Love or fear? Which do you choose? As I was reflecting on what the topic could be for this podcast episode I became aware that we’ve talked a lot about fear. And, rightly so… I believe that at the heart of all anxiety, depression, self-hatred, feelings of unworthiness… if we go deep enough, if we peel back enough layers… we always find fear at their root. But I find myself being a bit concerned about focusing on fear so much… I liken my concern to the same reason I don’t believe all those...

Okay, fess up. We all do it. I’m talking about comparing ourselves to others. Yeah. You ever catch yourself doing that while you’re browsing Instagram or Facebook? When you overhear someone’s good news about a job promotion or a vacation that they are taking? How does comparing yourself to others make you feel? Generally not good, right? So in this episode we’re going to explore why we compare, how we compare and, most importantly, how to break free from this heartbreakingly futile...

What if you could be the hero of your life? What if I told you that there is formula to living a heroic life? What if there was a basic framework, a roadmap that anybody could follow in order to become the hero of their own life? Well, there is. In this episode I’ll walk you through the exact formula step by step… Key Points Re: Hero of your Life * The mythologist, Joseph Campbell, discovered a pattern in any story in which an ordinary person accomplishes something heroic – what he...

What’s the only problem you really have? What is the one illusion that most of us believe, that if we were to question it, to let go of it, would solve all of our so-called problems? Big set-up, I know. Have a listen to this podcast episode and decide for yourself if I “deliver’ on the answer 😉 Key Points Re: The Only Problem * Have you ever done, thought, or felt anything outside of the now? Is it possible for anything to happen or be outside of the now? * Nothing ever happened in...

How do you know if you have trouble dealing with expectations? Well… Ever have thoughts like “I have to be this, “I should be that,” “I must do this or that?” Or perhaps you perceive external pressure from others believing that they think you should, have to or must? Or maybe you say that of others… he or she should, has to or must… Yeah, we all have had these thoughts at points in our lives. These are expectations – expectations that we put on ourselves, we perceive that others place...

Is loneliness a choice? Now, I know the title of this podcast episode may be controversial. I mean no offence by it and I think you’ll understand that, along with what I mean by it once you’ve listened to the episode. So, as always, I just ask you to keep an open mind and notice if what I say resonates with you or not. If it does, wonderful, I encourage you to put it into practice in your own life. If not, that’s okay, too. Key Points Re: Loneliness is a Choice * Our false self – our...

What if your ego is contributing to your anxiety? Find out how to prevent your ego from holding you back… Our ego, when we let it, has a tendency to hold us back from living the life we truly want to live. If we’re not aware of how it traps us, we can easily fall under its illusion of reality. And when this happens there’s the risk of furthering uncomfortable feelings like anxiety. Key Points Re: Prevent Your Ego From Holding You Back * The problem with a fixed identity is that we have...

Are you having trouble finding focus amidst distraction? Is it just me or does it seem like we are becoming more and more bombarded by distractions? Email notifications, Twitter and Facebook messages, ringing phones, beeps from mobile devices. As I’m writing this I probably have a dozen tabs open in my internet browser. All these gadgets, all this information battling for our attention. Not to mention other possible distractions like noises in the environment, the chatter of co-workers,...

Have you had thoughts of suicide? I want to have an honest conversation about suicide. I know there’s many people who work in suicide prevention that say you have to be careful about this kind of thing. I get that. But I think sometimes we’re a little too careful… so careful that little ends up being said. People feel like they can’t talk about suicide… or can only do so behind closed doors. Unfortunately, I think suicide – even now in this day and age – is a taboo topic. We have to talk...

So there’s something that I’ve been reflecting on lately that I thought I would share… this aspect of life that sometimes the hardest thing to do is to live exactly where you are and as who you are. Have you ever felt that? It’s a funny thing… growing up no one teaches you how to do that – to just live. Each morning we wake up caught between the person we once were and the person we are becoming, between the life you once lived and the one you are creating. And you’re kind of left to...

Do you have a desire to learn how to meditate effortlessly? A question I often receive from clients and listeners of the podcast is, “How do I meditate?” I think we’re all pretty familiar with the benefits of meditation so I’m not going to use this time to go over that… the issue seems more about how to bring the act of meditation into our busy lives. Where do I even start? How do I even start? Some people even hold on to the belief that they “can’t meditate.” “I have ADHD. I can’t...

Do you set New Year’s resolutions? Do you know how to make resolutions so that they actually stick? I know some people laugh off the idea of setting resolutions and I don’t blame them… I think the statistic is that by the end of January something like 92% of resolutions have already failed. Doesn’t exactly conjure up hope, does it? If most people fail when it comes to sticking to their resolutions no wonder so many decide not to set any resolutions at all. Well, I want to share with you...

