Synopsis
These three things changed my life they might change yours too. Each episode we abandon our comfort zones to get a little gutsy and hold space to grow into stronger versions of ourselves. In 2014, the birth of my daughter Leyden changed my entire world. Four months later, grief shattered it. I was broken, scared, lost, angry and hopeless. I didnt want to live and wasnt really sure how to. I sought every mean to fight grief: researching, joining parent groups, and I even traveled outside of the country twice, to hear world-renowned grief speaker Dr. Raymond Moody. Disappointed, I discovered like all adversities in life, there is no way to beat grief. But, thankfully, there were effective strategies I could employ when navigating such choppy waters. Whether it was understanding the gut-brain connection, or getting gutsy in my ability to face discomfort, the tools I learned, saved my life. There are not nearly enough resources to support each other through uncomfortable challenges be it loss of a job, a relationship, a sense of self or life. Talking about uncomfortable things, well that takes guts. And we are going to get really gutsy here.
Episodes
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109: Narcissism, Intuition, & Self-Trust w/ Jenna Brocious
02/02/2023 Duration: 40minMelissa and Jenna dive into the obvious and not-so-obvious characteristics of narcissism and how to spot them. They also explore the why and how to detach from outcome, the power of trusting your intuition, and tips for strengthening your ability to do so. Jenna Brocious is a spiritually intuitive guide and creator of the Positive Intention Prayer Cards. Jenna truly believes just because something bad has happened to you; it doesn’t mean that’s who you are. Having a positive mindset and keeping faith are two priorities she encourages in others. It's Jenna's mission to help, heal and spread love to others, and she's committed to sharing her message of love and healing with as many people as possible.Find JennaConnect on InstagramVisit her websiteBuy her Prayer CardsAbout the podcastGrief and Guts is for anyone navigating:Bereaved parentsAging parentsDivorceEmpty nestFertility journeyJob lossRelationship endingMovingThe loss of sense of selfThe loss of life envisionedMeet the hostWhen Melissa Dlugolecki lost he
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108: The Magic of Not Normal - Lessons w/ Brandon Cockrell
26/01/2023 Duration: 56minFather and entrepreneur Brandon Cockrell shares lessons ignited from his daughter's journey. Brandon dives deep into hitting the inevitable challenges we all face. Melissa and Brandon also speak about their shared journey with finding out their daughters were sick during pregnancy. And Brandon highlights how his now nine-year-old daughter changed the course of his life, how to embrace adversity, and how to commit to finding opportunities within adversity.Find BrandonConnect @linchpinsalesVisit his websiteAbout the podcastGrief and Guts is for anyone navigating:Bereaved parentsAging parentsDivorceEmpty nestFertility journeyJob lossRelationship endingMovingThe loss of sense of selfThe loss of life envisionedMeet the hostWhen Melissa Dlugolecki lost her daughter Leyden, in a case termed a catastrophe, she didn't want to live... never mind love life, again.As a bereaved mother, when Melissa lost my daughter Leyden, she never thought she would be happy again. Melissa felt guilty when she started to smile.As a for
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107: Untangling Possibility from Reality w/ Melissa Martin
22/12/2022 Duration: 46minMelissa Martin is a business and embodiment coach and creator of the Boldly Courageous community and podcast. She has walked through dark seasons and knows what it’s like to start over and write a new story. Melissa’s a dog mom, loves her dance parties, and is about to join the Tulum swirl - so these two Melissas get it.In this episode, Melissa shares why her life is about being an example, not the expert. She highlights the moments in her life when she became aware of grief, what true integrity looks and feels like, and the meaning of agreement changing.Melissa also shares her framework for POWER: pause, observe, welcome, embody, release and rejoice. The two Melissas also talk about how to stay in your truth without making someone else wrong and why it matters that you can only connect the dots looking back. This conversation will leave you will several journal prompts and new insights on each listen.LinksListen to Boldly CourageousLearn about the Embody MastermindConnect @themelissamartinHighlights1:25 - Wh
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106: Creating Your Dream Life with Diamandia Lingos
