Navigating Change: Finding Peace in Life's Transitions

Change can feel overwhelming, but what if we viewed it as an adventure instead of an obstacle? That's the central question explored in this heartfelt Mindful Monday episode that dives deep into the art of positive reframing.

As I share my own back-to-school transition experiences, I reveal the mindset shifts that help me navigate new challenges with students, teachers, and schedules. Rather than succumbing to anxiety about the unknown, I've discovered that reframing these changes as opportunities for growth transforms the entire experience. This perspective shift isn't just applicable to work situations—it's a powerful tool for facing any of life's unexpected turns.

The episode also explores my journey with alternative healing approaches, particularly Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) at Pinnacle Wellness Center. After being diagnosed with an autoimmune condition affecting my mouth tissues, I've been searching for holistic solutions beyond conventional medicine. Dr. Ryan Suen's comprehensive approach combines chiropractic care, nutritional guidance, and oxygen therapy to address root causes rather than just symptoms. For anyone dealing with chronic health issues, this discussion offers hope and practical considerations for exploring complementary treatments.

We also dive into modern dating challenges, gathering perspectives from different generations about finding connection in 2025. The concept of creating a "dating list" emerges as a fascinating strategy that's actually helped people find lasting relationships. My co-host Tommy and I will be exploring this further in upcoming episodes, potentially helping listeners create their own personalized lists.

Whether you're facing workplace transitions, health challenges, relationship hurdles, or simply seeking more mindfulness in your daily life, this episode offers practical wisdom for transforming obstacles into adventures. Join our growing community by subscribing, commenting, and sharing your own mindfulness practices! 

*Remember you can subscribe for as little as a cup of coffee or as much as an affordable kids lunch. 

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome to Mindful Monday
• 3:13 Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Experience
• 11:32 Mindfulness and Reframing Challenges
• 17:15 Dating in 2025 Discussion
• 21:24 Mercury in Retrograde Effects
• 24:40 Shoutouts and Thank Yous

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Bow, chicka, wow, wow, what's up? Party people, welcome to another episode of Elkivate your Life. I am your hostess with the mostess L is in the letter L and key as in the key to your heart. You guys know I always struggle with that right. Eventually I'm going to get it right. Anyway, thank you for tuning in to another Mindful Monday. We are on Monday, august.

Speaker 1: 0:42

Welcome back to back to school day for dublin staff, myself included. As most of you know, I'm a special education para for fallon middle school and I have to tell you the struggle is real. It has already begun, no, but I love. I love the staff, I love the people I work with, I love the kiddos, and this year is going to be very different. A lot of changes have been implemented into the school system. If you know, you know, if you don't, they're talking about, you know, inclusion and special ed kids being included in the gen ed classrooms. So a lot of exciting, challenging changes happening. So, yeah, fun stuff. You'll be hearing more about it. Today was my first day back and had to go and meet the new teachers that I'm going to be working with and lots of new students. So, fingers crossed, prayers going up, all that good stuff. Anyway, I want to make sure that I give a huge shout out and thanks to my sponsors, starting with Pinnacle Health Wellness, pinnacle Wellness Services Center I always want to say services Pinnacle Wellness Center. They're located at 5994 West Las Positas, unit 207. That's in Pleasanton, california, for those of you that don't know and Dr Ryan Swen is just amazing I talked to you guys last time about the HBOT, also known as hyperbaric oxygen therapy.

Speaker 1: 2:46

I kept talking about the oxygen tank feeling like a spaceship, yada, yada. Probably wasn't using all of the best terminology, I think, because I was just so excited from the results that I neglected to mention the professional term. So it's known as H-BOT hyperbaric oxygen therapy. I haven't gone back for another visit yet, but stay tuned for that. I'm very excited about it. Just working out the finances and you know the cost of going to a chiropractor, this is a new thing for me and I definitely I have to tell you if you're out there and looking for alternative ways or holistic ways. I was doing a lot more reading and researching, besides what the doctor told me, besides what I experienced, and I just want to share a little bit. So before I get off track, so before I get off track. So Pinnacle Wellness Center, 5994 West Las Positas Boulevard, unit 207, suite 207, pleasanton, california, 94588, on the corner of Hop Yard and West Las Positas.

