Yuliana Kim-Grant's Phoenix Tales
By Yuliana Kim-Grant
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Yuliana Kim-Grant's Phoenix TalesJul 22, 2021
Living a Regret-Free Life with Erica Mather
Joining Yuliana today is Erica Mather, author of Your Body, Your Best Friend. Hand-selected by Ana Forrest to become a lineage-holder (called “a Guardian”) in the Forrest Yoga system, Erica is also the founder of ‘The Adore Your Body Transformational Program’, a 7-step system for getting a handle on body image challenges, as well as ‘The Yoga Clinic of NYC’. In today’s episode, Erica shares with listeners the story of how losing her dad at a young age propelled her into making certain life decisions and taking responsibilities for herself.
She begins by delving into the tragic event of losing her father and how that became a point of inflection that reshaped the direction of her life to be the ‘captain of her own ship’. She discusses what led her to Yoga - a result of chronic migraines - and how Yoga has helped her in the battle with her illness. She also details how she switched careers from being a professional musician to becoming a Yoga teacher, and reveals the inspiration behind her book, Your Body, Your Best Friend . The episode comes to a close with Erica sharing the song that describes her life, a song about humanity. Filled with wisdom borne out of life experiences, Erica Mather has so many valuable lessons to teach us all about living life without regrets. Listening in today will definitely be time well spent.
Episode Highlights:
- Erica recounts the challenging event that reshaped the direction of her life
- When parental expectation disappears.
- The various points of inflection that changed Erica’s life.
- The battle with adult onset migraines - the path to Yoga.
- How Yoga makes you take a long look at your body and spirit
- How to resolve that feeling about being viewed with a desire to teach?
- Lessons from the book, Your Body, Your Best Friend.
- The impetus that inspired the writing of her book
- The one song that describes Erica’s life
Quotes:
“ I just decided I'm going to be my own person, I'm going to be the captain of my own ship, and I am not going to work for people who don't care about me.”
“It's made me have ultimate responsibility for the direction of my life.”
“You know, if I'm unhappy with anything about my work life, or my relationship life, or my friendship life, or my family life, or my spiritual life, I’ve got one person to truly point a finger at.”
“He valued my creativity, my intelligence, and it set me on a path of writing some music and really doubling down on being a professional musician.”
“If you don't have a relationship with your body, it'll be hard to monitor signs that it's giving you.”
“Part of our maturity around body image is coming to understand how people might react to you, and then managing your own response to that reaction.”
“The main message of the book is to not waste more time on things that don't produce real outcomes in your life.”
“We have a very finite amount of time, we have a finite amount of energy, and time wasted hating the way you look, disliking the way you look, is time wasted.”
Links:
Erica Mather Instagram
Navigating Post Traumatic Growth with Eden Grimaldi
Eden Grimaldi, founder and owner of PR and branding company, MediaCraft, joins Yuliana on the show today to take listeners on the journey of the most challenging year in her life and to demonstrate how she became unstoppable after facing those challenges. Her fearlessness, resolve and optimism, despite going through a traumatic period, is so inspiring and today she speaks about how her post traumatic growth involved developing these very qualities.
Eden begins the conversation by describing the events that led up to her cancer diagnosis - dying parents, a hellacious divorce, and an economic crash. She then talks about how she was an adultified child who had to learn to do everything herself and how those events led up to her breakdown. Eden describes herself as a confident person, but her confidence and fearlessness became powerful after going through a traumatic time. She also discusses her company, MediaCraft, the growth and future of the company, and gives advice to those facing various challenges to always ask for help, never fear, and build up confidence. The episode concludes with Eden describing the song that she feels best describes her life as a fighter. Fearless, confident, and optimistic, Eden teaches us here today that, when life gives you lemons, you make the best lemonade on the planet.
Episode Highlights:
● Eden’s post traumatic growth after her cancer diagnosis.
● The stressful events that led up to Eden’s diagnosis.
● How childhood adultification impacts lives.
● How post traumatic growth reflects in your life personally and professionally.
● Navigating your nervous system and managing stress after a life-threatening event.
