The Turn Outward Podcast

In this episode I sit down with my friend, Eddy Saunders. Eddy is a police officer and recent father. Eddy and I discuss how we manage careers based in crisis intervention and how to compartmentalize work-based trauma and to avoid letting it negatively impact family life.  We go to talk about how to enforce rules and boundaries without letting our hearts be poisoned with hate, and to have compassion especially for those that the world would be quick to cast judgment upon.

Today I sit down with my friend, Matt Nielsen. Matt shares his experience growing up as a white person in northern Mexico, and how he has learned to help others feel seen through his experience of growing up different. We talk about shifting our mindset to allow us to be more present, changing the way that we pray, and allowing ourselves to experience childlike wonder again.

In my most vulnerable episode yet, I sit down with my friend, Dallin Bryant. Both of us discuss challenges we faced in our childhood years, ways that these challenges impacted us as adults, and how we were able to work through them and turn pain into purpose and growth.

In this episode, I sit down once again with my friend, Caden Kirby, and we discuss the importance of believing in free will rather than determinism in terms of finding joy and meaning in our lives. We also discuss boundary setting, the necessity of suffering, and the dangers of trying to escape pain.

I interview my friend, Derick Larsen, and ask him about his experience being diagnosed and living with OCD. Derick shares how he was able to shift his perspective on his condition from a negative label to a superpower—allowing him to connect with others like him and motivating him to help as many people as he can.

I sit down and listen to my friend Caden Kirby's story. Caden was diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy at the age of 5. Caden shares his story of facing shame and judgement from his disability, pushing himself to walk throughout high school, and learning that he is so much more than his body.

I sit down with Randy White, the director of the Herriman Institute, and discuss the challenges faced by young adults today: the difficulty of perfectionism, comparison, and shame; and on the other side the tendency towards pride as a defence mechanism. We discuss how changing our interntions to be other-oriented can help us avoid both shame and pride, and how we can consistently show up in our relationships.

Join me as I interview my friend and Family Studies graduate, Joanna Salvador. Joanna shares her story of growing up in a less than ideal family environment and the challenges that that created for her going into college. She then shares how these experiences helped her turn outward and desire to be an agent of change in her family and her community.

In this episode I interview Louisa Fowler-Packham. Louisa holds a Master's degree in Religious Studies from Boston University. Louisa shares her story of learning about and joining the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, going through mental struggles, getting married, and what these experiences have taught her about altruism and turning outward.