Speaker 1: 4:04

Dr Ryan takes a very alternative healing approach and some of the benefits that I probably didn't share with you last time that I want to make sure I do is it promotes healing and it offers to help with age-related diseases, injury recovery, inflammation, wound healing. So I think I kind of told you guys the reason I was inspired or motivated is thanks to my friend Rhonda, who referred me, but also because of my autoimmune disease, olp, also known as oral lichen planus, and I finally just met one person that I know, one of my doctors at Kaiser actually has it, not the same. So it affects the inside of the cheeks, the inside of the lips, the gums. There's different phases of it and without boring you guys with all the details, let me just tell you. So I got the symptoms in January. Doctors didn't find out or diagnose me officially until June. I, by doing my own research, knowing my body reading, suspected it two months in, but I had to wait for their stamp of approval from going to primary doctor, rheumatologist. Oh my God, I'm trying to think of the other one Primary doctor, rheumatologist, skin doctor, dermatologist, let's just say I went down the list Dentist Several biopsies. Later, unfortunately, my dermatologist referred me to his coworker that he used to work with, that is in the plastic surgery center, and he is the one that did the special biopsy that finally revealed what I had.

Speaker 1: 6:19

Anyway, what is my motivation for the HBOT? Well, because it's in the skin, and when something is in your skin, it's not the easiest task to get rid of something like that, like an autoimmune disease. And after reading and researching about the hyperbaric oxygen therapy, or HBOT, hyperbaric oxygen therapy or HVAC, I discovered that you know, it's increasing oxygen to get into your body, into your cells, into your blood, into the plasma, and so to renew, regenerate. And so, fingers crossed, guys, because at at this point they're saying it is an incurable autoimmune disease. And I rebuke that statement. I don't receive that, I don't want to believe it. I want to believe there's a cure. And so what is the reason?

Speaker 1: 7:19

I was telling my other doctor at Kaiser, my urologist actually told me oh, I have that too, but his is on his gums. Well, let me tell you. This guy proceeds to tell me oh yeah, I have that. You know, I have an outbreak every once in a while and it goes away after a week. Every once in a while and it goes away after a week. How nice for you. I wish I could say the same.

Speaker 1: 7:49

Since I have had it, it has been consistently active. I might get a couple days of having a break, of no lesions in the mouth, no swelling, no pain, no irritation. If any of you have experienced a lesion or a canker sore in your mouth, imagine having your entire, like the inside of your lips, top, bottom and the inside of your cheeks. Imagine having lesions all over. Yeah, welcome to my life. Thank you very much.

Speaker 1: 8:27

So because of that, sorry it's important to stay hydrated when you have this, you know, besides, for my health and I am a two-fisted drinker usually, so I have this one. Do you all see what it says? Drink, happy thoughts, cheers. I go from my water to my other protein drink, anyway, yeah. So on the one hand, it was a relief to speak to a doctor who you know experiences and could relate to what I go through. On the other hand, his is a piece of cake. He's like oh yeah, I get a breakout and it usually goes away within a week. How nice for you. I wish I could say the same. When I get a break, it's a day or two, and that is with following the food regimen, the water regimen, the minimalizing my stress levels, etc. Anyway, so that is what brought me to Pinnacle Wellness Center, because my friends, rhonda and Roger, told me about him, told me about his age, bot, and I was like I got to meet this doctor, I got to go there, I got to experience this.

Speaker 1: 9:53

So if any of you have any chiropractic needs, I can't say enough about him. He, like I said, he takes an alternative, holistic approach. So so, not just working on adjusting, you know, the spine or certain bones, but also adjusting other parts of the body. So I can't say enough good things about Dr Ryan Swinn. His approach is very different than anybody I've ever known and I do have another chiropractor that I appreciate and go to when I'm on the other side of the hill body but also talking about nutrition and, yes, various different levels of approaches that can help you. So I highly recommend him. Let me make sure I give you the phone number 510-634-6082. And again, that's Pinnacle Wellness Center. 5994 West Las Positas Boulevard, suite 207, pleasanton, california. Give him a call, look him up, he'll change your life. He's changed mine, moving right along.

Speaker 1: 11:22

So it is Mindful Monday. So what are we going to talk about on Mindful Monday? Well, for one, I want to find out from you, especially because today was a mindful day what do you do to be mindful? Is it manage your stress? Is it eating properly? Is it exercising? Is it meditation? Is it exercising? Is it meditation? What is it you're doing to be mindful and manage all of the unexpected things that might impact your life or, you know, cause you aches and pains and whatnot?

Speaker 1: 12:22

I'm bringing this up today because I work with, like I told you, love the staff, love the people I work with, have worked around them for years since I've been there, and then there's one in particular that's always like oh my God, what are we going to do? Oh, now we have to do this. Oh my God. And she just expresses herself in a different way. It's not a diss on her, anything like that, but whenever she brings up something I always try to think of what is the positive here, what is the lesson here? And so, while she's bringing up things that are very much going to be a part of our reality.

