Coaching Through Chaos Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

Leave your relationship dilemmas and questions for Dr. Colleen at LoveUnboxedPodcast.com 

Dr.Colleen introduces the Coaching Through Chaos audience to Love, Unboxed: the podcast for the hopeful romantic.  This show is for the person who hasn't given up on love.  In this episode, "Birds with Broken Wings Belong at the Vet, not in your bed!" Dr. Colleen unboxes the Broken Wing Syndrome.  What does it mean? Who loves the birds with broken wings? What they each need to heal and have healthier relationships and how to know if you are dating a birdie with a broken wing.  

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"Love, Unboxed: A Podcast for the Hopeful Romantic" is a new project by Dr. Colleen Mullen.  Dr. Colleen hopes this becomes collaborative with you. Each week, Dr. Colleen unboxes one topic on love & relationships so that you gain a deeper understanding of it and can manage it when it shows up in your life. 

Leave your relationship questions for Dr Colleen at LoveUnboxedPodcast.com. The first 5 people who leave a relationship question get a free copy of the journal Dr. Colleen designed: My Mindful Reflections: A Daily Journal for Better Mental Health.

This is Season 1, Episode 1- The subject up for unboxing is the Broken Wing Syndrome. This is sometimes called the Broken Brid Syndrome. Neither the Broken Wing or Broken Bird Syndromes are actual diagnostic terms, rather, they are very popular ways of discussing a particular relationship dynamic.  Dr. Colleen has coined those who have the Broken Wing Syndrome and fall in love with the Birdies with Broken Wings, the Wing Whisperers. 

If you don't know these terms, but you've been insecure in relationships, or seem to reflect on past relationships and feel like you stayed too long, or can see in the reflection that you couldn't get what you needed from your partner emotionally, I encourage you to listen to this. You may relate to what Dr. Colleen unboxes. 

This unboxing includes:

1. The love story of Jenny & Jack, who really enjoy each other, but ultimately can't be what each needs.
2. How the Broken Wing Syndrome is different than the Savior Complex.
3. What the Bird with the Broken Wing needs to heal their wing.
4. What the Wing Whisperer needs to heal in order to find a more balanced partnership.
5. The things Dr. Colleen wants the Wong Whisperer to know.
6. TellTale signs you are dating a Birdie with a Broken Wing.
7. What Jack & Jenny's relationship would have looked like if they got a post-therapy do-over.

What topics do you want Dr. Colleen to unbox??? 

Leave your relationship questions for Dr Colleen at LoveUnboxedPodcast.com. 

More Resources from Dr. Colleen 

• My Mindful Reflections: A Daily Journal for Better Mental Health (get it on Amazon) -  This is a journal designed by Dr. Colleen.  You can use it to track your emotions, highlight  special moments, learn from difficult ones , let go of daily steam through daily narrative pages , and even learn to give yourself permission to take a break.
• Do you want to hire Dr. Colleen to help you?  Please check out her therapy & consulting page at CoachingThroughChaos.com

Upcoming Workshops in 2024

Date Differently  - for the singlles who want to break free from past relationship obstacles. 

Love Them More  - for those in committed relationships who  want to  protect their relationship from future obstacles. 

SUPPORT THE SHOW! 

1. AMAZON.COM Use code LoveUnboxed-20 at checkout when you make your regular purchases on Amazon or visit Dr. Colleen's Amazon storefront.  You wont pay anything extra, but Dr. Colleen will make a small commission on what you purchase.
2. Patreon- FInd out the perks of joining the Hopeful Romantic community!

Disclaimer

This show exists only for educational and/or entertainment purposes.  Although Dr. Mullen is a licensed therapist, in the capacity of  her show hosting duties, she is not your therapist. This show is not meant as a replacement for therapy.  

Resources for Finding a Mental Health Professional in the U.S. 

1. Therapy Den
2. Psychology Today
3. Mental Health Matters
4. Therapy for Black Girls
5. Dial 211 to be connected to a Social Services Helpline in your area that can provide you with information on menatl health resources in your area.
6. The National Suicide Prevention Helpline.  or call 988    If you, or someone you love is thinking about suicide, they are there to help.

