The Calming Ground Podcast

What if bodies hold an innate wisdom just waiting for us to tap into it? And, what if this wisdom can be particularly potent when we slow down enough to deeply access it?  In this episode, Elizabeth Mintun takes a deep dive with Edie Gudaitis, the CEO & founder of Edie Gudaitis Wellness, into her work and personal experiences with learning to slow down and deeply listen to her body. Edie...

What if by paying attention to what and how we eat, women could improve their experience of the peri and menopausal stages of life?  In this episode, Elizabeth Mintun talked with  chef Christine Van Bloem. Christine shared her journey through professional and personal hardships that led her to shifting her nutrition to improve her wellbeing, and then inspired her to help others on t...

What does it mean to live in a mindfully embodied way? In this episode, Elizabeth Mintun speaks with guest Linda Zurak, a trauma-informed Somatic Movement Educator, therapist, and embodiment coach. Linda’s primary vision in her work is to inspire others to live beyond their perceived limitations. Linda talks about both actionable steps that you can begin to practice now to increase your conne...

Fear is a natural, protective response, often trying to keep us safe from perceived dangers. But what happens when our fears become blown out of proportion and start guiding our decisions in ways that don’t serve us?  In this episode, Elizabeth Mintun explores a reframe of many fears as shadow puppets - seemingly ominous and large, when so often they are projected from situations or things th...

Imagine a life where your potential is no longer confined by limiting beliefs.  In this episode, Elizabeth Mintun speaks with returning guest Dawn Glasco, a community engagement strategist, speaker, author, and consultant. Dawn shares her journey - the empowering path of shedding the restrictions of limiting beliefs and conditioning, trusting the process, and the key role spirituality has pla...

Have you ever noticed how easy it is to fall off the bandwagon of prioritizing your self-care when life gets hectic?  In this episode, Elizabeth Mintun reveals her own journey to discovering grounding and centering self-care practices that worked for her and eventually led to her creation of The Calming Ground Membership.  Key Takeaways:  Simple activities that can be incorporated i...

Have you ever had a person you deeply care about go through a terrible loss and you didn’t quite know what to say or how to help?  In our culture here in the United States, grief is so misunderstood. People often are very well-intended, but say things to their friends, co-workers, and family members in an effort to help that ultimately leads to greater isolation for the person in grief. ...

Is one of your greatest fears not getting things “right” and/or seeming like a fool? Retired psychotherapist Margy Davis-Mintun suggests that being a fool in life at times is not only inevitable, it’s actually a privilege because it signifies that we have opportunities to learn and grow.   In this week’s episode, Elizabeth Mintun offers a short and powerful interview with Margy revealing...

Have you ever felt trapped in a cycle of self-criticism, struggling to balance your aspirations with kindness towards yourself?  What if you could hold yourself accountable and practice self-compassion at the same time?  In this week’s episode, Elizabeth Mintun shares her ARROW framework to help others practice compassionate accountability. She offers details, actionable steps, and a rea...

Have you ever felt like words were just too limiting to express what you were experiencing? What if art-based mindfulness could offer a non-judgemental and safe alternative to both release and express emotion? For this episode, Elizabeth interviewed Jodi Rose Gonzales, ATR, NCC, ERYT, YACEP. Jodi is a nature-based artist, art therapist, author and yoga teacher who empowers creative people using ar...

Have you ever wondered how you can both feel confident and good about what you wear and make a positive step toward creating a more sustainable earth-friendly lifestyle? In this episode, following this month’s theme of living with compassionate accountability, Elizabeth Mintun interviews Nicole Riggs Broesch, founder and designer of fern+daisy. Nicole weaves her passion for ethical fashion and com...

Has anyone ever told you: "Look at all you have, you should be grateful!" when you were experiencing an uncomfortable feeling like sadness, anger, grief, or maybe trying to uphold a boundary for yourself?  Some of us may have even expressed this kind of thing to other people too, or even to ourselves!  In this episode, Elizabeth Mintun explores the “dark side” of gratitude. In particular...

