Today we'll meet Annie, a married mother with four children.

She's white, six foot two, dyslexic, tattooed and has a nose ring.

Annie works in maternal fetal medicine practicing high-risk obstetrics.

Her husband is Korean, 5'11 and quite religious.

He's also a physician, plus a commander in the Navy currently stationed in Okinawa.

Their youngest child was adopted out of foster care at age two.

She's half Korean, half Middle Eastern, and half the height of any other family member.

She's also the best Speller.

In her application to be on the show, Annie asked, how do I foster confidence, but not ego?

After our time with Annie, I'll offer a technique from improv you can try when you find yourself

caught in a spiral of negative forecasting.

Also, I'll introduce a Mandarin idiom that isn't what it seems on the surface.

Now, let's begin.

First, a disclaimer.

What you are about to listen to is not a professional counseling session.

Each episode is a one-time conversation, and the advice I offer does not constitute psychological

treatment or services substitute for professional diagnosis, intervention, or behavioral healthcare.

In order to protect their privacy, our guests have been given pseudonyms and some personal

details have been changed.

If you have concerns about your child's well-being or your own, seek out guidance from a medical

or mental health professional, good places to start, your child's pediatrician, the counseling

staff at your child's school, and the American Psychological Association's Comprehensive

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