● How MediaCraft is aiding the visibility of businesses.
● Looking to the future of MediaCraft post-COVID.
● Eden’s advice to those facing challenges.
● Living your life in kodachrome.
● How to overcome your fear and build your confidence.
● The one song that describes Eden’s life
Quotes:
“When something is so seismic and so large that occurs in your life…it forces you to reevaluate everything.”
“I've been conditioned to be a fighter and a survivor from a very early age, because I had to function that way when I was child...and no, that's not a healthy way to live.”
“I was standing on the corner of 10th and 17th Street and I just had a complete meltdown on the corner.”
“When you go through something like that…..it creates such a strength in you, and it creates this feeling of, ‘If I've been through that, there's nothing that can take me down.’”
“When you're aware that you have an expiration date,...and you realize that you don't have that many years left, you start to make decisions, and you start to direct your behavior in a different way that allows you to make time for those people in your life that really enhanced your life.”
“People just need to try a lot of different things and not be afraid to reach out for help, and just test things because different things work for different people.”
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Overcoming an Eating Disorder in the Fitness Industry with Amanda Murdock Global Head of Content at Fitxr
Today’s episode of Phoenix Tales comes with a trigger warning, as we will be discussing eating disorders. Host Yuliana Kim-Grant speaks with Amanda Murdock, the Senior Director of Fitness for the Daily Burn. Amanda shares her candid story about struggling with an eating disorder while working in the wellness industry, what prompted her to finally seek help, and how this experience ultimately made her stronger and more resilient. Amanda opens up about her long road to recovery, the connection between mental illness and eating disorders, as well as the common trigger of needing to feel in control when life becomes chaotic. Amanda explains how she keeps this urge in check as she deals with life’s inevitable challenges moving forward, and she tells Yuliana about taking her recovery one day at a time. You’ll also hear how Amanda’s experience informed her passion for body positivity and body acceptance, and why she feels people of all shapes and sizes deserve to enjoy fitness and working out.
To learn more about Amanda’s inspiring story and the importance of believing in yourself, follow her on Instagram. Thank you for listening.
Episode Highlights:
- How Amanda’s struggles with an eating disorder changed the trajectory of her life, physically, emotionally, and professionally, and made her more resilient
- Navigating being a training and preaching about healthy living while dealing with an eating disorder - this made her feel like an imposter and pushed her to get help
- Amanda has always had body dysmorphia, but a series of big changes in her life pulled the trigger and caused her to develop a full-blown eating disorder
- She isolated from family and friends and felt that no one noticed what was going on
- The connection between mental illness and eating disorders
- A toxic relationship prompted her to seek help and really invest in her recovery with the support of a nutritionist
- Eating disorders are often triggered when you feel like your life is out of control
- She takes her recovery one day at a time, one moment at a time
- Amanda is resilient by nature, and always knew she would eventually recover - it was just a matter of when
- The eating disorder treatment program at Laureate really prepared her for how to deal with the outside world
- She is getting ready to start her family, despite years of worrying anorexia had affected her fertility
- Amanda does not talk about weight or “earning your food” in her fitness career, and feels passionately that people of all shapes and sizes deserve to enjoy fitness and working out
- Body positivity and body acceptance
- The one song that best represents Amanda’s life
- The importance of believing in yourself, and instilling that in her clients as well as her unborn child
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When ‘Life Threatening’ Becomes ‘Life Altering’ with Mary Cerdeiras
Mary Cerdeiras is Yuliana’s very special guest on the podcast today. Faced with a diagnosis of Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2009, Mary decided to complement the traditional Western treatment she was receiving with alternative treatments, a decision which would ultimately shape her life from that moment forward. Today, we are all so very privileged to listen in as she shares her inspirational tale of courage, commitment, and renewal.
