Positively Mental

Even Superwoman Needs a Break - The Healing Journey of a Cancer and Amputee Survivor

Today we speak with Patty, a child cancer survivor who strived to do it all and prove that she was as normal as everyone else despite having her leg amputated. Her combination of people pleasing and can-do attitude led her down a path of showing the world how great everything was, even when it wasn't. She would, in her own words "suck it up, buttercup" to the detriment of her own mental and physical health. The day came when she just couldn't keep juggling all the balls she had put in the air. She found out later in life that even superwoman needs to take care of herself and learn what her boundaries are. The story doesn't end there though, in fact it was just the beginning in a way. She began to look for a greater purpose which lead her into Reiki and the results for her well being were tremendous. Through a new career path, humor and finding a soulmate that shared in her new wonderful life, she finally grew into the person she always wanted to be. We are so grateful that Patty decided to share her story with our community and we know you all will find a piece her story that touches your heart like it did ours. A few links as provided and talked about in the podcast: Your Sanctuary For Healing: http://www.yoursanctuaryforhealing.com/ Books: Telling Yourself the Truth: https://amzn.to/3TF7EQf Learning to Tell Myself the Truth: https://amzn.to/3TzcnTT

When Tragedy Strikes - Dealing With the Sudden Loss of a Loved One

Today we speak with Mike about his brother Jon, who was tragically killed in a motorcycle accident almost two years ago. I'm not going to lie, this one had all three of us tearing up throughout this episode. We talk about their younger years, the accident, and the emotional roller coaster that followed. We also discuss the healing that has...and hasn't happened so far. Mike's vulnerability throughout this episode and his candor to talk about a very sensitive and highly emotional topic just reminded me once again how amazing he and his wife are and that we must absolutely be living our lives to the fullest and be as happy as we can because we never know what could happen tomorrow.

Officer Responding! Keeping Mentally Strong in a Demanding Occupation

Today we are very lucky to have Sheriff's Deputy Luke on the show who's been a police officer in the Pacific Northwest for over a decade. We dive into how he stays mentally fit on the job as well as off, and a lot of the struggles he faces individually as well the law enforcement profession as a whole. In a shocking discovery, police officers are only human, Alaska is beautiful, but can also kill you, and no, Luke can't clear up all my parking tickets. I know, all of those things were shocking to us too.

Hey JR, It's Your Turn

Today it's time for me to be in the hot seat. Julie interviews me on what I hope to get out of this podcast, what direction I see it going, and I respond to a lot of the things that she talked about in her podcast intro. We also dive a bit deeper into me and some of the things I struggle with. As usual, we do wander off onto strange topics like why Julie thinks olives are made out of dolphins... I swear, that's exactly what she says. We hope you enjoy this episode of Positively Mental with JR and Julie.

Learning About the LGBTQ+ Experience From My Non-Binary, Bisexual Kid

Recently, my 17-year-old kid, Grey, came to me and informed me that they were non-binary and bisexual. A lot of questions became immediately evident, so we decided to discuss it here on our podcast. I also want to note that I am aware of the echo on my mic and that will be fixed for the next podcast but I didn't want to re-record this one as I didn't want to lose the authenticity of this episode!