Dr. Colleen's online voicemail line is powered by SpeakPipe 

Episode Overview: In this heartfelt farewell episode, Dr. Colleen Mullen addresses her loyal Coaching Through Chaos listeners after a three-year hiatus. She reflects on her journey and introduces her exciting new podcast project, Love Unboxed, aimed at hopeful romantics.

Key Highlights:

• Acknowledgment of Absence: Dr. Mullen shares her reasons for stepping back from Coaching Through Chaos and acknowledges the life changes everyone has experienced in the past few years.
• Introducing Love Unboxed: Discover Dr. Mullen's new podcast, designed for those who believe in love despite challenges. She aims to provide hope and practical advice for better relationships.
• Weekly Topics and Listener Questions: Each episode will feature a new relationship topic, and listeners are encouraged to submit their dating dilemmas and topic suggestions for future episodes.
• Personal Journey: Dr. Mullen opens up about her own transformation in love and relationships, how she applied her therapeutic knowledge, and her desire to share these insights with you.

Call to Action:

• Visit loveunboxpodcast.com to leave voicemails with your questions and suggestions for topics.
• Subscribe to Love Unboxed, launching on October 1st, and continue your journey toward healthier, happier relationships.

Closing Thoughts: Dr. Mullen expresses her gratitude for the support received during Coaching Through Chaos and invites listeners to join her on this new adventure.

Thank you for being part of the Coaching Through Chaos community, and get ready to unbox the love you deserve on Love Unboxed!

We, of course, know that abuse of any child is wrong, but when boys are sexually abused, it is often not reported.  There are a lot of reasons for that. Ill be talking with Dr Kelli Palfy, who got interested in helping men who had been sexually abused as children when she was an investigator with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. We discuss some of the reasons it's not talked about it, how it affects men when they carry the secret and some great organizations where they can find help and healing. 

In this episode we discuss :

1. How Dr Palfy's careen in Law Enforcement and corrections spurred her interest into helping men who were sexually abused as children.
2. Relevant studies demonstrating how much  access perpetrators find to children.
3. Why the abuse sometimes isn't recognized as abuse to the victims.
4. How Secondary Trauma happens
5. Are there signs to look for to recognize if a child is being molested.
6. How attachment difficulties can arise when a survivor carries their trauma with them alone into adulthood.
7. The barriers that men face to seeking help for their trauma.
8. How parents can discuss healthy touch with their sons.
9. Organizations that can help.

Please check out Dr. Palfy's website Peaks and Valleys Psychology  

You can find her book on her website or on the Coaching Through Chaos Podcast Bookshelf on Amazon (#commissionsearned). 

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ANNOUNCEMENT!!!!

The Patreon Page launched Oct. 1!!! Im so excited to give you so much extra for your contribution to the show! 

Check out the 4 Reward Tiers at 

 Patreon,com/coachingthroughchaospodcast.   

The Best Value is the Chaos Crusher! Tier at $9.00/m.  For your contribution, you will get access to 3 self-help audio recordings per month.  There are some other fun rewards that include an hour long Chaos Crushing Q&A with me each month and even a 20-minute coaching call with me.  I am so grateful for your support along this journey with me! 

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If you are enjoying The Coaching Through Chaos Podcast, and you want to stay connected and want to chat about the episode, just follow us at Coaching Through Chaos on Facebook.

If you want to interact with Colleen more personally or stay up-to-date on her other podcasts and happenings, you can follow or friend her on:

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

Listen to Shrink@Shrink to learn about love and life through the movies every month.

You can buy the book: The 60-Day Plan for Embracing Your Inner Leader!   as well as the book of ALL the guests you've ever heard on the COaching THROUGH Chaos Podcast right on my Amazon Bookshelf! 

If you want to work with Colleen for personal 1:1 coaching to help you conquer the chaos in your life, just reach out through CoachingThroughChaos.com click on the Contact page.

Keep kickin' that chaos out of your life! 

Thanks for listening! 

Todd Tresidder was a hedge fund manager who wasn't satisfied making the rich richer, while those who didnt have financial know-how tended to stay in the dark about it.  Todd had set himself up financially for retirement at 35 and wanted to teach others how they too could find their way to financial independence and security.  That led to Todd creating the educational platform FinancialMentor.com 

Part of Financial Mentor's mission is to educate the masses in a place that is separate from the people actually selling you the products. This site is there, solely to educate people, and a lot of education on there is FREE!  I downloaded his post - How Anyone Can Retire in 10 Years - which led me to access to a page of about 4 other audio courses I can listen to for Free. I can't wait to dive into his content and start applying it to my retirement plan! 