Mary begins by recounting that challenging moment in her life, describing what her life was like at that time, and reviewing both the conventional and alternative treatments which she received. She goes on to describe the sense of renewal she felt upon becoming cancer-free, how it changed her life, her journey to become a Yoga Teacher, and what enabled her to continue moving forward and find her new direction in life. Mary draws the episode to a close by sharing how she navigates the more competitive and youth/beauty focused aspects of the Yoga world, details of her Yoga and trauma work, and one book which she feels describes her life. As Yuliana notes, this is a podcast that celebrates inspirational people who have faced their challenges in life and found renewal, and, as you will hear, Mary Cerdeiras definitely qualifies as a ranking member of that noble assemblage.
Episode Highlights:
- The challenging moment that reshaped the course of Mary’s life
- What her life was like when the challenge arose in her life
- The alternative treatments she used to complement the traditional Western treatments she was receiving for her cancer
- The sense of renewal she felt in becoming cancer-free and how it changed her life
- Teaching yoga
- What enabled Mary to move forward and find a new direction in life
- How Mary navigates the terrain of entering such a competitive and youth and body focused field as Yoga
- Her Yoga and trauma work
- One book that describes Mary’s life
Quotes:
“Back in 2009. I was diagnosed with cancer and Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma...that definitely woke me up to crazy reality, and it changed the trajectory of my life.”
“I always wanted to do things holistically.”
“That's always been my life - staying away from toxins and stuff like that.”
“Why don't you do the chemo and also do the organic dieting and whatever you're doing?”
“The Yoga helped me so much - the stretching and the breathing.”
“But something inside of me said, ‘This is not it...you've got too much to do, you're not done, yet, on this earth.”
“I took charge of my own wellbeing.”
“You make it sound so seamless, and I'm sure it wasn't as you were living it.”
“I also had two parents that never said I couldn't do anything.”
“Trauma has been something that I've been studying for years through different teachers.”
“I've been on the other side, so I know how that person feels.”
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Ginger McKnight-Chavers' Phoenix Tale
Welcome to the premier podcast episode of Phoenix Tales, a show about women overcoming challenges in their lives, and, like the Phoenix, being reborn with their lives reimagined. Joining our host, Yuliana Kim-Grant, this week is Ginger McKnight-Chavers, author of In the Heart of Texas. A graduate of Georgetown’s School of Foreign Service and Harvard Law School, Ginger was a practicing lawyer when challenges in her personal life inspired her to pursue another course, resulting in her own Phoenix Tale which she shares with listeners here today.
Ginger begins the conversation by describing those challenges which she faced, the traits she possessed which kept her moving forward through them, and how she came to possess them. She goes on to describe the insecurities she faced in her career as a woman of color, her feelings of being an imposter and the impact this had, her advice for empty nesters on re-engaging with the world, and giving yourself permission to pursue your passion. The episode concludes with Ginger sharing the song that she feels best describes her life. Eloquent, insightful, engaging, and thoroughly inspirational, Ginger and her tale of remaking her life provide the perfect foundation and springboard for what you can expect to hear in upcoming episodes of the Phoenix Tales podcast.
Episode Highlights:
- The challenges that redirected the course of Ginger’s life
- The traits that kept Ginger moving forward through her challenges and how she came to possess them
- The insecurities she faced in her career as a woman of color
- Her feelings of being an imposter and the impact upon her
- Ginger’s advice for empty nesting listeners to re-engage with the world
- Giving yourself permission to pursue or reignite a passion
- The one song that describes Ginger’s life
Quotes:
“I stopped seeing myself as an attorney who just liked to write in my spare time to taking writing seriously, and it transformed my life.”
“I'm the kind of person that thinks about things and analyzes them before I react for better and for worse.”
“I just became this sort of serial kind of multitask or tunnel vision kind of machine.”
“As a writer, you know, I think most of us feel like an imposter.”
“You belong there, but there's just a little something going on underneath the surface.”
“You're watching the world in order to navigate it because you feel like you're not one of those people that just waltzes down the red carpet.”
“You're always on the lookout for a situation that could be harmful or dangerous.”
“Am I at the in-law's house or in my family home? Just that undercurrent of you're never sure when someone's going to push you out the door.”
“It is a blessing to have really supportive and grounded parents and grandparents that were very active in your life.”
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