Avoidance and Control

After years of emotional distance, avoided conversations, and fragile boundaries, one final timeline reveals what happens when truth is spoken—not to repair the past, but to honor the self. In this episode, you will hear the therapeutic exposure timeline Monique uses in her HEAL Model for Building Resilience Coaching Program with guest Amanda Clark. Amanda helps high-achieving women who are done f...

What happens when millions of women are experiencing a major biological transition, yet many medical professionals receive little training on how to recognize or treat it? Today, we're talking about perimenopause, medical advocacy, and why so many women leave doctors' appointments feeling unheard, dismissed, or wondering if it's all in their head. In This Episode: - Perimenaupaise Defi...

Sometimes the biggest problem isn’t the conflict, the breakup, the burnout, or the dissatisfaction with your life. The biggest problem is not realizing that your patterns are creating the chaos. In this Episode: How defense Mechanisms act as personality What an Overwhelmed Nervous System Can Do Acknowledgement as a catalyst to healing Cycle of Abuse Revambed Interview Episodes with LCSW Kristen Se...

I didn't know I was a perfectionist until I began feeling safe in my body and stopped trying to control the uncontrollable. Introducing the biggest failure of my life and how I used the tools I teach my clients to rewrite and learn to love themselves. In this Episode: where Perfectionism/ perfectionist tendencies come from 3 tools after Body-Based tools to Build Foundation Why is this harder f...

From high-conflict divorce to healing—how one founder built an AI tool to help parents regulate, reconnect, and co-parent with clarity. In this episode, we sit down with Sol Kennedy, founder of BestInterest, the AI-powered co-parenting app transforming how high-conflict families communicate. Once a Googler and serial entrepreneur, Sol’s most meaningful innovation didn’t come from Silicon Valley—it...

Burnout. Behavior issues. Stress. These are challenges so many families face—and there’s a powerful, evidence-based solution that helps. 8-week evidence-based curriculum that actually changes how you parent to read your child's behavior and meet their needs. Presale on NOW DM Monique@dtheal.org or Visit info sessions below (on eventbrite base Dare to Heal) Informations Sessions (FREE) https://...

Explore somatic healing through divorce with Madisen Rose—nervous system tools for grief, rupture, anger, and rebuilding self-trust from within. Madisen Rose is a somatic practitioner and founder of Better Half to Whole, a platform dedicated to supporting individuals through the renegotiation of relational trauma in the nervous system, specializing in divorce recovery. Through one-on-one sessions,...

What happens when resentment from workplace conflict follows you long after the situation ends? Many people carry anger, betrayal, or injustice from toxic work environments, and those emotions can quietly erode mental health, self-esteem, and hope. In this episode, Monique Gomez speaks with workplace conflict recovery coach Stephen Tolfree about a powerful but often misunderstood psychological con...

Neurodivergence is a word that’s becoming more common, but many people still wonder what it really means and how it shows up in everyday life. In this episode, we explore neurodivergence through a lifestyle and nervous system lens, focusing on awareness, regulation, and practical understanding. In this episode we discuss: • What neurodivergence means and how it can show up in daily life • How life...

How much discomfort do you need to feel in order to speak or acknowledge hurt? So many of us wait until the pressure builds—until the guilt, tension, or emotional weight becomes impossible to ignore—before we finally say something. In this episode, we explore in a Part2 Episode with Jon Bui creator of The Negotiated Apology In this Episode: how discomfort can actually be a guide rather than someth...

Abuse doesn’t just hurt—it disorients. Isolation grows. Agency shrinks. Self-trust erodes. In Part 3 of this series, Kristen Searcy of A Desert In Bloom Therapy walks us through the common themes across abusive patterns—including progressive loss of autonomy and the reality that confusion is the habitat where abuse thrives. We explore the signs you’re in it—and how to respond instead of react. In...

We all can end up in what I like to call "The Deep Dark", a deep depression that suffocates our system to believing we need what our brain feels is the only way out. Join me and my friend Janet as we discuss the reasoning behind suicide ideation and what brings people to make such a decision. Janet is a Somatic Breathwork Practitioner and Health Coach who brings 27 years of experience as...

