Shine Mama! - SoundSage

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Today I’m bringing you a story of positivity and gratitude that will leave you feeling really inspired. My guest is Rashmi Sanjay, Talk Show Host, Motivational Speaker and Thriver who says that Her positive attitude and approach to life define her.

Rashmi and her family’s life changed forever a few years ago when she received a devastating medical diagnosis. In this episode you’ll hear how she navigated this terrifying ordeal and how her outlook on life drastically changed as a result. Rashmi is also a fellow podcaster and hosts the show In Conversation with Rashmi, which she started in 2019 and has already interviewed over 175 guests across the globe.

We talk about so much in this episode:

Her show, how it started and the power of storytelling and connecting people within the community.
Her own riveting story about how her life changed in an instant with a shocking medical diagnosis
The differences between the Rashmi pre-diagnosis and the Rashmi post-diagnosis.
What and more importantly who she let go of as a result.
How she is able to be so positive and grateful despite the challenges she still deals with and the story of how one very special person really changed her outlook on life.

If you are feeling burdened and overwhelmed by the busyness of life, this is the episode for you. Your outlook on life will never be the same, and like me, you’ll feel lucky to have gained this wisdom without the accompanying life-changing event.

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Todays’ guest is Victoria Cornell, the author and voice behind Motherhood Life Balance, a blog and IG account that helps women turn their mindset into their superpower. Victoria is also a mom of 3, navigating this pandemic like the rest of us, so it was nice to sit down and chat mom-to-mom with someone I’ve followed online for a while yet never chatted in real life.

In this episode, Victoria talks about:

How she’s managing during the pandemic, and how she’s using mindset work to help cope.
Exactly what mindset work is, how she got into teaching it
Advice for those people who are just starting out in their self-development journey.
How her Beautiful Mind Journal came to be and why writing things down can be so powerful.
The biz side of things - how she became a content creator and her advice for people who are interested in creating their own blog or IG following.
Her parenting journey and finding balance through it all,

One of my favourite things about this podcast is meeting local moms who are doing interesting things, so it was so fun to chat with Victoria and hear about her business. I’ve been using her Beautiful Mind journal daily and I can attest to the power of rewiring your brain through mindset work and writing, so I hope this episode inspires you to start a mindset practice of your own.

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Welcome to this week’s episode of the podcast everyone. You may or may not know today’s guest by name but if you are a mother in the Waterloo Region, chances are their work will influence your children’s education. I’m talking to Teneile Warren an Intersectional Equity Educator and Consultant. Teneile is a Nonbinary, Queer Black-identifying immigrant settler to Turtle Island. They are the Equity and Inclusion Office for the WRDSB and is also co-founder of insideWaterloo, a founding member of ReallocateWR, and a steering committee member of the African, Caribbean and Black Network of Waterloo Region. Teneile is partner to Rebecca and parent to their son Kelso, & their furbabies (Goop, Oopy and Rae).

This episode is really powerful as we not only talk about how to cultivate safe and inclusive schools, something Teneile is very passionate about, but Teneile also emphasizes the importance of creating safe and inclusive spaces for ourselves as individuals, in order to feel supported in becoming the most aligned version of ourselves. A

Teneile and I talk about:

Their role with the school board, including what they want to achieve in their time there.
What parents can do to support the work their team is doing within the school board.
The impact of becoming a parent on day 3 (!) of the pandemic
Their gender identification journey - what it means to be non-binary, why they felt it was important to come out as their most authentic self, and how as parents we can support our children in doing just that.

Enjoy the episode!

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This week I have another double interview with lovely duo Jinny Song and Katrina Tioco of Gayuma Catering.

I was immediately drawn to the love and energy that Jinny and Kat exude on social media, and then I signed up to be part of their secret menu club, which you’ll learn more about in the episode, and have had the opportunity to enjoy their amazing and unique take out food.

Right from the beginning of our interview, I felt like I was chatting with old friends. Jinny and Kat are as down-to-earth and kind-hearted as they come and we had such a great conversation.

We talked about:

How the two of them met
How the business started
Where the name Gayuma came from (which is such a heartwarming story)
How they developed their unique business model
The impact the pandemic had on them personally and professionally…and how those difficult months helped them morph into the business they are today
How the power of community helped them succeed
The struggles and heartbreak Kat has dealt with during her motherhood journey, including being so far away from her son for many years
Jinny’s challenges of balancing motherhood and entrepreneurship

This episode is full of lots of laughs and the joy and love that Jinny and Kat bring to their food and their business shine through so brightly. I encourage you to sign up for their secret menu club so that you have the opportunity to taste exactly what this joy and love has created.

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This week's episode deals with a topic that is very near and dear to my heart and my brain, which is the intersection of sleep and mental health. More specifically, how a child’s sleep habits, particularly in the early days, have an impact on a mother’s mental health and her ability to cope. To help explore this topic, I’m talking to Kayla Ginsler, a Child Sleep Consultant with Goodnight Sleep Site, who also happens to have her Masters in Social Work. Kayla is passionate about empowering families to feel confident in helping their baby or child achieve better sleep, and is well-versed in how mental health issues can play a role in this process. In this episode, Kayla and I discuss: - The link between lack of sleep and mental health, and why a lot of moms enter motherhood thinking that their sleep isn’t important - The long term effects she sees when families are dealing with sleep issues - Why mental health issues can make it even more difficult for moms to hold boundaries around sleep - Why sleep training is such a hot button topic for moms - Why so many mothers feel guilty about sleep training and also what the latest research is actually saying about it I think this is such an important topic and we only scratched the surface. Whether you’re a new mom, or your children are older, I think you’ll find the discussion really interesting and if you are past the no sleep stage, I really hope you’ll forward this on to any new moms or pregnant friends so that they can get a head start on supporting their mental health during the early days of motherhood. Enjoy!

