Calm AF | Overthinking, Anxiety & Nervous System Regulation

Get the full Future Self Course for $26 As we close out 2025, this episode is an invitation to pause before you plan. If the year felt beautiful—amazing. And if it felt heavy, disorienting, or unfinished—you're not alone. Instead of starting the new year with goals, strategies, or fixing yourself, this episode begins where real change actually starts: identity . In this episode, I'm sharing Step O...

The week between Christmas and New Year's—what I call the holiday vortex—is your secret weapon for creating a calm, focused, and successful start to 2025. In this episode, I'll show you why rest is the most productive thing you can do and how using this unique time strategically can help you achieve more without burnout. You'll learn how to break free from the productivity treadmill, rewire your n...

Get daily reminders to live your life as the main character HERE. What if you approached your own life with the same intentionality a screenwriter brings to their main character? In this episode, we're talking about why so many high-achievers are living like background characters in their own story AND  how to step into the lead role. You'll learn: Why identity always precedes behavior (and why mo...

If I could go back and tell my younger self something, it would be this: Figure out what really matters in life. Figure out what, at the end of your life, made it a life well lived. And then figure out HOW to not forget it.  (This episode is a replay from 2023) Here's the EASIEST way: Daily Love Letters Change takes consistency. If you'd love a gentle nudge each day to stay on track while you're c...

In today's episode of Calm AF, we're diving deep into one of the most harmful modern mindsets: the belief that you have to fix yourself before you can enjoy your life . If you've ever felt like you need to check off a to-do list before you're allowed to relax or be happy — this episode is your reminder to stop fixing yourself to be happy . Inspired by a love letter from my private podcast, this "s...

Get Daily Reminders to rewire your nervous system and mindset patterns. You say you want peace. You say you're ready to stop overthinking, people-pleasing, and spinning out. So why does your brain keep dragging you back into suffering — even when life gives you a moment to breathe? In this episode, we're talking about the ways we argue against our own peace — and how we fight harder to stay stuck...

Why does your brain keep pulling you back into the same thought loops — even when you want to change? In this episode, I'm breaking down the real science of neural pathway rewiring , and why motivation isn't the answer. You'll learn: Why your brain defaults to familiar (not better) pathways A simple, effective way to rewire old patterns What to do in the moment when you catch yourself thinking the...

Get free daily reminders Feeling mentally and emotionally drained but convinced you have to keep pushing through? This episode is for you. If you're running on fumes but your instinct is to try harder, work longer, and push more - you might be doing exactly what's keeping you stuck. In this episode, I share the story of a high-achieving client who was beating her head against a brick wall until sh...

Get September daily love letters  What if everything you've been told about productivity is backwards? What if the secret to achieving your goals isn't more discipline, but more joy? In this episode, I share the story of my most reluctant client who finally agreed to choose the "fun bucket" - and accidentally became more productive than she'd ever been. You'll discover why white-knuckling your way...

Click here to get daily reminders every day in September. September is my new year. The fresh start is so invigorating and exciting AND leads to one of the most COMMON traps we find ourselves in. This epsiode is for you if you're in any kind of new chapter moment - back to school, empty nesting, relationship changes, or just ready to stop earning your way to what matters most. Key Takeaways Why Se...

Sometimes the most profound lessons come from the most unexpected places. When Bob Saget died, the tributes revealed something that completely shifted how I think about legacy—and it's probably going to change how you think about yours too. Here's what I was expecting: Nice tributes. People saying kind things because that's what you do when someone dies. Here's what actually happened: Story after...

Your nervous system thinks calm will actually kill you. I know it sounds backwards, but here's what nobody tells you: when you finally get the calm, regulated life you've been working toward, your system goes into overdrive looking for new chaos to manage. In this episode, I share my client Hannah's story—how she went from drowning in research about her neurodiverse marriage to creating the calm l...

Calm AF Year is a year-long e xperiment to see what happens when you LET your life change instead of trying hard to change your life.  Enrollment opens August 11th. Get on the interest list  here. This is Part 2 of my conversation with Susan, one of my Calm AF clients who's been showing up relentlessly to create a life that she LOVES to live. While Part 1 was about intentions and her initial break...

