Episodes

The great spiritual leader, Desmond Tutu died last week, and Resiliency Within was already planning to enter the new year with his message of joy. We will celebrate his life in this episode highlighting his dialogue with His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s about joy as expressed in their book, The Book of Joy. Desmond Tutu called himself the “prisoner of hope” and his message of hope and joy will live on. Many people in our world have expressed being tired and feeling a sense of hopelessness about the...

The Trauma Resource Institute (TRI) sponsors Resiliency Within on VoiceAmerica. Elaine Miller-Karas, the co-founder and Dr. Michael Sapp, the CEO of the Trauma Resource Institute will discuss their innovative ideas of how to heal trauma and cultivate well-being, leading to compassionate and empathic perspectives in children as well as adults. Dr. Sapp and Elaine Miller-Karas will discuss the global reach of the Trauma Resource Institute and how their workshops have been delivered to diverse grou...

Jennifer Burton, LMFT, a leading psychotherapist in Los Angeles and San Francisco, shares her wisdom about how we can cultivate our grace and compassion during challenges we all are facing during unprecedented times. Grace is defined as an attitude of friendliness, helpfulness and cooperation. In today’s times, it has been hard to discover Grace at times when many of us have faced uncertainty, polarization and grief from losing loved ones. She will share how she has integrated a variety of treat...

The events this past week in Mayfield, Kentucky and the surrounding areas have shown us the tragedy of climate events and how every person in the community is affected. We must not forget the mental health challenges resulting from this experience. Elaine Miller-Karas, the key developer of the Community Resiliency Model and Dr. Michael Sapp, the CEO of the Trauma Resource Institute will help our listeners understand how the wellness skills of the Community Resiliency Model can help community mem...

Michael Tobin will share the journey of his book, Riding the Edge, a Love Song for Deborah.The book chronicles the around the world journey of two soulmates, who the security of their well-ordered lives in search of larger truths. Forty-seven years ago, Michael discovered his soulmate Deborah on a dance floor in Keene, New Hampshire. It took her soul a few years and an around-the-world bike trek to fully reciprocate. Riding the Edge is the astonishing tale of the six-month odyssey that profoundl...

Veterans Dr. William Cross and Dr. Mark Dust, represent different generations and different wars. They will share their sacred journey from their service in Vietnam and Iraq to their return and what they learned about life and healing along the way.

Marc Straus will discuss his newly published memoir, One-Legged Mongoose, Secrets, Legacies and Coming of Age in 1950’s New York The book documents two pivotal years of his childhood on Long Island, beginning with him being forced by his parents to leave public school and commute four hours a day to a Yeshiva in Queens. Marc Straus will share his unflinching look at child abuse in the home and his ability to rise above it, One-Legged Mongoose reminds us of the bonds between siblings, the power o...

MERIEL SCHINDLER will share her journey in writing The Lost Café Schindler as she recounts the history of an extraordinary family. The Lost Café Schindler is a story of tragic loss—several of Meriel’s relatives disappeared in Terezín and Auschwitz—but also one of reclamation and reconciliation. Beautifully written, it is an unforgettable portrait of an era and a testament to the pull that family history has on future generations. She will share the narrative centering around the Café Schindler, ...

November is National Native American Heritage Month, which pays tribute to the rich history and culture of the indigenous people of the Americas. In 2009, during President Barack H. Obama’s first term in office, November became National Native American Heritage Month. Magdalena Sunshine Serrano is an Indigenous woman of Serrano, Apache, and Tarahumara descent and Julene A. Jose, is an Indigenous woman of the Tohono O’odham Nation who also serves on the Pasqua Yaqui Tribe. Magdalena and Julene wi...

Building accessible interventions promoting mind and body health in rural America is possible. Research suggests that individuals living in rural areas are less likely than residents of urban areas to seek professional help for psychological distress for several reasons including stigma (both public and self-directed) and limited mental health literacy. Laurie Strand and Melissa Boley, both psychotherapists working in rural Idaho will share their insights and how they have managed through commun...

Karin Weiri will discuss her new book, Achieving Peace, Purpose and Prosperity. As a society we have built a myopic view of mental health blaming the majority on genetics and leaving out environmental, societal trauma and influence. She will discuss how powerful the mind is and how to access our full potential when we learn how to use simple, yet powerful tools. The role of stress is huge as is the way we are over fed and under nourished. Karin will share how we can balance the body again, inclu...

We are stuck in a pattern. Urgent headlines such as George Floyd’s murder or the chaos of the Afghanistan withdrawal pulls our attention, demand our support but we consistently fail to achieve meaningful systematic change. All too often once the limelight fades on the “en vogue” issues of the moment, the issue is relegated to the special interest groups whose purpose was set up to keep on fighting for justice and reform. In the storytelling, those who are in-need is always positioned as the “oth...

