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The Colorado Counseling Podcast

The Colorado Counseling Podcast

Written by: Overcomers Counseling
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Welcome to the Colorado Counseling Podcast by Overcomers Counseling, your trusted guide to mental health. Based in Colorado Springs, this podcast helps you navigate challenges like anxiety, depression, and relationship issues. Join us as we explore, learn, and grow together. Your journey to understanding and resilience starts here. Listen now and become an overcomer.

Copyright 2025 All rights reserved. Hygiene & Healthy Living Psychology Psychology & Mental Health
Episodes
  • Daily Affirmations for Married Couples

    Daily Affirmations for Married Couples
    Apr 8 2025

    Welcome to the Colorado Counseling Podcast with your host, Jenny. This episode is all about strengthening your marriage through the power of daily affirmations. Relationships thrive on intention, trust, and love, but the day-to-day busyness of life can make it easy to lose focus on nurturing that connection. Jenny shares how affirmations can become a simple, meaningful ritual to deepen emotional intimacy and celebrate the bond you share with your partner. Tune in for a guided collection of affirmations designed to bring you closer, find resolutions, and you can practice together or reflect on them individually. Create space for connection and love, one intentional word at a time.
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    6 mins
  • Meditation for Athletes

    Meditation for Athletes
    Apr 4 2025
    Athletes know that physical preparation is only part of the equation when it comes to peak performance. The mind plays a critical role in determining how you perform under pressure, how well you adapt to the demands of competition, and how confidently you step into big moments. Guided meditation for athletes can make a difference and help you improve sports performance. It’s a simple yet powerful tool to sharpen focus, build mental clarity, and calm pre-game nerves, all while fostering the confidence you need to compete at your best. Imagine going into your next competition with a steady mind and renewed sense of purpose. Meditation allows you to do just that. It’s not just about relaxation; it’s about cultivating self-belief and emotional control, helping you take control of your mental game as much as your physical one. This can give you an edge in your competitive performance. Find other mental preparation ideas, and schedule a counseling session at our Colorado Springs offices. The Intersection of Mindfulness and Athletic Performance Mental resilience is one of the most underrated aspects of sports performance. While your body may be in top condition, if your mind feels crowded with self-doubt or negativity, it can affect how you feel and perform. Guided meditation helps clear mental clutter, steady your emotions, and bring your focus back to what truly matters. Through mindfulness meditation, you train your brain to stay connected to the present moment, eliminating unnecessary distractions and boosting emotional control. This kind of mental conditioning isn’t new to athletes. Many athletes have turned to practices like square breathing and visualization to stay calm under pressure and tap into their full potential, and research in sports psychology has shown the benefits of making meditation a regular part of training. Whether you’re stepping onto the court, the field, or the track, the mindfulness skills you develop in meditation allow you to manage expectations with grace and perform with clarity and poise. Setting the Stage for Your Meditation Practice Before you begin, it’s helpful to create an environment that feels calm, supportive, and personal. Find a quiet space where you can sit comfortably—whether that’s on a chair, the floor, or lying down. Make a small ritual out of preparing for your session. You might dim the lights, stretch briefly, or take a moment to settle into the space around you. This isn’t just physical preparation; it’s also signaling to your mind that it’s time to focus inward. Close your eyes, and take a deep, steady breath in through your nose, followed by a long, calming exhale through your mouth. This process of slow breathing helps calm your nervous system and grounds you in the present moment. Each breath becomes an anchor. If your thoughts wander, gently return your focus to the rise and fall of your breath. Why Visualization Works for Athletes One of the most effective tools in guided meditation is visualization, a technique that’s been widely used in athletics for its performance benefits. Visualization allows you to mentally rehearse success long before you step into competition, helping build self-confidence and reduce uncertainty. It creates a mental roadmap for your body to follow. Picture yourself in your element, fully immersed in the sights, sounds, and sensations of gameday. Maybe you’re on a basketball court, brushing your fingers over the polished floor, or lacing up your cleats on a freshly lined football field. Engage all your senses—what can you hear, feel, and see around you? This process doesn’t just boost confidence; it activates the same neural pathways in your brain that light up during actual performance, helping you feel more prepared and in control. Once you’ve visualized your setting, take the scene a step further. Imagine each physical movement unfolding with precision and power. Feel the strength in your legs as you sprint forward, the steadiness in your hands as you execute a pass, or the lightness in your step as you approach the finish line. Each breath fills you with intention, and each movement feels fueled by both preparation and calm determination. Harnessing the Power of Breath Breathwork is foundational in every mindfulness practice, and for athletes, it’s a secret weapon. Breathing techniques like square breathing—inhale for four seconds, hold for four seconds, exhale for four seconds—have been shown to lower heart rates, calm the mind, and improve emotional control. Repeating this rhythm during meditation is an excellent way to practice staying composed under pressure. Imagine applying this technique mid-competition. Deep breathing helps keep emotions in check during stressful moments, like taking a penalty kick or entering the final lap of a race. Being aware of your breath connects your brain with your body, giving you the control to slow your heart rate, reduce stress, and ...
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    12 mins
  • Releasing Shame Meditation