05/12/2022 Duration: 40minTEDx speaker, entrepreneur, and investor Diamandia Lingos joins Melissa to discuss how we can create our dream life, regardless of our circumstances. After navigating an earth-shattering grief journey and having no money in the bank, Diamandia took action to rebuild her life, leading her to be a world traveler, speaker, coach, consultant, and investor.In this episode, Diamandia shares why servicing others is the key to unlocking ourselves, how to break the generational shame, and why reflecting on your exes might be the key to understanding yourself.Listen to Diamandia’s TEDx talk and connect with her on Instagram @diamandia. Highlights1:02 - Who gets your deep conversations?2:33 - On the forefront of suicide, trauma, and resilience6:39 - The universe brings Diamandia and Melissa back together after years8:52 - Opting into your growth and choosing to do the work11:59 - How to make your fear insignificant14:24 - The steps to take ownership of what's broken in your life21:33 - Why we need to talk about the thin
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105: Grieving Past Versions Of You w/ Former Nike Master Trainer and NYC Rockette Samantha Jo Harvey
23/11/2022 Duration: 47minThis is Melissa’s person. Former Nike Master Trainer. Former New York City Rockette. Current multi-six figure entrepreneur. Melissa and Samantha are meant to be in each other’s lives.Get ready to get in touch with your intuition. Samantha shares the harrowing and brave story of moving through divorce, choosing herself over her dance career, and how she discovered her superpowers. Samantha is a person whose energy you want in your life. Melissa often shares that you are the product of the energies you surround yourself with - and this person should be a part of your energy.This episode is about choosing you. Standing in your power. Finding your superpowers. Staying open to the possibilities - even when it’s going to suck. You will want to listen to this one.Highlights2:01 - Paying attention to goosebumps4:11 - The value of expanding the definition of grief6:30 - Ignoring your intuition11:07 - How to navigate "what if"14:47 - Finding neutral is step one17:40 - How Sam became a Rockette (even though it was impos
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104: Schools, Side-Boob & Shots, Untold Truths & Unexpected Pivots w/ Sydni O'Connell
21/11/2022 Duration: 36minIn this special episode, Melissa shares parts of her story she has never shared. Melissa’s guest shares so many similarities with Melissa’s story it’s almost eerie! Melissa and Sydni O’Connell go deep on betrayal and moving forward after all you envisioned for your life is taken from you. Sydni talks about fighting for her job on her honeymoon and the surreal reality check of managing the unexpected. Melissa and Sydni also explore the following:Why you owe yourself to build your safety from within.How and why to visualize the highs and lows.Believing “If I don’t do anything wrong, everything will go right” can be detrimental to your success - and how it shows up.Highlights1:24 - Working with kids in a unique way2:43 - Dream jobs get crushed7:19 - The consequences for standing for your beliefs9:00 - Strength through adversity and politics11:10 - Taking full ownership of your safety14:56 - Managing the feelings-fallout from a setback16:23 - Recognizing when to leave “right” behind20:08 - Keeping yourself out of
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103: The Most Life-Changing Lesson Leyden Taught Me
14/11/2022 Duration: 15minMelissa rides solo and shares THE MOST life-changing lesson she learned from her daughter Leyden. We’ve all experienced something being taken from us and the ground ripped out from underneath. However, Melissa is here to share some hard truths - we are not entitled to anything but worthy of everything. Melissa explores the power of worthiness and invites you to curiously explore the possibilities when we move from entitlement to ownership. In this episode, she examines the gap between expectation and ownership and how that impacts all areas of your life (fitness, finances, business, relationships). If you can embody this one lesson, it will change your life.And if you want to go deeper with Melissa to have your best year ever, learn more about her upcoming event in Tulum!!!Grief and Guts is for anyone navigating:Bereaved parentsAging parentsDivorceEmpty nestFertility journeyJob lossRelationship endingMovingThe loss of sense of selfThe loss of life envisionedMeet the hostWhen Melissa Dlugolecki lost her daught
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102: Pain into Purpose with Brad Barnes
