Right in Front of My Face

In the nation's biggest Covid pivot, Roe V. Wade was overturned on June 24th and I knew that I wanted to address it as the last episode of season 4.  Kia Guarino, Executive Director of Pro-Choice Washington, the only agency in WA State whose sole focus is on "political and legislative adovcacy for reproductive freedom in WA State," sits down with me to discuss how this happened and what we can do to move forward.

The reversal of Roe V. Wade is done and there is currently a federal abortion ban on the table, so policy is one of the only tools we have to keep abortion accessible to all people.  But I'm not sure many of us understand what to do or how to apply ourselves to policy change and that's where Ms. Guarino comes in. 

My hope for this episode is that you leave with a sense of what the truth is, and get some tools to help normalize the word abortion and the conversations that surround it. 

Pro-Choice Washington's How to Talk About Abortion Guide

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Walker-Johnson Real Estate

Today we're talking about the most personal of Covid pivots.  My podcast sponsor Cassie Walker-Johnson is with me today to discuss her covid pivot of a breast cancer diagnoses.  

Cassie is my friend.  She is a successful real estate agent, she's a mom, a wife, an incredible connector and networker and in December of 2020 she got a call that 1 in 7 women will get - the call from the doctor telling her she has cancer.  

Over the next hour, Cassie is going to share her experience so please know we talk about cancer, surgery and chemo.  We also talk about helping our sisters that get diagnosed and about how we can best serve each other.  Cassie's mom asked me if this was going to be a "silver lining" podcast and I assure you it is.  It's the most honest conversation about cancer I've ever had, and I hope you learn as much from it as I did.  

This interview is meant to serve as a tool.  Cassie wants her experience to help others who get this diagnosis and remind us that there are silver linings even in cancer.  

Today, we're talking about a Covid pivot I've seen lately - divorce.  Strange that being locked in a house with your partner would make you questions your life's choices...

Because I'm hearing anecdotal evidence about more people splitting this year than in the past, I decided to do some research on whether or not what I was hearing on the street was actually true.  Turns out, it might be. 

Rather than turning to a divorce lawyer for statistics and doom, I thought it would be more illuminating to hear from a Gottman certified marriage therapist - maybe we can come out of this 50 minues with some advice and hope rather than doom for our relationships.  Enter Zach Brittle.  

Zach is a gottman certified marriage therapist, best selling author and also a podcaster.  His show Marriage Therapy Radio provides weekly insights into the daily struggles of marriage and offers a look into the science behind relationships.  

For anyone in a partnership, this episode isn't a downer - it's meant to give us all some new tools and perspective as we all reset post-covid.  Let's face it - most relationships could benefit from some new tools in the toolbox. 

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Thank you Sponsors!!!!!

Johnson and Walker Real Estate

and on IG @johnson_and_walker

Erin Quick is the CEO and Co-Founder of PairTree, a company that is modernizing the adoption process.  Erin is a powerhouse - she's founded three successful startups, she's a Puget Sound Business Journal 40 under 40, she's a marketer and branding professional, and maybe most importantly, Erin is also a mother.  

When Erin's fertility path led to adoption, she, as a marketer and brander, began asking questions about the process and wondering why it had to be the way it was - expensive, discriminatory, and long.  After deviating from the norm and adopting two kids with her own team, her circle started reaching out for help.  That circle grew, and before she knew it, she realized her calling was to modernize adoption and figure out how to allow all families to grow without an agency if they so desired.  All in Spring of 2020.  While she was homeschooling a Kindergartner and Pre-schooler.

It's not often that you get to speak to a visionary.  This interview is one where I walked away knowing that I was speaking to someone who is going to change the world.  I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. 

Trigger warnings - we talk about infertility, miscarriage and loss in this episode.  We discuss adoption, placement and all the things that come with it.  

If you are considering adoption or placement please find PairTree here. 