    Releasing Shame Meditation
    Mar 24 2025
    Shame is one of the heaviest emotions we can carry. It often sits quietly in the background, influencing thoughts, behaviors, and the way we perceive ourselves. While everyone experiences shame at some point, it’s easy to forget that this feeling doesn’t define who we are. Releasing shame requires curiosity, patience, and self-compassion. Through a guided meditation for releasing shame, you can create a safe space to explore this emotion, untangle its hold, soothe compulsions (if any), and replace it with understanding and kindness. This process is not about silencing shame or forcing it to disappear but about transforming it into something lighter, an opportunity for healing. Guided meditation becomes your tool for navigating this path, offering rest, perspective, and the chance to reconnect with the worthiness already within you. What Does Shame Feel Like in the Body? Shame doesn’t just stay in the mind; it finds a home in the body. For some, it feels like tightness in the chest or a knot in the stomach, while others experience a lump in the throat or a sensation of weight on the shoulders. These physical manifestations are the body’s way of releasing signals that something needs attention. Take a moment to gently notice where shame resides in your body. This isn’t about judgment or trying to fix anything. It’s about curiosity and awareness. When we approach shame with compassion, we allow it to loosen its grip, making space for release. Why Guided Meditation Helps Releasing shame is no easy task, but meditation provides a framework for approaching it with care. Guided meditation offers a structure to help you stay in the present moment while exploring your feelings. It anchors you with tools like deep breathing, body scans, and visualizations, empowering you to process shame by observing instead of judging. What makes this practice so effective is its focus on mindfulness. Mindfulness teaches you to focus on your experience as it is, without criticism. When shame arises, guided meditation reminds you, “This is a feeling, not who I am.” With consistency, this practice transforms shame into clarity and compassion. Exploring and Releasing Shame Imagine sitting quietly in a space that feels safe and supportive. You’re breathing slowly, letting your body relax and your mind settle. This is the foundation of guided meditation—creating a sanctuary where you can gently connect with your emotions. Start with your breath. The rhythm of inhaling and exhaling becomes a steady anchor. Feel it filling your lungs and creating room to process whatever arises. Bring awareness to the shame you may be carrying. Does it have a shape, a color, or a texture? Visualize wrapping this feeling in warmth and care, letting each breath soften its intensity. One powerful exercise involves picturing shame as a cloud. This cloud may have been following you, heavy and persistent. But with each breath, the edges start to dissolve. You can imagine it shrinking, dissipating into a clear blue sky, leaving behind lightness and calm. Self-Compassion as a Path to Freedom A guided meditation for releasing shame doesn’t just help you notice and process the emotion—it teaches self-compassion as the ultimate act of healing. Shame often arrives with self-judgment or guilt, making it easy to feel stuck. Compassion helps change the narrative. Consider a moment when you felt overwhelmed by shame. Instead of resisting those feelings or harshly critiquing yourself, gently ask, “What do I need most right now?” This question brings kindness into the experience. Maybe you need acknowledgment or validation. Perhaps it’s the reminder that feeling shame doesn’t mean you’ve done something wrong, it simply means you’re human. You might use the metaphor of the adult chair model in your practice. Picture yourself stepping into a chair of understanding and wisdom, one that exists to hold space for emotions without letting them consume you. This allows shame to lose its power, transforming into a feeling you can observe rather than an identity you carry. Visualization as a Tool for Healing Visualization is a powerful element of guided meditation for releasing shame. Imagine yourself standing in a place that feels calm and safe—a forest, a mountain, or a luminous sanctuary. Within this space, create an energy source like a stream, a fire, or a glowing light. Visualize gathering your shame into a tangible form, perhaps as a bundle or weight in your hands. With each exhale, gently place a part of this shame into the energy source, watching as it transforms. The stream might carry it away, the fire could dissolve it, or the light might absorb and release its heaviness. Notice how your body feels as the weight begins to lift. There’s freedom in letting go, not as a way to erase the past but as an act of creating space for growth, awareness, and self-compassion. The Role of Affirmations Guided meditation often includes ...
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    12 mins
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