mental health for moms

In this episode you will uncover why this is an important change in perspective: The answer is not always about taking things off of your plate. It depends on what drives you. Ever wanted to gain self-awareness around what makes you go, stop, or bounce back up faster? Listen with an open mind to this episode. 

Some moms with their own businesses rise to the occasion when a business challenge arises. Going after worthy goals clears up a busy life like no other thing has for me. You might be the same way? Have a think about it.
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Other moms implode when a business challenge arises. Your anxiety hijacks your thinking brain and you go into a perpetual fight or flight. Dishes crash to the ground like a traditional Greek wedding except with little dancing. Is that your truth?
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The key is in knowing who you are and what makes you do things that you may have never witnessed another mother do ever in your lifetime.

This week I am seeking 5 visionary mom entrepreneurs who rise up when put in a position to accept a business challenge. You'll know this is you based on your most memorable business days last year --- have your best days been when you astounded yourself and met a challenge or declined to step up your game in business for your own reasons. Neither is wrong.

There are seasons in motherhood and in business. However, I bet you have a preference? Let's talk for 15-minutes if you are the riser.  https://go.oncehub.com/ClientSessionMelissaLlarena​

This is an official call for 4 fabulous women. I'm prepared to share the insights that have built my relationships with powerful and genuine humans over the last 12-years. On our Zoom call I can shed light on why 9-weeks is all it'll take with me as your guide. 

If you are committed to doing what it really takes to change how you approach your business and mom life then you might qualify to be one of my fabulous 5 group coaching participants.

If you have a fight in you for YOU then you might be the right fit. If you have not yet given up on all the power and potential other people see in you then we should talk. It's time to rise up. Reclaiming your power is a daily choice. If this resonates be sure to choose the best time on my calendar. Rise up!

​Book your time on my calendar today for the soonest slot you can snag.

Let's talk: https://go.oncehub.com/ClientSessionMelissaLlarena​​

Thank you,

Melissa Llarena

Bestselling Author of Fertile Imagination: A Guide for Stretching Every Mom's Superpower for Maximum Impact

Today’s guest is Dr. Morgan Cutlip. She holds a PhD in Psychology and is a highly sought after relationship expert, content creator and writer whose most recent book Love Your Kids Without Losing Yourself helps women to mother themselves the way they mother their kids and reclaim their own voice.  I wanted to bring Morgan on because, to reiterate, I think we’ve set up a system that isn’t putting Moms in a position to succeed. They are expected to be everything to everyone--of course there’s burnout and a feeling of failure in all areas.
Morgan provides a path to see that motherhood isn’t a restriction to your life and creativity, but rather, can be an expansion.

From this conversation you’ll learn:

• How to navigate the journey of motherhood without losing yourself 
• How to go from dream to releasing your creative project
• Why it's important to mother yourself as you would mother your children
• How to let go of the dream of balance and STILL find a way to have a full life
• Why it's possible AND Probable for moms to still have their great creative renaissance and unleash after birth
• How to regain your creativity, post-baby
• How to deal with kids protesting your creative time
• What is required of a mother’s partner in order to make mothering not feel impossible
• Why Motherhood is an expansion not a restriction 
• How to unblock your creativity 
• And Much More!
  

-Remember to subscribe/follow the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your pods. Please leave us a rating and review- it helps SO much in getting the show out there. And tell a friend about the show- podcasts are very personal and tend to be spread person to person. If this show helped you or made you smile, share the love :)

Follow the show: @unleashyourinnercreative   

Follow me: @LaurenLoGrasso

Welcome to episode 201!

On October 31, I am offering the Kindle version of my book Fertile Imagination: A Guide for Stretching Every Mom's Superpower for Maximum Impact for only 99 cents on Halloween. If you love a sale and want to be the first to be notified of when to shop, then sign up on www.fertileideas.com.

In this episode, for any mom who doesn't have time to read books, I will read to you what a mom in the thick of it with a toddler, a baby, limited childcare living as an expat and an online business has to say about the book, and what a great grandmother who has been visiting her grand-baby in the NICU for 110 days wanted to share with you too. In this episode, I will also share with you precisely for whom this book is for... strap on your seatbelt, get ready for a high-octane mini-episode because in 7 days, we're about to birth a book!

Say hi: https://www.instagram.com/melissallarena/

About the book: A fertile imagination can cast a powerful and compelling vision that will drive you to turn it into your reality, even if it's never been imagined as possible for mothers before. In this book, I feature my insights along with those of 25 highly imaginative guests, culminating with the CEO of GivingTuesday, Asha Curran, as a case study of using a fertile imagination to its maximum.

To call "Fertile Imagination" a book is perhaps the wrong term to use. It's a call to action, encouraging us to break free from the self-imposed limitations we put on ourselves and seize the vast potential that lies beyond our current view. It's a roadmap for readers to reconnect with their inner creativity. It encourages us to think beyond what we've been conditioned to believe about our limitations, to overcome impostor syndrome, and to break free from feeling stuck. Needless to say, "Fertile Imagination" is a must-read for any mother who has ever asked herself, "What if I want more?". It's a testament to the fact that you can be an incredible parent and still pursue your dreams.

Jenna Davis, Founder of Life in Germany:

Fertile Imagination is a virtual powerhouse of real-life scenarios that will help any woman (Moms especially) navigate today's workplace. I wish I had been given this kind of access to smart women back in the 70s when I was raising my boys as a single mother.

