Struggle Care

• 136: BEST OF: Eco-Shame with Rebecca Gray

  You have probably heard me say, “You can’t save the rainforest if you are depressed.” The truth is that eco-shame and eco-perfectionism can get in the way of our taking steps toward better functioning. If you have ever felt guilty for not being “eco-friendly enough,” this episode is for you!  Rebecca Gray is an environmental epidemiologist. With her master’s degree in public health, she studies disease, the patterns of disease, and health at population levels within communities and countries. She also studies how factors in the environment impact health by causing and promoting disease. Rebecca works with government agencies like the EPA and CDC to develop water guidelines to keep pollutants out of the water supply.  Show Highlights: How Rebecca has experienced forms of eco-shame in her profession How some people push the environmental movement in ways that are able-ist The trap we fall into to “embody the archetype” of the space we occupy How social media plays into the eco-perfectionism pressure we feel Why functionality matters more than the morality of what we do in care tasks, eating, the environment, etc.  Rebecca’s view of today’s environmental movement Why we should ask ourselves how an eco-behavior affects our health and well being What really does need to happen to prevent climate change How our capitalistic society colors what we can do to be eco-friendly How differing narratives make us feel pressured to make individual changes and collective changes to “save the world” How to identify what we need to function well, fill in gaps with eco-friendly behaviors, and learn how to conserve our energy How to take a more reasonable–and less stressful–view of sustainability swaps Actions that have the least impact and the most impact on environmentalism Rebecca’s advice about letting ourselves off the hook for the decisions we make Links & Resources: Connect with Rebecca: LinkedIn  Connect with KC: TikTok and Instagram Get KC's Book, How to Keep House While Drowning Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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• 135: BEST OF: Is Rejection Sensitivity Dysphoria Real? with Dr. Lesley Cook

  I’m back with one of my favorite guests who is always up for the challenge of a podcast–no matter what the topic is! I want to explore the term rejection sensitivity dysphoria and get Dr. Lesley Cook’s take on it because I have so many questions. Let’s learn more together!  Dr. Lesley Cook is a psychologist who works with those with ADHD and other kinds of neurodivergence. Born and raised in Hawaii, she now lives in Virginia and works with children, adolescents, adults, couples, and families. Show Highlights: ●      What RSD (rejection sensitivity dysphoria) is and how it is manifested ●      KC’s personal experience with RSD and feelings of worthlessness ●      How RSD is different from sensory sensitivity and autism ●      Thoughts about the strong word dysphoria in RSD ●      KC’s personal experience with RSD and being told she is “too sensitive” ●      How we can grow, change, and find regulatory strategies for RSD ●      Why it is difficult to communicate the facets and nuances of RSD and other interpersonal difficulties Resources and Links: Connect with Dr. Lesley Cook: TikTok Connect with KC: Website, TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook Get KC’s book, How to Keep House While Drowning We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website: www.strugglecare.com/promo-codes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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• 134: Clutterbug: Your Organizing Style with Cas