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Melissa Durrell is the President and Chief Communications Strategist of Durrell Communications, founder of Roseview Global Incubator former City Counsellor, a fierce community activist with involvement in everything from Women’s March Global, the Uptown BIA and Waterloo Park boards among others, a women’s rights advocate and a mom of 2. In fact, her resume is so impressive that I encourage you to check out her LinkedIn profile for a full bio. Melissa is taking this community by storm and I am so impressed with her passion for the Waterloo Region and her drive to make a change and we cover so much in this interview, including: * Why she decided to run for city council, despite having really young kids * The challenges of working as a politician, especially as a woman * Her new company Roseview Global Incubator and how it is helping to grow the tech sector in our community * What balance looks like for her and what she needs in order to shine her brightest * ...and of course her motherhood journey!

She also explains why she doesn’t think about Christmas until Christmas Eve (which blows my mind) and she even spills the beans about whether or not running for mayor is in her future,

This is an awesome conversation with a very inspiring woman. Melissa is full of energy and passion, yet very down to earth. She is very encouraging and supportive of women change-makers and I know you will walk away from this conversation feeling motivated to make a difference in this community.

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Crystalle and Chloe Kruis, are the mother-daughter team behind Ekko reuse - a Waterloo-region based organization focused on creating a more sustainable take-out experience. I think it’s fascinating to think about the possibility of starting a business with one of my kids one day, so I really wanted to pick Crystalle and Chloe's brains on how their relationship developed from mother-child into business partners. Both Crystalle and Chloe are just lovely and we had a great conversation. We talked about: - their relationship - what it was like when Chloe was little and what it’s like now - the one thing that made a big difference in maintaining a close relationship over the years - how Chloe's co-op term in entrepreneurship eventually led to starting Ekko and how Crystalle ended up being involved in the business. - the role that the pandemic has played in the starting and growth of their business - how Ekko works and why you really should consider using it if you care about the environment (Hint: Not as much of those takeout containers as you think get recycled or composted) - Crystalle also shares the ups and downs of making a major career change later in life, and why it was harder than she thought it would be. If you’ve never heard of Ekko, I have a feeling that after this episode you’ll want to check it out and support a mother/daughter-run small business in our community, not to mention trying some of the amazing partner restaurants that you may not know about. Enjoy the episode!

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Sheena Bounsanga is a mindfulness coach, literacy educator and dyslexia specialist. She wears a lot of hats, but today’s episode is focused on her work with kids and mindfulness. Sheena runs mindfulness workshops in schools, classes from her home and she even runs a mindfulness summer camp each year. We had a lovely conversation — my first in-person one in quite a while — and I love how Sheena was able to break down exactly what mindfulness is, why it’s so important for kids and most importantly how to get kids on board with it. She really stresses the importance of making mindfulness your own and finding what works best for each individual child…so if you think that mindfulness won’t work for your child, I encourage you to listen to this episode for a few different examples of how it can be applied to real life. Not surprisingly, this is also a conversation about motherhood. Sheena is very honest about some of the struggles her family has gone through and her approach to parenting is so inspiring. She talks about the importance of making the right choice for her family, even when it goes against the norm, and why she places her family’s happiness as a priority above all else. I didn’t know Sheena personally before we met, but I had heard so many great things about her from other people that I knew I would love her. And I did! She has such a genuinely caring and compassionate presence and a true love for children, and her passion for helping kids shine their brightest is so inspiring. Here’s the episode

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Today I’m interviewing Ivonne Hammoud, mother of 2 and owner of New Moon Counselling. Ivonne is a Registered Social Worker and holds a Masters of Social Work from Wilfrid Laurier University; and specializes in anxiety, depression, trauma, relationship conflicts, and life changes/stressors. She has definitely seen an increase in couples coming to see her throughout the pandemic and she has some great insight into what’s happening in marriages, why it’s happening and what couples can do about it.

In this episode we talk about:

How the pandemic has been really hard on some marriages but strengthened others
The two major relationship struggles she is seeing in her practice right now
Why it’s so important to work on YOURSELF in order to improve your relationship
The benefits of working with a therapist when you’re having relationship struggles
Why conflict is NOT a negative thing (and how it can actually help your relationship)
The one thing that couples can do to help their marriage during the next few months

I also share my own story of where my marriage has struggled during the pandemic and our experience with couples therapy in the past and how it’s helped in our communication as a couple.

My goal with this episode is to help normalize therapy and just talking about this subject in general, so people know that these are tough times…and that it’s totally normal to feel like your relationship is a little stagnant right now. And to provide some strategies to help relight that fire.

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This week’s episode is a solo episode and I’m talking all about mom guilt. More specifically, the guilt that moms feel when they take time for themselves (and away from their children). This is something I used to deal with, but over time I’ve realized that taking time away from my kids is so important in order for me to show up as the best parent possible. So I don’t feel guilty anymore! So let’s talk about mom guilt, shall we? In this episode, I discuss why it’s so important for moms to take time for themselves, why we feel guilty about it, and some strategies for conquering mom guilt (or at least looking at it from a different perspective). Enjoy!