07/11/2022 Duration: 38minThis episode provides a glimpse into Melissa’s life and one of the major factors that led to Melissa reinventing herself and finding the clarity to take action. Brad Barnes has changed Melissa’s life and will change yours. Brad and Melissa discuss their grief journeys and offer mindset tips and support no matter what stage of the grief or life journey you find yourself. Brad shares how he had to discover that he had something to grieve and the role that gender had in his grief experience. He highlights why you might want to check in on the strong people in your life and why mindset is the most powerful place to put your energy. He also puts forth these prompts.Can I only compare myself to who I was yesterday and not to who anyone else is today?Can I give a level 10 for today, not my level 10 for yesterday?How can I collapse my timeline as fast as possible?Highlights1:15 - The most beautiful stage of the grief journey4:15 - The launching point of Brad’s life8:37 - Grief isn’t about gender or circumstances but
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101: New Beginnings & Chosen Grief
31/10/2022 Duration: 19minThe podcast has returned to explore the not-so-comfortable things of life. The podcast started in honor and memory of Melissa’s daughter Leyden who passed in 2014. But like many of you, Melissa’s journey has evolved, and new lessons are coming alive in her that she’s ready to share with you!Grief is a lot more than the loss of life. It’s a fertility journey, job loss, a relationship ending, or leaving your hometown. In this episode, Melissa dives into the why and how to talk about grief so we’re not shocked, shut down, or afraid of it. We’re empowered. Melissa also highlights the idea of actively creating the choice to create a loss. Why would you choose grief? She explains why. She also goes in-depth about why she told herself she stopped the podcast and the real reason she stopped. This episode will give you permission. Permission to get comfortable with closures and new beginnings. On choosing grief. On allowing yourself to not miss what’s new after you close one aspect of your life. Grief and Guts is for
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100: Is Doing "Your Best", Enough?
11/03/2021 Duration: 01h09minMelissa digs into the difference between doing your best and doing the work. How each has a purpose and a place in our lives and our growth, but how important it is to be aware of what you need to grow, and how to enable and empower not only yourself but others around you, too. About this podcastIn each episode, we abandon our comfort zones to get a little gutsy and hold space to grow into stronger versions of ourselves.In 2014, the birth of my daughter Leyden changed my entire world. Four months later, grief shattered it. I was broken, scared, lost, angry, and hopeless. I didn’t want to live and wasn’t really sure how to.I sought every means to “fight” grief: researching, joining parent groups, and I even traveled outside of the country twice, to hear world-renowned grief speaker Dr. Raymond Moody.Disappointed, I discovered like all adversities in life, there is no way to “beat” grief. But, thankfully, there were effective strategies I could employ when navigating such choppy waters. Whether it was understan
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99: Feeling powerless in grief - a LIVE session with Jen Canvassar
11/02/2021 Duration: 27minMelissa goes live with the founder of the NEC Society, Jen Canvassar, to talk about Leyden's story, how her case was termed a catastrophe and the feeling of being powerless in her grief. She talks about channeling that energy and educates on the link between NEC and Congenital Heart Defect (CHD) in honor of CHD Awareness week, to contribute to others having the information that Melissa didn't have. Learn more about the NEC Society at https://necsociety.org/.About this podcastEach episode we abandon our comfort zones to get a little gutsy and hold space to grow into stronger versions of ourselves.In 2014, the birth of my daughter Leyden changed my entire world. Four months later, grief shattered it. I was broken, scared, lost, angry, and hopeless. I didn’t want to live and wasn’t really sure how to.I sought every means to “fight” grief: researching, joining parent groups, and I even traveled outside of the country twice, to hear world-renowned grief speaker Dr. Raymond Moody.Disappointed, I discovered like all
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98: Toxic Positivity and How The Body Stores Trauma with Michelle Quiroga
