"

Wait List for Pathway to Peace Coaching Community CLICK HERE

Connect with Kara, host of The Special Needs Mom Podcast:
Instagram 

https://www.kararyska.com/

Send us a text! (click here)

This episode is a real-life conversation about what support actually looks like and where it still falls short for special needs moms. Kara and Anika talk about advocacy, friendship, community, and the quiet weight so many of us are still carrying. 

Read the full show notes here.

Take The Evolution of a Special Needs Mom "Assessment"

Wait List for Pathway to Peace Coaching Community CLICK HERE

Connect with Kara, host of The Special Needs Mom Podcast:
Instagram 

https://www.kararyska.com/

Send us a text! (click here)

Transformation guide and stroke survivor Joy Shaw joins me to talk about healing through the lens of the hero’s journey and what it means to become the author of your own story. In this thoughtful conversation, we explore grief, witnessing pain, and the shift that happens when we stop trying to return to the life we expected and begin living the one we have.

read the full show notes here. 

Connect with Joy Shaw:

Instagram

TikTok

YouTube

Website

Take The Evolution of a Special Needs Mom "Assessment"

Wait List for Pathway to Peace Coaching Community CLICK HERE

Connect with Kara, host of The Special Needs Mom Podcast:
Instagram 

https://www.kararyska.com/

Send us a text! (click here)

In this episode, Kara re-shares a deeply personal story about the aftermath of a medical crisis with her son and what she calls the “fallout zone” that follows survival mode. This conversation about the shadow side of strength is one many caregivers will recognize, and it’s one worth revisiting.

Read the full show notes here. 

Take The Evolution of a Special Needs Mom "Assessment"

Wait List for Pathway to Peace Coaching Community CLICK HERE

Connect with Kara, host of The Special Needs Mom Podcast:
Instagram 

https://www.kararyska.com/

Send us a text! (click here)

What happens when everything you intellectually understand still doesn’t help you survive the hardest seasons of motherhood? In this episode, I talk with Erin Popp about complex grief, chronic uncertainty, and what it really means to dig deep when control stops working.

Read the full show notes here. 

Take The Evolution of a Special Needs Mom "Assessment"

Wait List for Pathway to Peace Coaching Community CLICK HERE

Connect with Kara, host of The Special Needs Mom Podcast:
Instagram 

https://www.kararyska.com/

Send us a text! (click here)

This episode explores the emotional stages many special needs moms move through, from survival and self-sacrifice to restoration and possibility. Kara shares a personal moment of heartbreak and why community changes everything.

Read the full show notes here.

Take The Evolution of a Special Needs Mom "Assessment"

Wait List for Pathway to Peace Coaching Community CLICK HERE

Connect with Kara, host of The Special Needs Mom Podcast:
Instagram 

https://www.kararyska.com/

Send us a text! (click here)

Ethics educator and special needs mom, Anika Atkins, joins me for a conversation about medical mistakes, ethical repair, and what it looks like to rebuild trust after hard experiences in the healthcare system. We talk about apologies, advocacy, and how caregivers can communicate clearly without losing themselves in the process.

Read the full show notes here.

Take The Evolution of a Special Needs Mom "Assessment"

Wait List for Pathway to Peace Coaching Community CLICK HERE

Connect with Kara, host of The Special Needs Mom Podcast:
Instagram 

https://www.kararyska.com/

Send us a text! (click here)

In this episode, I reflect on the power of being held inside a safe community and what becomes possible when you stop trying to fix yourself. I share a moment from inside the Pathway to Peace community that beautifully illustrates what I call the power of letting be.

Read the full story and details. 

Take The Evolution of a Special Needs Mom "Assessment"

Wait List for Pathway to Peace Coaching Community CLICK HERE

Connect with Kara, host of The Special Needs Mom Podcast:
Instagram 

https://www.kararyska.com/