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This week I’m interviewing Cecilia Johnson, or “Ce” as most people call her, the woman and baker behind The Bakery by Ce Food Experience. Ce is a mom, a wife, a boss and describes herself as a young marginalized woman who can and has broken all of the stereotypes, and who is working hard to build a life that she and her family can be proud of. She is one amazing mama and is running this very busy bakery while also raising two very young kiddos. In this very vulnerable episode we talk about: - Her entrepreneurial spirit and ability to pivot when required - The challenges of dealing with customers during a pandemic - The importance of surrounding yourself with a good team - The fact that it may seem like she has it all together on the outside, but underneath she's struggling - Postpartum depression, childhood trauma, and losing your identity in childhood Thank you, Ce for opening up and sharing your story. I can’t wait to see where you take your business over the next few years and how Ce’s Food Experience continues to grow and serve our community.

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Today I’m talking to the amazing Laura Mae Lindo, MPP for Kitchener Center, Member of the Ontario NDP party, a respected activist and educator who holds both a Masters and PhD in Education, the Official Opposition Critic for Anti-Racism and Colleges and University, and mama of 3.

I have to admit, I was really nervous for this interview and you may be able to hear it in my voice at the beginning but Laura Mae was so down to earth and easy to talk to that I quickly felt like I was talking to an old friend. And that’s one of the reasons you are going to love this interview so much — she is such a real and honest person, which is not what you would typically expect from a politician.

We talk about:

Mothering during a pandemic
Being a single mother
Why she places connection with her children above all else, even if this means listening to her gut instead of doing what everyone else is doing.
How being a black mother has shaped her motherhood experience
Why we all need to be compassionate with ourselves as mamas, especially during this pandemic.
Racism within the school system in Waterloo Region
What changes are on the horizon and what ALL parents need to do to advocate for racially just schools.
The role of an MPP
How she manages with everything she has on her plate

This is an interesting, eye-opening, and heartwarming conversation and I admire and respect Laura Mae even more after getting to know her better.

Here’s the episode!

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My guest this week is Melissa Fellin, Owner and Clinical Director of Bloom: Child & Family Therapy, an evidence-based and creative child, teen and family therapy practice located in Uptown Waterloo. Melissa is a Registered Social Worker who holds a Master of Social Work from Wilfrid Laurier University. She also has a Master of Arts in Anthropology and PhD in Anthropology and her expertise is in the areas of trauma, resilience, high sensitivity, ADD/ADHD, attachment, transitions, and family relationships.

Melissa and I talk about:

The work she is doing at Bloom and how she helps families
The importance of meeting our children where they’re at when it comes to parenting
Tips and strategies for enhancing communication with your tween boy
How to lay the foundation so that your tween boy will come to you with questions and problems as they get older.

Melissa’s advice is so practical and makes so much sense and I’ve already started to implement some of her suggestions, and am feeling better about the connection between Tyson and I.

Listening to her talk made me realize how important it is for tween boys to feel secure and not pressured into “talking” just because that’s the way women often communicate. This is a must-listen episode for any mom of boys, no matter what age they are, so be sure to share with all the boy moms in your life.

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Suzanne Dietrich (she/her) is a Registered Dietitian and the owner of Gut Instincts Nutrition Counselling. Suzanne is a Certified Intuitive Eating Counsellor who incorporates intuitive eating, body inclusivity, and Health At Every Size® principles into her practice.

In this episode Suzanne talks about:

What intuitive eating is, and how we ended up so far off track from trusting our own bodies and appetite,
The problems of weight stigma and diet culture and how they show up in healthcare settings and everyday life
How weight is actually not tied to health outcomes and how this belief can lead to unhealthy behaviours
The role that the pandemic has played in the prevalence and severity of eating disorders
The highs and lows of her motherhood journey.

I also get pretty vulnerable in this episode and share my own story of disordered eating, which will probably come as a surprise to some people, given the fact that I am a trained nutritionist, but Suzanne helps to break down where the messaging about good/bad food comes from and reassures me that it’s normal to be brainwashed by these ideas.

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Selam is an antiracism educator, an anti-oppression coach, the founder of Juici Yoga, a yoga and meditation instructor, a holistic life coach, a reiki master, and a Lululemon Ambassador. So yeah, she’s pretty amazing.

In this episode, Selam talks about:

Her journey, including her childhood and some of the trauma she experienced throughout her life.
How she is raising her son to love himself and to be aware of the pressures around being a boy in a patriarchal society
Her unique experience as a black mother — including the challenges of raising a black son in an inherently racist society,
Raising anti-racist kids, and why white mothers in particular need to be deliberate in having conversations about racism with their children from an early age.

I know this can be an uncomfortable topic and I know you may think that you don’t need to hear this information because you are a loving person who would never discriminate against somebody based on the colour of their skin. Trust me, I used to feel the same way. But I promise you that you will walk away from this episode with a better understanding of anti-racism work and what you can do to help make the world a better and more inclusive place for everyone.

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Renee Quiring is a pelvic floor physiotherapist and owner of All Things Pelvic. Renee graduated from the Mohawk/McMaster Physiotherapy program in 1988 and worked in orthopedic physiotherapy for many years. She then four children in six years and made the tough decision to let her Physiotherapy license expire to stay home with her kids for ten years. Renee decided to return to Physiotherapy in 2010 and after successfully completing the Physiotherapy National Exam on her first attempt, she began working in Neurorehabilitation. In 2014, Renee transitioned to Pelvic Health and started her business All Things Pelvic, and is now one of the leading pelvic floor physiotherapists in our community.

I wanted to have Renee on the podcast not only to talk about the importance of pelvic floor health but because her motherhood journey is so inspiring. So many moms think that we have to choose one or the other — our kids or our career, but Renee is a great example of someone who was able to focus on both at different stages of her life. Plus, you all know how much I love talking to seasoned moms and gleaning their wisdom and Renee does not disappoint. We talk about:

The loss of identity she experienced after putting her career on hold
She and her husband’s decision to hold off on extracurriculars until her kids were 12
Her tips for surviving the teen years
How she ended up in a place where she is now friends with her adult kids
The highlight of motherhood for her (which totally made me tear up)
Her story about going back to work after 10 years of being home with the kids
How she ended up in pelvic floor physiotherapy AND running her own business
What pelvic floor physiotherapy is and who can benefit from it
All things related to pelvic floor and birth — what women can do before, during, and after pregnancy to keep their pelvic floor in tip-top shape.

