UPLIFT Teen Yoga Podcast: Recent Episodes
UPLIFT Teens
It is HARD being a teen today. WE GET IT. And here at UPLIFT, we get to talk about it all and ask the big questions. In a world full of comparison, how do I radically love myself? How do I deal with anxiety and depression? How do I love my body? How do I develop my intuition and spirituality? How do I just be ME and let go of who I’m supposed to be? And how the heck does meditation and manifesting work?! We have answers. Welcome home to the UPLIFT Teen Yoga podcast where we are in this thing called life together. You are a spiritual being having a human experience. You are perfectly imperfect. You are not alone. And we are here to “grow through what we go through” week after week as we put our Inner BFF in the driver seat to run the show. Inner Mean Girl, you’re fired! Join us as we dive into inspirational stories shared by teens and experts in mental health, yoga, spirituality, and more. Let’s move together from dark to light as we honor our lives and experiences and get raw and honest about the pressures facing teens today. Our intention is that each episode awakens your heart as you remember who you truly are, what you are capable of, and how you can turn chaos into beauty, darkness into light, disconnection into unity. We all exist to light up the world in our own unique way. May we activate the light within us and remember we are made of magic.
Get ready to tap into your inner child and unleash your creativity in this fun and freeing meditation. Let's take a break from our busy lives and allow ourselves to simply play and explore joy. Here is how it works…
Step 1: Meditate! Allow your inner child to lead the way!
Step 2: Creative journal. Sit down with your favorite markers and creative journal! Gaby's meditation will awaken your imagination and guide you through what to draw in your journal.
Step 3: Have fun! Go experience in real time what you felt guided to create in your meditation!
RESOURCES:
- Starting Your Mental Health Journey | Podcast
- 5 Self-Love Tips | YouTube
- Self-Love Tool Kit
UPLIFT COMMUNITY:
- Free Wellness Tools | UPLIFT Website
- UPLIFT Series | Sign Up
- Instagram | UPLIFT Teen Yoga
When worry starts to come up, this meditation encourages you to lean into trust and imagine the best possible outcome, creating a new possibility where everyone wins. Come back to this meditation when fear tries to take over and you want to combat it by cultivating a positive and trusting mindset, and to shift your focus towards a more optimistic and peaceful way of being.
RESOURCES:
- Call On Your Inner BFF | Meditation
- Setting Goals, The Fun Way! | YouTube
- Meet Your Inner BFF | Journal
UPLIFT COMMUNITY:
- Free Wellness Tools | UPLIFT Website
- Summer 4-Week Series | Sign Up
- Instagram | UPLIFT Teen Yoga
What if you started to get to know the purest version of yourself? And then, you chose to share it with the world… You might find this to be one of the most rewarding and bravest journeys you embark on, and you would be so right! For this episode, allow UPLIFT Certified Teen Teachers Adrianna, and Maggie be your guide to a deeper sense of truth and authenticity. Let them remind you that you are worthy of feeling connected to your truest self. You are allowed to get to know yourself more. And it’s okay to love who you are!
ADRIANNA & MAGGIE ALSO TALK ABOUT:
- Inner child connections.
- The joy of imagination.
- The authenticity of childhood.
- Identifying as LGBQT+.
- When the feeling of embarrassment starts creeping in.
- Stuffing down emotions.
- Searching for praise from others.
- Trying to fit in.
- What we do when we are out of alignment.
- Hearing the inner voice of authenticity grow louder.
- Tuning into yourself for answers.
RESOURCES:
- The Class
- Braving the Wilderness by Brene Brown
- Call On Your Inner BFF Meditation
- Meet Your Inner BFF Journal
- LGBTQ+ support OC
UPLIFT COMMUNITY:
- Free Wellness Tools | UPLIFT Website
- 8 Week Series Online | Sign Up
- Instagram | UPLIFT Teen Yoga
Ready to love all parts of you and discover more confidence? This meditation is here to guide you as you step into your authentic self and is suuuuper helpful before a test, presentation or any social situation. Reduce anxiety and repeat as needed as you get to know your truest most powerful self.
RESOURCES:
- Loving Your Body | Podcast
- Setting Goals, The Fun Way! | YouTube
- Self-Love Tool Kit
UPLIFT COMMUNITY:
- Free Wellness Tools | UPLIFT Website
- 3 Week Mini Winter Series | Sign Up
- Instagram | UPLIFT Teen Yoga
Why is it that we go on social media when we know it doesn’t make us feel good? In this episode, we talk about exactly that and REALLY GO THERE. Tune in as UPLIFT Teens, Alex and Jillian, dive deep into their love-hate relationships with social media. Let’s get honest about screen time, how validating it is to get likes, and what it’s like to grow up with social media. As Alex says, talking about social media addiction gets rid of its shame.
ALEX & JILLIAN ALSO TALK ABOUT:
- The “spell” of social media.
- Being on both sides of the comparison game.
- Their own evolution with social media usage.
- Moderation and balance.
- Posting honestly and authentically.
- How they lowered their screen times.
- Social media withdrawals.
- Caption pressure!
- Hitting that “unfollow” button.
- Our need as humans for real connection.
- Get ready for it…the good aspects of social media too.
