Fxck Fear

"What else combats fear is knowledge," says DJ and reality show contestant Nicole Rosé Stillings. "A lot of times we’re scared, of the unknown, so something like reality tv, it’s not exactly The Apprentice, it’s not exactly The Real Housewives, it’s The Big shot with Bethenny Frankel, she’s got a reputation for being a loose cannon right so kind of an unknown and unchartered territory...

With just over half the country vaccinated, there's lots of room to talk about why more people are not getting the shots. Many express FEAR of the COVID-19 vaccine. While the reasons range from simple to extreme, we're talking about a myriad of vaccine fears on this in-depth and important episode with guests Dr. Jess Steier, public health scientist, CEO of Vital Statistics Consulting and c...

Survivors of narcissistic relationships often experience some residual goop left over from the relationship like fear, anxiety, and PTSD sparked from the days, weeks, months, and years of abuse. But writing her first book, Married to a Narcissist: Enduring the Struggle and Finding You Again , host Catenya McHenry says was a cathartic experience helping her to slowly heal. This podcast has also pro...

"Change is inevitable," says Radical Forgiveness Expert Kym Kennedy. "It's something that's going to happen no matter what and the better we are at adapting to whatever changes come, the more successful we'll be. If you are doing the same thing all the time, you're not growing." Change is not only inevitable, it's also something that frightens a lot of people. A...

Scrolling social media can sometimes cause one to feel horrible about themselves because it's easy to get swept up in self-doubt, professional doubt, and depression when looking at what other people are doing or how they portray to be living their lives. Imposter syndrome will trick us into believing others are doing extraordinary things and we're not. On this new episode with CEO of Lamik...

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 3.9 million Americans quit their job in June 2021 and our next podcast guest, Deseré Cross Ward has joined the movement- what's been dubbed as The Great Resignation. She was a popular previous guest, whose episode Fear of Speaking Out was No.1 for weeks. Deseré returns to talk about the next chapter in her journey, why she quit her job - but no...

Fuck Fear host Catenya McHenry says she's often felt anxiety after applying for a job, afraid that she's going to hear a 'no' and be turned down. In this episode, she expresses she's felt the same fear as a serial entrepreneur and communications consultant pursuing a big contract, new client, or even wholesale orders for her sock company SoleMate Sox . "I'm constantly q...

"We are fearful of things like rejection, failure and anything that will alter our self-concepts, we are really good at imagining our best selves and anything that will detract to that, will give us a lot of anxiety which we experience," says Bermiss. Have you just gone through evaluation season at work? If it caused stress, anxiety and fear, you should definitely listen to this episode as...

"There is no seamless to this, as women and as Black women, we were taught to hold your head up with confidence and just do it, f*ck fear," says guest and serial entrepreneur My-Cherie Haley. "So those times when I felt like I was most weakest and get out of bed and know what my next move would be and didn’t know whether or not I’d be able to make rent that month, I just did it because...

On this episode, returning guest, Austin-based Life Coach Ellen Torreyson says not living their truth is the No. 1 issue her clients bring to her.  "They either aren’t living their truth, or they aren’t sure what their truth really is and they feel like something is off and they aren’t sure why, or they recently decided to live their truth and are navigating all the uncertainty, and judgement...

Many of the fears we face as adults originated from childhood traumas, and if not dealt with, those fears can chase us for years. It's the topic of conversation in this episode with Catenya's cousin Mai Young. The two discuss a number of fears including fear of abandonment stemming from nearly a year that Mai and her three siblings were left home alone by their Mom who suffered from drug a...

"One of my fears has been white fragility and in order to get over that fear of hurting somebody’s feelings, or mismanaging the white fragility, so I had to be like ok girl, what’s more important, white fragility or your own sanity, and I chose myself," says Deseré Cross Ward, journalist, and social media strategist at UT Austin. There are a lot of fears wrapped up in the fear of speaking...