PairTree on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pairtreefamily/

Please leave a 5 star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify!  

Thank you to my sponsors:

Johnson and Walker Real Estate

Jon Grus at Element Mortgage

The last two years have me wondering "why on Earth would anyone rational go into politics?"  The political landscape seems toxic at the moment and because we need rational, intelligent people to run, I think a lot of us wonder who in their right mind would do it?  

Dr. Lelach Rave reached out a couple of. months ago because she decided to leave a successful Pediatric medical practice to run for an open State House Representative spot in my district.  She explained that she felt like if we got things right with kids and health in Olympia, everything else owuld follow.  I was intrigued.

The next hour is not an endorsement, but rather a conversation between two citizens.  Dr. Rave's pivot during Covid fit the theme perfectly and I wanted to get to know the woman behind the campaign.  Enjoy. 

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Thank you to my amazing sponsors:

Johnson and Walker Real Estate

Element Mortgage 

Emily Cherkin, The Screentime Consultant and I had one of the most thought-provoking conversations to date on the podcast this week.  If you are someone who has concerns and questions about whether or not to toss your child into the world of social media, don't move.  You need to hear this.

Find Emily Cherkin on her website

On her YouTube Channel

And on her Instagram

Thank you to my sponsors Johnson and Walker Realty

And Element Mortgage

Erin is a hustler - it's not that she doesn't have imposter syndrome, it's just that she's learned to work through it.  Her resiliance is something we can all learn from.  

Find Erin on IG at @Contour.and.Ink

And me @rightinfrontofmyface

Dr. Rao is so much more than just a physician.  He's a visionary.  I've heard him described by his peers as a "legend."  A "Genius." and "the coolest person ever."  True story - these are words used by doctors, his peers and his patients.  He's made a career choice reflective of his own values, and continued learning in his own right with his newest venture into the world of handcrafted footwear through his IG and YouTube Welted Ware.  

This conversation covers some ground but it includes the state of modern D1 athletes during Covid, the challenges they face moving forward, and how sports medicine is evolving to handle the new science that is college sports.  

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Kristi Lord and Lindsay Droz, co-founders of L'Avant Collective sit down with me to discuss their posh plant-based cleaning product company, share their philosophy and mindset, and reveal their secret to keeping resilience through Covid.  

RIFOMF listeners get a 20% discount code - 1st ever!!  Go to www.lavantcollective.com

use code RIF20 to score yourself some of Gwynneth Paltrow's favorite cleaning supplies.  

Season 4 will continue to inspire as we discuss career pivots and success during pandemic.  Keep asking questions - you never what's happening right in front of your face. 

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It’s been a long ride for season 3, people.  This is actually going to be my last podcast for this season and I want to go end on this episode specifically because of the topic.  Burnout.

This is a personal episode for me because I’m processing my own burnout at the moment.  In September, when my kids went back to school, I suddenly had some silence and space to realize how much emotion I’ve been carrying around for the last year.  As I got the Google photo memories of last September that included my son doing school alone in our basement, I realized just how much sadness, fear, grief, and anxiety I’ve been shouldering and it really truly triggered me to the point where I had to just take a pause and honor what I was feeling.  It wasn’t anxiety, it wasn’t depression - it was almost a weird apathy and detachment.  

As I do, I was chatting with one of my friends about how I was feeling and she said, “I think you should talk to Lori Prutsman…because it sounds like you’re just completely burned out.”  Lori is the Seattle burnout coach - she’s a corporate powerhouse turned Life Coach who is now dedicating her life to helping people through burnout and finding the best version of themselves.  As someone who experienced very real physical and mental burnout, she’s an expert in getting through this phase and coming out successful on the other end.  

In this episode we talk about what the real definition of burnout is, I reveal a bit about my own struggle, and we talk about how to get through it.  If you take nothing else from this hour, know that if you are having these feelings, you are absolutely not alone.  