Calm AF Year is a year-long e xperiment to see what happens when you LET your life change instead of trying hard to change your life.  Enrollment opens August 11th. Get on the interest list  here. Episode 329 Back in 2021/2022, Susan was doing what lots of you are doing right now. Listening to this podcast, nodding along, feeling seen, knowing that something about this Kristen lady felt SO right.....

You want to stop carrying everyone else's shit...physical, emotional and energetic?? Calm AF Year is coming.  E nrollment opens August 11th. It's a year-long experiment to experience how much lighter and calmer you can feel when when you stop accumulating everyone else's stuff and start protecting your own energy. Get on the interest list here. Ever feel like you're carrying invisible weight? Like...

  Sign up for the Calm AF Year waitlist  here  Ever feel like emotions hit you out of nowhere? You're driving to work and suddenly sobbing, or you feel rage after someone does something slightly annoying?  Friend...your emotional junk drawer is overflowing. In this episode, I'm diving deep into the invisible emotional clutter we've been shoving down our entire lives and why it's stealing your ener...

If you're so smart, WHY does your brain feel like a junk drawer that's been stuffed so full you can barely get it open? In this episode, we're talking about what's actually cluttering up your mental junk drawer  and why the same brain that got you where you are might be what's trapping you there. We're talking about: The 4 types of mental clutter that high performers collect (and why you can't thi...

Feeling overwhelmed by racing thoughts, emotional overload, and constantly absorbing everyone else's energy? You're not broken - you just have some internal junk drawers that are overflowing. In this episode, we explore the three invisible junk drawers in your mind: mental, emotional, and energetic clutter that's been accumulating for years. You'll also learn why trying to fix the problem from the...

You're the one everyone turns to when things go sideways. You stay calm when the stakes are high. You SHINE under pressure. So why are you so burned out? In this episode of Calm AF, I'm breaking down the real reason high achievers feel like they're constantly putting out fires—and why your nervous system can't seem to turn off, even when there's nothing actually burning. We're talking about: Why h...

Today's episode is a little different than what you're used to hearing. Today I wrote US a commencment speech. Inspired by my son's high school graduation, I started thinking about all the ways adults are  graduating: out of relationships, into relationships, out of old roles, into new chapters, out of versions of ourselves that no longer fit. But we rarely pause to celebrate those transitions. In...

In this episode, we're talking about how to be the kind of leader, partner, parent, and friend that  inspires the very best in others —and yourself. You already know how to push, nudge, and motivate yourself. But is the way you are leading yoruself the same way you are showing up for others? And if not, why not? I'm sharing the 7 ways you motivate yourself to be your best and how to start applying...

How many times have you tried to set a boundary but then backed down. Today's bonus episode features a powerful Voxer message from one of my Upgrade clients—brought to life with a little AI magic (to keep my private clients private). What you'll hear is what this work ACTUALLY sounds like. What is possible when you don't just know how to regulate in structured moments, but in real life. No spirali...

Summer is supposed to feel freeing—but for hyper achievers, it often feels anything but. In this episode, we're pulling back the curtain on why summer is actually the most dysregulating season of the year for high performers, energy managers, and people pleasers. If you've ever felt guilty for not enjoying your "time off," or found yourself craving September more than sunshine, this one's for you....

We love the idea of "Let Them." Let them judge you. Let them walk away. Let them misunderstand you. But when you're actually in it—when someone ghosts you, talks behind your back, or oversteps your boundary—it doesn't feel empowering. It feels like rejection. Or worse, like you're white knuckling "let themmmmmm" so hard, you think your head might explode. In this episode, I break down what "Let Th...

You're not fine. You're functioning. And if that hit a little too close to home, this episode is for you. You're showing up, getting things done, holding it all together— But inside, your nervous system is screaming. This episode is the mirror you didn't know you needed. 🎧 Want to stop just functioning and start actually feeling like yourself again ? Start here   In this episode, we talk about: T...