Dannah had dreamed of a career in law enforcement since childhood, but her life was turned upside down right before college graduation, when a trusted mentor told her she was too empathetic for a career as a federal agent. How could she move forward when her true self and her true calling seemed to conflict? She found a way– as an author and expert who helps women navigate life with both confidence and safety. Listen to today's episode for more of her story and lots of tips to navigate our unsafe world without getting paranoid.

Read the show notes for today's episode at terricole.com/802

Does your chest ever tighten when your phone rings and you see it's someone in your family who you know needs something?

Does your stomach drop when you get a text message that says, "We need to talk"?

If you're already exhausted before you say yes to a whole plethora of things your family of origin may need from you, this post is for you.

Family obligations are something I have had a complicated relationship with. Growing up, I felt a deep loyalty to my family of origin, particularly my mother and my sisters. And it got complicated when I fell in love with my husband and became a bonus mom to three teenage sons. There was so much going on, and the truth is, you can't really prioritize both.

There's a natural shift that happens when you have a family of your own, or like me, you marry into a family. And when I was the one keeping it all together in my family of origin, I had to really decide what I was going to do. I was confronted with the extent of my obligation.

So let's talk about family obligations, guilt, roles we didn't actively volunteer for, and why so many capable, loving, high-functioning people feel trapped by the responsibilities they quietly resent.

Read the show notes for today's episode at terricole.com/801

Do you think you're codependent? Or are you unsure?

In this post, I'm going to walk you through nine questions to help you understand, pretty conclusively, if you are a high-functioning codependent.

I want you to walk away with a clear snapshot of your own codependent behaviors. And I want to be clear: this is a no-judgment zone. If we get really judgmental, we're not going to look at what we need to look at. If we let shame dictate what we examine, we'll stay in denial. And then nothing changes.

You deserve to create relationships, lives, and careers that thrill and fulfill you. So let's look honestly at where you are.

Read the show notes for today's episode at terricole.com/800

When you're a high-functioning codependent, you don't look stuck.

You look capable. You're the one who pulls everything together, gets it all done, and rarely asks for help. People see you as someone who has it handled.

But there's a cost. And recovering from being a high-functioning codependent is the path to living the happy, healthy, balanced life you deserve.

I created the HFC Recovery Code because people kept asking me for a condensed list to help them remember their rights and responsibilities when they're feeling overwhelmed or pulled toward doing too much.

Read the show notes for today's episode at terricole.com/799

I want to start with a question.

When you want something, do you have a way of talking yourself out of it? Like, let's be "realistic"? Or say the odds are slim?

Do you allow yourself to want what you want with all your heart?

That's what this episode of The Terri Cole Show is all about. We're going to talk about manifesting.

Note: This is a little woo, I'll admit. But this is one real aspect of how I've created my current life. I believe that what we think about and what we feel impacts what happens in our lives.

So let's get into it.

Read the show notes for today's episode at terricole.com/798

In my almost three decades as a psychotherapist, I've seen passive-aggressive anger quietly destroy more relationships than infidelity.

It's a slow drip of poison. And most of us don't even realize we're doing it.

Do you ever say you're fine when you're not? Use sarcasm to let someone know you're pissed off instead of just saying it?

Or are you ever on the receiving end of these behaviors?

If you've done it or been on the receiving end of it, welcome to being a human in relationships with other people.

On this episode of The Terri Cole Show, we are going to discuss passive-aggressive anger. Why we do it, what it looks like, and what we can do instead.

Read the show notes for today's episode at terricole.com/797

When two people with the same traumatic experience find one another, is it an incredible coincidence, or simple fate? Gabrielle Stone and Taymour Ghazi don't know the answer either, but it happened to them. On today's episode, Gabrielle and Taymour share their long journey to finding one another and holding one another in healing after each had a childhood experience encountering the bodies of their deceased parents. They also describe how they found time to write their new book Finding You Through Finding Me while also caring for their newborn child.

Read the show notes for today's episode at terricole.com/796

Have you ever looked at people who seem to have figured it out? They're in their sixties, seventies, or eighties, and they're healthy. They're happy. They're in great relationships. And you think, "what do they know that I don't?"

Guess what? We don't have to wonder anymore.

The Harvard Study of Adult Development is the longest longitudinal study ever done on physical and emotional well-being. Over 80 years, researchers tracked people across their entire lives to answer one question: what actually makes life feel good?

The results were surprising: The quality of your relationships is the number one predictor of your mental health, your physical health, and your overall life satisfaction.

It isn't money, success, fame, productivity, or hustling harder. It's not achieving some perfect version of yourself. On today's episode, I'm sharing some objective ways you can make your life happier and healthier, according to 80 years of research.

Read the show notes for today's episode at terricole.com/795