Thoughts from the Couch Podcast

 Anne-Marie Conlan, LMHC is a licensed mental health counselor specializing in bereavement support and is the director of the Bereavement Center of Westchester.  Anne-Marie and I talk about the impacts of childhood loss and the reality of the continuous processing that is required throughout the stages of life.  Anne-Marie shares her knowledge regarding bereavement and the importance of seeking support from a counselor.  

This episodes dives into:

• Anne-Marie debunks the myths surrounding grief counseling.
• Understanding and defining grief.
• Anne-Marie shares her own story of loss in her young adult years.
• Childhood loss and the possible shifts in perspectives regarding life.
• Life cycles stages and the impact of continual grief.
• The distinction between loss in early childhood versus teenage years. 
• Factors that impact the grieving process.
• Finding new meaning and purpose and accepting a new path.

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During today’s conversation on the podcast,  I spoke with Matthew Ode, motivational speaker, coach, and cancer survivor.  Matthew shares his inspiring story of overcoming cancer, surviving two coma’s and a long journey of recovery.  Matt encourages his clients to find empowerment in taking small steps, staying connected to your community and always finding the positive perspective of every situation.  Tune in for inspiration and guidance to overcome whatever challenge you may be faced with.

This episodes dives into:

• How his faith helped him maintain resilience in recognizing how to use challenges to his advantage.
• Matthew urges men to understand the importance and strength of feeling your emotions and remaining vulnerable.
• How Matthew’s shift in mindset and sense of community gave him strength and resiliency through his cancer treatment.
• Finding empowerment in considering how your actions will impact others.
• The power of surrender when you hit rock bottom. 
• Taking failure as feedback.

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In this episode, I spoke with Jose Lugo, founder and lead creative of the platform “We Are All One Story.” Jose shares his own story from being a teenage gang member to changing his life’s path to become a leader and change maker.  Jose travels across the country to empower individuals in going from victim to owner in their own story and finding their value as a human. Through vulnerability and bravery, Jose shares with me the darkest parts of his past and more importantly how he overcame these moments.  Tune in for wisdom and insights into taking charge of your own story.

This episodes dives into: 

• Jose shares stories of his difficult childhood and how it led him to joining a gang.
• Association of violence and love.
• The positive virtues that Jose took away from his time in prison.
• The power of control in your environment and finding peace.
• Diversity and division in prison.
• The power of shifting blame and resentment for forgiveness and love.
• Jose recounts his downward spiral and personal mental health struggles. 
• Jose’s advice on rebuilding yourself from moments of despair to letting go.

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I am so honored to speak with Ralph DeQuebec, U.S. Marine Corps Veteran, purple heart recipient, true hero and leader.  Ralph models how vulnerability and positive thinking can lead to resilience and courage. In this episode, Ralph shares with listeners his life changing injury in combat and how his journey towards recovery brought him many challenges and lessons that we can all learn from. Ralph outlines how the power of choice helped to rewrite his story to bring him peace and resilience. If you want to feel inspired, you need to listen to this episode. 

This episodes dives into: 

• Ralph DeQuebec shares his story as a U.S. Marine, Sled Hockey 2018 Gold Medalist, and co-founder of the platform “We Are All One Story.”
• The impact of 9/11 had on Ralph and his journey to joining the Marine Corps. 
• Ralph honorably shares the story of his injury caused by a bomb explosion while serving our country. 
• How positive thinking guided Ralph throughout various adverse events in his life.  
• How Ralph found drive and passion again to continue living.
• The power of choice and mindset.
• Surrounding yourself with people who will support you in becoming the best version of yourself.

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In this week’s episode, I connect with Licensed Professional Counselor and Coach, Holly Coneway.  We dive into the challenges that come with not only choosing your career, but finding the balance between your passion and the practicalities of your chosen work.  Holly shares her story of her unique journey to becoming a counselor and what her reflections of this process has taught her.  Holly also shares with us how to remain practical and still follow your passion.