In this episode, Todd and I discuss (among other things):

1. Is there a magic number someone needs to retire?
2. What are the 5 questions someone should ask themselves in order to plan for retirement?
3. How Todd shifted his career to educate others with what he knew.
4. What's wrong with the traditional model of retirement planning? 
5. Some "Uncommon Financial Planning" to help a person get to retirement more quickly and with less stress. 

Please check out Todd's website FinancialMentor.com - Let me know which article was most helpful to you! 

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ANNOUNCEMENT!!!!

Im launching a PATREON page with lots of extras for you!!!!   Look for it Oct 1, 2020!!!! 

If you would like to support the show while also learning a bit more about the psychology of life and relationships, please check out my Patreon site - you will be able to find me at  Patreon,com/coachingthroughchaos.  There are a few tiers of monthly support options.  My personal favorite is the $9.00 tier.  For that price, you will get access to 3 self-help audio recordings per month.  There are some other fun gets at less and more per month, but that's going to give you the best bang for your buck, and totally help me out! Thanks!!!! 

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If you are enjoying The Coaching Through Chaos Podcast, and you want to stay connected and want to chat about the episode, just follow us at Coaching Through Chaos on Facebook.

If you want to interact with Colleen more personally or stay up-to-date on her other podcasts and happenings, you can follow or friend her on:

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

Listen to Shrink@Shrink to learn about love and life through the movies every month.

You can buy the book: The 60-Day Plan for Embracing Your Inner Leader!   as well as the book of ALL the guests you've ever heard on the COaching THROUGH Chaos Podcast right on my Amazon Bookshelf! 

If you want to work with Colleen for personal 1:1 coaching to help you conquer the chaos in your life, just reach out through CoachingThroughChaos.com click on the Contact page.

Keep kickin' that chaos out of your life! 

Thanks for listening! 

Ever have a dream of owning a business, and then realized the dream kept getting bigger.  Well,  Micah Logan experienced that.  He became a personal trainer, then opened his own grym.  He wanted to create something that stood out from the everyday gyms we all know where you come in, work out and leave- most often without talking to anyone or even saying hello to anyone. Micah created Next Level Fitness and Wellness.  It's a community-based model for a gym (you'll want to hear how he talks about this) and I caught this interview with him right as he was starting the process of becoming a franchise business. There are currently 2 locations. 

In addition to working hard and creating his own dream business, his other passion in life is helping others get their dream business started. He likes to help those who struggle with what to do or belief that the idea could become something. He instills confidence and the know-how of what to do to help motivate his business coaching clients to succeed. 

Micah is energetic, passionate and humble. You can tell he cares deeply about what he is doing and the value he is bringing to the communities his business and those of his coaching clients bring. 

He was rasied by hard-working parents and followed their  model of beliving that if you work hard, it will payoff.  It certainly seems like he is mastering that! 

I hope you love this interview!

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You can listen to Micah on his Common Cents Podcast for business advice from 2 guys living it!

You can follow the journey of Next Level Fitness & Wellness at NLFHealth.com and check out what he has to offer as a business coach at Micah-Logan.com.

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If you are enjoying the Coaching Through Chaos Podcast, you can support me in 3 ways:

1.  Leave a review on Apple Podcasts or your favorite Podcast playing app. 
2. Share your favorite episode on your social media.
3. Use my Amazon shop link when you buy your next "anything" purchases on Amazon.  A small portion of your regular purchase price will go to help support the production of the show.  Thank you!  Amazon.com/shop/DrColleenMullen

AND Coming Oct 1,2020, the official Patreon launch of Coaching Through Chaos.  For your small monthly contribution, you'll receive different tiers of rewards including 3 self-help audio recordings per month (sometimes video too!), and 20-minute coaching sessions.  I cant wait to start giving you more to help you Conquer the Chaos in your life!  

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I always appreciate you joining me on this podcasting journey. As a thank you, I'd like to give you my Leadership Workbook for Women for free - you can download The 60-Day Plan for Embracing Your Inner Leader right here! 

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If you'd like to say "Hi" and follow me between episodes, You can FInd me on 

IG

Twitter 

Facebook

OK- that's it for now - until next time,  take care! 

