One Inch Past Scary

Are you paralyzed by the fear of criticism? Are you stuck in life and not progressing the way you should because you are terrified of being “caught” in your imperfections? Are you waiting to be “enough” of something before you put yourself or your work out there? It’s a trap! Asking myself this second “What If”question and implementing these mindset adjustments has freed me up to do my thing and r...

I was wallowing in insecurity and fear of failure when I woke up and wrote a question to myself in my journal. I answered it and within that same day my life had completely changed in trajectory. Does that sound like clickbait bullshit?! The good news is that it’s totally true and can work equally well for you too!

How being vulnerable and making human connections with total strangers helped me through some tough spots recently and some strategies for asking for help and being vulnerable while protecting yourself.

My podcast baby turns one today and I have big plans for it as a toddler! ALSO!!! Do you have anxious sensations which lead to negative thoughts which quickly lead to downward spirals? This one is for you!

Are you in the driver's seat of your life or are you at the mercy of moods and motivation? Here are some of my tried and true tips for effectively negotiating with your sometimes bratty, sometimes frightened, sometimes just OVER IT inner child to keep it safely strapped in its car-seat and allow you to the freedom to drive your own life . Practical ideas for pushing past fear, apathy and inertia,...

Any growth, healing and major accomplishment requires us to look ahead and commit to the process. But we also have to be ready and willing to move “one inch past scary”. In this episode, I talk about a couple of recent experiences where I used intentional (and slightly scary) methods to break lifelong patterns and reach the next level in both my healing and my goals.

Do you have a sense of being stuck and unable to get out of your own way? Do you sense that you could be doing more with your life? Maybe you are trapped in the cycle of addiction or feeling helplessly weighed down by depression and anxiety. Do you start a lot of things and never finish or are you maybe too afraid to even start, or even to dream if more? It’s shockingly common and there are scient...

My 18 year old son Gabe chats with me about what he’s learned so far about life, and what he has found valuable in his upbringing. Kids don’t come with personalised manuals, and none of us have all the right answers but Gabe is doing alright so far, and I think his wisdom is well worth listening to whether you are a parent, a teen or anything before, after or in between. I’m really super glad to c...

10 steps for using your past experiences to accomplish your goals even when you aren’t feeling highly motivated or even remotely ok.

The holiday season can be difficult for many people but it can be notoriously painful for people who have experienced trauma. Practical ideas for how to proactively recognise and manage triggers for yourself and others you may gather with this season. I include many tips for handling stress, depression and anxiety in general during this intense season. This is for anyone and everyone who wants to...

My awesome friend Doug Lang and I chat about how to be a helpful support to people when they reach out to us in crisis. Doug was such a stalwart, creative super support to me during the worst phase of my PTSD. We also talk about the importance of taking care of ourselves, and how to create boundaries to avoid helper burnout.

Holly Hinckley and I have been acquainted for years but our relationship really became cemented as I became increasingly public and even vitriolic on social media about the Mormon faith after I left it. I lost most of my Mormon friends during this time which was not unexpected nor surprising but it was and continues to be painful. I was increasingly intrigued though as I watched Holly remain stead...

In this episode I cover some major points of progress for me recently in my recovery from C-PTSD. I’m also talking about how my debilitating and abject phobia of facing the reality of my abuse has been replaced with the ability to observe it objectively and cope with it fearlessly and constructively.

A conversation with my friend Jen about our opposite experiences starting and ending in Ohio respectively with us meeting in the middle in the African Kingdom of Swaziland when we were 18. We talk about the gift of travel, it can change the entire trajectory of your life no matter what your age , surviving and enjoying parenting by becoming accepting of pain and discomfort and how going to a colle...

A conversation with my new friend Diane Nielsen, who was perfectly happy and unquestioning in her role of being a devout, believing “perfect Mormon wife and mother” until her husband (also a devout member from a highly prominent Mormon family), decided to brush up on his study of church history. As Diane joined him in that quest she found a lot that didn’t add up. She was also told by her Bishop t...

Abuse victims are often subject to secondary abuse when they reveal the truth to a source they should be able to trust. My experience with the devastating consequences of that over the years, and why I ultimately felt forced to expose my abusive parents publicly. This is an important episode for survivors and allies alike.

Childhood development expert and one of my best friends Cindi Baum talks to me about how she creates a peaceful, intentional classroom. I modelled much of my home environment with a batch of little kids and my child rearing ethos on her methods after watching her introduce 4/5 my kids to the wonderful world of learning!

I received confirmation of my resignation from the LDS (Mormon) church this week and it stirred up some stuff. I think this is a very balanced podcast and it has messages for those in and outside of the faith. Please check out ProtectLdsChildren.org. It's so important to support these changes!

Raw and uncut. YOU ARE WARNED. The story of my families deportation (they did everything legally) and why it took me 20 years to get my citizenship even though I was married to an American all that time.

My luminous friend Lucia joins me from Dubai and talks about her colourful past, growing up in extreme poverty in a Mormon/Catholic household, dealing with acute rheumatoid arthritis as a young mom of four kids aged 6 and under, her struggles with profound depression, finding herself in her 30’s pursuing her musical career with fresh gusto and even singing on the same stage as Ricky Martin. She wi...

Carolyn and I met as newly weds and young moms while living in the SF Bay Area 20 years ago. We have remained friends ever since. In this episode we chat about her slow exodus from the LDS (Mormon) faith, her activism with LDS (and all) LGBTQI youth, parenting a child through a cancer diagnosis and so much more. Her upbeat outlook and genuine love for all of humanity is inspiring, uplifting and in...

By the time C.J was 13 he had been held against his will by the police for the crime of playing basketball, by the time he was 15, he had a gun pressed to his back by the police while standing in line to buy ice cream. At the age of 26 he's had 4 such encounters with the police. He has never broken the law. He's hilarious and thoughtful and his story is one every American needs to hear.

A fun and fascinating chat with my long-time friend, Dr. Nathan Richardson regarding his insights into where we are going wrong with organised youth sports, specifically soccer and how it is affecting our children and families.

Young entrepreneur Isaac Rogers talks about his journey from being kicked out of church at the tender age of 6 to living a full, present, joyful and authentic life. He’s chosen to be refined rather than defined by Cystic Fibrosis, We talk about the glorification of Disabilities (his pet peeve), shaking free of the toxic trap of comparison (he’s a twin), his spiritual journey and travel dreams. Don...

In this incredibly inspiring episode Joe husband, father of three young kids, high school teacher who has been fighting stage 4 cancer for the last seven years talks about living with the “Terrible Privilege” of a diagnosis which puts his future in a constant state of uncertainty and how he has embraced it and made every moment count.