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It's Therapy Thursday

Ever feel like you’re always “on,” even when nothing is actually wrong? We sit down with former police officer turned intuitive life coach and nervous system specialist Valerie Holden to explore how constant yellow-zone living steals sleep, fuels anxiety, and quietly taxes the body. Valerie shares why calm is a skill, not a mood, and how your presence can de-escalate a room before a single word is said.

We dig into the biology behind stress—how adrenaline moves fast but cortisol lingers—and why stacking worries keeps your mind racing long after the meeting or email is over. Valerie lays out micro-practices that fit real life: emotional freedom tapping, simple figure eights around the eyes, and three quiet minutes behind a closed door. She also reframes productivity through intuition and flow. Aim for the outcome, not the exact route, and let your best channel—feeling, images, inner voice, or knowing—guide the next step. The result isn’t passivity; it’s smarter sequencing that feels lighter and gets more done.

The conversation moves from validation and self-trust to compassionate accountability. Sometimes we need perspective; sometimes we need a friend to call our bluff on procrastination. We talk about modern pressure to “keep up,” including AI. Valerie uses tools like ChatGPT to save hours, while reminding us to choose what we actually want, not what the feed celebrates. For those ready for support, she outlines a 90-day framework that blends education, practice, and personalization, with clear boundaries and referrals when medical or therapeutic care is needed.

If your body has been carrying your life on fumes, this is a humane reset. You don’t need to escape your life to feel better. You need a nervous system that can carry the life you’ve built. Subscribe, share with a friend who lives in permanent “yellow,” and leave a review with the one tool you’ll try this week.

Valerie Holden is a former police officer turned intuitive life coach and nervous system wellness specialist. She helps high-achieving, high-pressure professionals reduce stress, regain emotional balance, and feel calm and in control again. Blending practical tools with mind-body techniques, Valerie teaches simple ways to reset the nervous system so success doesn’t come at the cost of well-being.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ValerieHoldenWellness

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/valerieholdenwellness/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/valerieholdenwellness/

Website: https://valerieholden.com

Support the show

Host Candace Patrice
Co-host Janet Hale

visit the website at https://www.essentialmotivation.com/
visit the store at https://shopessentialmotivation.com/
Instagram instagram.com/essentialmotivationllc

visit Janet's website https://haleempowermentllc.com/

To be a guest on our show email me at candacefleming@essentialmotivation.com
In the subject line put EMH Guest

Suicide Prevention Lifeline 988

Music by Lukrembo: https://soundcloud.com/lukrembo
Provided by Knowledge Base: https://bit.ly/2BdvqzN

Send us a text

It's Therapy Thursday!!

What if the most powerful thing you did this year was stop trying to be “soft enough” and started speaking with clean, direct honesty? That’s the energy we bring to a wide-ranging conversation with Lani Gonzales—former attorney turned hypnotherapist—on women’s intuition, subconscious healing, and boundaries that actually hold.

We trace Lani’s journey from high-achiever to embodied guide, and unpack a big mental health insight: talk therapy helps us name and cope, while hypnotherapy can locate root causes and rewrite the story beneath the surface. Lani breaks down the difference between meditation’s awareness and hypnosis’s agenda, and explains why not every nervous system needs the same approach. You’ll hear why some clients need activation before calm, how self-hypnosis works in daily life, and what changed after decades of cyclical suicidal ideation.

We also confront the myth that directness is “masculine.” Confidence is an embodied trait. Through archetypes—queen, warrior, sage, mystic—Lani invites women to claim a fuller range of power, including the season where leadership and wisdom become our primary contribution. Along the way, we talk sisterhood, co-regulation, and why being “triggering” can mean you’re modeling what’s possible.

Practical takeaways land hard and kind: don’t rush forgiveness; anger is a teacher of injustice. Use two simple phrases to stop mental gymnastics and invite repair: “That didn’t sit well with me” and “Help me understand.” If a line is crossed again, you don’t owe a speech—let your exit be the consequence. Emotional maturity doesn’t mean feeling less; it means noticing faster and choosing your response with integrity.