Today we are going to talk about sex! Who doesn’t love talking about sex? Right?!? Well, the reality is that many people certainly enjoy sex, but actually talking about it is something that becomes awkward or uncomfortable for them. For today’s interview, we are going to add an extra layer to that level of awkwardness and talk about how to talk to you kids about sex.  Yes, its time to talk about how to have The Talk. 

My guest is Dr Lanae St John.  She is a board certified sexologist. Dr St John helps individuals and couples get comfortable with their own sexuality through coaching sessions, workshops and lots of free, informative , and even some fun exercises to try with your partner.  She also has a side of her work that focuses on how to help parents get comfortable talking about sex with their kids. Her book, Read Me, A Parental Primer for the Talk is a comprehensive guide to understanding so much about developing sexuality and also how to conduct quote unquote, the talk. 

In this interview, Dr. St John and I cover so much. Here’s the highlights

1. Why “the Talk” is a series of conversations over your child’s lifetime.
2. What is the right age to talk about touching?
3. What you miss out on if you leave your child’s sex education up to Google or other kids. 
4. Her very clear and helpful Five Building Blocks of The Talk – this is the topics to cover.They aren’t all covered at every age, but they are a guide to know how the conversation will grow over the years. 
5. The importance of explaining pleasure. 
6. The ever so important topic of why and how to talk to your kids when your notice their body changing and growing into puberty
7. Discussing and knowing the differences between healthy touch and unhealthy touch. There is definitely healthy, age-appropriate exploration, even though it seems stories of molestation run rampant.  I wanted Lanae to help us understand how we can even start to gauge that. 
8. How to talk about body image, self esteem, hygiene with grace and a preservation of your child’s self-esteem. There are times when you will be reassuring your child that what’s happening is normal, and there are definitely times in life when you may need to point out things about them (for instance poor hygiene or when the reach the time in life when they need deodorant), where care and tact will need to be employed. 
9. Our last topic is just how to actually start the conversation, this conversation that lasts throughout your child’s life.

For the non-parents who found this (and listened to the episode)- well, first, off, thanks! I don’t have kids either, I found this informative and I'm sharing this episode with my friends to help them with their kids. I hop you do too.. 

In case, you found this episode or post because you are looking to get more comfortable with talking about sex with your partner,  Dr. St John can certainly help you out there too. As I mentioned in the beginning of the episode, she definitely works with adults.  I’d encourage you to go to her website TheMamaSutra.net – I seriously spent about an hour on it the other night, downloading some free guides(see links below) and reading through blog posts and advice questions. A couple of the freebies available on her website are how to get a little bit more playful with your partner and also a guide to exploring your own genitals.  The guide to On one hand, it can help you, the adult get more familiar with your own body parts in case you need to tell a dr about something, but it can also help you, again in using the correct words when talking to your kids about their body parts.  We can never have too much information when it comes to good sex and taking care of our body.  I do hope you enjoyed this epsidisde and your subsequent journey on her website – and of course, Id encourage all parents to pick up her book – Read Me, A Parental Primer for the Talk. Of course, you can find Dr. St John’s book, along with all ther books of the guests of this podcast on my coaching through chaos bookshelf on amazon.There will be links to all the freebies and the book on the show notes for this episode. – just in case you want to circle back to pick up thos items later, you can always find it at coachingthroughchaospodcast.com

OK – coming up I have a conversation with a fellow podcaster.  Micah Logan  is the host of Common Cents Podcast  and is a small business owner in Massachusetts/  We are going to talk about how he is dealing with all the ins and outs of managing his business under the pandemic restrictions and closures.  He is also a black business owner and we are going to take a little journey into his experience – both before and after all the social justice uprising. I do hope you join me for that one!

I also have some other great guests. I'm proud to have my friend Tatiana on the show- she is the founder of RoadtoArtdom.org  talking about creating an art-focused non-profit – she’s also has a really fascinating career organizer of Comedy Gives Back, has been on panels at Comic-Con and is just so passionate about what she does. And she’s a friend of mine, so I'm so happy to share her with you

We also have more financial advice on how to plan for retirement and what to do when you are planning your estate, as well as a gym owning family – that’s right, all adults, all in business together, and they live all together – I can’t wait for you to hear what they have to say up at Absolute Flex Appeal in Rocklin, CA  about managing those relationships AND staying true to their family and business values. 