Speaker 1: 13:01

I want to look at it in a different light. I don't want to look at it as, oh my God, I have a handful of new students. I've never met them, I don't know their needs, I don't know their conditions and new teachers and a new schedule. Thank God I got in shape this summer because I'm going to be getting all my steps in. I just try to look at the positives of oh, how exciting I get to work with a new group of kids and get to learn about them and how to help them to become more independent, prepare them for the world, prepare them, you know, in middle school to go off to high school more equipped. And okay, my classes are all over the place and darn it. I'm not going to be with the classes or teachers that I'm used to being with, but you know what? It's okay because change is good.

Speaker 1: 14:04

Change is what helps us grow right, and I'll be the first to tell you I do not adapt well to change. But I am trying to reframe my mind and to look at it as an adventure, not as an obstacle, not as a hurdle I have to jump over, but it's an adventure. It's going to give me an opportunity to learn, to grow, to adapt, to pivot. The same way, I had to learn how to live with this disease and a new lifestyle, a new way of eating and drinking or not eating and drinking in some cases. So, yeah, that's how I'm choosing to look at this new adventure. So stay tuned. I'm sure I'll have some stories to tell and adventures to share and wisdom to share with all of you, whether you're a parent, a teacher, a para like myself, or maybe just somebody that has the opportunity to you know.

Speaker 1: 15:17

Work with kids, live with kids, has kids, wants to have kids, just want to be able to share the knowledge and the growth that I will endure, overcome, learn about what else? So, aside from being first day of school, don't really have anything exciting to report. Last week was my final week before going back to work and I was hoping to squeeze in karaoke. Unfortunately, due to some hiccups over here, mr Hurting is back Didn't get to do that. So, looking forward to doing that. Hopefully, this weekend Did have the opportunity to work out, go to the gym every other day, staying consistent, helping me keep my mind right, my body tight, just being mindful about the nutrition and foods that I put into my body, as well as taking in some vitamin D, which I was hoping to do today, but unfortunately or fortunately they were working on the pool or the exterior of the pool, so didn't get to take in my vitamin D today. But, looking forward to the weekend, shout out to my co-host that was here, tommy Anthony has a birthday coming up this weekend. Shout out to all you Leos out there Looking forward to celebrating your birthday, tommy, looking forward to having you back on the show.

Speaker 1: 17:03

For those of you that listened the previous episodes, I've been talking a lot about dating dating in 2025, and what does that look like for the different generations, right? I myself Gen X? Well, I'm talking about getting opinions from Gen Z millennials, gen X baby boomers. The list goes on. So what I've asked is for all of my different like, comment and subscribe, as well as please share my podcast. Maybe certain episodes are not for you, and that's okay if they're not, but if they are, or you think of somebody that the pod will resonate with, especially Gen Z millennials, I'm really trying to get perspective on the dating topics that we've been talking about. Speaking of, tommy will be featured again.

Speaker 1: 18:29

I told you that I'm looking for a co-host and I have to say the feedback thank you for your feedback on us discussing the man's point of view versus the woman's point of view on dating and how hard it is to be a man or a woman out there and meet your person. I feel like there are so many challenges out there from finding somebody that you have common interests with, hobbies with, that's not going to ghost you, that's going to return your phone calls to ghost you, that's going to return your phone calls, that has the same love language as you so many things right and that you can check off your list. So Tommy and I were talking about in the previous episode about this list that his friend composed and that's how he met his wife. Excuse me and sorry, got to do the other one. Now, interestingly enough, tommy's friend gave him the list and so Tommy used the list and so now we're kind of thinking what if we provided questions and you gave you guys dating advice? Like maybe it's hey, you want to have you answers. But also for us to build our audience, we want it to be an interactive thing, like, okay, question of the day is this you want to know Subscribe, you want to know a list. You want us to help you create a list. You want us to help you create a list. You want us to help you personalize a list. So we got the wheels turning. We have a lot of ideas that we're going to be implementing, so stay tuned. Should be interesting.

Speaker 1: 20:49

Well, I already covered happy birthday to all you Leos out there, anybody experiencing any Mercury in retrograde stuff. I didn't really hear any feedback about that. I would love to know Do you even know what Mercury in retrograde is? Well, let me touch on a little bit. No-transcript not aligned in the best case scenario. What do I mean by that? You might have some people out there that want to rent a home, buy a home, rent a car, buy a car, make a decision that requires signing on the dotted line. Mercury in retrograde may interfere with that. So just be aware, if there are any shifts in things like that, like decision making or just kidding, that's what we consider the Mercury in retrograde stuff. It's like an interference with communication. The Mercury in retrograde stuff it's like an interference with communication, kind of like there's a disconnect, if you will. So, yeah, I would love to hear your feedback, especially if you're into astrology.