I really enjoyed my conversation with Renee and we covered so much. It was another reminder to me how profound sitting down and having a deep and meaningful chat with another mom can be and the reason why I love doing this podcast so much.

This episode is kindly sponsored by Baby Charlotte, located in Belmont Village, Kitchener (www.babycharlotte.com)

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Rosanne Robinson is a Registered Dietitian and founder and co-owner of Blueprint Nutrition, a private practice based in Waterloo, Ontario. Through virtual 1:1 counseling and online programs, she helps families move from a state of chaos to calm at the dinner table. She is passionately committed to empowering parents with the tools they need to nurture eaters who have a good relationship with food and their bodies.

In this conversation, we talk about:

How Rosanne ended up in pediatric nutrition and then specializing in picky eating.
Why parents feel so much pressure for their kids to be eating the “right things”
Why she is more concerned about a child’s long-term relationship with food than she is about what a child ate today
Why she encourages kids to play with their food and she gives some great tips on how parents can help kids develop a healthy relationship with veggies.
The concept of intuitive eating and how it applies to kids feeding
The most important thing you can do to ensure a calm mealtime.
Her experience with post-partum anxiety and depression, the type of support that helped her get through it and her message to moms about the pressure to breastfeed.

I absolutely love Rosanne’s approach to feeding kids, and even though this is an area that I am very well versed in, I feel like we’ve gotten into a bit of a feeding rut around here, so this conversation was exactly what I needed to motivate me to do better when it comes to strengthening my kid’s relationship with food and their bodies.

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Bronwyn Addico is a postpartum doula, childbirth and early parenting educator, birth preparation coach, co-owner of Balancing From Birth to Baby, and single mother to two wonderful kids. She has been fascinated with pregnancy, birth, and babies for as long as she can remember and she has spent many years training in this area, including spending time in California to become a Birthing from Within Childbirth mentor.

We talk about everything from birth to baby and beyond, including:

Why preparing for childbirth is so important
How our society tends to focus on negative birth stories, and what an expectant mother can do to challenge this narrative as she prepares for her own birth.
The role of intuition in the birthing process and why trusting your birth journey is so important,
How she supports women during the critical post-birth period, including helping some women through the aftermath of a very difficult birth experience through her specialized coaching and support.
The one thing that you should NEVER say to a woman after she’s had a baby
Her motherhood journey, including how she ended up doing this work, her experiences as a single mom, and why she doesn’t feel mom guilt about taking time for herself.

Bronwyn is amazing and is so so knowledgeable about this topic and her passion for birth and everything surrounding it just shines through. This is a deep and heart-opening conversation about the joys and challenges of motherhood and I know it is going to touch everyone who listens.

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My guest for this episode is Andrea Mondoux, author, podcast host, and healthy lifestyle coach. With over a decade of lived experience transforming her habits, despite the diet culture, she is committed to changing the way women think about themselves. She believes every woman deserves to feel confident and healthy and has made it a personal mission to see that happen.

We talk about:

New Year’s Resolutions — her feelings on them and the downfalls that people run into when setting goals around this time of year.
Why women tend to be obsessed with the number on the scale, why it isn’t the best predictor of health, and why this obsession actually has nothing to do with weight.
What diet culture is and how it causes shame and guilt in women as we try to maintain a certain standard, and how loving ourselves first can help women to combat societal pressures around weight and body size.
Our daughters and the importance of modelling body acceptance for them (I absolutely LOVE her tip on how she does this with her daughter)
Her amazing new book and how it helps women to take action
How’s she built up her confidence over time
And how to make health and self-love goals that stick.

It’s a phenomenal interview, jam-packed with tools for taking action and I can’t wait for you to hear it.

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In today's episode, it's just me! That's right, it's another solo episode of the Shine Mama! podcast and today I'm continuing my discussion on motherhood and mental health. I'm using my own story and experience to provide some ideas on how to support healing.

In this episode I cover:

A recap of Episode 10 and my story of depression during the early days of the pandemic
What led up to my mental health struggles
What's happening with me currently
Why I feel so passionate about continuing to discuss motherhood and mental health
Some tips and strategies for supporting a loved one who is anxious or depressed (or just overwhelmed in general!)

If you are dealing with anxiety or depression in any form, this is an important episode for you and the people who love you to listen to.

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Amanda Weber is a Certified Meditation Instructor & Intuitive Mentor. Following a successful but highly stress-filled corporate career, she decided to do a 180 and follow a deeper passion. Today Amanda supports women in noticing their limiting stories - with open curiosity - and exploring what they want to experience. She’s also a mom of 3, a world traveler, and one of the most supportive and caring women I know.

This episode is so full of great stuff. We talk about:

Amanda’s experience living in Spain during the early days of the pandemic and how going back to the basics of meditation helped her get through lockdown,
The synchronistic event that took her on a journey from corporate executive to meditation teacher
How mindfulness and meditation made her a better parent
The science-backed benefits of meditation and how it changes our brain
Her favourite tool for meditation newbies
How to find the mindfulness practice that works well for your life
Why she says meditation is like Doritos!

I absolutely loved chatting with Amanda, she is just so down to earth, and as a fellow people pleaser, I so appreciate her honesty about her own struggles with boundaries and how she uses self-care as a tool for self-love.

