Ep.71 Racing Thoughts Taking Over? Why Meditation Feels Impossible

Ep.71 Racing Thoughts Taking Over? Why Meditation Feels Impossible

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2311510/fan_mail/new] If you've googled "why meditation doesn't work for me" or "why can't I quiet my mind," this episode is for you. You're not doing it wrong. Your brain is just running on autopilot in a survival state — and once you know that, everything changes. EPISODE SUMMARY You've heard you should meditate. Maybe you've even tried. And maybe it felt like a total failure with racing thoughts, a body that won't sit still, a mind convinced this isn't for you.  In this episode, Sari breaks down the brainwave states (the states in which your mind is in) behind anxiety, meditation, and hypnosis, and why "high beta" — the survival, overfunctioning, racing-thoughts state, might be the only gear you know how to live in. She gets honest about falling off her own meditation practice for three weeks, what happened to her nervous system because of it, and what it felt like to come back.  You'll learn why closing your eyes is one of the most powerful things you can do for your nervous system, why affirmations don't work when you're stressed, and why real change happens in the quiet, suggestible states most of us never learn to access. This is the science behind why meditation and hypnosis actually work — not just theory, but what it feels like in the body. WHAT YOU'LL LEARN * Why meditation doesn't work for anxiety the way most people are taught to do it, and what actually needs to happen first * Why anxiety and overthinking might just mean your nervous system is stuck in "high beta," not that something's wrong with you * The difference between beta, alpha, theta, and delta brainwave states, and why it matters * Why closing your eyes is one of the most powerful tools for your nervous system * Why affirmations don't work when you're stressed (and when they actually do) * What happens in the body when you stop meditating — Sari's own three-week story * How to tell if you've been in survival mode so long it just feels like your personality * A simple 5-minute practice to start downshifting your nervous system today REFLECTION * Have you been in survival mode so long that it just feels like your personality? * When was the last time you gave yourself five minutes of intentional stillness — no phone, no to-do list, just breath? * What would it feel like to zoom out from the grain of rice you've been staring at? Work With Sari If you've tried meditating and it hasn't felt like it's working, you don't need more information — you need to feel the shift in your body. Grab the free 5-Minute Nervous System Reset [https://thegrowthgoddess.net/reset] to start training your nervous system to downshift. Link in the show notes. And if you're ready to go deeper and actually work with your subconscious directly, book a free Freedom Roadmap call. [https://link.thegrowthgoddess.net/widget/bookings/freedomroadmapsession] We'll map out exactly what's keeping your nervous system stuck. Link in the show notes. You're not broken. You're not behind. And you're not alone. If you made it here, that means something. TIMESTAMPS 00:01 — Intro: why this episode is for you if meditation feels confusing or like it's "not working"  01:42 — Meeting the version of you that's always "on" — restlessness as your normal  04:05 — Why Sari loves hypnosis alongside meditation, and her own journey  06:16 — Meditation as medicine — the thyroid medication analogy  08:18 — Falling off her routine for three weeks, becoming the "pool filter," and the dark cloud that followed  10:42 — Brainwave states explained: beta, alpha, theta, delta  11:51 — High beta explained — survival mode, and what it felt like living there for three weeks  13:38 — "Have you been in survival mode so long it's begun to feel like your personality?"  15:37 —  the "magnifying binoculars" of high beta  17:25 — Neuroplasticity and neural pathways — how alpha and theta reopen the door to change  18:41 — Closing your eyes as a portal to imagination and a higher intelligence  20:31 — Zooming out from the grain of rice — why meditation is non-negotiable medicine  22:05 — Why five minutes of stillness matters more than a "perfect" routine  24:22 — Guided visualization begins — the first deep breath and downshift  27:54 — What this practice builds over time, and how Sari works with clients in theta states  5 minute nervous system reset ad for midroll

