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Today, I’m pulling back the curtain on what happens after a retreat, when life gets lifey and the work has to live in your body, your kitchen, your calendar, and your conversations. I’m joined by my dear friend and longtime client, Em, a single mom to twin girls, homeschooler, full-time student, and retired Marine officer, who shares how somatic work, breathwork, and real integration reshaped her capacity, boundaries, and motherhood.

TOPICS & TANGENTS

• From intellectualizing to embodiment: why “thinking about healing” kept Em stuck
• Hypervigilance, military conditioning, and the nervous system after a high-tempo life
• Somatic tools that moved the needle: breathwork, pacing, and structured downtime
• Motherhood in real life: anger as a wise signal, mess-friendly kitchens, laughing more
• “All-access pass” no more: boundaries that protect energy, home, and kids
• Capacity vs. control: living by rhythms instead of wrangling every minute
• Integration that actually sticks: what to do before and after a retreat
• Generational impact: modeling regulation so kids don’t carry adult emotions

POINT OF THE STORY
Life won’t stop life-ing. Capacity isn’t about doing more—it’s about holding more with less tension. When you center yourself (not everyone else), the whole house gets healthier.

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
• Surrender Retreat (Tulum) — an immersive recalibration of success, safety, and self through somatic practices, ceremony, and integration (details in show notes)
• The Regulated Woman — private podcast & library for ongoing, nervous-system-first support

MORE ABOUT ASH
I am the definition of duality — I swear like a sailor and break rules like it’s my job, but I also hold incredible space for my clients and work my ass off to help them achieve the success they’re after. But I'm also here for the non-preneur woman, too. My background in counseling gives me a unique perspective on what it means to show up, serve, & create connection for those who feel like they've never belonged before.

LINKS:

• Become the Regulated Woman
• Get emails that feel like your best friend (if your best friend was a therapist and actually told you the truth).
• Use code BB20 to get The Burnout Breakthrough for only $7
• Follow me on IG (dropping in once a quarter for updates & gossip)
• Website: ashmcdonaldmentoring.com

Work with me 1:1

• Therapeutic Mentorship
• Business Therapy (therapy + strategic mentorship)
• ...