FREEBIES from Dr. St. John

Schedule a Play Date with Your Partner - Enjoy the Touch Lab 

The Genital Self-Exam

The BOOK

Read Me: A Parental Primer to The Talk

Support this Podcast 

1. Leave a Review

The easiest  way to support me and help the show stay in the rankings on your favorite podcast players is to leave it a 5-Star Review.  For iTunes, you can review the show right here .

2. Shop on Amazon

When you enter Amazon through my link, a very small portion of what you are already paying for your purchase (no extra charge) goes to help support the production costs of the show. Here's the link https://www.amazon.com/shop/drcolleenmullen ,

3.  Become a Patreon supporter

Each month, starting at just $3/m, you can help supplement the production costs of the show and also get a few perks ranging from a shout out, patreon only tips, free books, and a coaching call from me.  I so appreciate that anyone would care to support this venture in that way. Here is the link: Pareteon.com/coachingthroughchaospodcast

Everyone struggles at time with managing their finances.  In particularly now, as we get through this pandemic,  so many people are waiting with baited breath to find out what the near future holds for our economy.  Myself included. 

My guest this episode is my  friend and financial whiz, Rainier Trinidad.  Rainier is a Certified Financial Analyst.  He'll tell you that that is and why it should matter when you are seeking someone to mange your money. But in addition to that, we cover:

• Rainier's personal story of being a young immigrant from the Philippines with hard working parents.  
• How he connected while still in school with his love of economics. 
• What he did to protect his client's from any significant losses in the market crash of 2008. 
• How to know where to invest your money
• Advice for what you can do today if you are trying to get re-balanced financially
• How to handle stock market panic
• What to expect from a financial analyst or financial planner. 

Please check out Rainier at Parabolic Asset Management - he's got a current blog and lots of other information you can access, and share this episode with a friend you think might need some advice for financial stability in the future. 

As I mentioned in the episode, my newly repackaged book, The 60-Day Plan for Embracing Your Inner Leader can be downloaded for free at the bottom of my blog post at CoachingThroughChaos.com

Of course, you can follow me over at 

IG/Facebook/Twitter in @DrColleenMullen

LuAnn Nigara is the co-owner of Window Works in New Jersey for over 30 years now, but she is probably most known now on a larger scale for her expertise on building, growing and sustaining a business. She hosts The Well-Designed Business Podcast, is a well-known speaker at trade shows and leads workshops.  Her expertise lies in helping others, including established business owners, develop the fine skils necessary to have their business prepped to withstand the ebbs and flows over decades!  Her expertise is also now captured in the book, A Well-Designed Business. 

In this episode, LuAnn shares a decision made at 18 that put her on the trajectory to business success; why systems are so key to a successful business,  how she grew and shifted over the years, and why some businesses just can't succeed. 

PLEASE CHECK OUT LuAnnNigara.com 

to discover all the ways you can benefit from  LuAnn's expertise. 

If you are enjoying The Coaching Through Chaos Podcast, and you want to stay connected and want to chat about the episode, just follow us at Coaching Through Chaos on Facebook.

If you want to interact with Colleen more personally or stay up-to-date on her other podcasts and happenings, you can follow or friend her on:

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

Listen to Shrink@Shrink to learn about love and life through the movies every month.

If you are a woman, interested in building your personal leadership qualities, check out Dr. Colleen's book: Stop Bitching, Just Lead! The 60-Day Plan for Embracing Your Inner Leader

If you want to work with Colleen for personal 1:1 coaching to help you conquer the chaos in your life, just reach out through CoachingThroughChaos.com click on the Contact page.

Thanks for listening! 

A crisis doesn't happen everyday, but when it does, it brings on a lot of emotions. Fear, anxiety, desperation, thought paralysis.  Dealing with the unknown factors that a crisis delivers is a unique experience. Even though this episode is launching amidst the peak of the Coronavirus Pandemic, it contains information about a helpful tool to help you manage how you deal with any time of crisis in your life. 