RESOURCES:
- 5 Self-Love Tips | YouTube
- Starting Your Mental Health Journey & Owning Your Wellness | Part 1
- The Social Dilemma (2020)
UPLIFT COMMUNITY:
- Free Wellness Tools | UPLIFT Website
- 8 Week Series Online | Sign Up
- Instagram | UPLIFT Teen Yoga
What has your body been waiting to hear from you? How do you show gratitude and grow the relationship with your one, precious body? In this guided meditation, you are invited to be with your body while you create a calming state of peace within. Prepare to feel held… by your special self!
RESOURCES:
- Loving Your Body | Podcast
- 5 Self-Love Tips | YouTube
- Self-Love Tool Kit
UPLIFT COMMUNITY:
- Free Wellness Tools | UPLIFT Website
- 8 Week Series Online | Sign Up
- Instagram | UPLIFT Teen Yoga
Lindsey has a point! We still live in a world that cares so much about what we look like. Join UPLIFT Teen Ambassador, Kelaia & UPLIFT Mentor, Lindsey, as they illuminate their journeys toward self-love and empower us to love our beautiful bodies. In this episode, Kelaia and Lindsey get real about their experiences with diet culture, social media, and comparison. Through their stories, Kelaia and Lindsey show us the way toward a world that is supportive of all bodies.
KELAIA & LINDSEY ALSO TALK ABOUT:
- Detaching their self-worth from their weight.
- Letting go of societal pressures.
- How their relationships with their bodies have evolved through self-love.
- Healing their inner child.
- Ditching the scales!
- The traps of dieting and how they started listening to their bodies.
- “Breaking up” with social media.
- Turning to journaling instead of social media.
- Going inward for approval and radical acceptance.
RESOURCES.
- Body Love Guided Meditation
- Self-Love Tool Kit
- 5 Self-Love Tips on YouTube
What is an Inner BFF and how can they help you find peace, self-love and inspiration? Join Kate, a certified UPLIFT Teen Teacher, for a meditation to awaken your Inner BFF. Your Inner BFF is always here and always knows what to say. Through this short guided journey, you will meet your Inner BFF, strengthen your relationship and tap into inner wisdom and knowing. Return to this meditation whenever fear or doubt has a grip on you, our Inner BFF welcomes us back into love and possibility again & again.
“I actually learned recently in psychology that there is so much benefit from sharing wisdom because you learn a lot from it yourself and that helps you learn and grow.” - Megan Buncher
It’s true. Sharing our stories helps us in so many ways. Join Megan and Alex as they dive into Part 2 of the episode. Here they share more about their life stories and how they began their mental health journeys. Alex talks about her experience growing up as a gymnast, where being tough was a way of life and led to her becoming “CEO of ignoring my emotions.” Megan shares about her childhood in dancing and acting, where she learned that there was “never a good enough version of me.” Both Alex and Megan inspire each other and the audience as they bravely go into the nooks and crannies that are often left untouched and unfortunately, not discussed. You can hear their voices become light and free as they tell their mental health stories and become liberated from them. They also share their mental health toolboxes and what has really worked for them. You are bound to pick up some helpful tidbits from this episode and feel inspired along the way.
MEGAN & ALEX ALSO TALK ABOUT:
- Feeling your feelings.
- Alex’s chronic pain and the inextricable link between mind and body.
- Radical acceptance and learning to love themselves, rather than trying to “FIX” themselves.
- The importance of honoring your inner child, and how to do it.
- Imposter syndrome in sharing our mental health stories.
- Listening to their bodies and intuition, and doing what feels right to them.
- EMOTIONAL TOOLKITS
- Taking care of emotions rather than controlling them.
- JOY + HAPPINESS + GRATITUDE
- Constantly changing and evolving.
- How being perfectly imperfect feels. so. good.
- Self-Care and Authenticity
RESOURCES.
- Free Wellness Tools on the UPLIFT Website
- Megan’s Pinterest Board
- Untamed by Glennon Doyle
- OWN IT Meditation, led by Megan
- 40 Minute Yoga Practice
- Gabby Bernstein’s The Universe Has Your Back Card Deck
Welcome to the UPLIFT Teen Yoga Podcast. We are so excited to dive into REAL conversations with real teens and talk about the sh#&t that matters! Join us as we talk about mental health, body image, spirituality, relationships & more. We’re so glad you’re here with us. Let’s awaken our Inner BFF and grow through what we go through, together.
We are OBSESSED with OWN IT around here. This meditation has changed countless lives at UPLIFT, and we can’t wait for you to experience the magic too. The beauty of OWN IT is that you can do it anytime, anywhere. Whenever you need a reset during your day, OWN IT is there for you with all the things: self-compassion, mindfulness, visualization, gratitude & manifesting. Tap into YOU and see your life transform from the inside out.
“OWN IT is my remedy for anything and everything.” - Megan Buncher
OWN IT IS KNOWN TO HELP WITH:
- Concentration — before a test, game, homework, you name it!
- Social Anxiety — OWN IT before school or a social gathering.
- Resetting and refocusing your day — you don’t have to wait until tomorrow to have a fresh start.
- Gaining superpowers such as self-love, intuition, inner power & peace, and manifestation
- Inviting more gratitude into your daily life, which is scientifically proven to make life more enjoyable!
- Like Megan said, anything and everything!
RESOURCES.
- Free Wellness Tools on the UPLIFT Website
- Guided OWN IT on YouTube
- OWN IT Q+A on YouTube
Join UPLIFT Teens Megan and Alex as they share their mental health journeys and the tools that changed their lives.