Do you experience loneliness over the holidays? It’s that season again. Even if you don’t celebrate Christmas it’s hard not be touched in some way by the festivities and sentiment of the season. I mean we’re inundated with it – Christmas music playing on the radio and in the department stores, Christmas lights hung on your neighbors’ homes, Santa Claus greeting kids at your local mall. And, it’s also a time when loneliness seems to become magnified. For some people, the weeks leading up to...

I often find myself incorporating Nelson Mandela’s story and how he approached life, his attitude, into the Calm Living Blueprint because I think it offers a wonderful example of taking committed action even in the face of fear, pain and discomfort. So that’s what I want to examine in this podcast episode – five lessons I’ve learned from Mr. Mandela’s example. Key Points Re: Mandela’s Example Lesson #1: The actions of confidence come first; the feelings of confidence come later. Lesson...

Is it ever too late? The other day one of my clients said, “Maybe it’s too late for me.” She felt defeated, like things had never gone right for her and she felt hopeless that things would ever go right for her. Now, this wasn’t a one-time thought. This particular person had this thought before. I’ve had other clients share similar hopeless thoughts and feelings before. I myself have had these thoughts before. Maybe you have, too. Maybe you’ve gotten to a place where you start questioning...

What do I mean by the seeds of calm lie in anxiety? Well… the idea for today’s podcast episode came to me as I was reflecting on how to better help people open up and make space for feelings of anxiety rather than continuing to struggle with them. That’s something we’ve talked about in previous episodes, however it’s also one of those things that can be easier said than done. So upon reflecting on my own experience I realized that the biggest shift for me in regards to being able to make...

Ever wonder how to stop ruminating? Have you ever gotten stuck thinking about a past trauma or negative event, a problem or really any kind of setback… over and over again… you just can’t stop thinking about it… like a hamster running in a hamster wheel in his cage your thoughts just seem to run around and around and around…? Yeah, that’s called rumination. And the results of a massive study just came out that show rumination – dwelling on the negative – may be the best predictor of...

Have you ever blushed? Of course you have. We all blush. There’s nothing wrong with blushing however blushing can become a concern when we feel anxious about blushing. We’re afraid of blushing or when we blush we get anxious about blushing and that just further adds to our overall anxiety. So this episode is devoted to blushing – specifically how to deal with blushing so that it no longer causes anxiety for you. Key Points Re: How to Stop Blushing * Blushing is a common symptom of...

So, how have you been sleeping? What changes have you made since the last episode to improve your sleep? In episode 19 we tackled the environmental and behavioural factors that can affect our sleep and what we can do to overcome them and improve upon them to optimize our sleep. In this episode we’re going to continue to cover the top tips and strategies to help you sleep like a baby, even if you experience anxiety… and we’re going to tackle more of the psychological factors that can affect...

Do you sleep like a baby? Or… Have you ever found yourself lying in bed, staring at the ceiling and wanting to scream out in frustration because you just can’t fall asleep? You peak at your alarm clock out of the corner of your eye and it reads 3 o’clock! 3 in the freaking morning… And you have to be up at 6! Now you get even more anxious about not falling asleep, thinking, “I have to fall asleep. I’ve got to get those three hours!” Yeah, I’ve been there, too. Insomnia can seem hard to...

Would you like to know more about superfoods to boost your mood? Last episode we talked about how our gut bacteria can affect our mood, including anxiety, depression and how we react to stress. So I thought it would be a good idea to carry over that theme into today’s episode and build upon the specific foods that can help calm anxiety and boost mood. We’re going to go even one step further than we have in previous episodes and discuss superfoods. What are superfoods and which ones have...

  Are gut bacteria causing anxiety in you? When you think about strategies to calm anxiety or treat depression maybe you think of psychotherapy, medication, hypnosis, affirmations … right, something along those lines. I’m betting that you would not automatically think about your gut. Well, our guts may very well hold the secret to improving your mood and mental health. That’s what this episode is about: what do your gut bacteria have to do with your anxiety or depression? I decided to...

Have you ever experienced an emotional crisis? Where you were flooded by a storm of difficult thoughts and feelings. What did you do? A crisis can present in many different forms, from the death of a loved one, to loss of a job, to collapse of a marriage, to financial disaster. When you’re hit by a crisis, an emotional storm is likely to whip through your mind and body, tossing painful feelings and thoughts in all directions. What you should do when you find yourself experiencing an...

In this episode what I’ve decided to do is answer a couple of questions from listeners. Question #1 from Jacqueline: ““I’m confused about what you call acceptance. Are you saying we should just live with the pain, to tolerate it? I don’t understand how that would be helpful.” Question #2 from Kevin: “How do I know if something is really, truly holding me back? I’m trying to figure out what things are stopping me from being more confident and some of the things I’m coming up with I don’t...