Category: Mental Health
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“I don’t have to go into places that make me uncomfortable. I don’t have to say ‘yes’ to people who make me uncomfortable.” – Phyllis
In this episode, I speak with Phyllis, a personal branding strategist, writer, and coach about her young adulthood, first marriage, as well as her parenting journey of raising and homeschooling a teenage daughter. She shares about some of the challenging experiences she lived through as a young woman struggling with her worth, as well as…
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Intrinsic motivation, social connection, and the courage to redefine “success”
In this episode, I speak with gastronomee—a twenty something storyteller and content creator—about her experience dropping out of Harvard, twice, and her early memories of growing up in an Asian immigrant family. We talk about the different perspectives of education and opportunities for women she received from her community in Canada and in Asia, and…
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Emotional intelligence, divergent thinking, and the self-acceptance needed to transform our anger
In this episode, I speak with Benoit—a US army veteran, former policymaker, and current psychotherapist—about his education journey across multiple countries, and having to adapt to each of its languages and cultures from scratch, every few years. We talk about the influence his mother had on his mental landscape, how he overcame being bullied in…
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Relationships, boundaries, and the insight to transform anger into social change
In this episode, I speak with Roxanne—a social worker, psychotherapist, and mom of two boys—about her earliest memories of attending schools in Jamaica, and loving science so much that she thought she’d become a biochemist before immigrating to Canada and ultimately pursuing a career in social work and psychotherapy. We talk about the injustices and…
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Communication, opportunities, and the freedom to connect with like-minded peers
In this episode, I speak with Yonny—a paralegal and immigration justice advocate—about his earliest memories of growing up in Mexico, and being raised by his grandparents for most of his childhood. He compares the education systems between Mexico and the United States, and how the differences informed the types of activities he chose to pursue.…
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Connection, project based learning, and an understanding of how our brains work
In this episode, I speak with Megan—a special education teacher and advocate for the disability community—about her memories of testing gifted at an early age, and her discovery of what giftedness means when she went through her special education credentialing program, over a decade later. We talk about the structural issues with our heavily standardized…
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Community, love, and time to prioritize rest
In this episode, I speak with Nikiea—a filmmaker, graphic designer, and motivational coach to authors—about her earliest memories of growing up in a home led by strong women who served their community. We talked about her being the oldest child, and the weight of responsibility that came with assuming those roles, and how the things…
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Intercultural awareness, belonging, and the safety to express our identities
In this episode, I chat with SJ—a former classroom teacher, LGBTQ+ Inclusion Expert, and DEIB trainer—about their experience being “the new kid.” We talk about how their experience of moving across states every few years impacted their social relationships, and how their biracial and transgender identities didn’t make it easier. We discuss what led them…
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Introspection, social connection, and the freedom to be authentic
In this episode, I speak with Paula—a writer, reader, and polyglot—about her memories of being stubborn and opinionated growing up, and how her introspective abilities fueled her curiosity and drive to pursue self-improvement as an adult. We talk about the obstacles that get in the way of showing up authentically as ourselves, the charm of…
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Self-awareness, empathy, and the autonomy to choose our own labels
In this episode, I speak with Alondra—a social worker, author, consultant, and mom—about her earliest memories of feeling different from her peers. We talk about her journey towards receiving an autism diagnosis, her expert opinions on what autism is and isn’t, as well as her thoughts on both the challenges, drawbacks and benefits of self-diagnosis.…