  What’s your organizing style? Are you a bee, ladybug, cricket, or butterfly? Find out in today’s episode as professional organizer, Cassandra Aarssen explains how to tidy and organize according to your natural organizational style. Cas is a self-proclaimed “recovering super slob” on a mission to help other families who struggle with disorganization and clutter. Join us! Show Highlights: Cas’s journey to Chief Clutterbug status Four organizational types, according to how you naturally sort and store your everyday things: Butterfly: You are a visual person who wants simple, quick, and easy organizational systems. Bee: You love visual and organizational abundance and are meticulous and detail-oriented, preferring to see your everyday items instead of hiding them away.  Cricket: You love visual simplicity and organizational abundance, wanting to hide items out of sight, but you are detail-oriented and methodical. Ladybug: You love visual and organizational simplicity and prefer all your items hidden out of view with fast, easy solutions. Find your balance between wanting to put things away easily and wanting to find things easily. (You can’t have it both ways!) Parenting challenges in helping your kids learn to organize Cas’s best organizing advice for butterflies: Use plastic bins, baskets, buckets, and labels. Consider your “valuable real estate” from waist to eye level. Establish a “drop zone” in your home. Best tips from Cas and KC for keeping and organizing all the kids’ papers and artwork Cas’s best organizing advice for bees: Use clear, stacking bins and pegboards for meticulous organization. (Fun fact: Most hoarders are actually bees!) Cas’s best organizing advice for crickets: Use lots of styles for traditional organization. Cas’s best organizing advice for ladybugs: Use drawer dividers, bins, and baskets (with no lids). Resources and Links: Connect with Cas: Website (and Resources) Preorder my new book: Struggle Care Website, Amazon, and Bookshop Connect with KC: Website, TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook Get KC’s book, How to Keep House While Drowning We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website: www.strugglecare.com/promo-codes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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• 133: BEST OF: Is Too Much Self-Compassion a Bad Thing? with Dr. Lesley Cook

  We’re bringing back one of our most insightful and impactful episodes! In our very first episode, you heard my conversation with Dr. Lesley Cook about executive functioning. She had so much wisdom to share that I couldn’t wait to have her back—this time, to explore the topic of self-compassion. Is it possible to have too much self-compassion? How do we find the balance between being kind to ourselves while still striving for progress? Dr. Lesley shares her expertise, breaking down the complexities of self-compassion and how it plays a crucial role in our personal growth. About Our Guest: Dr. Lesley Cook is a psychologist specializing in ADHD and neurodivergence. Born and raised in Hawaii, she now lives in Virginia, where she works with children, adolescents, adults, couples, and families. Show Highlights: ✅ Finding the balance between self-compassion and personal growth ✅ Understanding self-compassion through Dr. Kristin Neff’s work ✅ The role of shame and how it connects to self-compassion ✅ Strategies for shifting from shame to self-compassion ✅ How self-compassion can become a learned behavior we pass down to our children Link and Resources:  Connect with Dr. Lesley: TikTok and Instagram Connect with KC: TikTok and Instagram Get KC's Book, How to Keep House While Drowning Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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• 132: A Big Announcement and A Sneak Peek Ahead

  I have big news! Starting now, we will follow a new release schedule for the podcast, going to twice-a-month releases on the first and third Mondays. We’ve done weekly episodes for a couple of years now, and I need to free up some time for exciting upcoming projects. My new book releases on May 6 and is available now for preorder: Who Deserves Your Love? How to Create Boundaries that Start, Strengthen, or End Any Relationship. My next project is a cookbook that focuses on easy, stress-free meals and gentle nutrition with my compassionate philosophy. I’m also trying my hand at fiction writing with my first draft of a fantasy romance novel. I want every project to reflect my full passion and energy, and I feel strongly that it’s time to reallocate my focus toward these other endeavors. I’ll stick to the twice-monthly podcast release schedule for March, April, and May. The last episode in May will be the final episode of the Struggle Care podcast—for now. You never know what might happen in the future! Let’s keep in touch! Sign up for my newsletter at Struggle Care, and I promise not to overload your inbox! Show Highlights: An exclusive sneak peek into my new book, Who Deserves Your Love? How to Create Boundaries that Start, Strengthen, or End Any Relationship My second book has the same disability advocacy perspective as my first book. You’ll find counter-culture messaging for communication and relationships. My book avoids standard attachment types and the language of codependency. An overview of the three parts of my book Listen as I read ch. 7 about The Decision Tree. It’s tricky to occupy the space between wanting to have compassion and grace for people while still having boundaries for yourself. Resources and Links: Preorder my new book: Struggle Care Website, Amazon, and Bookshop Connect with KC: Website, TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook Get KC’s book, How to Keep House While Drowning We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website: www.strugglecare.com/promo-codes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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