The Work of Being Human

This week, we dive into the process of transformation from pain to pleasurable outcome. What fills the middle? The process, yet this is the part of growth so many of us struggle with. The pain can be easy to identify. We want out of it. The outcome, when it comes, is sweet. But the process is where we meet ourselves: our strengths, our weaknesses, our desire, our perseverance, and everything inside us that wants to quit. If we can learn to trust the process and see it through, we have the power to direct our energy toward the outcomes we really want.

Liz Sanfilippo joins us this week for a deep dive into holistic nutrition. She's a nutritional therapy practitioner (NTP), a holistic nutritional therapy master, a certified gluten-free practitioner, a member of the National Association of Nutrition Professionals. And did I mention she's also certified to teach yoga? Yeah. Liz is a healer. Listen this week for life-changing information, not just on how to nourish your body, but how to nourish and invigorate your relationship with your body. Liz walks us through how and why we can start listening to our bodies and get all the other noise out of the way. For more information, visit her website at: www.lizsanfilippo.com. Liz also teaches about gut health in a group setting. For more information, click here: www.lizsanfilippo.com/guthealthy. Follow her on Instagram at @lizsanfilippo.ntp.

The first mirror is dated to around 4000 BC, and today our society is flooded with "selfies," images of the self. For thousands of years, humans have been obsessed with their own image. Our greatest artists - poets and painters - gave us works of art that centered around their faces, perspectives, desires, and flaws. We all seem to be looking at ourselves and then sharing what we see. So how do we form a relationship with ourselves that healthy? If the relationship with the self is foundational and constant, how do we nurture it? This week we look at self-knowledge, self-care, and self-compassion.

Setting goals and pursuing growth is healthy and normal. We all need to be aware of our growth areas, and making a plan to address them and grow is part of being a dynamic human being. In this week's episode, I address two paths we can take: the Harsh Path and the Gentle Path. They may both direct us to the same goal, but the process and the experience are going to be a lot different. As we settle into a new year, let's step back and take a book at the "how" of growth, not just the "what." This week, I make the case that we all take the Gentle Path.

The source of our relational pain is not disagreement; it's disconnection. This week we dive into the dynamics of connection. We'll learn to improve how we communicate so that when we do, we are getting the connection we seek. We explore different ways we can communicate with greater efficiency and effectiveness. We are all trying to get connected and stay connected, but we need to know how. Share this with someone you feel connected to, or someone with whom you want to connect.

Happy New Year! This week we tackle how to bring what we want into our lives. How can we expand our minds and hearts to allow in that which will bring us further down the road of mental and emotional growth? Whether it's more beauty, more truth, more courage, more peace, more love, or more friendship, we have the power to expand our lives to allow it in. We need to know what we want, and we need to own our power. We can bring in what we want and we can leave what we don't want out. It's all about being intentional and skillful at living. Let's Bring It In - whatever it is we want for ourselves.

This week, we explore our own energy and how we interact with others' energy. We need to learn if our relationships are a drain or a source of replenishment and renewal. This means we need to feel our feelings and come out of denial. Once we're committed to living in reality and not denying our feelings, we'll know which relationships are sucking the life out of us and which bring us back to life. We'll know where our boundaries need to be. Share this episode with someone who lifts you up!

We hear a lot of talk about doing "the work," but what does that really mean? This week, we explore what it means to do our work inwardly and outwardly in our every day lives. Inner work requires patience, time, and self-examination. Outer work is the result of our inner work.

It's that time of year again - time to start reflecting on 2021, take some inventory, and noticing where we are in our lives and in our growth process. As the old saying goes, "If you shoot for nothing, you hit it every time." Taking an inventory gives us an opportunity to stop and check in with ourselves. What were our goals for this year? What was our desired path of growth? What did we accomplish? What derailed us? What do we want to be able to say about ourselves at this time next year: "I've grown in this area"? This week's podcast takes a close look at nine essential categories of living and offers a round of questions to help us hone in on our growth process.

This week, we explore the pros and cons of doing our work. What will it cost me to pursue mental and emotional health? What are the benefits? Does one outweigh the other? We answer four questions: should I go to therapy, do I have to process trauma/revisit my childhood, do I have to feel my feelings, and do I have to take responsibility for myself. Sometimes, we need information about why we are doing what we're doing. The "why" gives us motivation. This week's episode is a great one to share with anyone who might be sitting on the fence about going to therapy. It's a good one to share with someone who avoids their work but maybe doesn't know it. Maybe we just need to get some information, think through it, then make the choice.