We sat down with Athena Dean Holtz for a conversation about something most women don't talk about enough — the decisions we make when we're hurting.

The ones that make sense at the time. The ones that cost us later. And the moment when you finally see the pattern and realize you can't keep doing it the same way.

We talk about wounded decision making, how women self-medicate with work, and what it actually takes to slow down long enough to recognize what's driving your choices. We also get into forgiveness, the difference between healing old wounds and living through current ones, and what real transformation looks like from the inside.

If you've ever looked back and thought, why did I choose that, this conversation will land.

And also this: you don't have to untangle it all on your own.

There is something powerful about stepping out of your day-to-day life and into a room with women who are doing this work too. Women who are honest, self-aware, and ready for something different:

Join Lisa and Kari at the next Best Chapter Yet Retreat, September 18–20 in Portland, Oregon. Spots are filling — learn more:https://www.eventcreate.com/e/bestchapteryetfall2026

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We didn't plan this episode. We sat down and hit record because the news cycle last week was too much to ignore.

We talk about what women are actually absorbing right now. The stories that don't just stay in headlines, but land in our bodies. From political misconduct allegations to the exposure of online communities built around violating women, to the ongoing lack of accountability for powerful men.

And just as much, we talk about the response. The defensiveness. The "not all men" conversation and why it misses the point. The silence from men who consider themselves good, and the exhaustion women feel carrying that gap.

This is an unfiltered conversation about anger, grief, emotional labor, and what allyship actually requires right now.

And also this: you are not meant to hold all of this alone.

If you've been feeling the weight of it, being in a room with other women who get it isn't just nice, it's necessary.

Join Lisa and Kari at the next Best Chapter Yet Retreat, September 18–20 in Portland, Oregon. Spots are filling — learn more:https://www.eventcreate.com/e/bestchapteryetfall2026

BRAND NEW! Join our Patreon for behind the scenes, bonus episodes and special discounts

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In this episode of The Things We Know, Lisa and Kari explore what happens when life doesn't match the vision board. Drawing from their coaching work and lived experience, they unpack why tools like intention setting and mindset can be powerful when they work, and why they can become painful or even shaming when reality intervenes. Together they examine the limits of manifestation culture, the role of grief and adaptation in seasons shaped by caregiving, illness, or disruption, and what research actually tells us about motivation and follow-through. The conversation moves toward a more honest and humane way of orienting our lives, one that holds intention and reality at the same time, honors desire without demanding outcomes, and makes room for compassion, flexibility, and growth in the lives we are actually living.

Want to create your next Best Chapter in real life? Join us in Portland, OR Sept 18-20. 2026 for our YOUnique and Amazing retreat.

https://www.eventcreate.com/e/bestchapteryetfall2026

BRAND NEW! Join our Patreon for behind the scenes, bonus episodes and special discounts

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In this powerful episode, Lisa and Kari sit down with Jessica Patay, founder and executive director of We Are Brave Together, a global nonprofit created to support caregiving mothers raising children with disabilities and medical complexities. Jessica shares the personal story that sparked her mission, the invisible isolation so many caregivers endure, and why community is not a luxury, it is survival. Together they talk about the courage it takes to ask for help, how to build deep friendships in midlife when life is already heavy, and what it looks like to move from Why me to What now with self-compassion and strength. If you are a caregiver, love someone who is, or simply crave more meaningful community in this season of life, this conversation will make you feel seen and less alone.

We Are Brave Together: https://www.wearebravetogether.org/

Brave Together Podcast:

on Apple Podcasts and Spotify

Where to find Kari and Lisa:

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In this episode of The Things We Know, Kari and Lisa slow down to talk about why storytelling has always mattered so much, and why it still does right now. They reflect on story as a way we make sense of what we've lived, how women across cultures have carried memory and meaning when formal histories fell short, and why telling our own stories is never just personal. The conversation explores how stories can heal, connect, and help us become more fully ourselves, while also naming the quiet power of paying attention to who is telling the story and why. At its heart, this episode is about storytelling as a way of staying awake, preserving truth, and refusing to let our lives, our histories, or our humanity be flattened or rewritten by someone else.

Do you want to start telling your story? Join us for our next Best Chapter Yet retreat, Sept 18-20, 2026 in Portland, OR

https://www.eventcreate.com/e/bestchapteryetfall2026

Where to find Kari and Lisa:

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Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thethingsweknowpod

What if the best version of you is still ahead?