Ep.70 Why Do I Feel Like I Don't Belong? The Achievement Addiction Nobody Names

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2311510/fan_mail/new] If you've done everything right, the career, the house, the kids, the smile, and you still feel like everyone else got invited to something you weren't, or someone else got the promotion, the pat on the back, this episode is for you. That quiet hum of not enough, not worthy, not included? That's not your anxiety. That's the wound underneath it. And it has been running the show since you were small. EPISODE SUMMARY You're building the business, raising the kids, showing up for everyone. And underneath all of it there is this energizer bunny that never actually stops running. Am I enough yet? Do I belong yet? Am I worthy yet? In this episode, Sari breaks down why the need to belong is a primal nervous system survival response, not a personality flaw, and why no amount of achievement, likes, applause, or acknowledgment from the outside will ever touch the love you actually need to give yourself. She shares her own story of growing up as a middle class Jewish girl in a wealthy community, earning her worth through dance performance, and how that wound followed her all the way into her business, her social media, and every room she walked into wondering if she was going to be included. She closes with a guided visualization to help you meet the little girl who first decided she had to earn her place, and tell her something she maybe never heard enough. WHAT YOU'LL LEARN * Why the constant doing, achieving, and performing is the symptom, not the root cause * How the fear of not belonging triggers your nervous system into survival mode * Where the "I have to earn my place" wound starts and why it never stays in childhood * Why the most successful people you're comparing yourself to might just be performing better at the same wound * The real shift: from looking for external validation to belonging to yourself first * A simple pause to practice before you post, say yes, or push harder at work * A guided visualization to meet the little girl who made the agreement and give her what she needed REFLECTION Where in your life are you still running the energizer bunny trying to earn your place? Before your next post, your next yes, your next push at work, can you pause and ask: am I doing this because it's true to me, or am I doing this to be seen? What would it mean to belong to yourself first? RESOURCES + WORK WITH ME You can understand this intellectually all day long and still feel that hum underneath everything. The subconscious belief that got wired in when you were small does not shift from one podcast episode. It shifts when you do the deeper work and find exactly where it lives in your body and your story. If you feel the pull to do that work, book a Freedom Roadmap session [https://link.thegrowthgoddess.net/widget/bookings/freedomroadmapsession] with Sari at thegrowthgoddess.net. [https://link.thegrowthgoddess.net/widget/bookings/freedomroadmapsession] Just a conversation about what this could look like for you. No pressure, just clarity. 5 Minute Nervous System Reset [https://thegrowthgoddess.net/reset] And if the energizer bunny is running hard today and you need something right now, grab the free 5 Minute Nervous System Reset [https://thegrowthgoddess.net/reset] at thegrowthgoddess.net/reset. A tool you can come back to the moment you feel the hum getting loud.  You're not broken.  You're not behind.  And you're not alone. TIMESTAMPS 00:02 Welcome back, anxiety as the messenger, and why subconscious work is the key 02:29 The quiet hum underneath all the doing: am I enough yet, do I belong yet, am I worthy yet 03:19 Why we are anxious when we look like we have it all 04:03 You've done everything right and something still does not feel fulfilled 04:24 The tribe metaphor and comparing yourself to people who look like they cracked the code 05:30 Sari's personal story: growing up as a dancer, a middle class Jewish girl, earning validation through performance 06:25 How conditional validation rewires the subconscious and when it starts 08:57 When acknowledgment becomes identity and why it does not stay in the studio 09:30 The wound follows you everywhere: the hair business, the house, refreshing the likes 11:11 Why you cannot rest because resting feels like not earning your place 11:39 Real freedom is not chasing belonging from the outside 12:31 No amount of likes, revenue, or applause will touch the love you need to give yourself 12:43 Do I love myself enough to belong to myself first 13:11 The invitation to the tribe is not external, it is from yourself 14:17 This is not a concept, it is a moment by moment practice 14:28 Catching the thought and asking who you are earning love from 15:20 The pause before you post, say yes, or push harder 15:43 No judgment, just honest awareness and a choice 16:41 Guided visualization begins 19:08 Telling her what she maybe never heard enough 19:51 You already do belong. You always did. 20:13 Coming back to the body, you get to choose yourself now 21:41 One on one work and the discovery call invitation 5 minute nervous system reset ad for midroll

