Social Harmony - Time to Talk

Today I'm joined by Veronica Welch, a single mum of 15 years and host of the podcast 'Stop Telling Me to Relax - For Single Moms Who Don't Have Time to Chill'. While there may be other podcasts out there who discuss parenthood, Veronica's episodes are unique in that they cover all aspects of being a single parent, including the messy moments that don't get as much coverage.

We begin with a look at our lives, in particular Veronica's upbringing in what she describes as "the Huxtable house" with a reference to her very normal, nuclear family existence which was akin to The Cosby Show, with two professional parents, a sister and a suburban life that seemed much like the typical American household.

Veronica talks about her inherent shyness, describing herself as very much an introvert who preferred reading over the thought of hanging out at the mall or dating. After graduating from high school and then moving to college, Veronica then talks of the struggles of missing home and 'putting herself out there' as she looked to make friends in a new environment. This took a further turn when her father passed suddenly, throwing her life into turmoil and dealing with emotional pain that her and her friends were unfamiliar with.

At just 24 years of age and fresh out of college Veronica began a relationship and quickly fell pregnant, moving in with a man who seemed more intent on continuing his hard-partying lifestyle than putting efforts into being a dependable partner and father. Following several issues between them, Veronica made the decision to call off the relationship and moved into a place of her own in preparation for the birth of her son.

While circumstances had changed to a point that Veronica had neither imagined or really chosen, she was determined to build a life for herself and be a solid mother to her son - this meant a great deal of sacrifice, lonely nights and having to grow up fast in order to meet their needs without the support of a partner. It is these moments that Veronica talks about in her podcast and that have spurred to on to greater success in her professional life as well as intrinsically.

Available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

https://open.spotify.com/show/4aAdbPrTjEEnwco5jII65U?si=b0fdeb92cdad49dd

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/social-harmony-time-to-talk/id1792776061

Check out Veronica's work below:

https://open.spotify.com/show/2JIRqNQREzQhzuFbkQPbrn?si=403804d7bb9e4c49

Instagram
stoptellingmetorelax (@stoptellingmerelax) | TikTok

Today I'm joined by Emilie Avon-Green - she's a psychotherapist, a mum and advocate for the promotion of 'Slow Motherhood'.

Emilie works with mum's who are suffering from burnout - with parenthood, with lack of supports, with mental or physical health problems and just getting through life while dealing with internal and external expectations of 'what a mum should be'.

In our current 'hustle culture', mums are feeling more pressured than ever to provide nurture and care for their child(ren), keep a clean home, go to work, be social, maintain good health/weight and the list goes on and on...

Emilie helps mums and families to see that motherhood is to be cherished rather than suffered through, encouraging women to look after themselves through focusing on the priorities rather than taking on too much, accepting that some days we're not at 100%, maintaining your own identity and so much more.

Using her own experiences of burnout, motherhood and life in general, Emilie discusses how she was affected by all of the expectations placed upon her, the physical, mental and emotional struggles that she went through and how she took vital steps to reclaim her life and step into motherhood with having freed herself from previous maladaptive patterns in order to be the best she can be - for herself, as well as her family.

Available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Check out Emilie's work on the links below:

Authentic Living Guidance
Therapy for Moms in Ontario and Quebec / Support for Burnout, Overwhelm and Overstimulation
Émilie Avon-Green | Therapy for Moms with Burnout, Registered Psychotherapist, Ottawa, ON, K4A | Psychology Today

Today I'm joined by Kam Knight - an author, event speaker and powerhouse behind the concept of Internal Resistance.

While all of us are familiar with procrastination, unfinished projects and 'running out of steam', Kam's research highlights other factors at play within the brain that actively work against achieving to our full potential and holding us back in many areas of life.

As we talk, I learn how Internal Resistance manifests in several different ways, such as hostility, perfectionism, avoidance and many more - however, while these scenarios are often passed off as a mental block of some description, there is a way to bypass this resistance and reach new levels of performance, confidence and self-awareness.

Kam works with the individual (or group) to understand basic principles of what it is that we want, how to take those steps towards attainment and the final leap to achieve it - often itself more difficult than anticipated, another symptom of internal resistance.

Available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts:

Check out Kam's work on the links below:

Internal Resistance
https://mindlily.com/cir

https://kamknight.com/

Today I'm joined by Jess Marie, licensed and certified coach and owner of Unapologetic Life Coaching and host of her podcast Unapologetically Overcoming.

Jess has faced her own struggles in life and after leaving a violent partnership, she began taking steps towards turning her pain into strength - becoming unapologetically herself after having spent years putting others first and neglecting her own needs.

In her work as a coach and podcaster, Jess provide a space for others to talk openly and honest about all the parts of themselves - particularly the parts we'd rather keep hidden - in a non-judgmental way with the aim of looking at them as part of an amazing person who has dealt with life and is still standing.

Speaking first about how she brought herself through difficult times and then into a place of acceptable and eventually radical self-care, Jess uses her experience in order to relate and connect on a fundamental level to bring about change that sticks by guiding you to the solutions that already reside within.

Available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Check out Jess's work on the links below:

Unapologetic Life Coaching LLC
https://open.spotify.com/show/4y0hzYvNRc8bNPS5luFMSJ?si=f8c7c57e82c44f83

Today I'm joined by Lori Simons and Stephanie Rickman - two women who didn't know one another and had never met until an extraordinary situation brought them together.

Lori had re-entered the dating pool following an earlier divorce and time raising her son. After setting up a profile on a dating app, she met a man who "checked all the boxes" and after being together for four years felt that they would see out their lives together until a fateful day when Lori found him with another woman and things changed dramatically.

Stephanie had been dating and was in a relationship for five years. By her own admission she had "never loved a man as much as I loved him" and her kids adored him - things had progressed to a stage where Stephanie believed that she had found her person. However...

After Lori caught her boyfriend out, she went on the group 'Are We Dating The Same Guy' and posted a photo - it was at this point that Stephanie and others made the same connection and reached out, each with their own stories that spoke of their own relationships with this man and things then started to fall into place.

In an age of dating app culture and social media overreach, this story highlights the heartbreak, opportunity for manipulation and terrifying consequences of how someone with the motivation to deceive in this manner can easily make contact with someone and infiltrate their lives. While I firmly believe that the majority of people are well-intentioned, Lori and Stephanie's story serves as both a reminder that devious people exist but also that the power of friendship can help us rebuild.

Available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

If you think you may be in a similar situation, click below:

Download Our App - Are We Dating The Same Guy?
Romance Scams — FBI