In this episode, Lisa and Kari get real about one of the most quietly radical things a woman in midlife can do — let herself be new. Not fixed. Not improved. New.

If you've ever Googled "how to reinvent yourself in your 40s" at midnight, or wondered whether it's too late to try something that scares you, this conversation is for you.

Lisa and Kari talk through what it actually feels like to give yourself permission to change, why being a beginner again is harder than it sounds, and how to stop waiting for the right moment to start living differently.

In this episode:

• Why midlife is the perfect time to try something completely new
• How to quiet the voice that says it's too late
• What it looks like to let yourself become a different version of you

If this episode hit home, follow or subscribe to The Things We Know so you never miss a conversation.

✨ Ready to stop thinking about it and actually do it?

The best way to start your journey to being new is at our next Best Chapter Yet retreat — YOUnique and Amazing in Portland, OR, September 18–20. This is your dedicated time and space to step away, reconnect with yourself, and step into who you're becoming. Come as you are. Leave as someone new.

👉 Grab your spot before they're gone — https://www.eventcreate.com/e/bestchapteryetfall2026

In this conversation, Kari and Lisa sit down with Shawna Rosenzweig, CEO of Camp Fire, to explore what young people are facing today and what adults can do to support them with clarity and compassion. Shawna shares her path into youth development and community engagement, what it looks like to lead a one hundred and fifteen year old national organization, and how she balances identity, parenting, and purpose in a rapidly changing world. Together they talk about belonging, safety, outdoor experiences, and the small but powerful ways parents, teachers, caregivers, and communities can help young people thrive. It is honest, grounding, and full of the kind of insight that makes you exhale and rethink what's possible for the next generation.

Please consider contributing to Campfire's Friendship Fund: The Camp Fire National Friendship Fund is a financial and community resource assistance program that fills in funding gaps throughout the national Camp Fire network, extends existing scholarship programs, and supports projects that remove barriers to accessibility.

Where to find Kari and Lisa:

The Things We Know Podcast Homepage

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThingWeKnowPodcast

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thethingsweknowpod

In this episode of The Things We Know, Lisa and Kari explore what it really means to make peace with your pace in a world that constantly equates speed with worth. They unpack the quiet pressure so many women feel to keep up, especially in midlife, when responsibilities multiply and life demands more care, not more urgency. The conversation moves through burnout, ambition, desire, and the seasons of life that force us to slow down whether we want to or not, naming the tension between loving where you are and still longing for more. This is an honest, compassionate look at pacing your life in a way that's sustainable, aligned, and deeply human, without giving up on growth or meaning.

Where to find Kari and Lisa:

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Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThingWeKnowPodcast

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thethingsweknowpod

What if getting dressed could feel like a way to reconnect with who you're becoming? In this episode, Kari and Lisa talk with Julia Dietmar, CEO and co-founder of OpenWardrobe, about how style naturally evolves through the seasons of our lives and how clothing can help us express ourselves more authentically during times of change. Julia shares how to let go of old fashion "rules," how to make the most of the clothes you already own, and how she found the courage to launch a company in her fifties. This is an encouraging, practical, and creative conversation for anyone ready to feel more aligned, more confident, and more at ease in their style.

Learn more about Julie and connect, and get on Open Wardrobe to be inspired:

[email protected]

www.openwardrobe.co

https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-k-dietmar-083810/

Use code TTWK for 20% off a Style Blueprint

Where to find Kari and Lisa:

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Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThingWeKnowPodcast

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thethingsweknowpod

In this episode of The Things We Know, Kari and Lisa revisit a topic that sits at the heart of every meaningful relationship: repair. Rather than striving for perfection or trying to get it right all the time, they explore why the willingness to notice harm, take responsibility, and come back into connection matters more. Drawing from relationship research, parenting and caregiving realities, and their own lived experience, they talk about why rupture is inevitable, why repair is often uncomfortable, and how repair builds trust over time — with others and with ourselves. This conversation invites listeners to release shame, soften self-judgment, and stay oriented toward connection, integrity, and growth, even when things don't go as planned.

Where to find Kari and Lisa:

The Things We Know Podcast Homepage

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThingWeKnowPodcast

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thethingsweknowpod