I want to leave you all with a thought.  I read this online -   Burnout reduces productivity and saps your energy, leaving you feeling increasingly helpless, hopeless, cynical, and resentful. Eventually, you may feel like you have nothing more to give.

But the truth is, you have more to give.  You are more than these feelings.  I am actively trying to practice what we talked about in this episode and that includes being honest with myself about how I’m feeling and seeking help - with therapy, with letting my family know when I’m overwhelmed, and most importantly, trying to do things that fill my cup with joy.  And one of those things is this podcast.

I am kissing season 3 goodbye because next season I have a new focus - that focus will be on people who have made something wonderful during Covid.  It includes sharing the stories of several female business owners who have taken opportunities, bet on themselves, and are absolutely crushing it.  I am beyond proud of the first 3 seasons of this podcast - but season 4 is going to be all about inspiration, joy and success.  It’s going to be the bucket filler season and I hope that you’ll continue to join me for the ride.  Thank you so much for your support and continuing to adventure with me.  You can find me on insta @rightinfrontofmyface, on twitter @infrontofmyface and via email infrontofmyface@gmail.com. 

You can find Lori Prutsman here: 

Today’s topic deals with the one thing that has been literally in front of my face non-stop for the last 18 months.  My children. 

Dr. Kate Monahan Phd, CFLE is a Developmental Psychologist and an expert in childhood development.  Her company Parent With Science is dedicated to helping parents through their journey with advice based in science, not trends or Google. Her instagram @parentwithscience is an awesome follow.   She’s done all the research for us and tries to pass along what works for kids from a scientific perspective.  Her straightforward advice is usually dead on. 

She just wrote a book called “How to Be a Relaxed mom - the three secrets to avoid modern mom stress and raise great kids.”  Dr. Kate, I need you now.  And so do all of us.  This is a conversation for everyone - moms, dads, anyone who is with a child and needs someone on their team to give them actual practical strategies, no judgement, and a high five.  This is a longer conversation than usual because I didn’t want to cut anything out.

Buy her book here: 

Book sessions with her here: 

Todays topic is a broadstrokes lesson on Indigenous Human Rights with activist and attorney, Gabe Galanda.  There was a story on the news last week that followed the re-naming of the Indiana pro baseball team from the Chiefs to the Guardians - and now that I have this conversation under my belt, I understand the importance of it in an entirely new way and I hope you will too.

 If you walked by Gabe on the street, you’d  have no idea that he was raised on a reservation, deviated from the norm of his tribe and went to college,  followed by law school, and has now dedicated his law practice and life to helping the disenfranchised and representing tribal governments, and citizens.  You’d never guess by looking at him that for 13 years he’s been named to Best Lawyers in America in the field of Native American Law, and dubbed a Super Lawyer by his peers from 2013 to 2020. 

I have to fess up to the fact that I know this about Gabe because his family and mine have been friends for a long time.  I’ve known him for about 9 years and in that time have seen him take higher profile cases as well as become a community activist in my neighborhood.  Gabe is by far my favorite person to ask any question I have about politics because his lens on life is so clear and focused.  He’s brilliant so he always knows most of the answers to my questions, but he’s pragmatic and solution focused so doesn’t just rant - he usually has a pretty smart proposal to solve whatever problem we’re faced with, and knows that political system well enough to tell me the truth about what’s going on.  

I follow him on Twitter which you should absolutely do too @NDNlawyer - because he’d been quoted in an article that I’d read through his feed.  We’ll talk about the case he was quoted on in the podcast.  But through that article and his feed, I’d kept reading words I didn’t really understand like “blood quantum” and disenrollment, which as a white person I’d never heard.  My Caucasian tribe has never once questioned my ancestry or asked how much Irish I actually have in my DNA - I’ve just never had to worry about it.   So I studied up a bit so when Gabe came to dinner to ask him all about it. 