Dr Reef Karim is an expert in human behavior.  He is a board certified psychiatrist and an authority on personal development.  Dr. Karim's experience has led him to work with people going through all sorts of crisis, both on individual and global scales.  He has worked with survivors of 9-11,  on-site at Katrina, and with many people going through the individual crisis of an addiction. He has seen a lot of crisis in his career, and subsequently has seen the pathway to healing. To help you with our current global crisis and to give you the tools to withstand future crises, Dr. Karim has created The Crisis Manual.  <<<You can download it for free right there! 

In this episode, which was edited from a Facebook Live that we did a few weeks ago (watch it here

Dr. Karim builds out the plan for coping through a crisis in The Crisis Manual. In this episode, we discuss Mindset, the roles of Creativity, Novelty, Reinvention, and Opportunity can help you not only SURVIVE, but truly THRIVE in a time of crisis - even if it doesn't make sense in the moment!  

There is so much that is unknown in our current state of affairs- Do yourself a favor and take a break from the chaos, download The Crisis Manual, find a quiet place to review it, and start thinking about how YOU can come out of this, or any personal crisis, with less distress, more focus, confidence and and a mindset for success! 

Make sure to download your FREE copy of The Crisis Manual here 

Please go follow  Dr Reef Karim at Instagram.com/ReefKarim or Facebook.com/DrReef or WORK WITH HIM at ReefKarim.com

*Let me know what's working for you - How are YOU staying sane through this traumatic event?  

You can reach out to me on the socials 

Facebook.com/CoachingThroughChaos

Instagram.com/drColleenMullen

Twitter.com/DrColleenMullen

For a little lighthearted psycho-babble, make sure to check out the Shrink2Shrink Podcast wherever you love to listen. Colleen and fellow therapist, Courtney Calkins talk about love and live through one movie a month. Come and have some fun with us! 

Ladies! If you want to empower yourself or get inspired by other stories of successful women, get Dr Colleen's book: Stop Bitching , Just Lead! The 60-Day Plan for Embracing Your Inner Leader

Until next time, I do hope you are Crushing the Chaos around you!  

Colleen

Anxiety, lonliness, anger, reactivity, sadness, loss, grief, confusion, fear - these are all emotions you may be feeling as you go through life under the pandemic restrictions.  This crisis has resulted in a collective trauma - we are all in this together and we are all affected by it in one way or another.  

In my practice over the last month, I saw a defined uptick in a resurgence of my client's trauma symptoms from earlier in their lives.  I decided to do a special episode to help those in need understand this current situation through the lens of it as a trauma. 

I called in colleague, Dr. Reef Karim. Dr. Karim is a well-known neuroscientist, mental health physician and personal development expert.  You may know Dr Reef from his many appearances on Cnn, Oprah and other media outlets.  He now has a special offering to help you emotional survive this crisis - you can find his guidebook at The Crisis Manual.  On the next CTC episode, we focus on all the details of why you will want to get a copy for yourself! 

In this episode, Reef and I discuss:

How trauma affects the brain and body

How false or exaggerated symptoms may present 

Key factors in building resilience

We also cover these coping strategies (Im leaving as-is in the show notes, so that you have this as a reference if you should need it:

1. STAY CONNECTED Social distancing is NOT Emotional Distancing – reach out to others. Family/friends.  If you were not well-connected socially before, this may feel ultra isolated– find an online group for something you enjoy or an actual support group. This is also the time to actually call and talk or skype or facetime someone.  If you’re feeling lonely, you can bet people you know are too.  They will appreciate the connection

2. GET FRESH AIR EVERYDAY The best thing about this is that it happened in the spring, so most every part of the country has pleasant temperatures.  Fresh air and Sunlight help us feel refreshed, energized and can help our mood.  Moving our bodies is important more now than ever because it’s easy to get out of bed, get on the couch and never leave until you go to be again. Your body needs to move and you need to breath fresh air.

3. CHALLENGE YOUR THOUGHTS For every time a person says- “This is hopeless”, there will be a story demonstrating a person who has overcome the illness. “I have nothing to do” – When’s the last time you called someone/organized your bathroom closet/planted a new flower pot? There are things to do. The point is that your brain will want to tell you things that keep you feeling discouraged/helpless/hopeless – there is always evidence to the contrary. 

