The Messy Beautiful Work of Healing Together | Guest - Kristy Joy Weidner, LCSW, CCTP-1

A Place to Come as You Are | Guest - Gabbi Myers

Gabbi Myers built Bella Day Spa around three words on her mission statement, come as you are, and spent ten years making sure every person who walked through the door actually believed it. Gabbi and I had a rapid fire chat where we pulled apart all of the layers of spa ownership and about the services offered as spas and salons. We cover🔹 The stigma around trade school and why her staff out-earns most college grads🔹 Why a good consultation isn't a courtesy — it's the whole service🔹 Building a team in a high-turnover industry without losing the people who matter🔹 What unexpected events can take, give back and why one pushed her into a bigger building🔹 The pressure AI photos are putting on stylists and estheticians 🔹 The importance of turning away clients rather than risk injuring them You should always be able to feel yourself, even in industries surrounded by beauty standards. 📩 Connect with Bella Day Spa: bellaspaandbeauty.com📱 Instagram & Facebook: @bellaspaandbeauty MOTIVATION N'AT — Hot Mess to High Potential®The podcast where real life gets talked about, hosted by Natalie Bulger. New episodes every Sunday.

Creating Confidence through Clarity | Guest - Sara Ann Todd, DHA

What actually separates a confident leader from a cocky one? Dr. Sara Ann Todd says it comes down to one, main thing: clarity. Sara Ann, founder is the CEO of Leadership Investments and a certified coach with over 22 years across the military, federal government, and private sector. We connected after both leaving the federal government and our discussion allowed us to look back and what we say during recent years as well as to look forward in how we can learn from what we were a part of. We get into:🔹The real difference between confidence and cockiness in leadership🔹Why self-awareness is a practice, not a personality trait🔹 What vulnerable leadership actually looks like versus emotional spillover🔹How to lead with integrity when the people above you aren't🔹What to do when you can't walk away from a misaligned environment If you've ever walked into a room wondering whether you belong there, or watched someone lead from fear and wondered how they still have followers, this episode might help to shed a little light on it all. MOTIVATION N'AT — Hot Mess to High Potential®The podcast where real life gets talked about, hosted by Natalie Bulger. New episodes every Sunday. 📩 Connect with Sara Ann: saraanntodd@leadershipinvestments.biz [saraanntodd@leadershipinvestments.biz]🌐 Website: www.leadershipinvestments.biz [http://www.leadershipinvestments.biz]💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sara-ann-todd [linkedin.com/in/sara-ann-todd] 📲 Follow me:Instagram: @Sincerely__NatalieYouTube: @motivation-nat-pod

The Messy Beautiful Work of Healing Together | Guest - Kristy Joy Weidner, LCSW, CCTP-1

Healing isn't one therapist, one yoga class, one breakthrough moment. It's messy, it's layered, and it is absolutely not meant to be done alone. I sat down with Kristy Joy Weidner, licensed clinical social worker, trauma specialist, mindfulness teacher, and founder of two Pittsburgh spaces built around exactly that idea to talk about what community really looks like as a part of our healing journey. We get into:🔹What community actually means and why it has nothing to do with geography🔹The real cost of accessing mental health support and what to do when the system fails you🔹Why therapy is simply finding patterns and then practicing living differently🔹Nervous system responses: fight, flight, freeze, fawn, and flop and what they actually look like in your daily life🔹 How Pittsburgh is still more divided than people want to admit and what that means for healing spaces🔹Why the helpers are exhausted and what a real reset looks like🔹Letting go of what no longer serves you and trusting that something new comes in Kristy has spent her career building spaces where people can finally exhale and it's evident throughout our discussion. I hope you'll stick around to listen to the whole episode. MOTIVATION N'AT — Hot Mess to High Potential®The podcast where real life gets talked about, hosted by Natalie Bulger. New episodes every Sunday. 📩 Connect with Kristy Joy Weidner:Instagram: @injoymeditation [https://www.instagram.com/injoymeditation/]Instagram: @village_therapy [https://www.instagram.com/village_therapy/]Website: villagetherapy.org [villagetherapy.org]

