This recording marks one year since Rachael and Dr. Lou first started their podcast series. Whether you've listened to one episode or all of them, thank you for listening and joining along on this journey to thriving! In the upcoming season of the podcast, Rachael and Dr. Lou are looking forward to bringing on guests to share their stories of how they overcame mental health and substance abuse struggles and how they now thrive!

This summer at the Tokyo Olympics, some athletes openly discussed their mental health at the games and shared their internal struggles. Rachael and Dr. Lou discuss the takeaways from these athletes and the importance of pressing pause to take care of ourselves, no matter the situation.

Changing the words we use to talk to ourselves can make a huge difference in how we experience day-to-day life. Give this week's episode of Thriving With Rachael and Dr. Lou a listen to learn ways to better your self-talk and shift your experiences.

Sometimes we just need someone to listen to us. However, you may feel like going to one of your supports makes you a burden to them. Rachael and Dr. Lou discuss ways to navigate this feeling and how to communicate your needs to your supports.

The busyness of daily life often prevents us from slowing down and being still with ourselves. Being present and mindful is a powerful way to ground yourself. Rachael and Dr. Lou discuss what mindfulness actually is, how societal norms make it difficult to practice, and ways we can start incorporating mindfulness practice into our daily lives.

The average person spends 145 minutes, or 2 hours and 25 minutes on social media every day. Rachael and Dr. Lou discuss the functions, both good and bad, of social media and ways that we can limit our social media usage.

There are ways to maintain self-care and a routine when we feel overwhelmed by our day-to-day life circumstances whether that is work, school, personal relationships, or a combination of these. Rachael and Dr. Lou discuss signs of burnout and how we can navigate them to ensure that we are getting the rest we need while still taking care of ourselves.

Holiday weekends can bring temptations like food and drinks and conflicts with family and friends. This week, Rachael and Dr. Lou discuss how to get back on track and how to create a plan after feeling like we lost control.

Setting boundaries with people to express our needs and to protect our peace is essential. However, it's easier said than done. In this week's podcast episode, Rachael and Dr. Lou discuss the expectations around boundary setting and give tips on how to effectively set them!

We all deal with toxic people at times. In this podcast, Rachael and Dr. Lou discuss toxic people in terms terms of people that are self-centered and only worried about themselves. It's important to recognize that setting boundaries with people like that is okay.