Your Great Journey

A simple technique to stop over-thinking Many of us over-think the problems in our lives. Maybe you over-think your relationships or eating habits. Perhaps you worry compulsively. If so, you’ve probably wondered how to stop over-thinking. You may even have started to over-think over-thinking! When it comes to food and our eating patterns, over-thinking can be especially destructive. If you’ve ever...

What can we learn from destructive habits? What do you consider to be your most destructive habits? Did you know that many habits you might feel are destructive and self-sabotaging, are actually just misunderstandings? According to psychologist Amy Johnson, “What often looks like self-sabotage is a misguided attempt at self-love. It’s you doing the best you can in the moment to feel better, driven...

Learning How to Practice Mindfulness Mindfulness is a “superpower” that has been proven to help reduce anxiety, depression and stress while strengthening emotional stamina. In this episode, mental health therapist Sheri Van Dijk introduces the basic techniques regarding how to practice mindfulness. The beauty of mindfulness is its accessibility—you can practice anywhere and anytime. In...

Portals to Personal Growth and Transformation Can you think of turning points in your life? Times when you can honestly say, “I was never the same after that.” Most us go through life trying to avoid pain, but it inevitably finds us. As a result, when we experience the crisis of heartbreak, illness or misfortune, often our impulse is to despair and sink into ourselves. However, there a...

Kindness and Generosity: Simple Mindfulness Practices Being kind to yourself and opening your heart to others are two important aspects of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), a clinically proven program developed by Jon Kabat-Zinn. Simple mindfulness practices can enhance the experience of connection we feel with ourselves and with others. Today we’re sharing an excerpt from an audiobook fu...

Seeds for the Soul: The Wisdom of Chuck Hillig There are times when it can be painful to allow ourselves to truly feel our feelings. Maybe we stifle tears or laughter when we think they aren’t appropriate. Maybe we don’t communicate our true feelings to those we love. Perhaps we refuse to feel feelings by repressing them. According to psychologist Chuck Hillig, the author of Seeds for the So...

Why do we have a fear of the unknown? What is it about ambiguity that sends us into spirals of anxiety, depression or panic? How do we overcome the unexpected, and the unplanned? If you wake up tomorrow morning and your life is fundamentally different than it is today, how would you fare? Or perhaps that has already happened to you, and now you’re wondering how to deal with your fear of the unknow...

We’re all imperfect. What would life be like if we practiced more self-kindness—instead of fear and hate—toward our imperfections? While stress is an unavoidable part of life, practicing self-compassion is an effective way to reduce reduce stress. Although we often consider it normal, stress can actually lead to anxiety, depression, and even chronic pain. Today we’re sharing an excerpt from...

How do you find happiness? First, by realizing that finding happiness isn’t complex because happiness is always available. The moment you see the truth of this, you can be happy right away. You don’t need to do anything else. The question is—are you available to happiness? Today we’re sharing an excerpt from the audiobook The Buddha’s Way of Happiness: Healing Sorrow, Transforming Nega...

Think of your worst habit. How many times have you tried to break free of it? Why is it that for all our good intentions and heroic willpower we’re often unsuccessful, and end up right back where we started? How can we overcome bad habits for good? Today’s episode presents a conversation with life coach and social psychologist, Dr. Amy Johnson. Dr. Johnson is the author of the audiobook The...

Fear of public speaking has its roots in the fear of being scrutinized by others. Sweaty palms, racing hearts and upset stomachs are the mind’s way of urging us to run and hide. We humans are deeply wired with an understanding that scrutiny might result in being ostracized by others. Social acceptance is very important to us, since we aren’t equipped to survive alone. In this week’s episode, we&#8...

Worry likes to trick you into thinking there’s danger where there is none, and then urges you to fight, fly, or freeze. In today’s episode, we’re giving worry a taste of its own medicine with an excerpt from the audio book The Worry Trick: How Your Brain Tricks You into Expecting the Worst and What You Can Do About It , written by psychologist and anxiety expert, David A. Carbonell. The Worr...