The Realities of Intimate Partner Violence - Part 2 | Guest - Sarah Ludwig, LPC

Acceptance doesn't mean something is okay. It means it's real.I sat down with Sarah Ludwig, LPC — a therapist specializing in sexual and intimate partner violence — and we finished what we started in part one.We get into: * The difference between domestic violence and intimate partner violence, and why it matters * What power and control actually look like in healthy vs. harmful relationships * The consent piece around kink, BDSM, and strangulation — and why nothing about it should be murky * What it means to support someone in one of these relationships without making it worse * How acceptance of a situation is not the same as approval of it * Safety planning for the people on the outside — the village that surrounds a victim * What to do when you're at family dinner and you're the only one who knows what's really going on If you have someone in your life who is in one of these situations, or if you're trying to figure out what your role is, what your limits are, and what you can actually do... then this episode is for you.___________________________________If you or someone you know needs help:National Domestic Violence Hotline: thehotline.org [thehotline.org] | 1-800-799-7233Text START to 88788 | Chat 24/7 at thehotline.org [thehotline.org]Safety Planning: thehotline.org/plan-for-safety/create-your-personal-safety-plan/ [thehotline.org/plan-for-safety/create-your-personal-safety-plan/]Strangulation Research: nationwidechildrens.org [nationwidechildrens.org]Safe Austin Strangulation Info: safeaustin.org/the-violent-reality-of-strangulation/ [safeaustin.org/the-violent-reality-of-strangulation/]National Resource Center on DV: nrcdv.org [nrcdv.org]National Network to End DV: nnedv.org [nnedv.org]Blackburn Center (SW PA): blackburncenter.org [blackburncenter.org]Women's Center & Shelter Pittsburgh: wcspittsburgh.org [wcspittsburgh.org]PA Coalition Against DV: pcadv.org/find-help/ [pcadv.org/find-help/]___________________________________📲 Follow me:Instagram: @Sincerely__Natalie [https://www.instagram.com/sincerely__natalie/] Substack: https://ncbulger.substack.com/ [https://ncbulger.substack.com/]___________________________________MOTIVATION N'AT — Hot Mess to High Potential®The podcast where real life gets talked about, hosted by Natalie Bulger. New episodes every Sunday.___________________________________

The Realities of Intimate Partner Violence - Part 1 | Guest - Sarah Ludwig, LPC

Intimate partner violence is is far more prolific than we probably realize, and that's because of the shame, stigma and shadows it involves.   I sat down with Sarah Ludwig, LPC, a certified EMDR therapist and trauma-focused counselor with over a decade ofexperience working with survivors of sexual violence and intimate partner violence to educate myself and to bring the discussion to listeners of this podcast.   We get into: --- What intimate partner violence actually looks like beyond the physical — financial control, isolation, sexual coercion, threats to pets, and more --- Why strong, empowered people end up in these relationships and how the cycle works --- The difference between helping a loved one in a DV situation vs. enabling an addiction --- Strangulation as a massive predictor of lethality — and why it's an urgent red flag every time --- Safety planning across the full spectrum --- Victim resources, free therapy, and VCAP funding available in every U.S. state   This is Part 1 of a two-part conversation. Part 2 drops next Sunday. Check the show notes for every resource mentioned in this episode.   📌 RESOURCES 🆘 National Domestic Violence Hotline: https://www.thehotline.org/ [https://www.thehotline.org/] | 1-800-799-7233 🆘 Text START to 88788 | Chat 24/7 at thehotline.org [thehotline.org] 📋 Personal Safety Plan:https://www.thehotline.org/plan-for-safety/create-your-personal-safety-plan/ [https://www.thehotline.org/plan-for-safety/create-your-personal-safety-plan/] 📖 Strangulation & Domestic Violence Research:https://www.nationwidechildrens.org/family-resources-education/700childrens/2025/10/strangulation-and-domestic-violence [https://www.nationwidechildrens.org/family-resources-education/700childrens/2025/10/strangulation-and-domestic-violence] 📖 The Violent Reality of Strangulation: https://www.safeaustin.org/the-violent-reality-of-strangulation/ [https://www.safeaustin.org/the-violent-reality-of-strangulation/] 🌐 National Resource Center on Domestic Violence: https://nrcdv.org/ [https://nrcdv.org/] 🌐 National Network to End Domestic Violence: https://nnedv.org/ [https://nnedv.org/] 🏠 Blackburn Center (SW Pennsylvania): https://www.blackburncenter.org/ [https://www.blackburncenter.org/] 🏠 Women's Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh: https://wcspittsburgh.org/ [https://wcspittsburgh.org/] 🏠 PA Coalition Against Domestic Violence: https://www.pcadv.org/find-help/ [https://www.pcadv.org/find-help/]  ___________________________________ MOTIVATION N'AT — Hot Mess to High Potential® The podcast where real life gets talked about, hosted by Natalie Bulger. New episodes every Sunday. ___________________________________   About Sarah Ludwig, LPC Sarah Ludwig is a Licensed Professional Counselor specializing in trauma, PTSD, sexual abuse, and intimate partner violence. She is a certified EMDR therapist based in Irwin, PA, and has extensive experience working with survivors of sexual violence and domestic violence, including time at Blackburn Center.  ___________________________________ 📲 Follow Natalie: Instagram & Threads: @Sincerely__Natalie