Lani shares how she works in focused three-session packages with integration homework, plus upcoming retreats and women’s groups designed to build resilience, purpose, and conscious business. If you’re craving clarity, community, and tools that reach deeper than willpower, this one meets you where you are—and walks with you to where you’re going.

If this resonated, follow the show, share it with a friend who needs these tools, and leave a review so more women can find this conversation.

Lani Gonzales is a clinical hypnotherapist, former attorney, author, and subconscious performance expert who helps high-achieving women and leaders rewire limiting beliefs, regulate their nervous systems, and live more aligned, fulfilled lives. After leaving a 13-year legal career as a law firm partner, Lani now blends neuroscience, subconscious reprogramming, trauma-informed practices, and spirituality to support deep personal transformation.

Links:

www.LaniGonzales.com

https://www.instagram.com/lanigonzales.unlimited

https://www.facebook.com/gonzaleslani/

Support the show

Host Candace Patrice
Co-host Janet Hale

visit the website at https://www.essentialmotivation.com/
visit the store at https://shopessentialmotivation.com/
Instagram instagram.com/essentialmotivationllc

visit Janet's website https://haleempowermentllc.com/

To be a guest on our show email me at candacefleming@essentialmotivation.com
In the subject line put EMH Guest

Suicide Prevention Lifeline 988

Music by Lukrembo: https://soundcloud.com/lukrembo
Provided by Knowledge Base: https://bit.ly/2BdvqzN

Send us a text

Therapy Thursday

What if bravery looked less like a roar and more like a 10-minute habit you actually keep? We sit down with author and educator Renee Zukin to explore radical bravery as a daily practice, not a performance. From quarterly life planning to the tiny wins that keep momentum alive, we unpack how consistency, compassion, and honest conversations reshape mental health in the real world.

Renee shares her path through OCD, intrusive thoughts, and panic—how a diagnosis brought clarity, how exposure and cognitive tools changed her thinking, and why regression during COVID wasn’t a failure but an invitation to use hard-won skills again. Her story reframes courage on a sliding scale: some days it’s getting out of bed or eating the meal in front of you; other days it’s flying after years on the ground. We also talk about the hidden cost of faking confidence at work, and why simple resets—standing in a meeting, a 30-second breath, a quick walk—can protect your nervous system and prevent burnout.

The heart of the episode is truth-telling with care. We model tough mother-daughter conversations that stay tender, not damaging, and show how writing or reflection can create clarity before you speak. Add in practical tools like the Finch app for micro-habits, and a quarter-by-quarter approach that turns big visions into small steps, and you’ve got a roadmap for growth that honors real life. Everyone is brave about something. Name yours, take the next tiny step, and keep going.

If this resonated, follow the show, share it with a friend who needs courage today, and leave a quick review so more listeners can find these conversations.

Renee Zukin is an author, educator, coach, and
mental health advocate doing the inner work to see
outer change. She has more than 20 years of
experience in education, writing, and
entrepreneurship, and has studied multiple
psychological and healing modalities that have
sustained her and helped support her students and
clients alike. Renee is passionate about cultivating a
safe space for others to use the written word and
organizational structures as tools for
self-transformation and empowerment.

Website

Book Link Everyday I'm Brave

Support the show

Host Candace Patrice
Co-host Janet Hale

visit the website at https://www.essentialmotivation.com/
visit the store at https://shopessentialmotivation.com/
Instagram instagram.com/essentialmotivationllc

visit Janet's website https://haleempowermentllc.com/

To be a guest on our show email me at candacefleming@essentialmotivation.com
In the subject line put EMH Guest

Suicide Prevention Lifeline 988

Music by Lukrembo: https://soundcloud.com/lukrembo
Provided by Knowledge Base: https://bit.ly/2BdvqzN