Ep.69 Why I Used to Wake Up in a Full Panic Every Morning

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2311510/fan_mail/new] If you wake up already scanning your body for what's wrong, already bracing before your feet hit the floor, this episode is for you. You are not crazy and you are not broken. Your body has just been trying to talk to you, and somewhere along the way you stopped listening, not your fault, this has become a learned habit. EPISODE SUMMARY For years Sari felt like the victim of her own anxiety. Like it had a hold on her and she was just along for the ride, waiting for the next panic attack, predicting her whole life around it. If you've been diagnosed with a medical condition and you're left wondering why your body keeps reacting, new things are showing up, or if tension and restlessness have become so normal you don't even notice them anymore, this episode breaks down the WHY. Sari walks through why the body speaks first, always, before the mind ever creates a single anxious thought. She unpacks the feeling and thinking loop that turns one heart palpitation into a full blown spiral, why chronic anxiety reprograms your nervous system to expect chaos, and the real difference between being a victim of anxiety and learning to work with it. She closes with a guided body scan to help you start asking your body what it's actually been trying to tell you. WHAT YOU'LL LEARN * Why anxiety can feel like your own body is turning against you * How chronic stress and a dysregulated nervous system are connected to diagnoses * Why your body sends the signal first, before your mind ever creates the anxious thought * The feeling and thinking loop that turns one small sensation into a full spiral * Why tension and restlessness start to feel "normal" the longer you live in survival mode * The real difference between being a victim of anxiety and choosing to work with it, listen to what it's trying to tell you * A simple way to start listening to your body instead of bracing against it REFLECTION What has become so normal in your body, the tension, the restlessness, the bracing, that you don't even notice it anymore? If your body could talk right now, what would it say? Are you living as the victim of your anxiety, or are you ready to start working with it? RESOURCES + WORK WITH ME This is exactly the work Sari does with her clients in one on one sessions. Not a general meditation, but going in together to what your body is specifically holding, what it's been trying to say, what got shoved down so long it just became background noise. If anxiety feels like it has a hold on you right now, start with the Free 5 Minute Nervous System Reset [https://thegrowthgoddess.net/reset]. Something that actually helps in the moment, before the spiral takes over. And if you're ready to stop being the victim and get curious about what your body has been trying to tell you, book a Freedom Roadmap session [https://link.thegrowthgoddess.net/widget/bookings/freedomroadmapsession] with Sari. It's less of a discovery call and more of a curiosity call. No pressure, just clarity.  You're not broken.  You're not behind.  And you're not alone. TIMESTAMPS 00:01 Welcome back, where Sari's episode ideas come from, and the idea of being a victim of anxiety 00:01 Sari's husband's early shift and the adrenaline that hit her just from him saying goodbye 02:31 Anxiety as a messenger, and how symptoms can feel like the body turning on you 05:01 Living in chronic anxiety until it starts to feel normal 06:59 Victim of anxiety versus working with it, and the energy of curiosity versus control 08:44 The body speaks first, always, before the mind creates the panic 11:08 "The mind doesn't create anxiety. It reacts to what the body is already feeling." 13:06 The feeling and thinking loop, and how one palpitation spirals into a full panic 14:18 The Body Keeps the Score, and how dysregulation starts to feel like a normal Tuesday 16:18 Why it's so hard to hear the whisper when chaos is all you've ever known 16:37 Taking inventory of what's become normal, and why Sari uses hypnosis 17:32 Why meditation and hypnosis aren't about emptying the mind, they're about creating space to hear what's already there 19:28 Not knowing what joy or love even felt like, and imagining freedom from anxiety 20:49 Meditation and hypnosis as a phone call with your body 22:22 A guided body scan, noticing tension without judgment 23:14 The beginning of working with your anxiety instead of fighting it 24:07 Asking your body what it's trying to tell you and what it's ready to let go of 25:25 The curiosity call invitation and closing 5 minute nervous system reset ad for midroll

Ep.68 How to Let Go of Anxiety In The Body

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2311510/fan_mail/new] If you've been to all the doctors, tried all the things, and your anxiety still won't budge, this one is for you. Maybe the reason nothing has worked is that you've been trying to think your way out of something, but maybe it's not a thinking solution, maybe your body has been holding on to something the whole time, and you need to heal through the body. About This Episode I sat down with Jenny Cohen, an author, a speaker, a cancer survivor, and a dancer who believes movement is your birthright to heal. She used dance to stay alive through her cancer treatment, and what she shares in this episode is something I have lived in my own body for years. Anxiety is not just in your head. It lives in your body. And when you have nowhere to put that energy, it doesn't disappear. It builds. We talk about why your anxiety is the messenger, not the enemy. We get into why your body will go to extremes to get your attention, the difference between your conscious mind and your subconscious mind, head up versus head down, and what's actually happening when emotion releases as crying, shaking, or going completely still. Jenny also shares the dead simple daily practice that helped her, and the one question she asks her body the second symptoms show up. If you're a high functioning woman holding it all together while quietly crumbling, this is your permission slip to stop performing and start letting it move. What You'll Learn 1. Why your anxiety can get worse the moment you stop moving your body 2. Why anxiety is the messenger, and how the more you ignore the whispers, the louder your body has to get 3. How your conscious mind and subconscious mind split, head up versus head down, and why it matters for healing 4. What emotional release actually looks like, and what to do when it happens 5. A simple daily movement practice you can start with no skill and no one watching 6. The one question Jenny asks her body when symptoms show up Reflection Where in your life have you stopped moving, and what might be trying to get your attention? When was the last time you let your body do something just because it felt good, with no goal attached? Your Next Step If your anxiety feels stuck in your body and you need something that actually helps tonight, start here. Grab the free 5 Minute Nervous System Reset [https://thegrowthgoddess.net/reset] And if you're ready to stop managing your anxiety and start getting to the root of it, this is where one on one work comes in. That is where we rewrite the subconscious patterns underneath, not just talk about them. Book your free Freedom Roadmap session [https://link.thegrowthgoddess.net/widget/bookings/freedomroadmapsession] > You're not broken. >  You're not behind. >  And you're not alone. Timestamps 00:00 Welcome and meet Jenny Cohen  01:43 When movement as a birthright to heal first came online for Jenny  03:07 From dance to occupational therapy  05:31 How dance kept Jenny alive through cancer treatment  06:15 What was driving the anxiety underneath  07:46 Overlapping conditions, depression, and unresolved trauma  09:25 Dancing before, during, and after breast cancer treatment  11:01 Sari shares how her own anxiety didn't show up until she stopped dancing  12:26 Movement is for everybody, even after your shower  13:23 Why our life force requires movement  15:18 Why our bodies will go to extremes to give us what we want  16:19 Why anxiety is the messenger, not the enemy  18:30 Fixed movement versus improvisation  22:21 The moment emotion released mid movement  23:20 Why you never touch someone who is emotionally processing  25:18 Conscious mind from the head up, subconscious from the head down  30:55 Why forgiveness is part of healing  36:53 You have the right to move, you were born with it  37:51 The daily practice, five random songs  39:19 Naming three things you liked about what you did  44:26 The question Jenny asks her body when symptoms show up  46:40 Sari's movement challenge  48:32 Are you doing your self care in a present way  49:49 Where to find Jenny Cohen 5 minute nervous system reset ad for midroll