How often do you grab a meal and eat it in the car, or eat while standing over the sink, thinking about the thousand other things you need to do? When was the last time you truly savored a meal? Today we’re sharing an excerpt from psychologist Susan Albers’ audiobook Eating Mindfully: How to End Mindless Eating and Enjoy a Balanced Relationship with Food . Eating Mindfully is the breakthrough audi...

Do you want to experience freedom from anxiety? Are you curious about the science behind anxiety, panic, and worry? Would you like to experience freedom from anxiety? If so, you’ll appreciate today’s episode which focuses on cognitive restructuring. We’re offering an excerpt from Dr. Catherine Pittman and Elizabeth Karle’s audiobook Rewire Your Anxious Brain: How to Use the Neuroscience of F...

Wallflower. Quiet. Solitary. Thoughtful. If any of these words describe you, you might be an introvert. In a world that favors the outgoing, gregarious extrovert, being an introvert can be difficult. But the truth is that introverts have distinct advantages—as long as they know how to use them. Today we’re sharing an excerpt from psychologist Arnie Kozac’s audiobook The Awakened Introvert: Practic...

Do you turn to the pantry when you’re feeling upset? If you eat to help manage your emotions, you probably already know that it doesn’t work that well. Once you’re done eating, you might even feel worse. In today’s episode, we’re sharing an excerpt from clinical psychologist Jennifer Taitz’s audiobook End Emotional Eating: Using Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills to Cope with Difficult Emotions a...

Think of the most chaotic moments in your life. What if you could maintain a clear head and a balanced outlook in the midst of stress? Are you good at grasping, but not so skilled at letting go? Today we’re sharing an excerpt from psychotherapist Susan Thoele’s audiobook The Mindful Woman: Gentle Practices for Restoring Calm, Finding Balance, and Opening Your Heart . In The Mindful Woman , Dr. Tho...

Don’t Let Your Anxiety Run Your Life! What would your life would be like if you were less anxious? In this episode we’re sharing an excerpt from the audiobook Don’t Let Your Anxiety Run Your Life: Using the Science of Emotion Regulation and Mindfulness to Overcome Fear and Worry , written by psychologist and anxiety expert, Dr. David Klemanski, and Joshua Curtiss. Don’t Let Your Anxiet...

Today we’re sharing an excerpt from the audiobook How to Be Miserable: 40 Strategies You Already Use , written by psychologist Randy Paterson. How to Be Miserable outlines 40 specific behaviors and habits, which—if followed to the letter—are sure to lead to a lifetime chock-full of unhappiness. On the other hand, if you do the opposite, you may yet join the ranks of happy people everywhere! This t...

Worry is a thorn in our side—a rude audience member at the performance of our lives. Worry likes to trick you into thinking there’s danger where there is none, and then urges you to fight, fly, or freeze. In today’s episode, we’re giving worries a taste of its their own medicine with an excerpt from the audiobook The Worry Trick: How Your Brain Tricks You into Expecting the Worst and What Yo...

Do you want a new story for your life? Most of us want to shift the stories in our lives. But the question remains: How? Today we’re hearing from tennis master, corporate coach, and author of Live the Best Story of Your Life: A World Champion’s Guide to Lasting Change , Bob Litwin. After the tragic loss of his wife and several invasive surgeries, Bob was feeling stuck and depressed. Ne...

Today we’re sharing an excerpt from the audiobook The Little Book of Big Change , written by psychologist Amy Johnson. No matter what your bad habit is, you have the power to change it. Drawing on a powerful combination of neuroscience and spirituality, this book will show you that you are not your habits. Rather, your habits and addictions are the result of simple brain wiring that can be e...

“We get caught in perfectionistic and absolutist approaches. We impose rules on ourselves, such as “I will exercise every day.” But once we violate the rule, we feel helpless. We become like the animal on the electrified grid. Seeing no way to change, we give up altogether.” —from The Buddha’s Way of Happiness Have you noticed that the excitement you feel after achieving a goal tends t...

Today’s episode is an excerpt from the audiobook Calming the Emotional Storm: Using Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills to Manage Your Emotions and Balance Your Life , written by Sheri Van Dijk. Calming the Emotional Storm is a guide to coping with difficult emotions calmly and responsibly by using powerful skills from dialectical behavior therapy, as well as cognitive behavioral techniques...