Speaker 1: 22:18

You know, I tell everybody I am a Christian. I don't necessarily talk about it because I don't like to talk about politics or religion, but I am a Christian. But I also dabble in numerology, astrology. I have a lot of interests. So I love to read, I love to research, and so you know what's that saying? My gosh, give me a minute. I say Jill of all trades, master of none, right? Only because it's like I dabble in a lot of different things. So there you have it. I guess that explains it. I dabble in a lot of things. Master of none kind of has a negative connotation, doesn't it? Uh, I'd like to think I'm a master of some things. I'll get back to you on what those are.

Speaker 1: 23:22

Trustworthy, responsible fur baby mom. My co-host is watching from afar. She didn't want to come join me on my lap this time. Say hi, chanel. She's like no, I'm good, I'm chilling down here where it's cooler. Anyway, just want to make sure that I give a shout out to also my loyal subscribers, starting with Kara lovemyartistetsycom, by the way, all my subscribers as well as my sponsors. You will see their link in my podcast. So if you're interested in learning more, seeing more, just click on the link.

Speaker 1: 24:08

So lovemyartistetsycom. Her website is just fabulous. She has a lot of different things. So she does artwork, she does video montages, singing grounds where she can create something for a birthday, an anniversary, a wedding proposal, asking somebody to be made of honor, clothing, clothing, shoes, paintings oh my gosh, the list goes on and on, and she always has sales. So check out her website, lovemyartistetsycom. Shout out to Kara thank you for being a loyal listener and subscriber and commenter. Thank you, thank you, uh.

Speaker 1: 25:01

Shout out to Jeff Potter. And with Jeff Potter I always do my meditation Namaste, because Jeff is always so kind, direct, teaching me how to stay grounded and teaching me practices of gratitude, which I appreciate so much. So shout out to you, jeff. Speaking of I think, he's going to be a guest on the pod. I feel like I put him down for August 20th, so stay tuned, you guys. Who am I missing? Angie? Shout out to Angie Germermer of thrive lavelle. If you are looking to lose weight, to get energized, to become a healthier version of yourself, angie germer at thrive lavelle. Thrive Lavelle. Basically, what their supplements do is they fill the nutritional gaps and it's an all-natural, homeopathic, holistic approach. Again, you know it's what I live for All-natural holistic homeopathic. Thank you very much. We love that.

Speaker 1: 26:21

Who else am I forgetting? Mike Kaufman, mike Kaufman, thank you for being a loyal subscriber and listener. Appreciate you. And Lisa Roberts Curbelo I haven't seen you or talked to you enough to even be able to say thank you. Lisa is always on the go. Say thank you, lisa is always on the go. She's a boss babe running the company keeping herself super busy.

Speaker 1: 26:55

And who else? Who else? Roger, roger Havens, mr Green Thumb, mr Chef Cook oh my gosh, you should see this guy's garden. He posts stuff on his social media all the time. Thank you, roger. Thank you for believing in me, thank you for supporting me.

Speaker 1: 27:08

And yes, it's unfortunate, I didn't get to sample the peach cobbler. I wish we lived closer. Next time I'm going to say, hey, can you ship me some? Can we Uber or Lyft this stuff? Who else? Who else Am I remembering everybody?

Speaker 1: 27:25

I think I think I got everybody, so just want to remind you to remember to like, comment, share in the platform, please, guys, I'm here for you. So your feedback, your communication, your comments, all of that stuff, that's what helps keep my pod moving and growing. And remember that you can text. You can text in your questions, your comments, your feedback on the pod. What are your thoughts? Do you have any ideas? Do you have a question you would like me to answer? Would you like my help on more dating advice? Andrew Roger, any of the countless others out there would love to hear from you, would so appreciate. If you remember to like, subscribe.

Speaker 1: 28:23

Shout out to my girl, karen, who is keeping my skin looking so fresh and so clean. I actually was complimented today in speaking with the teacher that I've worked with for years. She goes oh my gosh, you've lost a lot of weight. And you know I have to say it's making you look younger. And I'm like, okay, well, you know I have to say it's making you look younger and I'm like, okay, well, confession session I also have been taking better care of my skin. She goes how old are you, by the way? And I tell her 57. And she goes no way, I wouldn't have thought 57. I was thinking like 40. I was like, oh my God, thank you, love you. So, and she is Miss Ready.

Speaker 1: 29:09

She is a loyal listener and subscribe. She's a loyal listener. She listens and comments and gives me feedback. Not in the platform, but you know what, I'll take it platform, but you know what I'll take it. So thank you to all my loyal listeners. Thanks for showing up, thanks for watching, Thanks for tuning in, thanks for listening and thank you for joining me on this Mindful Monday. Make sure that you are practicing your mindfulness and I'll look forward to seeing you. And I'll be looking for those comments, questions, feedback in the platform in the YouTube channel. Thank you for tuning in, thank you for listening and ciao for now.