Did you know that when you are kind to someone else, your own brain’s pleasure and reward center activates, as though you were the recipient of the good deed – not just the one offering kindness? This is referred to as the “helper’s high”.  In this episode, Elizabeth Mintun explores the many physical and mental health benefits of practicing random acts of kindness. The research is astounding!...

Have you ever had an experience that completely transformed your life and offered you tremendous freedom? In this week’s podcast episode, Elizabeth Mintun interviews Kelli Trinoskey, an award-winning writer and content creator, lives in Columbus, Ohio, where she practices storytelling as the associate director of marketing and communications at The Ohio State University College of Medicine. Kelli’...

What if you could transform your life – and even change your brain structure, by practicing something as free and simple as gratitude?  In this episode, Elizabeth Mintun explores the many physical and mental health benefits of having a regular gratitude practice. She also explains some of the important ingredients in a gratitude practice to increase those juicy medicinal benefits of vitality,...

Have you ever heard of medical astrology? I hadn’t until this interview with functional medicine practitioner, astrologer, UN Peace Ambassador, and best-selling author Mariett Ramm.  On this week’s podcast episode, Mariett talks about the importance of unmasking; that health issues often have an emotional/spiritual underpinning which, if uncovered, can lead to a deeper healing process. ...

Pause for a moment and consider: what are the little or big aspects of your life that nourish your hopefulness? In this week’s short episode, Elizabeth Mintun offers a reminder of the simple ways that we can return to hope and, ultimately, experience greater ease and inner peace.  Key Takeaways:  Identifying the “crumb path” of elements of life that nourish our hope can help us return to...

Every single one of us has had an experience of either losing someone or something we love or knowing someone else who has, right?  Even though this is a painful truth about the experience of living, oftentimes we do not have the tools or the support we need to navigate through grief in healing ways.  On this week’s podcast episode, Lisa Heacock, an international best-selling author, ins...

Do you or someone you know seem to be successful in a variety of ways, and yet chronically stressed? In this episode, Elizabeth Mintun reflects on the qualities she’s noticed to be present in people with high-functioning anxiety, as well as how they often appear to outsiders. It’s amazing how people who can appear so organized, calm and collected, and high performing can internally feel so overwhe...

Are you one of the many people who struggle from a creative block at times?  In this episode, Elizabeth Mintun interviews Gregory Halpen, who has 30+ years’ experience as a creative practice coach, solo theater artist, stage & TV actor, and singer. Gregory teaches creatives how to cultivate a creative practice for staying on their creative journey. In this interview, Gregory talks about h...

Do you ever struggle with people-pleasing? In this episode, Elizabeth Mintun explores her experience with people-pleasing and the freedom that comes when we respect our own boundaries and those of others. Elizabeth also dives into the importance of connecting with ourselves as a way to be more fully present and aware of the the boundaries that we need to honor. Key Takeaways: Your boundaries are n...

What does it mean to grow our “boundary muscles”?  In this episode, Kelli Younglove, a Self-Awareness and Mindset Coach, dives into exploring boundaries on several levels, and offers actionable advice on how to notice and honor our boundaries. Kelli Younglove is a Self-Awareness and Mindset Coach who teaches her clients a kinder, gentler way to work with their stress and anxiety so they can s...

Have you ever felt that your life choices just don’t quite align with who you feel you are inside?  In this episode, Elizabeth Mintun speaks with Dr. Elizabeth Ssemanda, a holistic psychiatrist, medical intuitive, and life coach. In this conversation, Dr. Ssemanda talks about the importance of reconnecting with ourselves in order to live more authentically aligned lives and make choices that...

How are you living your life that brings about fulfillment for yourself and others? Dawn Glasco reflects on this important question in her interview on The Calming Ground podcast.   In this episode, Elizabeth Mintun speaks with Dawn Glasco, a community engagement strategist, speaker, author, and consultant. Dawn reflects on creating and maintaining boundaries as a way of choosing what we...

Did you know that rest can take many forms? Often when we think about resting we think about sleeping or being otherwise inactive. But, rest can actually come in many different forms! In this episode, Elizabeth Mintun explores seven different pathways to rest and replenishment and examples within these to help us regain our balance and feel renewed. Key Takeaways: It can be helpful to notice which...