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Jessika Marie is dedicated to serving women and mothers as they move through the always-evolving call to create a compassionate, empowering, and embodied relationship with themselves and their community. She is professionally trained in the areas of Functional Medicine and Coaching, Reiki, Holistic Nutrition, Birth and Postpartum, Family Constellations and Yoga/ Meditation and has woven these modalities together over the last decade to create deep-dive sessions with both her group coaching and 1:1 clients. A lot of you will likely know Jessika from her in-person and now online Mavens for Mama community, or her popular online UnShame My Story Course.

We had loads to talk about when it comes to motherhood, including:

How she learned to trust her intuition and why it is so difficult for new mothers to trust themselves,
The power of women gathering in circles and reclaiming their mind, body, and spirit after motherhood.
Her work on shame and self-worth - she explains what shame is and why it stifles our creativity, our sense of worth, and our inner knowing.

I really enjoyed it and know you will too!

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I’m talking with Lindsay Ford, parenting mentor and the author of The Positive Parenting Framework. She helps moms interpret what their child is really saying when they act out and gives them the strategies they need to restore a sense of calm and cooperation back into their homes. Here’s what we chat about: * What positive parenting is and why it works. * How successful parenting very often comes down looking at our own stuff (how we were raised, our unconscious beliefs, how we see our children as a reflection of ourselves, whether we are engaging in self-care etc) * Using your intuition as a parent * How to know if you’re letting your child get away with too much * Why kids engage in power struggles * How to handle power struggles so that it ends in a win-win

Positive parenting just feels so much lighter than old-school forms of discipline, and parenting with this framework has helped me to weather the ups and downs of kids with a little more grace. I think you'll learn a lot from this episode. Enjoy!

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The topic of mental health continues with Dr. Melissa Bingeman. Melissa is a Naturopathic Doctor and founder of Fine Fettle Tea, who strives to empower her patients to achieve optimal health through lifestyle-based medicine and research-driven supplementation. She's also a mom of two young boys, and in this episode, she talks candidly about her experience with postpartum depression with her youngest son who is now 16 months old. Not only is Melissa very open and honest about her mental health struggles and the challenges of motherhood during the time of COVID, but her professional expertise as a Naturopath means that she has a ton of knowledge to share around the causes of postpartum depression and strategies that moms can use to move through it. In this episode we talk about: * The thoughts that were going through her head during her depression and how she doubted herself as a mother * The power of reaching out for help * The difference between postpartum blues, depression, and psychosis and the prevalence of all 3 * Why women are hesitant to share how they’re feeling during the postpartum period * The strategies that she used and that she uses with clients who are suffering from depression or other mental health challenges.

If you’ve suffered or you know anyone who has suffered from postpartum depression, this is a must-listen. And please share this with all the mothers and potential mothers in your life, because the more we talk about this openly, the more we normalize it. And now, enjoy the episode with the absolutely lovely Melissa!

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Dajana Beckman is a local entrepreneur and founder of Exhale Therapy, a counselling centre here in Kitchener-Waterloo. Dajana is passionate about ending the stigma around mental health, and removing the barriers to accessing mental health services.

Dajana talks with me about

How exhale came to be, and what her focus was when opening the business
Her passion for mental health and why women are hesitant to discuss mental illness
How therapy can help women feel comfortable in reaching out and why taking care of your mental fitness is as or more important than taking care of other areas of your body
The unexpected difficulties moms experience during the postpartum period
How your therapy can actually benefit your children
Her own personal struggles with self-worth and the challenges she’s experienced as a mother.

I did not know Dajana personally before our chat, but as soon as the interview started I felt like I was chatting with an old friend. Dajana is clearly extremely passionate about what she does, and her warmth and kindness shine through in our discussion. I can’t wait for you to learn more about her and the valuable contributions that she is making in our community.

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Teri Lane is a therapist and social worker, and founder of Thriving Families counseling, where she provides services to families with adolescents and children over 8. She supports parents in better understanding the why behind their child’s behaviour and to learn new ways of responding and interacting that foster positive communication and healthy family relationships. And this interview feels like a private therapy session as Teri provides her insight and advice on what we can do to help support our kid’s mental health during these challenging times.

We covered so much in this interview:

The positives and negatives that she has seen come out of the pandemic when it comes to kids mental health
Why we need to take care of our own stress levels in order to be there for our kids
Whether we should be concerned about instilling fear in our children
Signs that parents can look for to tell if our kids are struggling
Why it’s important to admit to our kids that we don’t have all the answers
The BIGGEST thing we can do to support our kid’s mental health (hint: it’s not solving their problems for them!)

One of the big themes of our conversation was that when we as parents look after ourselves, we are in a much better position to provide support to our kids.

I really enjoyed my conversation with Teri and I learned so much. She has such a calm and reassuring vibe and is extremely knowledgable and I really hope to have her back again soon as my regular child and family expert.

Enjoy!

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My pandemic series continues with today’s interview where I am talking with Melissa Melnychuk. Melissa is a certified holistic health coach, former fitness athlete, mother of 3, and has worked with women and men from all walks of life From those who may be on a new health journey, entrepreneurs, traveling executives, stay at home moms, former fitness competitors, professional athletes and more. And we actually talk more about her various roles in the interview.

The central message that Melissa shares with her clients is that “there should be a love for YOU in any shift or pivot you make in your life.

We cover a wide variety of topics in our chat:

How the pandemic came in like a tornado for her and turned her life upside down very quickly.
How being a single mom has presented unique challenges for her during this time.
Her divorce and how she worries about the effect it’s having on her kids
How her understanding of racism has changed since becoming the mother of bi-racial children,
Her experience in being bullied in school and why it motivated her to lift other women up.