I want to thank Gabe for coming to the table with real honesty and eagerness to teach and give an opinion.  There are people in life who, when they speak, you listen and realize how much you have to learn.  Gabe is one of those people.  Thankfully, Gabe is willing to patiently answer all my questions and educate those of us who don’t know about indigenous rights.  We owe it to ourselves and our Indigenous brothers and sisters to learn. 

Ryan Oftebro and I recorded this episode a little over a month ago - I’d wanted to interview Ryan over a year ago about this topic because Ryan is Principal and CEO of Kelly-Ross Pharmacy group here in Seattle.  Kelly-Ross remains one of the few independently owned pharmacies in our area and Ryan, as the incoming president of the WA State Pharmacy association, has some unique visibility into the number of opioid prescription and overdose in our state.  I knew generally that Ryan had lobbied in Olympia to fight Opioid addiction, and that he was somewhat of an expert, so he became my guru in my quest for education.  

As Covid slowly took over, he and I talked at length about the effects of having people in isolation, unable to use their regular drug dealers, how this would impact addiction and overdose.  A year ago he told me that it would be catastrophic and as it turns out, he was right.  

Adia Callahan happens to be my pilates instructor.  She’d been absolutely kicking my butt for three weeks before I found out she had a podcast and a life coaching business which I obviously wanted to learn all about.  As women in our mid-40’s, we have a chat about how this new life phase impacts our general fitness and wellness, and we cover quite a few topics.   She generously took an hour to basically coach me and share her philosophy and style.  Adia stopped me dead in my tracks with one of her questions and I hope she’ll make you take pause and also ask yourself, “what do you really want?”  

You can find Adia on See Me Wellness or take a class from her if you’re in Seattle at the Pilates HUB.  Thanks for listening - please share with a friend or rate and review if you like what you hear.

Mayoral candidate Casey Sixkiller gives us 80 minutes of himself.  He's a resident of my neighborhood, someone who is in my community and right in front of my face.  Casey came on the show to tell his story, tell us about what a campaign looks like, his basic plans, and tell me why he decided to run.  And I did what I do - ask simple questions I think we all have, and talk about uncomfortable topics in a non-judgmental way. 

In this episode,  I’m going to cover a topic that I find extremely uncomfortable, especially as a mother of a young daughter.  This week’s subject is human trafficking.  This topic is so layered, with so many different faces, and I wanted to tackle it because as parents and just as humans, we cannot continue looking the other way when we drive down the street and see this happening.  We have to educate ourselves and our kids and we have to do it now.  We have to shine some light on what’s happening in broad daylight right in front of us. 

Carrie Littlefield Syvertsen is the 2020 National School Social worker of the year.  She was recognized last March and her chance to be on a national stage with the leaders of the US Government recognizing her and her contributions was cancelled.  So instead of going to DC for her awards ceremony, she was quarantined with two small children and  having to homeschool.  Her professional expertise gave me so much insight on what kids are dealing with - especially middle schoolers - and what as parents we can look for as warning signs as our kids re enter school and life.  There is nothing more right in front of parents than this transition for our kids, and this episode was meant to help you all be able to better support your children

Are you hesitant to receive the Covid-19 vaccine? You're most definitely not alone. Approximately 30% of healthcare workers are hesitant as we've learned in the last month, so it seems reasonable private citizens would have similar fears. So let's talk about them. Dr. April Randhawa has been a part of the Covid-19 vaccine trials since they began. She is an actual expert in immune response with a PhD in experimental medicine. Dr. Randhawa has first person insight into how these trials were run through the Covid-19 Prevention Network, the safety measures taken, and how the vaccine actually works. She’s credible, she’s brilliant, and she breaks down common questions with empathy.  Here is our hour together. 

Aaron Wright is on the show today. He's the author of Thirteen Doors, which is due out on January 26th. Aaron’s family dealt with a big topic right in front of my face - navigating the Davis, CA public school system in an attempt to get an IEP for his autistic daughter.