Ep.67 Why Do I Feel Emotionally Numb? The Subconscious Program Inside

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2311510/fan_mail/new] Are you feeling emotionally numb and you don't know why? Are you doing all the right things, and feel exhausted? This episode is for you. You're not falling apart. You're not in crisis, but just going through the motions and feeling nothing. That is a subconscious program running the show, and that's not a I need to be doing more problem. And if you're a mom, there's a good chance your kids are running a version of all of this too. EPISODE SUMMARY: Sari opens with a real life recent story, coming home exhausted, being reactive with her oldest daughter, and the conversation the next morning that changed everything. Her daughter was doing all the things. Good grades, chores, helping out. And she still was feeling unloved. She believed her younger sister was loved more, because she saw that her sister didn't have to earn it. Sound familiar? In this episode, Sari unpacks the subconscious agreement that so many high-functioning, anxious women are looking through life without realizing it: if I do more, I'll be loved more. She breaks down how this belief was formed in early childhood, why it keeps running on autopilot no matter how much you accomplish, and why 95% of your daily thoughts are recycling the same quiet story you made up about yourself when you were small. She also speaks directly to moms: your children often mirror the subconscious program you modeled during their earliest years. Learning to see the agreement in them, and ask the right question instead of reacting to the behavior, is one of the most powerful things you can do for yourself and for them. She closes with a guided breathing and visualization exercise to help you meet the younger version of yourself who first made that agreement — and begin to choose something different. This is not about doing more. It is about finally seeing the lens you have been looking through. WHAT YOU'LL LEARN: * Why you feel emotionally numb even when you're doing everything right — and the subconscious program driving it * What the agreement or belief you're looking through life actually is — and how to identify yours * How subconscious programs get formed between birth and age eight and why they keep running without you knowing * Why your children often mirror the agreements you modeled during your most anxious years — and how witnessing theirs can heal both of you * The difference between conditional love (earned) and unconditional love (already yours) * Why self awareness is the first crack of light — and why it is not enough on its own * Why hypnosis and subconscious work reaches what conscious effort and surface-level tools cannot * A simple breathing and visualization practice to meet the younger version of yourself who made the agreement REFLECTION: 1. What is the agreement or belief you are looking through life right now? What lens are you seeing everything through? 2. When did that agreement start? How old was the version of you who made it? 3. If you replaced that lens with unconditional love, how would you move through your day differently? 4. For the moms: what subconscious belief might you be watching play out in your child that you recognize from your own story? If anxiety feels like a constant hum of "not enough no matter what I do,"  Grab the free 5-Minute Nervous System Reset.  [https://thegrowthgoddess.net/reset] It's a tool to bring you back to yourself when the autopilot takes over.  And if you're ready to stop collecting insights and actually feel the shift in your body. Book a Free Freedom Roadmap Session [https://link.thegrowthgoddess.net/widget/bookings/freedomroadmapsession]  It's just a conversation. No pressure.   You're not broken. You're not behind. And you're not alone. If you made it here, that means something. 5 minute nervous system reset ad for midroll