"I think a lot of people have imposter syndrome, constantly looking over the shoulder or worry that maybe I shouldn’t be here, maybe I don’t belong here, maybe I’m not good enough. I think that happens to people a lot," says Dr. Carrie Barron, board certified psychiatrist, psychoanalyst and director of creativity resilience at Dell Medical School in Austin. Social media can be brutal in th...

"People spend a lot of time and I struggle with it too," says Pam Benson Owens, "trying to perform or behave to an expectation, trying to perform or behave to a version of yourself that other people have decided not you and that can chip away at your soul every single day." Fear of Other's Expectations kicks off Season 2 of the Fuck Fear podcast. Season 1 favorite Pam Owens ret...

There are times when we make decisions out of sheer panic, fearing what we think the outcome may be. In this episode, host Catenya McHenry opens up about an emotional situation she's in the midst of with her ex-husband that's requiring faith and focus, free of fear. No matter what happens, she is refusing to live in fear. Be sure to tune in to this very personal episode as we close season...

"When we are afraid of something, we avoid, always, or we reschedule, or put it off, or delay because we don’t want to deal with," says Certified Life Coach Ellen Torreyson. "What you end up doing when you avoid is you prolong the misery for yourself." If that thing you’re putting off is the uncomfortable conversation, before you say it in a text come sit with Ellen and host Cateny...

"In organizations that are outcome focused- what they care about is your sales, what are your numbers- a narcissist flourishes in that environment because they are experts at positioning themselves to take credit for success and to deflect blame," says Dr. Kristie Loescher senior management lecturer at the University of Texas at Austin. "They are very confident and they present themsel...

"This is the thing about boundaries and expectations, just because you can do it, doesn’t mean I should be doing it, but that deep feeling of fear, comes down to always being in a world, as a woman, that I always have to prove myself," says podcast guest and CEO Pam Benson Owens.  Setting boundaries is hard. Setting boundaries is also life-changing but it sometimes takes a while to get to...

Forgiveness is not just about the other person, it’s also about you. On this second installment in our two-week forgiveness series, NPR guest, spiritual counselor, and forgiveness expert Ana Holub, says what is also true about forgiveness is that we’re sometimes afraid to forgive ourselves. On this new episode, we talk about why and we talk about how we can be better to ourselves. "If you can...

"If you were to forgive, the implication is that you are condoning it, you’re like saying, it’s ok or you’re weak- there are so many reasons why people are afraid to forgive," says Forgiveness Expert and Radical Forgiveness coach Kym Kennedy. On this Fuck Fear episode, Kym and host Catenya McHenry have an open and vulnerable conversation about why it's difficult and fearful to forgive...

Perhaps you're thinking of starting a new business but if you're afraid to take that leap of faith, then this episode is entirely relatable. Natalie Holloway, co-founder of multi-million dollar chic fitness brand Bala is our guest. The brand was profitable in their first year, they landed deals on Shark Tank, and they're currently crushing it in the global fitness market. Natalie talks...

"It’s not wrong to feel fear," says Nicole Keller, fear researcher at Dell Medical School's Institute of Neuroscience at UT Austin. "It’s like a completely actual adaptive feeling and we need it, so just being afraid doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t do something or go through that process. It shows that you are doing ok and that your brain is responding in a correct way." On thi...

"What I know for sure," says host Catenya McHenry, "is that all children really want is the truth and love." On this episode, she opens up and talks about her fears of being completely transparent and truthful with her teenage children, how truth changes their family dynamic, but how it truth helps build their self-esteem and confidence. *New Episodes on Thursdays*

"All of my individual fears were just little things that I knew were gonna happen. I just had to tell myself, that this is gonna happen regardless, and that’s not a reason to stay silent about it. Over the years, he has definitely gaslighted me a lot." On this episode, Catenya's teenage daughter talks about fear of the bully in her life but it's not the typical school bully she&#39...

On the very first episode of Fuck Fear, host Catenya McHenry talks about the night she reached her breaking point. It started with an overnight conversation she had with her then six-year old daughter about not being afraid of monsters. During that talk, Catenya realized the monster metaphor would have a bigger meaning as she continued recovering from a toxic narcissistic relationship, which she w...