For those of you that are new around here, I release bonus episodes that serve a niche part of my

audience. So if this content is something that doesn't fit what you're looking for, check out the

other episodes that drop this week or join me back here next week for episodes that you don't want

to miss. And it just comes back to asking yourself, am I embodying the highest version of myself

that I want to? And if not, what does she need? And usually it's more ease. It's a little slower pace. It's taking a few shortcuts, taking some things off your plate. And if it's not, this is another thing that I have my, my mom clients live by. If it is not my highest and best use, I need to make a plan for taking it off my

plate. You know, I have clients who are never going to be in a place where they feel like they can

afford a personal chef, right? But maybe they could get their groceries delivered. Maybe they could

have a meal service. I have meals that arrive at my house, you know, and it's just a few. It's just to get me through my lunches during the week when I'm working a lot.

And it's like, okay, so the future version of me, she's well fed. And she gets good organic ingredients on the regular.

For doing a shortcut that helps her get what she needs, you know, that is absolutely imperative.

This is Diane Bowdenden and you're listening to

the minimalist moms podcast. Many high-performing women, especially mothers, struggle with

procrastination, burnout, brain fog, perfectionism, and chronic overwhelm. But what if these

challenges aren't personal flaws or failures in discipline. In today's episode, I sit down with

trauma-informed executive coach, Alyssa Smith, to explore how common patterns like people-pleasing,

imposter syndrome, negative self-talk, and even lateness can be nervous system survival responses

rather than signs of laziness. Together we unpack how cultural messages that encourage us to

power through can keep women stuck in dysregulation and unmet needs, and while healing often

begins with recognizing what your body is trying to communicate. But quickly, before we get there,

if you've yet to leave a rating and review for the Minimalist Mom's podcast, I asked you just to pause

for a brief moment or two. We are getting so close to a thousand reviews and I would love to hit that by the end of the year. So if you've been someone that's been listening for a long time and have yet to do that, it would mean so much to me for you to hit five stars. Tell me your favorite guest, your favorite episode and how the podcast has impacted you. Thank you so much for taking the time to do this. And with that,

let's get into this conversation with Alyssa. Well, Alyssa, I'm excited to dive in today.

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