Many of us needed a break from the pandemic and the usual windstorms of life. We needed a respite: a journey reminding us of decency, kindness, compassion and folksy wisdom. Over the last two seasons of Ted Lasso, an AppleTV+ original, we have laughed, cried and been deeply touched by the lived experiences of Ted Lasso and his crew. Ted Lasso is about “an American football coach hired to manage a British soccer team. What he lacks in knowledge, he makes up for with optimism, determination...and ...

Drs. Grabbe and Duva will discuss how healthcare workers can care for themselves during the pandemic and through the experience of moral injury. Dr. Wendy Dean stated that “Moral injury occurs when health care providers are “repeatedly expected, in the course of providing care, to make choices that transgress their long-standing, deeply held commitment to healing.” From June to September, Mental Health America polled more than 1,100 health care workers about COVID-19, finding that 93% reported s...

Every Memory Deserves Respect is a book written with warmth and heart. It’s about trauma, recovery, and a remarkable therapy called EMDR—Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. The authors, Michael Baldwin, a client who experienced transformative relief from trauma through EMDR therapy, and Dr. Deborah Korn, a leading expert on EMDR therapy, will discuss the circumstances that brought them together to write this book and the nature of their unique collaboration. Dr. Korn will provide an o...

After Michelle was diagnosed with cancer a second time and endured a challenging treatment year, she was lost - emotionally and physically. She took a job at her son’s school and had to quit after 3 days due to the pain in her body. Cue major soul searching; she needed to do SOMETHING. Thankfully, Breast Friends of Oregon was literally one mile from her house and she went in to volunteer. At this support organization, she found a strong desire to give back and help other women, taking cancer and...

Gloria Simoneaux is the founder of Harambee Arts and two time Fulbright Scholar. She will share the work she has done with children all over the world to promote their wellbeing through the expressive arts and through community building. Harambee Arts promotes the well-being of children living in poverty who are often homeless, orphaned, abused and neglected. The show will discuss how her programs enhance the stability of the children’s families and support systems. She will share how children c...

Children can be caught in the crossfire of parental disagreements with school’s deciding to mask or not to require masks. The COVID-19 pandemic has increased stress, fear, and anxiety for many children. Many family members have reported increased challenges with their children’s’ behavior, including anxiety and acting out2. Making the transition from home to school will be harder for children with developmental, behavioral, or emotional challenges. Ryan Etheridge will describe how his school dis...

Gratitude, Happiness, Empathy, Kindness and Courage can be cultivated when faced when the unspeakable heartache and tragedy of the human experience. These themes are the essence of Joy Miller’s gifts. She has asked world leaders from a bouquet of backgrounds to bring forth their wisdom on how to get through our current tumultuous times by asking them to reach into their hearts and share how they have built wellbeing and resiliency during their worst of times. She will focus on personal empowerme...

As children are returning to school, many parents and children are experiencing anxiety. The anxiety may be sparked as parents leave their children in the care of others with a nagging worry about Covid-19 and whether it can spread throughout a school. Parents who believe in vaccinating may be worried about children who live with non-vaccinated parents and how that could impact their children’s health. Some parents may experience panic attacks and increased irritability. With the recent spread o...

Dr. Randall Bell will discuss his book, Post-Traumatic Thriving, the Art, Science and Stories of Resilience. Today we see crime, abuse, alcoholism, drugs, anger, and anxiety everywhere. Jails and prisons are crammed on an industrial scale. Recovery centers are packed with patients. Extreme political and religious groups regularly trap more members. Too many schools are simply factories for dropouts. All of this is the result of unresolved trauma. Ultimately, the quality of our lives depends on o...

Fires are devastating to communities and to the children, teens and adults grappling to survive and to recover. During the last week in Western United States, over 22,000 firefighters were combating wildfires, homes burned, and thousands of residents fled from the fast-moving flames. The Dixie Fire in Northern California and the Bootleg Fire in southern Oregon are being further sparked by very dry conditions and what climate change scientists say from climate change. The stark reality is we cann...

Meet Me At the Shore: Tracking the Tide of Posttraumatic Growth After Human Trafficking and Trauma K Thomas, a trained trauma therapist and a survivor of sexual and relationship violence. K will weave their personal and professional journey through the challenges of healing, finding appropriate care, and the constant ebb and flow of posttraumatic growth. Working with North County Lifeline’s Project LIFE, K has provided trauma therapy, reprocessing, case management, and emergency response to surv...

How do we fund innovative reforms to make mental health services that are trauma-informed and resiliency-focused more accessible? Two leaders in the field, Carey Smith Sipp and Jesse Kohler, advocates for reform in communities and in our legislature, will share their views and the importance of community members working together and using their voice to create change. They will help us understand the American Rescue Plan Act, three new pieces of legislation that can help our communities organize...