04/02/2021 Duration: 41minLCP and EMDR practitioner, Michelle Quiroga joins Melissa on the pod today. They go deep on understanding what toxic positivity is and how it can be damaging in grief and in life and dive further into how the body and brain store trauma and emotional experiences and share tips for releasing.About this podcastEach episode we abandon our comfort zones to get a little gutsy and hold space to grow into stronger versions of ourselves.In 2014, the birth of my daughter Leyden changed my entire world. Four months later, grief shattered it. I was broken, scared, lost, angry, and hopeless. I didn’t want to live and wasn’t really sure how to.I sought every means to “fight” grief: researching, joining parent groups, and I even traveled outside of the country twice, to hear world-renowned grief speaker Dr. Raymond Moody.Disappointed, I discovered like all adversities in life, there is no way to “beat” grief. But, thankfully, there were effective strategies I could employ when navigating such choppy waters. Whether it was
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97: Healthy vs Unhealthy Competition
28/01/2021 Duration: 14minMelissa breaks down the dark and light side of competition to explain how society can negatively position competition and how you can shift energy to allow competition to be a place of growth and inspiration.About this podcastEach episode we abandon our comfort zones to get a little gutsy and hold space to grow into stronger versions of ourselves.In 2014, the birth of my daughter Leyden changed my entire world. Four months later, grief shattered it. I was broken, scared, lost, angry, and hopeless. I didn’t want to live and wasn’t really sure how to.I sought every means to “fight” grief: researching, joining parent groups, and I even traveled outside of the country twice, to hear world-renowned grief speaker Dr. Raymond Moody.Disappointed, I discovered like all adversities in life, there is no way to “beat” grief. But, thankfully, there were effective strategies I could employ when navigating such choppy waters. Whether it was understanding the gut-brain connection, or getting gutsy in my ability to face disco
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96: Two Steps For More Energy
14/01/2021 Duration: 14minMelissa explains a crucial observation she made early in her grief days when she didn’t have the energy to “spare.” She offers two steps for integrating this concept so you can have more energy no matter where you are at on your journey. About this podcastEach episode we abandon our comfort zones to get a little gutsy and hold space to grow into stronger versions of ourselves.In 2014, the birth of my daughter Leyden changed my entire world. Four months later, grief shattered it. I was broken, scared, lost, angry, and hopeless. I didn’t want to live and wasn’t really sure how to.I sought every means to “fight” grief: researching, joining parent groups, and I even traveled outside of the country twice, to hear world-renowned grief speaker Dr. Raymond Moody.Disappointed, I discovered like all adversities in life, there is no way to “beat” grief. But, thankfully, there were effective strategies I could employ when navigating such choppy waters. Whether it was understanding the gut-brain connection, or getting gut
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95: Relationships - Real Talk
07/01/2021 Duration: 18minMelissa gets into the nitty-gritty of relationships. You will hear of tools she has coached to help you find more clarity and happiness in your relationships. And then she goes beyond that to tell you the ONE foundational piece needed for happiness in relationships, what to let go of, and how to be truly present for each chapter and phase of the relationships you are in.About this podcastEach episode we abandon our comfort zones to get a little gutsy and hold space to grow into stronger versions of ourselves.In 2014, the birth of my daughter Leyden changed my entire world. Four months later, grief shattered it. I was broken, scared, lost, angry, and hopeless. I didn’t want to live and wasn’t really sure how to.I sought every means to “fight” grief: researching, joining parent groups, and I even traveled outside of the country twice, to hear world-renowned grief speaker Dr. Raymond Moody.Disappointed, I discovered like all adversities in life, there is no way to “beat” grief. But, thankfully, there were effect
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94: Releasing Leyden’s Soul, Part 2 - The Ceremony
24/12/2020 Duration: 21minMelissa builds off last week to take you through a deeply rooted ceremony that draws on the door directions and elements of life. She shares the most challenging and surprising part of it, when she was really tested was the moment she wanted to quit. And helps you consider how you can integrate aspects into your own life for release.About this podcastEach episode we abandon our comfort zones to get a little gutsy and hold space to grow into stronger versions of ourselves.In 2014, the birth of my daughter Leyden changed my entire world. Four months later, grief shattered it. I was broken, scared, lost, angry, and hopeless. I didn’t want to live and wasn’t really sure how to.I sought every means to “fight” grief: researching, joining parent groups, and I even traveled outside of the country twice, to hear world-renowned grief speaker Dr. Raymond Moody.Disappointed, I discovered like all adversities in life, there is no way to “beat” grief. But, thankfully, there were effective strategies I could employ when nav
