Courage to Heal Podcast

Discover the truth about grief beyond the outdated five-stage model. This episode dismantles common misconceptions about grief, reveals why Elisabeth Kübler-Ross's famous stages were never meant for bereavement, and explores the diverse grief responses.

Learn about anticipatory grief, complicated grief and the crucial differences between intuitive and instrumental grieving patterns.

Whether you're supporting someone through loss or navigating grief yourself, this episode provides the understanding you need without prescriptive timelines or one-size-fits-all approaches. Listen now to transform how you view and experience grief.

LINKS:

The Grief Recovery Method

The Grief Recovery Handbook

What if your emotions started in your body – not your brain? In this insightful conversation, Anna sits down with licensed clinical counselor, author, and international trainer Amy Sullivan to explore the life-changing lens of Polyvagal Theory. Known for her warm, accessible teaching style, Amy breaks down the nervous system's three core states and how they shape our sense of emotional safety, trauma response, and ability to connect.

You’ll learn:

• What the vagus nerve is and why it matters for trauma healing
• The difference between feeling safe vs. being safe—and why it matters
• How shutdown, anxiety, and calm each have "safe" and "unsafe" versions
• Somatic and expressive arts practices to help regulate your nervous system
• Why co-regulation (even with pets!) is essential for healing

Whether you’re a therapist, trauma survivor, or just curious about your emotional wiring, this episode is full of empowering insights that can help you reconnect with safety and presence.

Click here to learn more about Amy’s work at Rooted Compassion Counseling.

Join host Anna as she talks with therapist Alyssa Scarano about healing generational trauma. Discover how childhood experiences shape our beliefs and relationships, and how these patterns get passed down through families.

Alyssa explains what generational healing really means and shares how trauma creates survival strategies that might have helped us as kids but now hold us back as adults. Learn to spot signs of generational trauma in your life and get practical steps for healing that start with self-awareness and self-compassion.

Perfect for anyone looking to break free from inherited patterns and build healthier relationships—starting with yourself.

LINKS:

Alyssa's Website

Discover how connecting with your inner child can revolutionize your relationship with self-worth in this episode of Courage to Heal. Learn the crucial difference between self-worth and self-esteem, understand what inner child work really means, and explore practical techniques to begin healing childhood wounds that may be blocking your sense of inherent value.

Through personal stories, guided visualization, and actionable strategies, this episode offers a compassionate roadmap for moving from conditional self-worth to the unshakable knowledge that you are worthy simply because you exist. Perfect for anyone struggling with feelings of "not enough" or looking to deepen their self-compassion practice.

Inner Child Meditation

In this heartfelt episode, Anna explores the challenging dynamics of emotionally immature parents and provides practical guidance for healing.

Discover the four types of emotionally immature parents, recognize common patterns from childhood that might be affecting your adult relationships, and learn effective boundary-setting techniques that preserve your well-being.

Whether you're experiencing parentification, emotional neglect, or struggling with attachment issues stemming from your upbringing, this episode offers compassionate insights and actionable strategies for reclaiming your emotional health.

Perfect for anyone looking to transform their relationship with parents while practicing essential self-care and "reparenting" techniques. Includes resources and recommended reading from trauma-informed therapy perspectives.

Quiz to evaluate your parents

Book: Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents