Excuses Are Clues

📍 Episode Description:
In this episode of The Talking Rehab Podcast, Dr. Fred Bagares invites you to stop dismissing your excuses—and start listening to them. Drawing from the story of a patient named Sarah, he unpacks how our most convincing reasons for inaction often hide something deeper: fear, identity wounds, and unconscious memories. This isn’t about guilt-tripping. It’s about reclaiming ownership of your body and recovery.

You’ll hear why people avoid doing the very things that would help them heal, and how to shift from self-protection to progress. With real-life examples, a powerful mental reframe, and a practical 3-step system for taking back control, this episode challenges the way we think about pain, progress, and personal agency.

If you’ve ever said “I don’t have time,” “It still hurts,” or “I’m just not ready”—this one’s for you.

🕰️ Key Timestamps + Themes:

[00:00] The Silence After the Excuse
A pivotal patient moment where excuses stop—and the real fear surfaces.

[01:00] Why Excuses Aren’t Lies
How logistics mask deeper emotional truths—and what to do with them.

[02:00] Sarah’s Story: Shoulder Pain & Childhood Memories
A case study of avoidance rooted in a 12-year-old’s trauma.

[03:00] Golf, Renovations, and Priorities
Reframing contradiction as insight into what we truly value.

[04:00] Who’s in Charge of Your Recovery?
The power of asking: is your fear, past, or circumstance in the driver’s seat?

[05:00] The 3-Step Ownership Shift
Step 1: Accept the discomfort.
Step 2: Reclaim your authority.
Step 3: Let everything else be consultants—not decision-makers.

[06:00] What Changes When You’re Back in Charge
Fear shifts tone, excuses shift form, your body starts to trust again.

[07:00] Marcus: The Construction Worker’s Breakthrough
A second case study that proves discomfort doesn’t have to mean defeat.

[08:00] The New Relationship with Pain and Fear
When you listen—but don’t obey—your excuses, everything transforms.

[09:00] The Reframe: Excuses as Feedback, Not Failures
Instead of asking how to eliminate them, ask what they’re really saying.

[10:00] Final Message
“Your excuses are the weather. You are still the one who chooses to step outside.”

Support the show