And we talk about her Love, Move, Vibe group and individual coaching program for women.

Enjoy the interview with this inspirational mama!

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As my pandemic series continues, I’m interviewing Dr. Martha Linkletter, a Pediatrician practicing in KW out of Grand River Hospital. Martha’s husband is also a doctor, working as an anesthesiologist and intensive care doctor at St. Mary’s and Grand River Hospitals, putting Martha and her family very much on the front lines of this pandemic. PLUS they’re also managing their 3 young children. Needless to say, the first few weeks of the pandemic were very intense and she is very open about sharing the struggles they went through and how she coped.

And we cover so much more in this episode:

How her kids were first introduced to COVID and how she talks to them about it now
Why she decided NOT to homeschool during the last few months of school
Her opinion on school reopening in the fall
Her struggles with wishing she was able to spend more time at home with her kids
Why the reopening phase has been difficult
Her work providing gender-affirming care to transgender youth in our community.

Martha is smart, passionate, and wears her heart on her sleeve. She’s lovely and our community is so lucky to have her looking out for our kids, and I’m lucky to have been able to chat with her.

Enjoy the episode!

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I’ve got Ajoa Mintah on the podcast this week, chemical engineer, mom of two and the founder of Four-All Ice-Cream…one of the most popular foodie destinations in K-W these days, especially since the recent opening of their Scoop Shop in uptown Waterloo. I wanted to interview Ajoa because not only is she an inspiring mama and entrepreneur, but I really love how she’s grown her business via word of mouth and strategically focusing on supporting local businesses through her many partnerships. I’ve been so impressed watching Four-All’s ability to quickly pivot their business during this crazy pandemic time, and Ajoa shares how they were able to do this.

I loved getting to know the mom and woman behind the ice cream. In this episode, Ajoa talks about:

Motherhood (of course) and she shares how empowering her kids have helped her maintain balance during the past few months
How hard she can be on herself as a parent and how she has to be deliberate about carving out time to be the “fun mom"
The amazing story of how she created Four-All and how the K-W community has supported her and her business over the past few years, including during the pandemic
How race has impacted her business overall, why racism feels scarier here in K-W than it does in the U.S., and why she doesn’t want people to support Four-All just because she is black.

It’s a great conversation and I’m so excited for all my listeners to learn more about this smart, creative and inspiring local entrepreneur.

            Pulling together as a community during a pandemic with Ajoa Mintah  Sarah Bester          **Links and resources from this episode:**

Eby Manor Dairy Farm
Dixon’s Distilled Spirits
Herrle’s Farm Market
Snyder’s Maple Syrup
Nith Valley Honey
Uptown Waterloo Open Air Market

“[I had to] accept that this isn’t going away, so let’s do something. And it doesn’t have to work, but I need to do something.”

— AJOA MINTAH Find Ajoa online here:

Website: www.fourall.ca
Instagram: @fourallicecream
Facebook: facebook.com/fourallicecream

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   From the outside, it probably looked like I had the ideal situation during the pandemic. With the flexibility to spend the time looking after the kids while Jon worked, and the time to plan all sorts of fun activities to keep us busy, I’m sure people assumed that I had it easy. But the reality is that I was struggling. Big time. In fact, the first few weeks of the pandemic were some of the toughest weeks of my life, as I battled depression for the first time.

This week on the podcast, it’s just me, a microphone and my pandemic story.

I share what I went through, how I got to the other side and what I learned along the way. Sharing all of this wasn’t easy. But I did it anyway because we all have struggles, and I know that by being vulnerable, I give other women permission to be vulnerable and authentic right there along with me.

            Gaining strength from struggle during a pandemic with Sarah Bester  Sarah Bester          **Links and Resources from this episode:**

Episode 9 with Kate McCrae Bristol

“Asking for help doesn’t make you weak. Asking for help is actually really brave.”

— SARAH BESTER Find the Shine Mama! podcast online here:

Website: www.shinemama.ca
Instagram: @shinemama_sarah
Facebook: www.facebook.com/shinemamapodcast

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Kate McCrae Bristol is a mom of 2, a fur-mom to 1 and very well known in the community as the Dean of Students at Wilfrid Laurier University. I interviewed Kate because I wanted the perspective of someone who has had to balance a high-stakes professional role with motherhood, during the turmoil of the last 3.5 months.

Kate did not disappoint.

In this interview, Kate talks about:

The eerie, yet inspiring moment when she realized the world had changed
The struggles she's faced during the pandemic
Her reflections on what was happening during the first few weeks
How the pandemic caused her to shift her perspective about where she spends her time
The importance of setting boundaries, and how streamlining everyday decisions has helped her avoid decision fatigue during this very busy time
What she’s been doing to support post-secondary students, as well as how diversity and inclusivity are approached in her role and at the university as a whole.

And so much more!

One of my favourite things about doing this podcast is getting to sit down with amazing women and chat mom-to-mom. Kate is one of those people that leaves you feeling inspired and positive about motherhood, and I can’t wait for your to get to know her.

            Streamlining decisions and setting boundaries during a pandemic with Kate McCrae Bristol  Sarah Bester          **Links and resources from this episode:**

Present Over Perfect by Shauna Niequist
Tell Me More by Kelly Corrigan
Distinctly Tea
Brady’s Meats
Marie Kondo
Free-Range Kids

“Nobody can give my kids a happy and healthy mother, other than me.”

— KATE MCCRAE BRISTOL Find Kate online here:

Instagram: @kamccrae @wlu_dean_kate

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Christine Johnston is an Osteopathic Manual Practitioner and Registered Massage Therapist practicing in Waterloo. She’s also a mom of 2 and the founder of The Energy Solution for Moms, an online program that helps mom recover from burnout and become a more energetic and vibrant version of themselves.