4. Get CREATIVE Amazon and all the other major stores are still delivering- now’s the time to tap into that hobby you’ve been putting off.  Maybe youre not particularly artistic or musically inclined.  It’s a great time to build something, tackle a home project you’ve been putting off, get crafty…. Maybe learning something new is how you get creative. Take an online course, learn a new language. Write, blog, craft, ……

5. DISCONNECT FROM THE NEWS AND SOCIAL MEDIA  limit the time you watch…..turn the tv off….take 24 hours off the phone /news…..nothing is changing in 24 hours that you cant find out when you turn it back on

6. TALK ABOUT IT AND KNOW WHEN TO TAKE A BREAK FROM TALKING ABOUT IT – whichever you need! If you haven’t been talking about how you’re feeling in this and just keeping a fine face, but going stir-crazy inside – its ok to call a friend and let them know you just wat to talk it through.  On the contrary – if every communication you have with everyone is about the virus and you’ve been on overload with the news, plan a virtual social hour with a friend with a rule that there is no talking about the virus – You will inevitably talk about things that remind you of your normal life – what you’ve been watching on Netflix, the puzzle you’ve been working on, the funny thing your kid said the other day.  Most importantly, this reminds you that there are normal experiences that are still happening all around you.

HOW YOU CAN HELP OTHERS

1. CALL SOMEONE YOU SUSPECT MIGHT BE ISOLATED AND FEELING LONELY
2. OFFER TO PICK UP GROCERIES FOR ELDERLY OR AT RISK FRIENDS/NEIGHBORS
3. SUPPORT LOCAL BUSINESSES THAT HAVE BEEN TEMPORARLY SHUTDOWN. GIFT CERTIFICATES OR PRODUCTS. GYMS, SALONS, MASSAGE PROVIDERS. RESTAURANTS.
4. FIND OUT HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT LOCAL FOOD BANKS AND SHELTERS – DO THEY NEED CERTAIN SUPPLIES/TOILETRIES – WHAT’S IN YOUR BUDGET FOR HELPING THEM. (For those of us fortunate to be working or financially stable,we are ALL spending a lot less because we are not driving/going out to eat/getting hair done- there may be funds in your bank that can give you some room to support your community in ways you don’t normally have).

*IF YOU ARE STRUGGLING WITH SUBSTANCE ABUSE *

• People may be struggling with substance abuse and/or being a risk of relapse in this social isolation
• AA/NA groups are still being helpd online
• Rehabs are still admitting new clients
• Therapists are still accepting new clients

*There is help available to those in need. *

IF YOU HAVE A PRE-EXISTING MENTAL HEALTH CONDITIONS

• If you know that you have pre-existing depression/anxiety/panic/bipolar or any other mental health struggle – NOW is the time to keep up sessions with your providers.  The medical professionals have been given the ability to telehealth – which means you can have a phone call/skype/zoon/facetime session- however you prefer with your therapist or psychiatrist. It is the time to keep up with your medication/treatment and things that you normally do to cope. It is also the time to reach out for added support through online support groups as you need them.

*WHERE TO FIND HELP *

The Crisis Manual .com  - This is a FREE guide to managing your emotions through a crisis.  This was developed by today's guest, Dr. Reef Karim. You can hear about The Crisis Manual in full detail in the next  pandemic-focused episode coming up in just a few days.

PsychologyToday.comfor a mental health provider in your area 

211.org –social services referral line if you are in need of inpatient or crisis house services – FOOD BANKS/housing/etc

National Suicide Prevention Talk Line –1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255)*If you’re feeling suicidal and want someone to talk to when it is after hours for your mental health support providers. *

Please go follow my guest- Dr Reef Karim at Instagram.com/ReefKarim or Facebook.com/DrReef or WORK WITH HIM at ReefKarim.com

*Let me know what's working for you - How are YOU staying sane through this traumatic event?  

You can reach out to me on the socials 

Facebook.com/CoachingThroughChaos

Instagram.com/drColleenMullen

Twitter.com/DrColleenMullen

For a little light-hearted psycho-babble, make sure to check out the Shrink2Shrink Podcast wherever you love to listen. Colleen and fellow therapist, Courtney Calkins talk about love and live through one movie a month. Come and have some fun with us! 

Ladies! If you want to empower yourself or get inspired by other stories of successful women, get Dr Colleen's book: Stop Bitching , Just Lead! The 60-Day Plan for Embracing Your Inner Leader

Until next time, I do hope you are safe and are finding the assistance you may need during this time.