Burnout doesn’t just show up as exhaustion—it creeps into our nervous system, our finances, our confidence, and even our ability to breathe through daily life. In this honest and grounding conversation, I’m joined by my dear friend and talented photographer, Rachel Richards , as we unpack the hidden layers of burnout, including money fears, panic attacks, survival mode, and the pressure to “hold i...

Want to stop going back to people who hurt you or make you "feel" crazy? Then use the Swinging door as the fairy Godmother of boundaries. I get it you are a recovering people pleaser and putting a boundary in place like; saying no, or that you cannot, or simply not responding to someones upset... is what this anaology helps us remove guilt and continue to stand in our power. Monique is a...

True intimacy is hard to find and build upon, especially when our own identity starts to erode. Licensed Clinical Social Worker Kristen Searcey shares her female-pronged cycle of abuse in this Part 2 Episode. The episode is designed to help you see behaviors in yourself and others and seek support from a mental health specialist. Kristen Searcy is an EMDRIA certified EMDR Trauma Therapist and the...

Have you ever felt stuck in a relationship—romantic, friendship, or even professional—where you keep giving, hoping they’ll change, and wondering why you feel so responsible for their healing? This appears with my clients -alot. We are stuck in the old abandonment story or wound. I actuallyt just realized I do this as well. I behave as if I am going to be abandoned. I strive and push myself so tha...

The old narratives about abuse don’t always fit what we see today. This week, I’m joined by Kristen Searcy , whose revolutionary Model of Abuse challenges everything we think we know about violence and control. We’re talking about how real change begins when we focus on consistent behaviors , not clinical labels . Kristen Searcy is an EMDRIA certified EMDR Trauma Therapist and the founder of A Des...

Welcome to Season 4 of the Avoidance and Control podcast. Enjoy this warm-up episode to get your brain thinking opposite of the "fix it Model" Humans don't need to be "fixed", we need logic, inner knowing, and regulation. In This Episode: - 3 tips for stepping out of the Old story (trauma/Abuse/ etc) - Components of Salutogenics (moving toward Health) - Reduce the stigma th...

How do you feel about diagnoses—do they help you understand yourself or make you feel stuck? In this powerful finale, Annamarie Green explores why true healing starts with your energy, not just a label. If you’ve ever felt like there’s more to healing than managing symptoms, this one’s for you. In This Episode: 3 core Levels of Healing Anxiety Language How to Chord Cut DIY Annamarie Resources: Anx...

You know those moments in life when everything feels like it's crumbling—finances, emotions, even your sense of self? I've been there. And so has my dear friend, former coaching client, and now incredible somatic breathwork practitioner, Janet Bonner West. Janet went from feeling broke, stuck, and hiding from her truth to discovering the power of breathwork—a practice that completely trans...

What if your quality of life starts with what's on your plate? While those with PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) have protective skills, but this episode reminds us that the first step in standing up for your health is making sure you have a good quality of life. In This Episode: Christina PTSD diagnosis and self-advocacy Provider Problems Breath and Mindset Tools and Practice Christina L...

"Have you ever felt a sudden shift in your mood, an unexpected wave of frustration, sadness, or anxiety—but couldn’t quite understand why? In this episode: What is Trigger Control How to Identify Them Sweeping Upset Under the Rug Keeps you Stuck Brittany Smith is a Holistic Aesthetic Nurse and Certified Coach who blends nursing expertise with wellness coaching to help with challenges related to ag...

I get so incredibly excited to help people on consultation calls-- let this episode help you make a decision. also DM me or leave a comment or Review if you'd like to get an episode on How to Interview your Helper. Monique Gomez is a Trauma and Resilience Life Coach, former Mental Health Therapist, Reiki Master, and Licensed Massage Therapist with a Master's degree is Social Work. Monique speciali...

Another Throwback Tuesday from Season 1: What is. Trauma? while so many Pop Psych Influencers and plain old Tik Tokers like to explain what they believe to be trauma and what is not  trauma, this episode breaks down the Truth. If this episode Resonates I'd love for you to check out our Upcoming Resilience Tour Retreat in April 2025; what I'd like to call a Heal-Cation (especially if you get the ov...

Are your relationships helping you thrive, or are they quietly draining your energy? In This Episode: Why your relationships directly impact your health and happiness. How to identify three key relationship types: nurturers, neutral supporters, and energy vampires. The role of boundaries and values in maintaining healthy dynamics. Practical steps to release guilt and move on from one-sided relatio...