Christine was a typical over-achiever, going to school full time to be an Osteopath during the period when she gave birth to her two kids. But when she reached the goal she had been working towards for 5 years..handing in her thesis after long days and nights of hard work…instead of feeling happy, she felt empty and burnt out. And thus she started on a journey of self-discovery which allowed her to connect with herself and figure out what was actually going to make her happy.

In the interview we talk about this amazing journey, as well as:

Why “mom” is her most important job title
The point where she realized that she had no idea what would make her happy
What her kids have taught her about herself
Her passion for helping her kids develop their intuition and become the person they are meant to be.
How realizing she was an introvert was key to her ability to shine as a parent

So many good nuggets in this episode!

                How to come back to yourself after burnout with Christine Johnston  Sarah Bester

“For so long I had given to other things and other people, that I lost track of who I was and what made me happy.”

— CHRISTINE JOHNSTON Find Christine online here:

Website: www.cjosteopathy.com
Instagram: @_christinejohnston_
Facebook: CJ Osteopathy: https://www.facebook.com/cjosteopathy/
Abundant Energy for Moms: https://www.facebook.com/groups/853929988383507/

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My guest for this episode is Dr. Jen Forristal. I first met Jen when I attended the The Unstoppable You project in the fall. She was part of a panel discussion of wellness leaders, and once she started talking I instantly knew I wanted her on the podcast. Jen is so warm, so genuine and such an inspiration on so many levels.

Dr. Jen is a naturopathic doctor with a primary focus in paediatric mental health, and she is currently working out of new Functional Medicine Uptown. She is also the founder and CEO of The Umbrella Project, an organization that trains medical professionals, educators and parents to proactively assess and develop the skills needed to cope with life’ inevitable challenges. In other words, she’s giving parents the tools to raise awesome humans who know how to navigate their emotions so they are prepared for real life! Which aligns so much with what this podcast is all about.

Jen has so much wisdom and inspiration to share!
In this episode, she talks about:

How nothing could have prepared her for what motherhood would be like
How to keep fun and humour in parenting
Why challenges and adversity are actually good for our kids
How being imperfect, actually gives our kids permission to show up imperfectly too
How she was inspired to start the umbrella project, and how the “umbrella skills” can help kids learn to cope with life’s adversity
How going outside your own comfort zone is so important in teaching our kids about growth mindset

This episode if full of learnings - I know every parent will walk away inspired.

                Why adversity is actually good for our kids with Dr. Jen Forristal  Sarah Bester

“Challenges are the things that bring your kids closer to strength and resilience”

— DR. JEN FORRISTAL Find Dr. Jen and The Umbrella Project online here:

Website: www.umbrellaproject.co
Instagram: @umbrellapjct
Facebook: facebook.com/umbrellapjct

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Trish Unger is a BIE (Bioenergetics) and Body Talk practitioner, and mom of 3 teenage boys. I invited Trish to the podcast because she is my mama mentor. She’s a few years ahead of me in her motherhood journey so she has a ton of wisdom and good advice. Plus she has a really solid relationship with her three sons (like they actually TALK to her), so she is my mom hero. I think it’s so important to hear from moms who have walked this road before us, and Trish has a lot of great insight but also isn’t afraid to admit that she still doesn’t have all the answers.

In this conversation, Trish chats about:

Her journey as an entrepreneur and mother, and how she lost herself along the way
Why moms think being a martyr equals being a good parent
How she’s finally figured out how to put herself at the top of her own list
Her work as an energy practitioner and how she helps people who haven't had success with the traditional medical system

The power of intuition and how she teaches people simple tools to harness their own inner compass

            How to thrive in motherhood without losing yourself with Trish Unger  Sarah Bester          **Links and resources from this episode:**

The Biology of Belief by Bruce Lipton

“The biggest thing I wish I could have known going in..is how much of myself I would lose”

— TRISH UNGER Find Trish online here:

Website: www.trishunger.com
Instagram: @trishunger
Facebook: facebook.com/trishungerBIE

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Dr. Michaela McClure is a multi-passionate entrepreneur, and is best know for her work as a Chiropractor, Pause Breathwork Facilitator and founder of the Unstoppable You Project. Unstoppable You is an event-based business that helps women shed any doubts and fears that dim their light, backed by a tribe of like-minded supporters.

But as Michaela talks about in the interview, things weren’t so peachy a few years ago. Even though life looked pretty perfect on the outside, she felt deeply that something was missing. This propelled her on a journey of self-discovery which led to the creation on the Unstoppable You Project and her passion for supporting women and helping them to live their best life.

Our chat covers:

All things related to the intersection of motherhood, career and following your passions.
How motherhood caused her to look inward and make some major changes to her life
How her career as a chiropractor has evolved from just treating physical symptoms, to helping her clients get to the root of their pain
Why she feels that modelling love and kindness is more important than “playing” with her kids
How she makes sure to “stay in the current lane”, whether in parenting or work so that she can get the most out of each experience
How she figured out what the highest version of herself looked like and how it led to the creation of The Unstoppable You Project

…and so much more!

          How to be a present parent while following your passions with Dr. Michaela McClure  Sarah Bester          **Links and resources from this episode:**

The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod
The Conscious Parent by Dr. Shefali Tsabary
Pause Breathwork
Michaela’s Virtual Breathwork Classes
Unstoppable You Monthly Meetups

“When we’re spending time up in our mind, that’s when all the self-doubt and judgements and different fears can pop up, but if we drop into our body through movement, through breath work, then we can be in tune with our intuition which is where all the answers lie.”