This episodes dives into:

• How our community affects career choices.
• Recognizing your values to align with your career.
• Changing our expectations of our creative outlets.
• The challenge of taking risks and learning that you can remain “practical” and also follow your passions. 
• The importance of open mindedness in balancing passion and practicality in our careers.
• Finding mentors and people who are doing what you desire.
• How expanding our perspective is key to holding motivation and a positive outlook for our futures.

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Today I’m really excited to share my conversation with Monica Denais, LatinX Licensed Professional Counselor and Certified Rehabilitation Counselor in Dallas, Texas. Monica was also a huge support to me in starting this podcast.  We talk about the struggles of perfectionism, as well as how to identify and overcome these traits.  Monica and I share our own struggles with perfectionism and how we have helped ourselves and our clients to cope and transform this way of thinking.    

This episodes dives into:

• The positive twist of perfectionism and how to utilize it for good.
• How to identify perfectionism.
• How perfectionism shows up in various stages and cycles of life.
• Diving into the roots of perfectionism.
• Impact of your family of origin and the roles within our family system on perfectionistic tendencies. 
• Justine & Monica share their own stories which led them to perfectionistic habits.
• How standards of communities and cultures impact perfectionism.
• The relationship between anxiety and perfectionism.
• The connection of procrastination and perfectionism.
• Shame as the driving force of perfectionism.
• Various models of therapy that support perfectionistic tendencies.

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I was honored to sit down and talk with Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Alaina Brubaker for session 14 of the podcast. We discussed how women tend to struggle with trying to “do it all.”  Alaina shared how she supports women in recognizing how to strive for more balance rather than burning out from overachievement.  We debunked myths surrounding success and shared tips on how to set boundaries, ask for help and still feel accomplished while maintaining our overall well-being.

I was honored to sit down and talk with Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Alaina Brubaker. We discussed how women tend to struggle with trying to “do it all.”  Alaina shared how she supports women in recognizing how to strive for more balance rather than burning out from overachievement.  We debunked myths surrounding success and shared tips on how to set boundaries, ask for help and still feel accomplished while maintaining our overall well-being.  

This episode dives into: 

• How validation of overachievement can create a harmful narrative.
• The female cultural pressure to “do it all”.
• Social media’s impact on our expectations.
• The role of guilt in avoidance of asking for support.
• Women struggle with others’ displeasure.
• The role of family systems in regard to overachievement.
• Expectations and need for fluidity in gender roles.
• Identifying our values to prioritize and recognize what we need to sacrifice.
• Thought patterns and reframing our worth.
• Asked, “who am I when I’m not busy?”

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The Path to Peace

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For this week’s podcast episode, I sat down with Alina Pedraza, owner of Fused Fitness and entrepreneur in the physical wellness field.  Alina shares her passion for helping others and her love for cultivating community.  We discuss how to empower ourselves in order to not only achieve our fitness goals, but transform our lives.  Alina sheds light on the importance of resiliency and getting into the right mindset to lead a more physically and mentally healthier lifestyle.

This episodes dives into: 

• Alina’s journey to becoming the owner of “Fused Fitness.” 
• Her passion for helping people and how it keeps her focused.
• How physical health can empower every area of our lives.
• Development of empowerment and how Alina incorporates these lessons into her work as a personal trainer.
• Changing our story and relationships with food and fitness.
• How your mindset produces results.
• Alina’s personal tips for prioritizing physical health and exposes all of the choices we actually have!

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In today’s episode, I speak with registered dietitian Ilyse Schapiro to debunk myths about trendy diets.  We discuss better ways to achieve weight loss and/or weight gain and how to develop love for our bodies.  Ilyse and I collaborate in identifying how harmful certain fad diets can be on our physical and mental health. Ilyse provides us with great knowledge for sustainable and alternative options to living a healthier life and building a positive relationship with food.  

This episodes dives into: 

• “Own Your Wellness” workshops with Ilyse and Justine.
• Discussion on current fad diets and whether they are a good choice for you.
• How simplicity can be the answer.
• The importance of seeking advice from credentialed professionals.
• Focusing on whole, fresh food instead of processed foods. 
• How diets take up too much head space and the detriment this can play in making personal changes.
• The importance of patience and slowing down for weight loss.
• Negative effects of social media on our body image.

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