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93: I Released Leyden's Soul - Why & How
17/12/2020 Duration: 22minMelissa shares the hardest part of her grief journey since losing Leyden - the conscious decision to release Leyden's soul. In this episode, she explains what it means to do this, what signs she had that led her to this path, and the resistance she felt in doing so. She relates it to varying parts of the grief journey and revisits how Teammates play a role during these difficult times.About this podcastEach episode we abandon our comfort zones to get a little gutsy and hold space to grow into stronger versions of ourselves.In 2014, the birth of my daughter Leyden changed my entire world. Four months later, grief shattered it. I was broken, scared, lost, angry, and hopeless. I didn’t want to live and wasn’t really sure how to.I sought every means to “fight” grief: researching, joining parent groups, and I even traveled outside of the country twice, to hear world-renowned grief speaker Dr. Raymond Moody.Disappointed, I discovered like all adversities in life, there is no way to “beat” grief. But, thankfully, th
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92: How to Handle A Non-Traditional Holiday Season
19/11/2020 Duration: 19minMelissa connects grief, life, holidays, and the implications of the pandemic, this holiday season to support you in navigating it to feel your best and most connected. She offers action steps for you to take and shares suggested resources to go deeper and best prepare for the heightened emotions, stress, and unease this season can bring. About this podcastEach episode we abandon our comfort zones to get a little gutsy and hold space to grow into stronger versions of ourselves.In 2014, the birth of my daughter Leyden changed my entire world. Four months later, grief shattered it. I was broken, scared, lost, angry, and hopeless. I didn’t want to live and wasn’t really sure how to.I sought every means to “fight” grief: researching, joining parent groups, and I even traveled outside of the country twice, to hear world-renowned grief speaker Dr. Raymond Moody.Disappointed, I discovered like all adversities in life, there is no way to “beat” grief. But, thankfully, there were effective strategies I could employ whe
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91: Show Up For Your Pain - Here's How and WHY
12/11/2020 Duration: 17minHonoring the loss of her grandmother, Melissa abandoned the planned podcast episode and talks straight from the heart, explaining how to show up for your pain through different steps and gets into why it's so important to do so. Not only did doing so allow her to transform from avoiding her grandmother after losing Leyden but to celebrating her grandmother and making new memories, one that she will always cherish. Her message will help you ensure that you don't allow your pain to cause more isolation, loneliness, or pain, on top of your challenges, too. About this podcastEach episode we abandon our comfort zones to get a little gutsy and hold space to grow into stronger versions of ourselves.In 2014, the birth of my daughter Leyden changed my entire world. Four months later, grief shattered it. I was broken, scared, lost, angry, and hopeless. I didn’t want to live and wasn’t really sure how to.I sought every means to “fight” grief: researching, joining parent groups, and I even traveled outside of the country
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90: Real Talk - Wine or Wine Not, In Grief (and Life)
05/11/2020 Duration: 17minMelissa gets real and raw talking about the energetics behind alcohol as related to grief and life. She expands the same principle to other "defaults" people can gravitate to such as shopping, food, relationships, and more. And she offers her own experience as well as space for you to reflect on yours.About this podcastEach episode we abandon our comfort zones to get a little gutsy and hold space to grow into stronger versions of ourselves.In 2014, the birth of my daughter Leyden changed my entire world. Four months later, grief shattered it. I was broken, scared, lost, angry, and hopeless. I didn’t want to live and wasn’t really sure how to.I sought every means to “fight” grief: researching, joining parent groups, and I even traveled outside of the country twice, to hear world-renowned grief speaker Dr. Raymond Moody.Disappointed, I discovered like all adversities in life, there is no way to “beat” grief. But, thankfully, there were effective strategies I could employ when navigating such choppy waters. Whet