Kathy Ryan, Retired Managing Director Global Operations Ogilvy Worldwide:

Hearing from moms like you has turned Fertile Imagination into a rally cry….a decisive call to action to let go of what’s stopping you and re-engage everything you’ve got to drive really change forward….and as I thought about this…I came up with this….this book is from my heart to you.

To the moms who were denied their right to mat leave
To the moms whose birth plans were ripped to shreds
To the moms who are still in the trenches pumping themselves with hormones to have a child
To the moms who have twins who were pushed to get c-sections
To the moms who wanted vbacs and were hijacked of their dream
To the moms who feed their babies formula and who are made to feel like shit for doing so
To the moms who have degrees up the wazoo and opted out to raise humans
To the moms who have ever felt insecure or no longer important in the eyes of society
To the moms who were treated inhumanely during the pandemic when childcare was off the table
To the moms who own patents
To the moms who are at the helm of leadership of world-class organizations
To the moms who rather climbs mountains than stay in the valley of hellish experiences on any given day
To the moms who can’t
To the moms who can
To the moms who were elected into government positions
To the moms who hold Emmys or Sundance awards
To the moms who built million or billion dollar brands while being a mom
To the moms who cared for a sick child or beat their own illnesses to continue being a mom
To the moms who are unafraid to get into colosseums as if they too were a gladiator
To the moms who mom alone
To the moms who have had enough
To the moms who want more
To the moms who have finally figured it out and want to get ready to take matters into their own hands

**I want to hear from you! I'll be on Instagram on 10/31 and if you are not yet following me there, then pause this episode and do that today. Do that now. https://www.instagram.com/melissallarena/

About Melissa

Melissa Llarena is an author, imagination coach, consultant, speaker, and contributor to ForbesWomen articles that have garnered 4 million + views. She is also the host of Unimaginable Wellness, the podcast for entrepreneurs, founders, and creators who are also moms. Featured guests include GaryVee and Beth Comstock. Melissa holds a psychology degree from New York University, an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, and a Transformational Coaching Academy certificate. She is training to become a meditation practitioner. Melissa lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband and three sons. Visit www.fertileideas.com.

Do you know what YOUR "momscript" is? Are you simply following a script that has been handed down for generations? Or are you living your most authentic life, both at home and at work? If you're looking for a llittle help in this department, listen up!

In this episode of Lifeyness, host Sarah Clarke speaks with Melissa Llarena, author of the new book Fertile Imagination: A Guide for Stretching Every Mom’s Superpower for Maximum Impact.

Today we talk about how to be playful, imaginative, and successful, both in your career and in your family. Here are some key points:

• How Melissa worked to retain her pre-parent identity after having kids, playing a “mental game” to keep life feeling un-mom-like
• Melissa’s 3-step Imagination to Impact Method for rediscovering your sense of wonder and playfulness as a parent
• Ways moms can “wake up” their imagination again and rebuild trust in their creative side
• The power of play for bonding with your kids and unleashing the inner child in yourself
• Stretching your imagination to make a difference and share your vision with others
• Melissa’s outlook on learning from those outside the typical mom sphere to expand perspectives
• Overcoming “inherited motherhood scripts” that feel inauthentic to who you really are
• Embracing your quirks and giving yourself permission to explore weird ideas
• Finding fulfillment as a parent by nurturing your passions and gifts
• The influence moms can have on kids by pursuing their own creativity and purpose

Quotes:

“Your imagination does not like to be ignored, pushed down or said you're not cool.”

“There’s something to just finding that thing...that tickles you, whatever that means to you.”

“Why not give this a chance? What’s the worst that’s gonna happen? You’re gonna stub your toe ‘cause you were dancing like a wild person?”

"The more you [use your imagination], the better a mom you are."

Mentioned in this episode:

• Fertile Imagination by Melissa Llarena
• Unimaginable Wellness podcast
• The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron

Connect with Melissa:

Website: www.fertileideas.com

Instagram: @melissallarena

More about today's guest:

An online entrepreneur since 2011, Melissa Llarena launched her business in parallel to becoming a mom the first time around. One set of identical twins later, Melissa brings a decade of experience working for Fortune top-50 brands and over another decade as a solopreneur. She holds a psychology degree from New York University and an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, and a Transformational Coaching Academy certificate based on Tony Robbins’s principles and Landmark Education insights. She’s becoming a meditation practitioner, enrolled in The Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program with Tara Brach and Jack Kornfield. Her perspective has also been influenced by having lived for three years in Sydney, Australia, as an ex-pat family, and prior to motherhood, she worked and lived in NYC, London, and Paris. You can read her story “Imagine A Better Way” (Woodhall Press, 2023) in the anthology Fast Fallen Women. Melissa currently lives in Austin, Texas. 

Visit www.fertileideas.comfor resources (including a free book chapter) and speaking opportunities.   

Music Credit: William Claeson, "Song for a New Beginning"

We all can be prone to falling into the could have, would have, should have trap, and if only trap.

Dealing wtih regrets can cause sleeplessness, anxiety, depression, and pain and emotional hurt and suffering.  

It's time to think of it a more helpful way.  Listen in to get freed from your regrets from hindsight bias.

What do first-class airplane rides, kangaroos, and substance abuse have in common?  A schema framework that Michelle uses to explain how exploring your thoughts and changing your surroundings can help you to grow and gain new skills toward a healthier mental, emotional, and spiritual life.  Listen in!