— MICHAELA MCCLURE Find Michaela and Unstoppable You Project online here:

Website: www.drmichaelamcclure.com and www.unstoppableyouproject.com
Instagram: @unstoppableyouproject
Facebook: facebook.com/unstoppableyouproject

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In this episode, I’m bringing you an interview with a very special mom, Kelly Meissner.

Kelly is the founder and CEO of Kate’s Kause, a local charity that raised funds to build a $500,000 accessible and inclusive playground in Elmira. Kelly’s daughter, Kate (age 10), was diagnosed with Angelman syndrome when she was just a year old. Far exceeding Kelly’s dreams, Kate’s Place for Everyone is a playground that has brought together a community and positively changed a family. And Kelly didn’t stop there! Since Kate’s diagnosis, Kelly has realized the effectiveness of inclusive education for students with significant disabilities. Kelly has travelled all over North America attending conferences and workshops to learn how to help students with significant disabilities succeed in mainstream education.

We cover so much in this interview:

Kelly has is very open about her motherhood experience, and we discuss the highs, the lows and how it has changed her
She talks about how living with Angelman Syndrome has impacted her daughter Kate and their family
The power of a mother’s intuition, which is a theme that has and will continue to come up in my interviews
Her passion for inclusive classrooms, and why it’s so important for all kids to learn what being inclusive means.
And of course we chat about her non-profit organization Kate’s Cause and what they have achieved with Kate’s Place Park.

I enjoyed my time with Kelly so much. I teared up many times but mostly when she talked about the love she has for her kids. She was a stranger when she came into my kitchen that day, but she left a friend.

           Raising inclusive kids with Kelly Meissner  Sarah Bester          **Links and resources from this episode:**

Sleep Sense Program by Dana Obleman

“It doesn’t matter if it’s disability or something else, we’ve got to have a nice inclusive mindset for all of our little humans growing up”

— KELLY MEISSNER Find Kelly Meissner and Kate’s Kause online here:

Website: www.kateskause.com
Instagram: @kates_kause
Facebook:@kateskauseelmira

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Today’s episode is with successful and passionate entrepreneur Remy Warren. Her entrepreneurial path is very unique - she is a product developer who over the past few years has launched multiple private label products and brands, including a product called Gender Sense.

In this interview, Remy talks about:

Her entrepreneurial journey, including some great advice for people who are thinking about starting something of their own
The tough decision to discontinue her first product, and how she was able to dust herself off and keep going
Dealing with imposter syndrome
Letting go of control in business and in parenting.

Remy’s story is very inspiring and I know listeners will take away so much from this conversation. And make sure to listen all the way to the end as she shares some exciting news about her next product …it’s something that I know a lot of women are going to benefit from.

  **Links and resources from this episode:**

Gary Vee

Elizabeth Gilbert Quote

“Get up and try and do it again. That’s the important part.”

— REMY WARREN Find Remy Warren online here:

Website: TBD
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MoxyPatch/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/moxypatch/

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In this episode, I’m speaking with the absolutely lovely Anna O’Malley. Anna is a Yoga Teacher & Movement Specialist that focuses on Corporate Wellness in the Waterloo Region. Anna completed her yoga certification in 2007, while still working in the corporate world in Toronto. She eventually left the corporate world and moved back to Waterloo to teach yoga full-time, and since 2014 has focused primarily on workplace wellness, teaching yoga and meditation at a number of local companies. Anna is also a mother to 3 young boys, aged 7, 5 and 20 months.

Anna is full of wisdom and this discussion is so good. We talk about:

Her connection to her intuition, how she developed this super power and how everyone can harness it with a little practice.
Her approach to parenting, and how she had had to make changes within herself in order to be the best parent for each individual child.
The importance of the “Fourth Trimester” and how society doesn’t give room to women to take time to recover after childbirth

And so may other great tidbits when it comes to parenting, self-care and surrendering to the chaos of life.

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My very first episode is with Krista Guenther of Sleeperific. Krista is a paediatric sleep consultant and owner of Sleeperific Children’s Sleep Consulting, where she provides both educational and emotional support to families as they navigate sleep training, which I know from personal experience can be a super stressful time. She’s also a mom of 3 kids + 1 fur baby, and has a side hustle as a property manager.

What we cover in this episode:

The necessary challenge of watching our kids struggle and the importance of figuring out what you need in order to show up as the parent you want to be
How parenting challenges change as kids get older
Why she’s a huge proponent of couples therapy
Her shift from corporate life to entrepreneurship….not just the benefits and also the regrets she has.
Sleep (of course!) Specifically the importance of boundaries.
Why she’s worried about the future of the planet, and how she talks to her kids about social and environmental issues without scaring or depressing
Simple steps her family takes to make a difference.

Krista is so inspirational and I can’t wait for hear her wisdom.

Links and resources from this episode:

Lucky Iron Fish
Boundaries with Brene Brown

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Welcome to the Shine Mama! podcast, for moms who are committed to raising awesome humans, and who want to become the BEST version of themselves while doing it.

I’m your host Sarah Bester, entrepreneur, mom of 3 and recovering control freak. Guys, I wish I had all the answers - but I definitely don’t, so I created this podcast to gain insight from inspirational mamas who are doing their best every.single.day. Each episode I’ll bring you REAL conversations about balancing parenthood, work and dream-chasing, including the TRUTH behind the struggles.

In this episode I share:

My journey and why I created this podcast
The importance of putting ourselves first (and how it’s NOT selfish)
What this podcast is all about
How I still don’t “have it all together” or have all the answers

Shine Mama!: Recent Episodes

Sarah Bester